Meet Our Facilitators: Sarah McCurrie
The fantastic facilitators at Inspire Learning Teaching School Hub NW are the backbone of the hub, expertly supporting the running of NPQ programmes that we provide.
In our previous blog, we spoke to Jacqui Jenkinson who began her teaching career as teacher of German with French. This time, we speak to another facilitator at our hub: Sarah McCurrie and find out more about her career as well as her thoughts on the role.
Sarah began teaching in further education at the age of 26 following a career break to raise a family immediately after university, and it was from then that she continued to successfully pursue a wide variety of positions in the profession.
She said: “Following a range of curriculum and leadership roles such as head of department, assistant principal, and head of sixth form college, I started teaching in further education at the age of 26. The college principal later decided to add me to leadership training, recognising me as a future senior leader and future college principal. I had achieved all this and more within 12 years from the start of my career in teaching.”
The role of an NPQ facilitator sees an experienced teacher or leader dedicate time to assisting teachers embarking on national professional qualification programmes through the attendance of virtual and face-to-face conferences, networking events and appointments. They also receive training and support in order to further develop their skills and enhance the learning experience for participants.
At Inspire Learning Teaching School Hub NW, Sarah delivers the National Professional Qualification for Senior Leadership which supports school leaders who are, or are aspiring to be, a senior leader with cross-school responsibilities.
Sarah’s work in secondary schools, higher education, and further education, fulfilling a range of senior executive leadership positions, meant that she had plenty of insightful experiences to share and it inspired her to support others on their own teaching journeys.
“The experience gained allowed me the capacity to share knowledge and assist others to gain senior leadership experience,” Sarah explained. “I have strong leadership skills with a determined ability to manage change in a variety of situations. This gives me excellent skills to assist others.”
Facilitating other teachers as they complete NPQ programmes comes with a lot of benefits and for Sarah this was especially the case regarding the opportunities that arose surrounding her own professional development.
She said: “The role provides good experience which can add to your own personal development as a senior leader and a clear knowledge of recent updates to leadership development training requirements and the reward of assisting others.”
On what one can expect to achieve as a facilitator, Sarah explained: “They can develop personal knowledge as a leader and facilitator, develop a wider network of contacts within their local context and enjoy making a positive impact on the future leadership of schools.”
Though being a facilitator provides plenty of pleasant and impactful moments, what does Sarah enjoy most of all about the role?
She said: “The reward of leading individuals and teams to a new position, learning or developing their skills and working towards a new role in their future.”
To conclude, Sarah urges other experienced senior leaders who are looking to support the next generation of teachers and leaders to become a facilitator.
She concluded: “It allows for personal growth as a leader and benefits local educational needs. It is rewarding and enjoyable – try it!”
If you would like to find out how you can become a facilitator with Inspire Learning Teaching
School Hub, please contact us as we are currently recruiting!
Find out more and apply on our website or call the team on 0151 245 3186.