This one feels a little different to my usual posts. ❤️ For a long time, I’ve talked about how much pastoral work has changed. The responsibility has grown. The complexity has grown. And yet so many brilliant pastoral practitioners are still expected to learn much of the job simply by doing

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Every August I make myself the same promises. 😂 This year I’ll leave on time. I’ll eat an actual lunch, at lunchtime. I’ll stay on top of my emails, phone calls, recording and everything else. And when I go home, I’ll switch off. I say all of this with complete sincerity, despite hav

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Sometimes pastoral care doesn’t look particularly complicated from the outside. 😂 A chat. Five minutes out of lesson. Something to eat. A firm conversation. A joke when they’re having a rubbish day. But there’s usually a reason behind it. We’re building relationships so they kn

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Today is about the results. But it’s also about everything it took to get there. ❤️ Pastoral teams know the stories behind those numbers. We remember the student whose attendance made getting through the exams an achievement in itself. The one we met at the gate every morning. The one w

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Okay… yesterday I told you everything I’m NOT looking forward to about going back. 😂 So, in the interests of balance, there are some things I’ve genuinely missed. ❤️ My pastoral team. My people. The ones who understand the entire story from one look across the room. Seeing the students aga

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I’m not ready to go back yet. 😩😂 Not sure I ever will be, if I’m honest. My school brain has definitely started switching itself back on though — and unfortunately, it’s reminding me of all the things I’d happily leave in July. Drinking my lunch because there isn’t time to eat it. Being

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The bit I’m REALLY dreading about going back to work.

“The pastoral team can do it!” 😂 Somewhere along the way, non-teaching seems to have become another word for available. Playground duty? Pastoral can do it. Hold the toilet key? Pastoral can do it. Someone needs covering in an admin office? Pastoral can do it. Student Services need c

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There’s a very specific rhythm to the six-week summer holiday… 😂 Weeks 1–2: Decompressing. Please don’t ask me to make a decision. My brain is OFF. Weeks 3–4: Absolute bliss. ☀️ Reading. Pottering. Going out. Remembering who you are outside of school. THIS is the life. And then… Weeks

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The pastoral office really does have its own timetable. 😂 Before you’ve even put your bag down, someone needs you. By 9:15 you’ve heard three different reasons for being late, found a spare tie and called someone’s mum. By lunchtime, EVERYONE hates someone — despite there being 220 student

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I think I’m coming back. ❤️ It’s amazing what happens when the school-year noise finally stops. I’ve baked bread. I’ve read. I’ve sat in the sun. I’ve planted things and actually remembered to look after them. 😂 I’ve had the concentration to work on Pastoral Practice UK and my Level 3 qualifi

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😂 All I wanted was a wee. One quick trip down the corridor. Two minutes, maximum. Except you work in pastoral.(and we are needed for EVERYTHING 😉) So somewhere between your office and the toilet, you’ve questioned a student out of lesson, been called into a classroom, acquired some lost p

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😂 The logic is absolutely flawless… to them. If you work in pastoral, you’ll know these conversations. You ask what feels like a very straightforward question and somehow end up in a full-scale debate about the precise definition of late, swearing, arguing or lying. And the confidence with wh

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Every pastoral office looks slightly different. Different walls. Different mugs. Different paperwork piled on the desk. But they all have one thing in common… For some children, that room is where they feel safest. It’s where they calm down after a panic attack. It’s where they ask for

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There are moments in pastoral that nobody else sees. The conversation that calms a panic attack. The student who finally asks for help. The child who starts smiling again. The quiet “Morning, Miss” from someone who used to walk past without saying a word. Those moments don’t make headlines

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If you’ve ever worked in a pastoral role, you’ll probably have smiled (or sighed!) reading these. Somehow, it’s become completely normal to: • be everyone’s first stop, • put your own needs on hold, • and still be expected to have the answer to everything. The reality of pastoral work is r

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People often ask what it’s like to work in pastoral care. The truth is, it’s not the big moments that stay with you. It’s the quiet conversations. The child who finally trusts you enough to talk. The student who smiles when they walk into your office. The young person who leaves feeling ju

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There are certain conversations that happen every September. If you’ve worked in pastoral, you’ll recognise every single one. Some children arrive excited. Some arrive terrified. Most arrive with a hundred questions. Sometimes the most important thing we do isn’t solving a huge problem…

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Two weeks into the summer holidays and I’m starting to wonder… How are they doing? Are they eating properly? Is anyone making sure they’re home safely? Has the break helped their anxiety… or made it worse? Then my mind shifts to September. A brand new year group. Who are they?

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People often ask me what a Head of Year actually does. The honest answer? Some days… I haven’t got a clue what I’ll be doing next. In 22 years, I’ve been asked to… 🧪 Carry out a pregnancy test with a 14-year-old student. 💊 Explain what Viagra is to a Year 9 student. (Story time for a

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⸻ “It’s just pastoral.” If you’ve ever worked in a pastoral role, you’ve probably heard those words before. But “just pastoral” means… Supporting children’s mental health. Managing safeguarding concerns. Working with families during some of the hardest moments of their lives. U

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