Headlines - 9May25 by Honywood School

HEADLINES 9th May 2025

By James Saunders

EXCELLENCE

I have had some great chats with a few people this week about the theme of excellence. It has prompted me to spend some time thinking about excellence. I have been thinking about what excellence looks like in a school. I don’t mean outstanding, I mean excellence. I feel that there is a difference between the two. I feel an excellent school, a school striving for excellence, can be outstanding, but can an outstanding school be excellent? – maybe and maybe not.

Excellence is the fourth of our core values at Honywood, along with Trust, Respect and Equity. T.R.E.E is what is important to us each and every day. We were deliberate in our choice of the word excellence - as as fan etymology the choice of words matters to me. There were so many words we could have chosen, so why excellence? Why not outstanding for example?

Outstanding is a word that seems to carry a lot of connotations in our profession. It has a wider reaching impact on society too. I have even known it to affect house prices in some communities. As a result it brings some baggage, pressure and some stress. I have never really bought into the whole outstanding thing. Not because I don’t care or lack high standards but because I feel it is something that is very much in the moment. The badge, or label, so to speak is simply based on whatever educational zeitgeist is trending at the time. Outstanding today is not necessarily outstanding tomorrow – especially when the criteria changes. Outstanding for me is a compliment over a nice dish –‘outstanding lasagne’ - something my wife has never said to me. At Honywood we want something more than that - a longer lasting state of excellence for everyone.

Excellence feels steeped in culture, in a work ethic. Striving for excellence suggests something timeless that will not fade with a new trend. It’s almost unattainable as when you reach one level you are already striving for the next. And the next. It implies continual reinvention and improvement. Being excellent is not a thing – it is

a state of mind – an approach to your work and life. It is simply wanting the best always. No one would argue that we would not want that for every one of our learners.

I have done a little research into what excellent schools do - the ones that have always been on top of their game. For one, they never give up and always strive to better themselves. Not because they are told to but because they want to. They evaluate the impact of what they are doing to ensure they are always effective and challenging everyone. They tend to have a strong vision rooted in the curriculum and a culture of inclusion, ambition and relationships. The individual is the sovereign unit in these schools and no one gets left behind. What is taught and why it is taught is central to excellence. Knowledge and skilful questioning are key features of every lesson. Challenge is high and learning is sequenced for a deliberate purpose.

Forget about the trends. Wanting the best for every single child, believing in every single one of them and creating a school with a deep curriculum that permeates everything is excellent. That is what we are constantly trying to create at Honywood and we are all a part of building that culture.

Relentlessly pursuing excellence is tough. Never giving up is tough. Taking on all the additional challenges that have been asked of us all this term has been tough. But we must never give up. By owning their decisions and taking responsibility for the choices they make, our learners continue to demonstrate a real ethic of excellence. The GCSE exams have officially kicked off this week. Best of luck to all our C11 learners as they tackle the relentless onslaught of daily exams. One thing is for sure. When they get to the end they will well and truly deserve a break.

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

James Saunders