Interview Time.

Morning Sir, thank you for meeting with us. We have some questions for you.

Please can we start by asking you what is your new job?

It’s not so much that I have a new job but more that I have another job alongside my job here at school. I am also working three days a week for the Education Department. I’m in Haute Vallee on a Monday and a Friday, and I’m in the Education Department on a Tuesday, Wednesday and a Thursday.

My work for the Education Department is to carry out a review of how the Education Department supports schools.

Next question is: do you like your new job?

I have been doing this new job now for about four and a half weeks, and at the moment, I’m really enjoying it. I’m learning a lot about the Education Department and also trying to understand how the Education Department and schools work together.

I’m meeting lots of new people and learning lots of new things, things that I didn’t really know much about before. I am really enjoying it, but I’m also missing not being here in school. If I am honest, it is quite difficult finding the right balance and switching between two jobs.

This work, called a secondment will stop in July and I then come back to HV for five days a week.

Q: What is your position in your new job?

I am called Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Only joking. I am not sure of what I am called in my new job, but my tasks at the moment are to speak to as many people as I can, to understand what is working well and also think about how the Education Department can support schools differently in the future.

Q: How would you describe your new job?

At the moment, I am going out to lots of schools and meeting lots of people to ask specific questions around how schools and the Education Department interface or work together.

So far, I think I have visited 14 schools, I have met with lots and lots of people, probably over 100 different people and I am asking them all about their thoughts and views about what is working well and what their ideas are around change and potentially what may need to change in the future.

At this moment in time, I’m doing a piece of work that we are calling “Discovery”. This is where we find out what everybody is doing, what everybody thinks is good and what everybody thinks maybe needs to change.

Q: Where is your new job?

It is down in Union Street. The big building opposite the hospital on the corner. You know that new, big building that’s been built there. It’s in there, and we’ve got a little bit of a workspace on the second floor. So that’s where I spend some of the time.

However, I’m going out a lot. So, for example, last week I visited four schools, and attended various meetings so I am travelling around lots of different places. It really depends on who we are going out to speak to and understand what people are doing.

So basically, I’m there for a little bit of the time, but a lot of the time I’m out travelling, going to visit lots of people to ask them their opinions.

Q: What is your work based on?

I think I have already answered this one?

Our Director General, my big boss if you like, has asked me and Mr Baudains from La Moye Primary School to work together to carry out this review so that we can think about how the Education Department and Education Service will operate in the future.

Q: Do you like it?

I do like it because it is different, I am not sure I like it as much as being at HV? But of course, what I want to try and do is make sure that in the work that we do, I also think about how the Education Department may be able to support Haute Vallee a bit more as well.

Q: Who do you work with?

So, I work with Mr Baudains and obviously we work with lots of other people from all schools and the Jersey Education Department.

There’s lots of parts to the Education Department, so we’re trying to work with everybody in all the different parts to understand what they do and how that helps schools.

Q: How long will you work in your new job?

I started at the beginning of February, and it will end at the end of July.

Q: Will you be leaving Haute Vallee?

I will not be leaving Haute Vallee.

This other job is for three days a week until the end of July. As mentioned, I am in school for two days a week, three days a week in the Education Department.

Mr Allsopp is Acting Head Teacher, so he’s making sure he’s looking after the school for us. It is important to people to realise that I have not left Haute Vallee and that I am not leaving.

I think this work is a great opportunity for us to try and make things a little bit better for everybody.

Q: And how long have you worked at Haute Vallee?

I started here in January 2018. How many years is that? I know I don’t look old enough, do I?

No comment. 😊