Leadership Strategies in Disadvantaged Communities

“A man's praises have very musical and charming accents in another's mouth, but very flat and

untuneable in his own.” (Xenophon)

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

“Leadership is the ability to hide your panic from others.”

Teaching Career• 1977 – 1984 Holywood High

School - Head of Careers

• 1984 – 1990 Armagh Secondary School-Head of Special Need’s Department

• 1990 – 2004 Principal Aughnacloy Primary School

• 2004 – 2008 Principal Belvoir Park Primary School

Interests• DENI – NICED SENs Project• DENI – 11 -16 Programme• DENI Small School’s Project• President NAHT (NI)• Chairman ATESSP Cross Border• Fellow RTU & RSA• MBA Educational Leadership• NICCY – Speech Language• DENI Associate Assessor• DENI Community Relations

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

The Wilderness Years

• Friday 30 July 1976 Four Protestant civilians died as a result of a gun attack on the Stag Inn, Belvoir, Belfast.

• Thursday, January 22, 1998 The third victim was shot several times in the body on the predominantly Protestant Belvoir Park Estate in south Belfast, during the night.

• Fear and intimidation corrode and undermine our ability to place trust, and declining trust in turn fuels pre-emptive action and hostilities, and makes it harder to trust. (Professor Onora O'Neill)

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

First Things First

If culture is the personality of an organisation then a quality school is restless, constantly questioning, never satisfied, challenging norms and believing that things can always be better. (John West-Burnham)

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

2004 Success Breeds Success

• Lift Off: Human Rights Education Initiative.

• Impetus Award Institute for Global Ethics UK Trust.

• Extended School’s Pilot SEELB.

• The Schools Community Relation’s Programme

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

SDP Priorities 2004 - 2005

• Human Rights• Pastoral • Anti-Bullying• Racism• Supervision• Discipline• Staff Safety• Reasonable Force• Differentiation• Curriculum

• MBA & RTU INSET• DENI’s TTI• INSET• Quality• Learning & Teaching• MI & EI• Underachievement• Community Relations• Directed-Time• NSPCC

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

Inspection 2005The strengths of the school include:• There are major strengths in nearly all aspects of the educational and pastoral provision in

the nursery unit. The needs of the children are being met very effectively.• the good work and provision in the Speech and Language Department;• the strong and effective leadership of the recently appointed Principal;• the sound start made in implementing arrangements for monitoring including the

completion of a self-evaluation of the whole-school provision; • the hard-working and committed teachers; • the behaviour of the children; • the effective focus on positive working relationships and behaviour;• the colourful displays reflecting the children’s work and achievements.The areas for improvement include:• a sharper focus on standards and outcomes, including the need to make more effective use

of information gathered to inform planning for learning and teaching;

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

SDP 2005 - 2007 Feeding & Weighing the Pig

• Gardner, Vygotsky & Piaget• The Intelligent School & Analysing Data• InCas, ALTA, NFER & CCEA • Ishikawa ‘s Fishbone, SWOT & De Bono• QUB Primary Movement & Brain Gym • DENI Cross Border Project Autism• Raising Achievement in Numeracy SEELB• Empowering Staff to Lead & PQH NI

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

Inspection 2007

• Good progress has been made in the areas for improvement identified during the original inspection.

• The educational and pastoral needs of the learners are well met.

• The parents and broader community can have confidence in the effectiveness of the school’s response to the findings of the inspection and its capacity for sustained self-improvement.

‘What the child can do in co-operation today he can do alone tomorrow.’ (Vygotsky 1934)

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

SDP 2007 – 2010 One Community Many Bridges

• School Council Expansion & SETAQ• Together Towards Improvement in Depth• UNICEF Rights Respecting School Award• ECO-Schools Award• Investors In People Award• International School Award• Extended Schools, Canteen Project & Building Repairs• New Dissolving Boundaries Partner• IWB, Intranet, School Website & VLEs • Moodle, Education City & DH’s Phonics International • One Community Many Bridges

www.belvoirparkprimary.org

Leadership in Depth

Instead of leadership being a sole act, an aria sung by the CEO, in these organisations it is a shared responsibility, more like a chorus of diverse voices singing in unison.(O’Toole)

From Stuck to a Moving School 2004 - 2008

I am so proud of my staff.

www.belvoirparkprimary.org