On this episode of Mind The Gap, Tom Sherrington and Emma Turner are joined by Amanda Wilson. The three of them talk through Amanda's unorthodox journey to headship, and the traits that she has found most important throughout her educational career: confidence, authenticity, and empowerment. Those three themes shine through in her book, Letters to a Young Generation: Aspiring School Leaders, and Amanda says they are especially important for Black leaders, whose confidence can be mistaken for aggressiveness, and whose authenticity can be difficult to maintain without a strong support network. Amanda believes it is crucial for leaders to keep an eye out for promising candidates and "send the elevator back down" to help bring them up, which is the idea behind her company Crux Leadership Development.

Amanda is the headteacher of St Alfege with St Peter’s CofE Primary School and has 25 years’ experience in the education sector. She is a qualified coach with an MA in Coaching and Mentoring from Oxford Brookes University and is an EMCC Senior Practitioner. She has a track record for supporting teachers in securing leadership roles, and in 2023 Amanda published the book Letters to a Young Generation: Aspiring School Leaders which aims to encourage the next generation of Black school leaders. Follow her on Twitter @AmandaWilson910

Tom Sherrington has worked in schools as a teacher and leader for 30 years and is now a consultant specialising in teacher development and curriculum & assessment planning. He regularly contributes to conferences and CPD sessions locally and nationally and is busy working in schools and colleges across the UK and around the world. Follow Tom on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@teacherhead⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Emma Turner joined Discovery Schools Academy Trust as the Research and CPD lead after 20 years in primary teaching. She founded ‘NewEd – Joyful CPD for early-career teachers,’ a not-for-profit approach to CPD to encourage positivity amongst the profession and help retain teachers in post. Follow Emma on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@emma_turner75⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.