When I tell you the title of the book, you may find it strange that it left me so affected. It's not got the most catchy of titles, and its subject is education. But that's the point: education can be truly inspiring.
The book is called Turning Heads: Reflections on Leadership, and has been released under the auspices of the National College for School Leadership. It's a simple volume, short, with profiles of ten very different headteachers, all Teaching Award winners. Each has a great - and unique - tale to tell.
Some teach in cities, some in the country and one at a special school (where she integrated a small group of pupils with profound learning difficulties into the rest of the school; before that, they had been in an isolated classroom). Some have been teaching for decades, others haven't. Some are male, and some are female. But they are all inspiring, and they have all made such a huge, positive, difference to children, and whole communities.
One head, Sarah Dignasse, has changed the curriculum at Key Stage 4, by offering some pupils the chance to spend two days a week in school, and the other three at college or with an employer. She wanted to make her local school, Plume, in Maldon, Essex, one where children and parents were happy. They are. University applications are now up from 40 to 90 percent, while GCSE results are up from 37 percent (from when she arrived) to 60 percent who got five A* to C last year. It's very impressive.
Meanwhile Jasminder Grewal, headteacher of North Primary School in Southall runs what Ofsted describes as an "outstanding" school, while the dynamic Kevin Harcombe, of Redlands Primary in Hampshire seems to be full of passion and ideas. David Kirk (pictured above) headteacher of Ash Green Primary in Halifax, has turned his school around, working with the entire community and introducing new traditions (an annual musical in the town centre, for example) which children adore. He hated school as a child, but when you read his profile, you think how lucky the children at his school now are.
But while all of the teachers are different, they also have some things in common. They all have huge influence on children (and parents). And they are also all good leaders.
The book got me wondering just what does make a great headteacher. I think it's the ability to lead, but also to manage. It's being able to remain positive, to know what you want, but also be open to ideas. And it's being open to change too.
The NCSL - who say that successful heads need to build a "vision" and also understand and develop people - recently carried out a survey of over 300 heads judged by Ofsted as "outstanding" for their leadership. These teachers were asked to rank the factors which had contributed the most to their success. They put "a strong personal faith/philosophy and vocation" at the top, and other inspiring role models second. In other words, to get good headteachers, you need good headteachers.
What do you think? Did you have a particularly inspiring headteacher? Or quite the opposite? I think that headteachers set the tone of the school and make a huge impression on children and parents alike. My secondary school head was a very formidable character, hugely impressive and intelligent, but also able to be approached if need be. I think that's a good mix. What about you?
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