February 2012

The know zone

  • Fault lines
    As keen readers of this column know, ‘vicarious liability’ is the legal doctrine that makes employers answerable for the actions of an employee in the course of his or her employment. But how does this translate to extra-curricular school activities? Richard Bird explains. More
  • Stay in touch?
    Teacher contact ratio is a topic of perennial importance but attempting to work out what the ideal figure should be is always a frustrating business, says Sam Ellis More
  • Lead vocals
    Quotes from Confucius, Douglas Adams and Aristotle More
  • Action man
    Until this spring, Graeme Hornsby is assistant principal (business management) at Lutterworth College, Leicestershire, a school with a £10m budget, 400 staff and 2,000 pupils where he has worked since 1989. A keen triathlete, he regularly undertakes a 600-mile round trip to see his beloved Celtic FC play. More
  • E-safety first...
    Online safety is in the spotlight throughout the world in February. More
  • Adding value
    A simple answer to saving money More
  • A level playing field
    UCAS has proposed allowing students to apply to university after they receive their A level results, even though it means moving the A level teaching period and shortening the exam window. Is it the best way to improve the admissions system? What are the implications? Members share their views. More
  • Leaders' surgery
    Healthy outlook provides food for thought & Early retirement calculations More
  • Old challenges for a new year...
    While the ongoing pension negotiations were high on the agenda of last Council, on 8-9 December, intelligent accountability was also a hot topic, with discussions in various committees on Ofsted, local authorities and the role of governors. More
  • Failing to plan...?
    The National Curriculum Review’s expert panel report, published in December, concurred with ASCL’s view that it is pointless to change the curriculum until we’ve agreed what purpose the curriculum is expected to serve. This debate has not happened, says Brian Lightman. More
  • Podium panic!
    Keeping the guest speaker sober and on-message while peppering your own presentation with song titles and wondering what some of the gongs are actually for – all concerns as prize-giving ceremonies loom large… More
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Until this spring, Graeme Hornsby is assistant principal (business management) at Lutterworth College, Leicestershire, a school with a £10m budget, 400 staff and 2,000 pupils where he has worked since 1989. A keen triathlete, he regularly undertakes a 600-mile round trip to see his beloved Celtic FC play.

Action man

Is the role of business manager becoming more important in austere times?

No, the disciplines never change. It’s the nature of business, however, that when things are healthy you have positive discussions with colleagues and governors about how to use money to drive the school forward while, in difficult times, you can be talking about making cuts and affecting the livelihoods of people you’ve worked alongside for years.

So you’re not just a bunch of killjoys?

I can’t recall a time when I have said ‘no’ to a head. The kind of thing I say is, “I strongly recommend you don’t do that as it’s illegal and just because the prisons are full doesn’t mean you won’t go to jail for that health and safety breach or failure to pay a VAT bill.”

How has your role paid dividends?

A few years ago, we established a partnership with two local authorities to develop leisure facilities. The town council put up a pavilion and the school, as part of a lottery bid, was able to develop an artificial sports pitch – all for the use of the local community as well as the school.

Do you do the triathlon because single-event sports are for lightweights?

I needed something in the summer to keep me fit and I found the multiple disciplines were also a good release from the stress of the job. Events can last up to 14 hours. The swimming comes before the running and cycling; the thinking is that if you can get a mile out to sea, there’s a good chance you can make it all the way back, too. There’s a view among single spor ts folk that multi-sports people are jacks-of-all-trades, mastersof- none but I’d get very bored doing just the one sport.

Is that why the variety of your day job appeals so much?

In a way, but because of the size of our school and the new responsibilities coming our way, we’re going to have specialist finance, HR and facilities managers and I have recommended my role should be made redundant.

Wait a minute – you are letting yourself go?

You have to be professional about these things and recognise you can be a significant resource on the payroll. An analogy could be “Does it need a multi-sports player who knows a little about HR, finance and facilities or does a place this size need the equivalent of single-sport specialists in these roles?” I’m employed to advise the governors and head on the best use of available resources. I’m not here to do what’s best for Graeme Hornsby.

  • Interview by John Holt

Pro.file

Do you know an ASCL member with an unusual story, interesting background or exceptional achievement to share? If you’d like to recommend someone else or yourself to appear in a future profile, email leader@ascl.org.uk

Graeme Hornsby

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