Masterclass with Sir William Atkinson

Fabian Renn (cohort 2) reports

Sir William Atkinson, the head teacher of Phoenix High School, visited the TSM CDT on Thursday, May 18th as a speaker in the TSM CDT master class series. Sir William talked about his incredible experience in transforming a deprived London school to an “outstanding” institution (as independently rated by OFSTED).

In 1994, Phoenix High School, in White City, London, was known as one of the most notorious schools in England - it was listed as one of the eight worst schools in England and the government decided it needed "special attention". Independent reviewers deemed it so disastrous, it was nearly closed by government on several occasions.

In their despair, the education council turns to Sir William - already a well successful head teacher at another London school - to take over Phoenix High School. The following incredible four years of the school’s transformation were the focus of Sir William’s master class. He vividly recalled the ups and downs, the challenges and lessons learned from those four years, sharing his advice from everything on leadership, persistence and motivation.

This master class was an immensely inspiring and moving event. Not only was it an amazing opportunity to hear the story of Phoenix high school from the man who turned it around but also to learn about the vision, leadership and staying-power required to make a difference in one of the most deprived areas of the UK.