Cultures and actions to drive leadership diversity

As an education consultant and former headteacher, I often discuss with school leaders the ways in which we approach race equality in education, with many senior leadership teams desperate to improve outcomes and lived experiences for all pupils.

In discussion about systemic change, one of the first places school leaders are able to address race equality is the curriculum. Having curated Hackney’s Diverse Curriculum, which is available to schools globally (see further information), I recognise and value the impact that a school’s curriculum can have.

While it is a vehicle to achieving race equality, it is just one of many systems. It is not the panacea and will not rectify systemic inequalities in our schools and settings alone.
It is one part of our system, and my articles for Headteacher Update consider changes across many of those systems. My last piece asked us to consider why black and global majority* pupils were not being inspired by their own education to return and be teachers and senior leaders in our schools and settings. I also asked us to consider what examples black girls saw in their schools of black leadership and pathways to that leadership (Badu, 2022).