October 2014

The know zone

  • Countdown to change
    With six months to go before the implementation of the reformed Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS), David Binnie highlights the main issues behind the modifications. More
  • What's the outcome?
    Individual lesson grades have been dropped, so now inspectors are gathering evidence from a range of activities and lesson observations to judge the quality of teaching. Suzanne O’Farrell examines the implications. More
  • Calling to account
    Val Andrew explores what’s new in the 2014 Academies Financial Handbook. More
  • Stimulated staffrooms
    To motivate your staff , work out what inspires them, offer guidance and direction – but don’t micromanage. More
  • Keep it brief
    Whether it’s regularly in the staff room, occasionally during break-times or on video for special occasions, Carl Smith reckons everything in moderation is best. More
  • ASCL PD events
    ASCL PD runs a number of CPD courses to help school and college leaders motivate their staff . More
  • In recognition
    Nominate your colleagues for a Queen’s honour and give them the recognition they deserve… More
  • Saving schools £1 million
    Following a detailed discussion with the DfE last summer regarding monetary savings within schools and academies, the team at Zenergi promised to start a brand new SOS campaign ‘Save our Schools £1 million’ on their energy bills. More
  • An unstable mix?
    Last month, the Secretary of State for Education Nicky Morgan dismissed reports that she was going to ask Ofsted to oversee compulsory setting. More
  • Leaders' surgery
    David Snashall talks about three real situations from the calls received through the ASCL hotline. More
Bookmark and Share

Whether it’s regularly in the staff room, occasionally during break-times or on video for special occasions, Carl Smith reckons everything in moderation is best.

Keep it brief

I’m a twice-a-week man myself. Of course, there are colleagues who manage five and a few who abstain altogether, but I suspect I am notalone in thinking that a happy medium is never a bad thing.

There was nothing on the National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) about how many briefings a week is enough and Professor Hattie has absolutely nothing to say on the matter. The post-Govian DfE is silent on this subject and Ofsted couldn’t care less. So what is your well-meaning, bog-standard academy head to do? Even worse, what is your run-of-the-mill executive head of an academy chain with three schools to do?

In my younger and wiser days, I worked in a huge school with four whole-staff briefings and one year-team briefing a week. Every morning the staff room (ah yes, remember those) would be crammed with more people than Coventry get for a typical home match these days and the head would give her nuggets of wisdom before inviting people to give notices.

In such a staff room at least half the staff had no idea who the other half were so, if nothing else, the whole event reminded everyone how insignificant they were and the head no doubt surveyed her kingdom with some degree of satisfaction (‘If this many people are listening to me, I must be very important indeed’).

Apologetic and disorganised

At another school there was a break-time briefing for some reason. Naturally, it was the only break-time that doing duty on the door of the dining hall was oversubscribed. The briefing invariably overran, and staff arrived at the lessons that followed apologetic and disorganised, but at least we all knew that the Year 8 football team had played well the night before.

While visiting an absolutely huge school not so very long ago I was staggered to find that there were no briefings at all. The head explained: “I tried them but found myself making things up to say each morning, which seemed a bit pointless.” Another school I came across had dallied with US-style video broadcasts to every room. This virtual briefing took on 1984 overtones, as a large head appeared on the interactive whiteboard (not that the head was large) and ‘Big Brother’ issued cheery notices like a form of benign deity. The problem was that the briefing was definitely a one-way a air, as staff could hardly put their hand up and give notices, so it never really caught on.

Most of us like them because they give us a platform to ‘set the tone’ and be seen by everyone, but I am of the view that you should leave them wanting more. Once is hardly worth the effort, but any more than three times becomes a chore.

After all, they don’t call them briefings for nothing.


Carl Smith is ASCL Branch Secretary for Rutland and Head of Centre at Rutland County College.

Want the last word?

Last Word always welcomes contributions from members. If you’d like to share your humorous observations of school life, email Permjit Mann at leader@ascl.org.uk ASCL officers a modest honorarium.

LEADING READING