Talking Head: Unplugged

Reception

1. Do you have exciting plans for your next school?
   Yes I do. I want to get more children boarding at the school (they can sleep at school!); more children to stay to the end of Year 8 and I want to them all to be as happy as you are! 
2. Did you have a nice time at CPS?
   Yes. This is such a happy school. The children and staff are wonderful; it really, really feels like one big happy family. I have had a wonderful time at CPS. Truly fantastic! I have loved it; really.
3. What is your favourite lunch at CPS?
   Difficult question but ............. Lamb Moussaka!

Year 1

1. Will you be teaching at your next school?
   Not to begin with so that I am free to get to know everyone first. I do believe, though, that a Head should be in the classroom for a few lessons each week, if at all possible.
2. How many children are in your next school? (boys and girls)
   There will be between 400 and 500 children; about 60% boys and 40% girls.
3. If you could take one thing with you from CPS, what would it be?
   You.

Year 2

1. How much homework will your new children get?
   Rather more than at CPS but I want to take a look at that and see if it works well or not.  Homework is good provided that it is manageable, worthwhile and achievable.
2. Will your school have a Summer Fete and can we come?
   Yes, my new school does have a Summer Fete and of course you will be able to come.
3. Is our school still better than your new school?
   I think both schools are fantastic.

Year 3

1. How well do you think you have done as a Headmaster at CPS?
   Gosh! I'm not sure that I can answer that one. How well do you think I have done?
2. What was your most embarrassing moment at CPS?
   This has to be my first day at “work”, in September 2001, on the first tee of Bushey Park Golf Club, in my first Bob Ford Classic CPS Golf Day, in front of watching parents, when I “topped” my drive and the ball squirted off the tee about thirty yards away and into the long grass just past the Ladies' tee!
3. How has working at CPS changed you as a person?
   Wow! Deep question! It has taught me many things, one of which is that even the seemingly simplest decisions can sometimes have drastic consequences for someone or something, therefore clear and thorough consideration must be applied at all times.

Year 4

1. Will you come back and visit us?
   I would love to come back to visit you; I will miss you all so much but you will have to ask Mrs Radcliffe first if it's ok.
2. Why are you leaving?
   It's not because I don't love you all, because I do. It's nothing you have done, it's me. Sometimes in grown up life you sense deep inside you that a change is needed. I love CPS and I could have chosen to stay here forever but I think I might have become lazy and that would have meant that I no longer did my best for you. I could not have that happen. I have helped the school develop over nine years and now I want to go and help another school.
3. If you had stayed here what else would you have done?
   If I had stayed, I would have opened a Nursery as well as built a new Prep-Prep department, where the Reception classes and Science Lab are. It would have had nine new classrooms, spread over two floors and it would have been wonderful. I would have made the Adlington Hall into a Theatre, like the Elgiva and with air-conditioning! I would have built extra classrooms above Year 2 and the RE room so that the Top Corridor had classrooms on both sides. I would have bought more land from Mr Mash and made another sports field, built more adventure playgrounds and made the Portakabins into Commom Rooms for pupils and Games Rooms. I would have added a conservatory extension on to the Dining Room as well as sorting out the deafening noise in there! Also, I would have tried to build a one- way drive around the back of the school to sort out the parking problems.

Year 5

1. What impact have you made on the school that you are most proud of?
   I believe that over the years the school has developed and the changes I have brought about mean that it is now the best school in the area. That makes me very proud.
2. What will you miss about CPS the most?
   The fabulous atmosphere that exists within the school.
3. Do you think it was the right choice to move on?
   Yes, I do. I might have become a complacent, grumpy old man!
   (No comment Mrs M!)

Year 6

1. What are your emotions about leaving?
   Mixed. Very mixed. I have been so very happy here, especially over the last six years or so. Everything is familiar, comfortable and stress free; the school is a happy place and I know everybody. Moving away from all this, starting a new job in a new school, where I do not know anybody is a bit scary. It's worse than being the new boy, because I will be not only the new boy but also the new boss, the new decision maker, the new figurehead, the new person to blame when everything goes wrong! On the other hand I am really excited about my new job and I believe that I can lead Holmewood House through the next decade.  Anyone fancy coming with me?
2. What is your fondest memory?
   When the children in Lower School give me hugs.
3. What is the funniest thing that happened to you at CPS?
   When Mrs Etchegoyen arranged my surprise birthday assembly and Mr Spinney (Rebecca Dixon's Grandpa and one of my closest friends) presented me with my “This is your life!” red book.

Year 7

1. What was your first impression of this school and how has that changed?
   My first impression was of a lovely school but one which felt more like an independent Primary School than a true Prep School. CPS is now definitely a Prep School, through and through, and I hope it remains so.
2. What made you want to work here in the first place?
   I loved the feel of the place. It felt right. Also, when you want to become a Headmaster, you can't always expect to be offered the job you first apply for. Of all the schools I applied to, this has proved to be the best. This was my fourth or fifth interview and clearly it was “meant to be.”
3. If you had your time again, would you do anything differently?
   Maybe the manner in which I brought about changes in the first two or three years. I know I scared a few people. (Sorry about that!) I was probably a bit impulsive in those days and rushed into things without doing the full 360 degree check.
   Some rather pompous person once said, “a fool learns from making his own mistakes, while a wise man learns from watching the mistakes of others.” I think that the best lessons in life are those in which you are directly involved, where there is an emotional high. Simply to learn from others' experiences is too methodical, too withdrawn. This job requires good instincts and clear judgement based on strong personal ethos, philosphy and beliefs. If, by making mistakes, I qualify as a fool, then I am happy to rule myself out of auditioning for a part as one of the Three Wise Men!

Year 8

1. If you could make up your next school's motto, what would it be?
   “Know yourself, push yourself, become yourself”
2. What compelled you to become a headmaster?
   Difficult to say, really. My father was a Prep School Head but I did not view him as a role model who I had to follow (sorry Dad!). I nearly changed career at the end of my first year in teaching. I was working in a State school in Surrey (having deliberately chosen not to follow in my father's footsteps!) and became quite disillusioned with teaching and the Unions' aggressive stance on so many things. I decided to give Prep Schools a go before switching careers and here I still am. I enjoyed teaching but I love managing more. Teaching, to me, became more of a chore and less of a joy, so I needed to change things or risk becoming bad at my job. Deputy Headship showed me exactly what real responsibility meant and I loved it. I loved making decisions that solved problems, created opportunities, eased difficulties and made people happy. So, I became a Headmaster. That's it really; I love making a difference.
3. What have you done here that you will replicate at your next school?
   I have to be careful because I bet that one of these magazines will somehow find its way to a parent at Holmewood House! I could say all sorts of things as a joke and the Chinese Whispers would work their magic around the M25 to Tunbridge Wells. I am happy to say, however, that the one thing that I will look to replicate is the stunning atmosphere at CPS. I don't mind who tells the Kent “bush telegraph” this, it is something I am sure that they would be happy to know!