Britain’s best-paid state school headteacher is unfazed by the daunting challenges ahead, reports Emily Clark.
Billed as Britain’s highest-paid state headteacher, Alastair Falk knows he has a lot to prove.
Mr Falk was plucked from a field of 80 candidates to run the new pound;20 million West London Academy in Ealing next April. With a performance-related salary topping pound;100,000, much is expected of him.
Roger Bearn is managing the project on behalf of millionaire sponsor Alec Reed, chief of Reed recruitment agency, who is giving the school pound;2m. Mr Bearn said: “We certainly have high expectations. We need a strong leader who is willing to look at alternative ways of learning and teaching.”
The plan to shut down and re-open 763-pupil Compton high and sports college came after a 1998 inspection report highlighted poor standards. This year’s GCSE results show only 14 per cent of pupils attained five grades A to C.
But Mr Falk is not fazed by his new responsibilities and is modest about his achievements.He also rejects the term “superhead”.
He said: “The idea of a superhead is nonsense. I have had a lot of publicity but I do not have any monopoly on expertise or knowledge. I am very fortunate to be granted such an interesting challenge.
“There was a lot of fuss about the first headteacher to reach the pound;70,000 salary barrier too but that is now standard and with high property prices we will probably see more increases.”
He would like to establish a strong link with Alec Reed and is excited by the greater flexibility that the new academies - effectively state-funded independent schools - will allow. He said: “I have been following the city academy initiative and I think it is a fabulous opportunity to be more flexible with the curriculum, the length of the school day and teachers’
conditions.”
The sponsors want a fresh approach to lessons with more teamwork and presentations from pupils. But although Alec Reed will be chairman of the governors, Mr Falk is the ultimate authority in the day-to-day running of the school.
His past experience should help him launch the new academy. In his last job he successfully established King Solomon’s high in Redbridge, opened nine years ago. “Not many headteachers have the luxury of starting something from scratch,” said Mr Falk, 48, who lives in Hendon, north London. “But I started my current school so have been through the process before. It started with 85 students and we now have 950.”
Mr Falk’s path to his first headship was unusual. He was a parent-governor at the Independent Jewish Day School in Hendon before being offered the top job there 16 years ago.
Mr Falk suggests academies should be prepared to look beyond the profession when appointing staff at all levels.
“Many of our best teachers worked in industry for a number of years before deciding to become teachers and have proven to be excellent because of their outside experiences,” he said.
