EDITOR’S CHOICE Tickled pink for a good cause

CHOPARD HAPPY

OCEAN STEEL, £7,290

Water resistant up to an impressive 300 metres and boasting fi ve free moving diamonds to echo the eff ect created by oxygen bubbles. Also serves as a timely reminder the clocks go back on 25 October. From Mallory 1-5 Bridge Street, Bath; www.mallory-jewellers.com

WE’RE IN THE PINK We’ve been thinking pink for Wear It Pink day on 23 October for Breast Cancer Awareness, which runs the month of October

WHOOPS-A-DAISY- FITTED T-SHIRT, £25 Holly Jane’s whimsical illustrations, that form part of the Shirts Off Our Backs t-shirt design cooperative, are inspired by her hometown of Bath. From Shirts off Our Backs, www.shirtsoff ourbacks.co.uk

EDDY TOP BY STINE GOYA, £130 There’s a slight A-line silhouette to this beautiful plaid blouse with balloon sleeves and buttoned cuff s that brings about a voluminous and airy look. From Grace & Mabel, 3 George Street, Bath; www.graceandmabel.co.uk

ORGANZA ORGANZA SCRUNCHY, £8.50 SCRUNCHY, £8.50 Made from organza, Made from organza, this pastel pink scrunchy this pastel pink scrunchy is beautifully delicate, a is beautifully delicate, a subtle statement piece for subtle statement piece for your wrist and hair. your wrist and hair. From VLOS; Made in Bath; From VLOS; Made in Bath; www.vlos-shop.co.uk www.vlos-shop.co.uk

ZIPPETTE BOOT, £225 ZIPPETTE BOOT, £225 You can really make a stand in You can really make a stand in these unlined perforated cutaway these unlined perforated cutaway leather boots in a striking pink and gold combo. From Chanii B, 9 Milsom Place, Bath; www.chaniibshoes.com

VETTE BOUCLÉ COAT, £170 In the early ’50s, Chanel introduced the world to buckled tweed, or as the French called it, bouclé. Prized for its soft, looped texture and ability to instantly bestow menswear classics with feminine fl air, bouclé is a staple of the season. From Anthropologie, 1-4 New Bond St, Bath; www.anthropologie.com

SOFT PINK ALPACA BED SOCKS, £18 Made from 90 per cent pure alpaca, these super soft bed socks that will keep your feet toasty and tickled pink this winter. From Bibico, 9A Bartlett Street, Bath; www.bibico.co.uk

PEONY & BLUSH SUEDE COLOGNE 100ML, £100 With a scent described as exquisitely fragile, and fl irtatious with the juicy bite of red apple with the opulence of jasmine, rose and gillyfl ower. Plus, from every sale, Jo Malone will be donating £20 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) throughout October. From Jo Malone London, 6-7 Old Bond St, Bath; www.jomalone.co.uk

CASUAL JUMPER, £149

A luxury, wool rich casual jumper. It’s a generous A luxury, wool rich casual jumper. It’s a generous fi t and looks good styled with jeans, leggings or mix fi t and looks good styled with jeans, leggings or mix it up with a skirt. Jumper is tunic length with a it up with a skirt. Jumper is tunic length with a stepped hem and side slits. Finished with a stepped hem and side slits. Finished with a funnel neck and turn back cuff s. funnel neck and turn back cuff s.

Stockists Rossiters of Bath, 38-41 Broad Stockists Rossiters of Bath, 38-41 Broad Street, Bath; www.rossitersofbath.com Street, Bath; www.rossitersofbath.com

TRIANGLE PLUNGE BRA BY FLEUR DE PASSION, £89 The plunging triangle bra with embroidered trim on rigid tulle provides curves, cleavage and the comfort of underwiring. Stockists The Dressing Room, 7 Quiet Street, Bath; www.dressingroombath.com

MEET THE HEAD TEACHER

Leading Bath’s schools through unprecedented times

VICKY DUPRAS HEAD TEACHER, ABBOT ALPHEGE ACADEMY 01225 580 281; abbot-alphege.org.uk/

I am delighted to be the new head teacher of Abbot Alphege Academy in Lansdown, Bath. I started in April this year, the middle of lockdown – a very interesting way to start a new role!

What is your school ethos? Our school is very proud to be a Church of England primary school and we embed our Christian values in everything we do. We strive to make sure that every child is academically fulfilled, making great progress from their starting points, whilst ensuring they feel safe, happy and cared for. We are a truly inclusive school, welcoming children of all backgrounds and working in genuine partnership with our fantastic parents. What exciting things are coming up at your school? Despite many of the exciting events in our school diary being curtailed because of the pandemic, as a positive, forward thinking team, we are making our curriculum exciting and relevant for our children. We are giving them lots of opportunities to engage in creative and artistic endeavours, as well as academic learning. Christmas is very important to us, so we are working hard to plan plenty of fun, festive activities!

What do you find most satisfying about the job? Having led a number of schools as head teacher, what I find most satisfying about Abbot Alphege is how amazing and close the staff team are. The welfare and learning of our children is at the centre of everything each member of our team does.

How is the school changing? Since opening in 2017, the school has been small, with no head teacher until now – I am the first! The biggest change has been how we now communicate so well with our parents and community. We are changing most elements of our curriculum offer, making it exciting, inclusive and challenging for every child. Now a well-resourced school, we will develop this further as we grow to our full capacity of 210 children.

How does our school differ from others? It is a wonderful time to join us as we currently only have around 80 children in school. Our class sizes are mostly small, meaning that children get important extra attention from our teachers. We have a beautiful new building and large grounds, so the children have lots of space to spread their wings.

DR TREVOR RICHARDS CPSYCHOL, ALL HALLOWS SCHOOL 01749 881600; www.allhallowsschool.co.uk

How long have you been at All Hallows? I first joined All Hallows in 1993 as head of Geography but took time away to study, returning as the school psychologist after gaining my Doctorate in Child and Educational Psychology at Bristol. Quickly involved on full-time basis once again, I was deputy head before being appointed head in January 2017.

What is your school’s ethos? Happiness and wellbeing are paramount. Added to this, we are seeking to develop a range of skills including a willingness to take risks, a keenness to work as part of a team and open-mindedness, both in terms of thinking outside the box and in believing there are no ceilings to learning. Creativity is embedded within the curriculum from the classroom to the games field, empowering the children to take charge of their learning.

What do you find most satisfying about the job? We can and we have developed a curriculum we truly believe in. Unconstrained by the need to do SATs and having redesigned our own systems for assessment, we are maximising opportunities for learning whilst minimising stress.

What are the qualities of a good teacher? Alongside delivering inspirational lessons and developing great relationships with the children, the best teachers are amateur psychologists. Teaching is an inherently social process and a good teacher is constantly thinking about each individual child and what they need to flourish.

What challenges come with the role? Time! Finding enough of it to get to know the children well and celebrate their learning journey. I want every one of them to know that they can come and knock on my door at any time and have the confidence to do so – even if it means being held to ransom in my office by the Evil Pea until Year 1 can come to my rescue! We also need to find time to step back and reflect on the bigger picture of what we are trying to achieve, challenging the fundamental criteria on which our provision is based in order to ensure that we continue to provide the very best education we can.

TIM NAYLOR PRINCIPAL, BATH ACADEMY 01225 334577; www.bathacademy.co.uk

Where did you begin your career? Well I have had three different careers! Ten years in monastic life; then in psychology; and in education for most of my working life. I have taught undergraduate psychologists in forensic psychology, then became head of sixth form at a large FE College in Yorkshire, followed by roles as vice principal and principal at sixth form colleges.

What subject did you most enjoy at school? At my school you could choose from Classics (for the brightest), Sciences (for the second league egg heads) or what was called ‘Modern Studies’ (for the ‘also rans’ like me). Literature was my favourite as it dealt with people’s lives. I avidly read Albert Camus and André Gide and any other mildly subversive writers I could find. I also spent a lot of time listening to Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground.

What are the qualities of a good teacher? Encouragement. Do they like young people? Students learn from teachers they like and don’t learn from those they do not like. Teachers’ influence comes more from personal attributes rather than their teaching skills alone. We should aim to encourage our students, helping them to move from a ‘felt minus’ to a ‘felt plus’ so they feel adequate to the tasks of life and make their own personal contribution to society.

How does your school differ from others and what do you find most satisfying about working there? The aim is to arrange everything in the college so that the strong still have something for which to strive and the less confident do not withdraw in self-doubt and anxiety. The college takes around 100 students each year and teaches in groups of less than eight students. Knowing students well leads to good teaching, better learning and a more positive day-to-day community experience. Personal attention is a powerful educational force in challenging the impersonalism and anonymity experienced by many young people in today’s culture, making education more responsive to the realities of individual differences. The satisfaction comes from seeing individual young people develop and make the most of their lives.

LAUREL PENROSE PRINCIPAL AND CEO, BATH COLLEGE 01225 312191 www.bathcollege.ac.uk

How is College different to school? Further Education at College is a great alternative to sixth form as it offers a different learning environment where our students are treated as adults and where employability skills are central to the study programmes. Unlike school, we offer students the ability to specialise in a technical field, whilst still enabling them to get UCAS points for University with Level 3 courses. As an alternative way of learning we also offer apprenticeships, which enables students to earn while they learn.

How do you choose which courses to run? We talk to employers about what they need and look at national trends. Last year we introduced new courses including Psychology & Law and Fashion, Business & Retail, which have proved incredibly popular. Partnerships enhance the learning experience, with our Bath Theatre Academy for Performing Arts which works with the Theatre Royal, our Engineering department working with Rotork and our Catering Academy connecting with Michelin star restaurants.

What has surprised you this last academic year? The way that our students adapted to learning remotely. I have always been impressed with the young people who come through our doors, but their dedication to their studies, to building a community and helping each other through such a difficult end to the academic year was quite astounding.

When are you proudest to be Principal? When students flourish, achieve and progress and our community of staff prosper.

Where do you see Bath College in five years? I have big ambitions for the College over the next few years, pursuing excellence in all that we do. By 2023 we aim to be the most sought after College in the region, in the hope that by 2025 we will be the most sought after College in the UK, not necessarily the biggest but definitely the best.

MARK BREAREY HEAD OF KINGSWOOD PREP SCHOOL 01225 734460; www.kingswood.bath.sch.uk

What advice would you give to parents when choosing a school? Schools are about people and ethos. Structures, systems, facilities support this, but ultimately what drives the success of a school is the extent to which everyone who is a part of it feels happy and engaged and pulling towards a goal that is shared and understood, even if not always explicitly stated. Teachers who love teaching, pupils who love learning, a quiet ambition that revolves around always seeking to do your best in and out of the classroom but that also encourages you to aim high in all things and celebrates that journey in an atmosphere of mutual support – for me, these are the hallmarks of a great school and are qualities that I hope underpin much of what we do at King Edward’s. How has life at KES been impacted by Covid-19 this term? There are obvious visible impacts – the ‘bubbled’ year groups and careful geographical and logistically driven arrangements, such as staggered lunch timings, socially distanced assemblies and dedicated year group social and play space, however what has struck me amidst the clear sense that this is undoubtedly When I look back to my first year of teaching, it seems like a different world. There was no National Curriculum, reports were handwritten – in fountain pen! – safeguarding and wellbeing were unheard of, and health and safety was rudimentary. I remember crowding children into a minibus on bench seats without seatbelts – some children actually wanted to sit on the floor! Taking 40 children to Dartmoor with no risk assessment before the advent of the mobile phone, and enjoying pre-match ‘hospitality’ in the other school’s staff room before away fixtures. I also remember the member of staff who would do his breaktime duties while smoking his pipe and used to reward his pupils’ correct answers with half a Fisherman’s Friend!

Times have indeed changed, but, perhaps more than ever in this era of regulation and compliance, schools still require characters. Teachers have the ultimate responsibility of inspiring and enabling children to do their very best. I look back on my first teaching experience with the same fondness as I now look at the staggering range of opportunity that our children are blessed with. Fun, laughter and spontaneity a ‘different’ situation has been the genuine joy amongst so many pupils, staff (and parents!) that we are back in school and making the most of all the opportunities on offer. Outside the classroom we have a very full Drama programme, including rehearsing for several year group productions in a Festival of Theatre at the end of term; many of our major activities, such as the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme and our Combined Cadet Force are operating at an impressive level, and in the absence of fixtures against other schools we have had a very full sporting programme that has seen hundreds of pupils engaged in cricket, hockey and rugby after school and on Saturdays in a competitive but joyful programme of in house training sessions and matches, all carefully managed to ensure the safety of those involved.

What subject did you most enjoy at school?

I loved my time at school and enjoyed all my subjects, even the ones I wasn’t very good at! I was lucky to be able to study my three A Levels to varying extents at university (French, German and History) and have always got excited about trying to understand and appreciate the cultural context of literature and the arts, as well as the local impact that global events and movements can have on individuals and communities. I played a huge amount of sport at school (football and cricket), but was also in awe of those who performed on stage or in the are not words used frequently in an educational context, but without them a school is not a school. Dressing-up days, staff pantomimes, dance offs, bake offs, themed nights and lunch times all add a very special zest to a school.

To go back even further and reflect on when I was a Year 4 myself – I would think long and hard about offering advice. So much of life is about taking opportunities as they arise, brushing yourself down when you fall off the climbing frame or make a mistake. Life, like school, is about consistently having the attitude to ‘have a go’, to live in the moment and take an opportunity without worrying about failing or getting it wrong. Social media encourages us to believe that many things in our society have to be perfect; yet so much of life is not perfect. I really hope our children can embrace a challenge, think on their feet, have a robustness that allows them to learn from mistakes, and be team players, able to enjoy seeing others flourish.

At Kingswood Prep School, I really would like to think that we live each day with hope, with laughter, with an attitude that allows us to make mistakes and learn, with supportive, engaging and inspiring staff, enabling the children to leave at 11 with all the skills in place to thrive through

MARTIN BODEN HEADMASTER, KING EDWARD’S SCHOOL, BATH 01225 464313; www.kesbath.com

their teenage years.

concert hall and so have tried to encourage and develop that balance in the experience that pupils have at KES. Yes, we help them realise their full potential in the classroom, but I also want them to make the most of opportunities in other spheres and to grow through the joy of striving as a team, whether in the sporting arena, in the debating room, on an outdoors adventure or by harnessing the creative and expressive voice that has become such an important part of life at King Edward’s in recent years. I love the fact that KES has so many different characters and personalities, all of whom bring their own wide ranging talents and perspective to what, like any vibrant school, is a rich tapestry of emotion and endeavour.

ROSIE ALLEN, THE PARAGON SCHOOL 01225 310 837; www.paragonschool.co.uk

How does your school differ from others? The Paragon is a truly magical place which has childhood at its heart. The sense of adventure in our beautiful woodland setting is palpable, alongside a real sense of purpose and discovery in the classrooms. We embrace a growth mindset and we are not afraid to think differently – we constantly ask ‘why?’ Sometimes it’s hard from the outside to differentiate one really great Preparatory School from the next, but if you come to visit us you will see that we are committed to doing exactly what we say we do on the tin. I believe that our authenticity is what really sets us apart.

What are the qualities of a good teacher? A great teacher embraces one of the most cognitively engaging and physically demanding careers there is. They have passion, energy, determination and a good sprinkling of magic. Great teachers know that their responsibilities stretch far beyond the simple act of imparting knowledge. Their mission is to ensure that the young people in their care engage fully with their learning, play a proactive part in everything around them, grasp every opportunity and, ultimately, lead themselves to a future of their own choosing. I am proud that every teacher at The Paragon fulfils this brief.

What key bit of advice would you give to parents when choosing a school? Start with a good long look at what matters to you as a family in life. Consider your ethos and values and the needs of your child, then research, research, research! Visit all the schools in your area and ask questions about their ethos and values – do they match your own? What opportunities are there for parent and family involvement? Look for buzzwords in the school literature and on their website and delve into this when you meet the head. Digest the atmosphere and the feeling you come away with after visiting a school. Paying for education is a huge commitment – so don’t be afraid to visit several times and ask for a taster day if these are not offered. And as with most big decisions, I can’t emphasise enough the importance of listening to your heart.

CATHERINE WINCHCOMBE HEAD, MONKTON COMBE PREP SCHOOL 01225 831200 www.monktoncombeschool.com

What is your school ethos? Monkton thinks differently. We start with a proactive pastoral environment to develop academically strong, enthusiastic learners within a living Christian ethos. We inspire our children

NEIL SPURDELL HEADTEACHER, SHELDON SCHOOL 01249 766020; www.sheldonschool.co.uk

Tell us about your career I am in my ninth year at Sheldon, which is my sixth school and second as headteacher.

to be engaged with their learning, to show and develop a sense of leadership and live life to the full.

What do you find most satisfying about your job? Without a doubt, the pupils are always the highlight. I love getting to know each individual at the different stages of their school journey and being able to celebrate their success and

I began my career in a large inner-city comprehensive school in Newcastle upon Tyne and have taught in two schools in Gloucestershire, two in Wiltshire and one in West Berkshire. From a young age I always wanted to be a teacher and have enjoyed delivering Maths to tens of thousands of young people, something I still do today.

What are the qualities of a good teacher? At Sheldon our main priority has always been on what happens in the classroom, ensuring that lessons are stimulating, enjoyable and give our students appropriate challenge. The best teachers are those who have a genuine love of their subject and a real interest in inspiring young people. I am delighted to say that Sheldon is full of these. Recruiting highquality staff is amongst the most important aspects of my job – and being prepared not to appoint when the candidates are not right is also something I do. Students only get one chance at their education, so we have to get it right.

How has school changed since you began teaching? Undoubtedly in my 28 years in the profession, the quality of teaching has improved immeasurably. That’s not to say there weren’t fantastic teachers back in the early 1990s – there were – but since then, so much support them throughout their time at Monkton, and that of course extends to the parents too.

What exciting things are coming up at your school? Every day at Monkton is exciting! Creativity permeates throughout the school and although we have specialist teachers teaching art, music, DT and a host of other subjects, it certainly does not stop there. The lower school corridors have recently been transformed into the insides of a human body, a giant Iron Man has been created out of gym equipment in the hall to inspire writing and the sound of laughter and excitement often echoes around the school from outdoor learning activities in the woods. We are currently developing our new Wild Monkton initiative which is centred around making the most of our stunning setting whilst encouraging our pupils to become collaborative risk-takers who aren’t afraid to think differently.

What key bit of advice would you give to parents when choosing a school? Be sure to arrange a visit; a school is so much more than the buildings or facilities. When looking around, look for the children’s smiles, their engagement in lessons and for their natural relationships with teachers. Although each family will, of course, have their own wish list for their child’s school, all parents want their children to be happy, safe and flourishing and this is integral to all we do here at Monkton.

attention has been devoted to what makes a great lesson and the training and resources available to the profession have developed tremendously. The spotlight on schools has also shifted with much greater accountability in place. We should be held to account for young people’s outcomes and I welcome greater scrutiny; however, we should never lose sight of doing what is right for our communities and should not do something just because it scores us a few more percentage points in league tables.

Describe your school’s ethos This is a fantastic school. It is rooted in strong relationships – between staff and pupils and between the pupils themselves. We have a strong community feel where everyone is valued and a wonderful pastoral system that ensures that all students are well cared-for and looked after. We are a forward-thinking and outward-looking school where aspirations are high and ambitions unlimited. In each of our students we instil strong personal qualities including honesty, integrity, kindness, respect, courtesy and tolerance – and commit to equipping them with the wider life skills needed in an ever-changing world. If you came to visit, you would see a calm, purposeful school where staff and students are happy. It’s a school I am immensely proud to lead.

THRIVING THROUGH THE PANDEMIC

Headmaster Luke Bromwich was expecting a busy and challenging time when he took over the reins of ST MARGARET’S PREPARATORY SCHOOL in Calne just over a year ago…

But not in his wildest dreams did he expect that swapping the hustle and bustle of Hong Kong for the rural life in Wiltshire would mean he would be at the helm of a school caught up in a world-wide pandemic.

Luke explains: “At Christmas time when the first reports of coronavirus were beginning to emerge in China and the virus had spread to Hong Kong, I remember saying to my relatives that I was glad we had decided to make the move from South East Asia.

“Little did I realise that just a few weeks later it would be rife in the UK and my own school would be facing closure. But during my six years at Kellet, a British International School in Hong Kong, I had become used to school closures because of seasonal flu, so I was probably better prepared than if I’d lived in the UK.

“I was also lucky because Kellet had gone into lockdown much earlier than us, so I could call on my former colleagues for advice on creating effective internet-based home schooling packages.”

But even so he admits that when the Government finally announced all schools were to close from the end of March it was a huge learning curve for staff, pupils and parents.

“Originally we thought schools would just close for an extended Easter holiday break but then we realised it was going to be much longer.

“We had to quickly put together an online programme that could be accessed by children of all ages. The week before the holidays was really a trial run to make sure everyone could access what they needed to. But it would be fair to say it didn’t go as smoothly as we might have hoped.”

It meant that Luke, his head of computing, Mike Callaghan and other staff spent the Easter holidays refining how a ‘new normal’ way of teaching using Microsoft Teams would work. He also had to reassure parents that teachers and IT support would be available on a daily basis. “Some parents, especially those with younger children, were worried their own IT skills might be a bit lacking and so we did our best to reassure them. But from Year 3 upwards the children were usually capable of managing things for themselves.”

Families quickly settled in a routine of academic lessons via Teams in the morning and PE, art and music in the afternoon. “The school day still ran from 8.30am to 4.00pm but the afternoons were more flexible so if parents wanted to take their children out for a walk they could.”

At the beginning of June children in Kindergarten, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 returned to school in bubbles of 15 and then a few weeks later it was announced St Margaret’s would be one of the first in Wiltshire to bring all pupils back into school.

“The children adapted remarkably quickly. A few were a bit nervous at first but they were really excited to see their friends and teachers. They showed remarkable resilience and I was very proud of all pupils, staff and parents for how they adapted to and embraced change. School life took on a new pattern but a full academic programme was back in full swing.”

The internet meant that even some competitive sport with other schools could return, with children doing challenges such as tennis ball ‘keepie uppies’ rather than actual inter-school matches. The traditional prize-giving day at the end of the summer term was replaced by a scaled down version for the Year 6 children and lived streamed to their families and the rest of the school. “The streaming was so successful that I think we will continue doing that even when we can return to a live audience, as it means that grandparents and friends and family who are not local can be part of the event.”

He believes Year 6 pupils who were preparing to move up to senior school may have benefitted from having to take more responsibility for their own learning during lockdown and this will be helping them to adapt more quickly at their new schools.

Luke arrived at St Margaret’s in September 2019 knowing the school had all the right ingredients to give every child an excellent start in life but was determined to drive them to be the very best they could be.

“I WANT LESSONS TO BE VIBRANT, DYNAMIC AND EXCITING. BUT THE PUPILS HAVE TO ALSO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY AND CHALLENGE THEMSELVES”

He came with a masterplan that he expects every teacher and pupil to embrace as the whole school works towards inspiring excellence. He believes the way staff and children have responded to the challenges thrown up by coronavirus shows it is working.

He explains: “When I arrived at St Margaret’s I realised I was taking over an already very successful school but I believed we could do even more to help children to be the very best they can be.

“This was by developing the skills for learning which are all about communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity, which sits alongside developing the traditional values of kindness, respect, integrity, courage, curiosity and perseverance.

“Our children, with the support of staff and parents have been incredibly resilient over the past months and shown many of these attributes.”

Now children are back in the classroom his ethos of asking teachers to encourage children to be an integral part of every lesson by getting them to constantly contribute to discussion, problem solving and research is back in play.

“I want lessons to be vibrant, dynamic and exciting. But the pupils have to also take responsibility and challenge themselves. They need to be able to explain in what way they have shown one or more of the six traditional values in what they have done.

“Have they had the courage to put forward a point of view, the curiosity to fi nd out more about a subject and the perseverance to stick with something they fi nd diffi cult?

“I have a very strong staff but I want to be the type of head who leads by example. I may not be an expert in everything, but I will know who the right person to go to is.”

Luke is happy to throw himself into all aspects of school life and could not resist challenging his older pupils to a race when a climbing wall was erected as part of an outdoor day of learning. He enjoys a wide range of sport and believes in supporting his pupils in the many diverse activities offered at St Margaret’s.

“The children learn from competitive situations and realise they can’t always win but they can persevere and try to improve. They can say I showed kindness and respect to a member of my team or the opposition, integrity and fairness in the way I played and courage to keep going.”

Since studying engineering at University of Exeter, Luke has worked in a diverse range of schools from those in the inner-city, catering for many youngsters from deprived families, to a school near Slough in Berkshire with a large number of pupils where English was not their fi rst language.

In 2013 he and his wife decided to take a very different turn in their professional lives and move abroad. They considered a number of different countries but then saw that Kellet in Hong Kong was expanding. “It worked out very well as we were both offered jobs. Kellet is very well respected in Hong Kong and is the school of choice for ex-pat British families,” he says. “We both loved living and working in Hong Kong right from the start. In school the children and their parents were very invested in the learning process. It was exciting as the school was very well resourced and the parents were very successful and wanted their children to succeed.”

While there, he learnt the importance of educational excellence, robust pastoral care, pupil wellbeing, pressures that can be put on children by both exams and social media and how techniques such as positive psychology can be used to help children.

Now as headmaster of his own school, he is putting his own educational ideas into practice. “I don’t want inspiring excellence to just be a concept. I want it to be something that everyone can evaluate and explain.

“I am in the business of growing pupils but also as a leader it is my job to be growing teachers. Some teachers, as well as pupils, can adapt faster than others to a new way of doing things. We need to accommodate for different paces.

“The most important thing is that we put the child at the centre of what we do. In the classroom if there is a teacher who is spending

more time talking than listening to what children have to say then that is something that needs to change. Learning needs to be dynamic.

“At St Margaret’s, I inherited a very strong team who are extremely enthusiastic about what they do.”

Luke believes there is a place for rote learning of tables and reading skills to give children the building blocks for everything else, but in the early years of primary education, he thinks that children should develop learning skills by being encouraged to give opinions and play a full part in lessons.

“If children are reading a book, it is much more interesting if they sit around a circular table and discuss it in a similar way adults would do at a book club. It helps to bring the lesson to life. The aim is that by Years 5 and 6 the pupils have the skills and traits that allow them to acquire knowledge.”

We are all living in incredibly uncertain times, but he knows that St Margaret’s is in a good place to handle the challenges that may lie ahead. ■

Curzon Street,Calne, Wiltshire SN11 0DF 01249 857220 www.stmargaretsprep.org.uk