As the new Olympic year begins, we will all no doubt seek inspiration from those athletes who attempt to go higher, faster and stronger. At Leighton Park, the Quaker approach to competition is to test oneself, and to meet challenges. Sport is very important to us here, and we are blessed with extremely talented athletes who have won county and international accolades, but also with the majority who enjoy fresh air, activity, teamwork and the sheer fun of playing a game. Sport is for all at Leighton Park - and that is how we believe it should be. I was watching the Under 15 B football team training in games today. They tried hard, and listened to some excellent coaching. They were striving to improve. These boys were realistic. They are the B team. However, they are also keen to be the best that they can, and were giving their all. Smiling, glowing faces left the pitch at the end of the session.
I then spoke with the Head of Games as we walked back down to school. He is seeking to prioritise as he plans for sport's place in our new curriculum, to begin for the Year 7 intake of September, 2012. We are seeking a curriculum which is exciting for our students, and which encourages our staff to collaborate creatively, sharing and developing ideas, and thinking outside the box. It is an exciting time, and also a precarious one. Teachers are being forced to consider new ways of learning and teaching, and what I am impressed with is the positive way in which they are rising to the challenge, reflecting on the purpose of education, and the role of the teacher. The staff here are committed to providing rigour in an environment which is fun and supportive. They are keen to learn from one another, and to be the change they want to see in our school.
The academic curriculum depends on specific knowledge, but also on the art of drawing knowledge together from different subject areas, using it, applying it, developing it, and testing it. This requires confidence, resilience and positive attitude. Sport, Drama, Music, Art, and other creative and active subjects develop all these qualities. Learning to swim gives you confidence in water which can be translated elsewhere. Taking the stage and singing in a show require dedication, resilience and reserves of courage in order to create a memorable performance. Making marks on a canvas and building them into a picture is not only creative, but requires concentration, dedication and the ability to completely engage with one's work. These areas are not "extra-curricular". They wholly support the academic curriculum and life of the school. They help our young people to acquire and develop precisely those skills which will serve them well as they learn and prepare for examinations. I look forward to seeing what the teachers produce as they build the fine detail within our curriculum. At the heart of our vision are the Quaker values. We want our children to Live Adventurously and to let their lives speak. Any adventure requires planning, and equipment, skill and training, and most importantly a desire to go beyond the horizon. School and education are not simply a preparation for life. They are an important part of the journey of life itself. My vision is that Leighton Park students will enjoy their lives beyond school because they have acquired the right knowledge and skills to be adaptable to the many changes they will face; will have enjoyed experiences from which to draw, alongside teachers who have allowed them sufficient freedom to develop their independence; and will have been well cared for, which will lead them to be bold and adventurous, but with a compassion and respect for their fellows which will ensure that they use their gifts wisely and well.

A couple of decades ago the clever people at Levis had an idea. They were searching for something new and distinctive about their latest version of 501 jeans. What could possibly set apart one manufacturer from all the others making hard-wearing cotton trousers?
They made them available in black.
Levi 501s were an overnight sensation after an advertising campaign in which, to a reassuring 60s Soul soundtrack, a young man broke the rules by getting into a nightclub wearing his 501s because the sign outside the door said "No Blue Jeans". Levis had a traditional, mainstream product. They had their own reassuring history of quality. This, however, was not enough without a twist. They provided that twist simply and cleverly.
I have been wondering what makes schools distinct from one another. Certainly, in this part of the UK, we are in a buyers' market. There are very many first rate schools - both in the maintained and independent sectors. All of them promise to develop well-rounded students, excellent examination results, and a preparation for life. One would be forgiven for thinking that a child need only turn up, and they would flourish at any one of these schools. This is a challenge for those of us who believe in what we are doing and, indeed, are passionate about it. What makes our school so very special? Why should people place their trust in us?
A school should be based on a firm footing of values. A Quaker school provides these values. However, what I have seen during this first year of my tenure as Head is that these values are lived out tangibly by those who live and work here, as well as those who might have left us years ago. Many Old Leightonians have let their lives speak in their own fields of medicine, engineering, design, the creative arts, or business. What sets them apart is their moral responsibility and integrity, true to the Quaker testimonies which guided them at school. These values not only remain at Leighton Park, but are fervently held. This is different from many schools, which may be founded on ideas, religious belief, or dogma, but pay only lip service to it.
An illustration of this in reality is our Meeting for Worship. To begin with, the 500 students sit in complete silence for up to half an hour. (This in itself is remarkable!). Then, motivated by a deep need to speak, students and teachers stand to express before the entire school that which is on their mind. Some are religious reflections on the spiritual experience of the Meeting. Others are testimonies about feelings, profoundly held, of friendship, love, or a need for some form of support. Children stand before the whole school and talk about their feelings of helplessness because a relative is ill, or speak about how they value a close friend. Once a deaf student spoke with utter joy about the experience of being part of a musical production, despite losing his hearing three years previously. Every week the children of the school listen to their peers expressing these emotions and sentiments, and there is a communal gathering of will which is supportive, nourishing, and protective. It develops relationships from which the school benefits in a wide range of contexts. As a result, this is the happiest school that I have ever known, and happy children are purposeful children, unafraid to stand up for their beliefs or to take risks. They are willing to think differently, accept deviations from convention, and seek the truth. They become mature, creative, and able to work with one another. As a result, Leighton Park offers the reassurance of 121 years of history, and we have the experience to produce well-rounded individuals who can achieve academic success. We are very similar in these respects to many of the super schools around us. But where we differ is in the relationships between children, and between children and staff. Leighton Park is a community which accepts its individual members, and embraces diversity. We think differently, and stand out from the crowd. It is a wonderful place to live and learn!

I have had a thought-provoking week! I spent the first part of it in St. Andrews at the HMC conference. The assembled head teachers of the top 250 independent schools heard from a range of fascinating speakers, from Lord Winston to Professor A.C.Grayling as well as focusing on the direction for the independent sector, and HMC schools in particular. What was really heart-warming was to see the professional focus on the big question of what school is for. There is a strong feeling abroad that somehow our schools are bastions of wealth and privilege. This is simply not the case. We are not rich, on the whole; we offer wide access through bursaries, scholarship schemes, and partnerships with state schools; we have a huge and diverse range of nationalities and backgrounds among our pupil bodies. However, we are also centres of excellence in teaching and learning. We offer unrivalled opportunities for our students in order to prepare them for their lives beyond school. We do this job better, according to independently educated university students, than the universities do. This is something which university speakers such as Professor Grayling agreed with. Faced with a depressed graduate job market universities are beginning to accept the fact that narrowness of study for undergraduates and a lack of pastoral support are not preparing students for life beyond Academia. At Leighton Park we can shout loudly about our successes in these areas...and perhaps we have never done so loudly enough?
Our students are encouraged to develop throughout their time here as mature, rounded human beings with a concern for the world, surrounded by a loving community which encourages them to respect one another, and within an international context of a school with some thirty different nationalities. We have begun work on a truly groundbreaking new curriculum, which will go live in 2012. Based on the school's values; containing activities which encourage collaboration; the development of skills; pupil leadership of learning; rigorous, but not oppressive, assessment; and the highest of expectations, this curriculum will develop learners who are adventurous, and seek to understand in depth. Today I was in London for the Westminster Education Forum, which sought to set out the priorities and challenges facing education within the next twelve months. The speakers ranged from Head teachers, politicians,union officials and journalists. These were the movers and shakers within and around government who sit on select committees, lobby ministers, or speak out from the opposition benches. A consensus was clearly emerging: that education is changing to reflect the future which our children will face. It is important to tear up the rule book, reassess the ways in which we measure educational performance, and think again about the ways in which we assess children. We must return to our children and their teachers the sheer joy of a learning journey within the classroom. It was inspirational at times, and very reassuring that Leighton Park is already focusing on thrilling, not drilling, students. Education is our opportunity. School is the place in which a child can flourish. Schools should not merely be examination sausage machines, but places of wonder, excitement and adventure in which children can achieve their potential. The greatest of all the speakers at the HMC conference was, in my opinion, John Abbott, the author of an extraordinary book "Over-schooled but Under-educated". He challenged us by reminding us as head teachers of our responsibility to develop learners who were critical, ethical and sensitive. He expressed the huge importance in developing creativity, compassion and idealism. I am reassured, stepping back into school and attending the book launch of our latest anthology of Leighton Park creative writing, War, What is it Good For..? that our students are being educated in the right way, not only within a Quaker context, but in terms of their preparedness for the World. And while I am prepared to shout this as loudly as possible, we are neither smug, nor complacent. The values we place at the heart of all that we do as a school must be vigilantly upheld. At the forefront of educational thinking, we have a deep responsibility to our children, their parents, and the wider community. Leighton Park is at the crest of a wave in terms of the national education debate. we must ride it successfully, confidently and adventurously.

September has been a really super month at Leighton Park School. After a really purposeful start in the classroom by staff and students alike, some competitive fixtures on the sports field, and the excitement of casting the next major production we can reflect that term has well and truly got into full swing. New students have been very prominent in many areas of school life, and are settling in extremely well. It is such a friendly, happy place.
It is also a school where we try new things and have enormous fun. Sailing has taken off, and in our first regatta this week we enjoyed first places in a number of classes, notably by our solo sailor, Italian student Giovanni Abiosi. While individual achievements are exciting in themselves, and draw the congratulations of everybody at Leighton Park, the team and house events add something special. The house scarecrow competition was hilarious, with extraordinary creations being produced by each house. This competition pulled together all the year groups, day and boarding, and in unseasonally hot sunshine it was a pleasure to stroll around the park among the judges. This week also saw the sign-up sheet for our new venture...Quidditch! It is a fast-growing college sport in the USA, and while it is fast-moving and exciting, it is also just a little bit silly. We have issued challenges to other Quaker schools. Two have responded positively so far. A Quaker Quidditch competition is a distinct possibility. 70 students have signed up. Such fun!

Now that we have been back at school for a couple of weeks, the Leighton Park community has begun to settle back intoi the familiar routines of life on the Park. It has been a very purposeful and enjoyable start to the school year. For the first time this year I am experiencing life as a Leighton Park parent. What an interesting and valuable perspective! I have been thrilled to see how the new Year 7 students have embraced life. I was on the Thames with them dragon boating and raft building last Friday. The development of new friendships and familiarity was an important feature of the day, but so too was the learning opportunity which such activities presented to work together to accomplish a goal. During this week, the aspiring thespians in the school auditioned for parts in the next production, "Our Country's Good". The excitement of pulling that team together has been a lovely experience for the drama department, and this was expressed movingly in the meeting for worship which we held on Thursday. Another team which is finding real strength and purpose is the teaching staff. They have risen to the challenge of raising expectations superbly. I have been delighted with the togetherness shown by staff, and their willingness to share best practice for the development of the education we provide for our children here. There has been hard work from teachers and children alike, but there is always a smile on our face - no more so than at the Friday morning Collect at which it was announced that the sport of Quidditch will begin recruiting during the coming term. (Yes - really!). There has been a super start, and there is so much to look forward to. The school continues to live adventurously in everything, and have enormous fun, too.