Leading Ibstock Place School
As part of Absolutely’s conversations with 10 school leaders about their educational visions, we spoke with Christopher Wolsey, Head of Ibstock Place School, along with leaders from other top schools in London and Surrey, to hear their insights.
Q What was your first Headship role and what would you say you learnt from it?
A It’s this one. I’ve been Head since January 2021 so I’m about four and a half years into it. The professional learning which the role affords is quite extraordinary – from HR law to drainage solutions for playing fields, I’ve found out about a whole manner of things which I never even knew existed! More than anything, though, I’ve learnt how a school is like a symphony orchestra – every part matters, and every part needs to move in harmony with every other. The Head sets the tone, but it’s the players who really matter. It’s a perfect antidote to hubris.
Q How long have you been at your current school and what attracted you to working there?
A In one job or another, I’ve been at Ibstock since 2007 – I started as Head of Humanities, and since then, I’ve held various other roles including Head of Sixth Form, Second Master and Deputy Head. The School’s ambition, and its readiness to embrace positive change, has always been for me its biggest draw. As I frequently observe, we’re a “restless school”, always looking to get better and better at what we do. It makes it a fascinating place to work – the team of professionals with whom I work are exceptional.
Q How would you describe your leadership style?
A I’m a classic introvert. I like to listen, and I like to consider. Not everything can or should be settled by a show of hands, but I like to devolve decision-making when I can – schools are complex places and so very often, the best decisions are made by those closest to the issue at hand. Leadership is often about ensuring that everyone feels that they have some ownership and agency in the place in which they work and study. And of course, the views of our pupils and parents matter a good deal here: the best schools are bottom-up, not top down. I try always to remember that – it’s not about me, it’s about us.
Q What makes your school different?
A Our history is unique – in 1894, we started our journey as a “demonstration school” for the ideas of the great Nineteenth Century educationalist, Friedrich Froebel. Froebel believed profoundly in a holistic view of education, and one which holds that the totality of a young person’s experience – both inside and outside the classroom – is pivotal in shaping their outlook, their intellect and the onward development of their personality. While not all of Froebel’s insights have endured, our sense of being a school which seeks to provide an extraordinarily fertile place in which our pupils’ minds, bodies and spirits can flourish is written deep within our institutional DNA.
Q How would you describe a typical school day to prospective parents?
A We want our pupils to be immersed in a rich, dynamic and stimulating environment – in this sense, we abjure the notion of a “typical day” and all it implies. That said, across the seven and a half hours, each day will bring a unique combination of high tech and low, formal instruction and less formal, intense activity and more contemplative moments. The lunch will be amazing and there’ll be a lot of laughter too. After 4.00 pm, there’ll be plenty of things happening right across our campus and beyond. And the next day will look and feel a little bit different.
