Fiona Wood, headteacher, Netherton Moss Primary School, Bootle

Netherton Moss Primary School picked up the Outstanding Arts in a Primary School award for the second year at the recent Educate Awards. Fiona Wood not only provides an insight into how music and creativity plays a part in the school’s day-to-day routine, but also shares her busy schedule during a typical week in her role as headteacher.

Monday:
The week starts with an 8.30am meeting with Horizon; a group of heads from our local schools. We work together to plan joint activities for staff and children, such as joint training events, and all our school choirs gathered together to sing carols at Tesco raising funds for the Phillippines Typhoon appeal.
We are currently working on a link with schools in Poland, as well as planning joint maths activities for some of our older children. There is always a lot to arrange!
Lunchtime sees me usually in the dining room – a good chance to chat with the children and ask them about their morning. We have a wide range of lunchtime clubs on offer; it’s sketch club today!

Tuesday:
Doors open at 8.45am and whenever possible I am out on the junior playground each morning to meet and greet the children as they arrive. I’ll then pop in to several classrooms on my way back to my office.
Tommy, our site manager, updates me on the premises; decisions about roofing work and other building plans. Then it’s time for emails and paperwork, and some training in the afternoon about our computer systems in the office. Not very exciting, but necessary.

Wednesday:
Time to start gathering information for our weekly newsletter; attendance figures, diary dates, etc. We are starting to prepare for our next full governors meeting, which means going through the proposed agenda with our school bursar.
We also spend time going through the finances, looking at the different budget headings.
At lunchtime we have our weekly visitors from the ‘Chess in Schools’ initiative. They help to run a lunchtime club, and then spend an hour teaching our Year 5 chess.
It’s great to see the progress they are making, and there is plenty of hard thinking and concentration going on.
After school we have our weekly staff meeting; an important time for the team to get together for updates and training.

Thursday:
The whole school gets together for our weekly family assembly, with family and friends joining us. It’s a great opportunity to celebrate things like birthdays, attendance and good behaviour as well as giving children the chance to share what they have been doing outside of school. This could be trophies, certificates, writing, drawing and even Lego models!
Then it’s back to the office, calling into some classrooms on the way before dealing with emails, etc.
I’m out in the afternoon interviewing prospective teachers at Edge Hill; it’s always interesting seeing the candidates and deciding who might have the potential to become a teacher in the near future.

Friday:
I love Friday mornings as there is so much music going on. All our older children learn how to play an instrument, whether it’s the recorder, keyboard, brass or clarinet. They are all doing so well; some even played with the Hallé last year!
Later on I’ll the give Year 6 their next piece of homework from me, which they love!?!
In the afternoon I try and go into the nursery to meet some of our newest children who started in January. Time flies in this busy job, and it won’t seem long before they are in Year 6.