A headteacher's pandemic
Emma Hills finds out more about the challenges of being a headteacher through the pandemic.
I asked my mum, Liz Hills, about her experiences as an acting headteacher throughout the pandemic and what it was like to run a Primary School through this incredibly difficult and unusual time. Here she shares her insights into an extraordinary time.
What would you say was the hardest part of running a school through a pandemic?
“The hardest part was trying to keep the school community together when some students were able to access the learning from school and others were at home. It was difficult when everyone returned as well because we weren’t able to mix in the usual ways, for example, assemblies and playtime, so we had to think of imaginative and creative ways to stay connected at a time in which we were very much forced to be apart.”
If you could go back and change anything that you did, would you?
“I think if I was in that situation again, I would work even harder to make sure that I took the time to understand each and every member of staff's unique situation and their interpretation of the pandemic as well as the effect on their life professionally and personally. I think this would have helped me with my decision making when it came to supporting my team to support the families that we served.”
Do you think that home learning was effective and useful?
“I think the pandemic provided challenges for all our families in different ways. Home learning was successful for many and we did all we could to support everyone but for some families…their situations were so difficult that our focus shifted from the learning to ensuring that our families maintained their physical and emotional health and wellbeing. It was clear that if our children could return to school in a healthy state, they would be able to continue with their learning in school much more effectively than those whose physical and mental health deteriorated. Therefore, this became more of a priority than learning at that point in time. When all the children returned to in-school learning we worked hard as staff to identify the students who were vulnerable and provided additional support to help improve their physical and mental health in order to help them to continue to learn. We learnt a lot from the process of setting up an online school that we were able to use effectively once all the children returned to benefit their learning in different ways.”
What was the hardest decision that you had to make?
“I think the most difficult time was when I knew that we had to extend the on-site provision to some children but wouldn’t be able to extend it to all. It was really difficult to make the decision for our school community as to which children should return to school at this point in time. Luckily, I was well supported by the governing body and staff for the decisions we made. I remember having a little cry at my desk realising the implications on our community and some children coming to school and some having to remain at home. This was the most difficult time for our school community as we had to work really hard to remain united.”
Were there any parts that you thought worked really well?
“The staff worked really hard and in a creative way to maintain the links with the families and children at home whilst still providing an education for those in school. All of the staff embraced every opportunity to connect with the children learning from home. For example, they did regular welfare calls, held catch up sessions online, videoed themselves reading stories that were put on the website, provided online lessons, sent many emails, recorded and held live assemblies and really did go above and beyond to ensure no member of the community was left behind. We also did a big fundraising event to raise money for our diocese to support the families in our diocese. This involved at least one member of the school community running or walking the school track at all times over a 24 hour period. This event provided an opportunity for children and their families who were not attending school at this time to come into school and take part. It also gave our Year 6 students the chance to see teachers and the children before leaving for Secondary and gave our community a purpose to unite together to think about and support communities less fortunate than our own. We raised an amazing £2000 and enjoyed being together over the course of the sunny day and deep into the darkness of the night.”
Were there any parts that you thought didn’t work so well?
“The hardest thing was trying to provide online learning for those at home whilst at the same time providing learning in school for those children on site and managing all the changes to policy and procedures required in order to remain as safe as possible in school. The constant changes were challenging for everyone and made providing an effective education for everyone very, very difficult.”
Were there ever any moments where you felt really pressured to make a specific decision?
“The government guidance that came out on a daily basis meant that decisions were having to be made and reassessed on a constant basis. I didn’t ever feel pressure to make instant decisions and often found it beneficial to take time before finalising decisions in order to ensure they were in the best interest of the specific interests of the school community.”
What would you say was the best thing that came out of the global pandemic?
“For many people, the acts of kindness from others proved beneficial and, for some, the opportunity to help and support their community was rewarding. Also, finding new ways to stay connected with each other will have opened doors for many people and established more regular contact with others. As a school community, we managed to stay united despite the many challenges we faced and I think this was our greatest achievement.”
Did you disagree with any of the government's decisions around schools and the closures of schools?
“I don’t feel as a public servant that I am able to comment on the government's decisions but there were certainly times when I was frustrated from a personal, professional and political point of view. However, at all times, I was clear that my role was to ensure guidance was followed and my community kept safe and learning facilitated for all.”
What did you find most challenging?
“The thing I found most challenging was the way in which schools and the staff were represented negatively within the media at times, as I could see how hard my staff and governors were working at this difficult time to serve our school community. For me, the greatest challenge was the impact my work at this time had on my family. However, I was fortunate to have their support and understanding during this time and their encouragement to continue to do my best for those I served.”
Emma Hills, Year 10
I asked my mum, Liz Hills, about her experiences as an acting headteacher throughout the pandemic and what it was like to run a Primary School through this incredibly difficult and unusual time. Here she shares her insights into an extraordinary time.
What would you say was the hardest part of running a school through a pandemic?
“The hardest part was trying to keep the school community together when some students were able to access the learning from school and others were at home. It was difficult when everyone returned as well because we weren’t able to mix in the usual ways, for example, assemblies and playtime, so we had to think of imaginative and creative ways to stay connected at a time in which we were very much forced to be apart.”
If you could go back and change anything that you did, would you?
“I think if I was in that situation again, I would work even harder to make sure that I took the time to understand each and every member of staff's unique situation and their interpretation of the pandemic as well as the effect on their life professionally and personally. I think this would have helped me with my decision making when it came to supporting my team to support the families that we served.”
Do you think that home learning was effective and useful?
“I think the pandemic provided challenges for all our families in different ways. Home learning was successful for many and we did all we could to support everyone but for some families…their situations were so difficult that our focus shifted from the learning to ensuring that our families maintained their physical and emotional health and wellbeing. It was clear that if our children could return to school in a healthy state, they would be able to continue with their learning in school much more effectively than those whose physical and mental health deteriorated. Therefore, this became more of a priority than learning at that point in time. When all the children returned to in-school learning we worked hard as staff to identify the students who were vulnerable and provided additional support to help improve their physical and mental health in order to help them to continue to learn. We learnt a lot from the process of setting up an online school that we were able to use effectively once all the children returned to benefit their learning in different ways.”
What was the hardest decision that you had to make?
“I think the most difficult time was when I knew that we had to extend the on-site provision to some children but wouldn’t be able to extend it to all. It was really difficult to make the decision for our school community as to which children should return to school at this point in time. Luckily, I was well supported by the governing body and staff for the decisions we made. I remember having a little cry at my desk realising the implications on our community and some children coming to school and some having to remain at home. This was the most difficult time for our school community as we had to work really hard to remain united.”
Were there any parts that you thought worked really well?
“The staff worked really hard and in a creative way to maintain the links with the families and children at home whilst still providing an education for those in school. All of the staff embraced every opportunity to connect with the children learning from home. For example, they did regular welfare calls, held catch up sessions online, videoed themselves reading stories that were put on the website, provided online lessons, sent many emails, recorded and held live assemblies and really did go above and beyond to ensure no member of the community was left behind. We also did a big fundraising event to raise money for our diocese to support the families in our diocese. This involved at least one member of the school community running or walking the school track at all times over a 24 hour period. This event provided an opportunity for children and their families who were not attending school at this time to come into school and take part. It also gave our Year 6 students the chance to see teachers and the children before leaving for Secondary and gave our community a purpose to unite together to think about and support communities less fortunate than our own. We raised an amazing £2000 and enjoyed being together over the course of the sunny day and deep into the darkness of the night.”
Were there any parts that you thought didn’t work so well?
“The hardest thing was trying to provide online learning for those at home whilst at the same time providing learning in school for those children on site and managing all the changes to policy and procedures required in order to remain as safe as possible in school. The constant changes were challenging for everyone and made providing an effective education for everyone very, very difficult.”
Were there ever any moments where you felt really pressured to make a specific decision?
“The government guidance that came out on a daily basis meant that decisions were having to be made and reassessed on a constant basis. I didn’t ever feel pressure to make instant decisions and often found it beneficial to take time before finalising decisions in order to ensure they were in the best interest of the specific interests of the school community.”
What would you say was the best thing that came out of the global pandemic?
“For many people, the acts of kindness from others proved beneficial and, for some, the opportunity to help and support their community was rewarding. Also, finding new ways to stay connected with each other will have opened doors for many people and established more regular contact with others. As a school community, we managed to stay united despite the many challenges we faced and I think this was our greatest achievement.”
Did you disagree with any of the government's decisions around schools and the closures of schools?
“I don’t feel as a public servant that I am able to comment on the government's decisions but there were certainly times when I was frustrated from a personal, professional and political point of view. However, at all times, I was clear that my role was to ensure guidance was followed and my community kept safe and learning facilitated for all.”
What did you find most challenging?
“The thing I found most challenging was the way in which schools and the staff were represented negatively within the media at times, as I could see how hard my staff and governors were working at this difficult time to serve our school community. For me, the greatest challenge was the impact my work at this time had on my family. However, I was fortunate to have their support and understanding during this time and their encouragement to continue to do my best for those I served.”
Emma Hills, Year 10