My week prior to half term was a rather hectic one: the preceding Thursday and Friday were spent at the excellent ISA Annual Conference; my weekend then involved two days of solo childcare, with my wife enjoying a trip away with old friends; the Monday and Tuesday which opened the week were taken up with my leadership of a learning review of a fellow school within the Bellevue Group - Surval Montreux in Switzerland.

As with all aspects of school life, positive change occurs best when relationships become lasting, strong and trusting.

This was my fourth trip to Montreux, home of the famous Jazz festival, and each time, I’ve been able to build my contextual understanding of the educational setting, becoming increasingly more aware of the challenges which the school faces and the opportunities which have presented themselves for growth.

I’ve already explained the Learning Review process in a previous post, and the dividends which have been gleaned already from having a team of skilled and impartial observers in the school to measure a designated part of educational delivery.

Being on the other side of the operation - and it has been pleasing to see three of our staff form teams conducting reviews in this cycle - also has huge benefits. For this review, I was ably assisted by Nathalie Andre, Deputy Head at another Bellevue school, Ecole des Roches in Normandy. She was able to get through a power of work in terms of lesson observations, student and staff interviews, as well as identifying some particularly useful findings for future application.

For this particular review, the Principal at Surval, Nicola Dudley, and the Head of Teaching, Learning and Assessment, Thomas Byrne, had identified questioning primarily as the focus for the review, along with an exploration of the students' views on the standard of feedback being provided by staff.

In many ways, I’m in a unique position to provide the insight required to help Surval grow and develop. Ealing and Surval have much in common in terms of size, age groups taught and a philosophy of personalised learning based on trusting relationships between staff and students. Having taken my post as Principal at Ealing one year before Nicola became Headmistress at Surval, there are numerous ways in which good practice can be shared, successfully implemented ideas can be passed on and opportunities for mutual gain can be explored.

Having now reached a point where I’m confident about my judgement, and its subsequent impact in moving Ealing forward apace, and having been given scope to share my expertise over the last few years with Surval, I feel that it’s a relationship which can only yield advantages as time together becomes more frequent.

This particular relationship is something that I’ve grown to really enjoy being part of.

Surval is a school with immense potential, a hard working and dedicated staff who share a strong desire to positively shape the lives of the girls who attend. A breathtakingly picturesque setting which never fails to inspire when visited. A wealth of activities which have been embedded in order to encourage students to challenge themselves, own their journey, and develop leadership capabilities.

With this vision for students in place, what is required is commitment towards it through every facet of the school. Through what happens in the classroom, what happens in terms of boarding and what happens in terms of enrichment. The journey destination has been well defined, the right track has been found and it seems that the right people are on the bus to help the school get to where it wants to be.

In a similar process at Ealing, whereby we have worked tirelessly towards the ideals of being an empowering, inclusive community, it takes complete adherence to make such an ethos become a reality. It needs a relentless focus on building student skills to build their own capacity to strengthen their confidence, motivation and proficiency. It needs a persistent application of the highest possible standards to ensure that students do not let themselves down. It needs a complete focus on wellbeing for all, to leave everyone - staff, students and, indeed, parents, in no doubt that they are valued and an integral part of the momentum of forward movement.

What makes this happen, of course, is good leadership.

The sort of leadership which empowers others to make an impact, at all levels - which nurtures that desire, supports it, guides and advises it, and celebrates it when it all comes to fruition.

Such leadership takes time to embed, but on such fertile land does everyone grow, and the ‘good harvest’ occurs.

A post has emerged on LinkedIn lately which carries this analogy forward. It was a slide from a powerpoint likening successful farmers with successful leaders, and giving guidance to follow their example:

• Don’t shout at the crops
• Don’t blame the crop for not growing fast enough
• Don’t uproot crops before they’ve had the chance to grow
• Choose the best plants for the soil you have
• Irrigate and fertilise regularly to promote growth
• Remove weeds
• Remember you will have good seasons and bad seasons - you can’t control the weather, you can only be prepared for it

Analogies are never perfect, but there’s a great deal of sense in this one. I asked Chat GPT what a good farmer needs. And Chat GPT told me that “Possibly the most essential characteristic of a farmer is having a never-give-up attitude. This is the mark of a successful farmer who will stay in the game for the long run. Patience, perseverance and passion make it possible to push through the challenges and failures.”

Substituting ‘farmer’ for ‘leader’ tends to fit just as well.