Interviews

As a staff governor I have had the opportunity to take part in a lot of interviews for key appointments within the school.

This week interviews were held for a new deputy headteacher. I was asked to be involved on the second day, which involved three candidates who had been cut down from five. We held the interviews outside school, at a local conference facility, to try to ensure that the backdrop of a busy school didn’t get in the way of appointing a good candidate.

We were lucky; one of the three was really good. The successful candidate showed an excellent all-round understanding of curriculum design, guidance and welfare, as well and the key parts of obtaining more outstanding and high quality lessons at our school.

Concerns about safeguarding

I was shocked, however, with some of the responses from the unsuccessful candidates. Child protection and welfare has to be a top priority for the young people attending our schools. How, then, do serving deputies not have a better grasp of child protection?

Clear procedures exist to try and safeguard young people and staff when allegations are made. Perhaps as a SENCo I am exposed to these situations more than some other members of staff, but deputy heads should certainly understand safeguarding. For two of our candidates this was patently not the case.

I found this worrying. For any child to learn effectively they need to feel they have a secure environment in which to learn. I believe we appointed a new deputy who will uphold these values in line with existing expectations at our school. However, I fear that some of the unsuccessful candidates may need to re-enforce their understanding in this crucial area.

Last week of term, but still no let up. I am interviewing today.

I always enjoy interviewing, however I’m still tired and there is a lot to arrange and organise:

• catering,
• coffee for start and buffet lunch,
• tours of school,
• staff to observe practical exercise,
• copies of the short written task,
• the formal interviews themselves.

Some people say I ask too much of candidates, but I think that it’s important to give each potential employee an opportunity to show their abilities in different ways.

The life-blood of Teaching Assistants is working with young people, how can I employ someone without seeing them interact with some of our students?

At some stage every member of staff in a school has to make decisions on their own and take the initiative. A short written task based on a typical scenario allows candidates to show their thought processes and outline preferred outcomes.

Then I conduct the interviews themselves, and the value of the positions is clear from a whole school perspective. The new Head was involved for the whole day.  This really does show that we are an inclusive school.

In the end I made three good appointments, a good mix.  I am really pleased.

Time for a well-earned drink, only two days left!