b'THE YEAR OF THREEwhich were very successful, and even had a girls team which I coached, before womens HEADTEACHERS football was as popular as it is now. We even reached the national final and were featured SPRING TERM on the Central News TV programme.After a wonderful career of 19 years in two schools in north Solihull, I moved to HGS as Assistant Headteacher (Post 16) in 2012. From apprenticeAgain, I found fantastic students who were keen to learn and who loved the school. I developed the Sixth Form, and our results professional footballerwent up and up. I was part of a new senior leadership team, led by headteacher Dr Simon Bird, and we had a fantastic Ofsted to pioneer promoter ofinspection in 2017, where the school was judged to be Outstanding. We were delighted by this judgement, but we never womens football became complacent and were always looking to improve and develop the school. In 2018 I became the deputy headteacher at the school and continued to teach PE. I Mr Chris Conwayhave always coached school football and explains how hisbasketball teams at the school and have had huge enjoyment from that interest. It has love of the beautifulmade me very proud that the school teams game led him to aI have managed have been very competitive love of teaching and well-organised but are always very sporting and are generous both in victory and defeat.I have thoroughly enjoyed taking part in other elements of the school, and continue to help I have taught now for 37 years and count mytouch all these years later. He said to me,with school concerts, acting as the compre blessings every day that I have had such anYou would make a really good PE teacher.for both the winter and summer concerts.enjoyable, fulfilling, and interesting career. II had never thought of myself as a teacher,In January 2024, I became the interim have had great fun, taught some fantasticbut I realised that I loved sport, enjoyed theheadteacher of HGS for one term. It was young people, worked with some wonderfulcompany of other young people, and I knewa very enjoyable term and I loved leading colleagues over those many years, and haveit was a prestigious profession. the school. It has been the highlight of my never had a single dull day!I spent the next four years at university inprofessional career and I look forward to And yet, for me, my journey to becoming theLeeds, where I studied hard, played lots ofcontinuing to work in a wonderful school and headteacher at HGS, albeit for a short time infootball, learned how to teach lots of othersupporting Mr Tim Johnson, in my role as 2024, was actually a second career. sports, and generally had a fantastic time.deputy headteacher.I left my Catholic boys grammar school inI met the woman who has been my wifeOne of the great joys of my career as a my home town of Bolton in the north westfor over 30 years now; and then, when myteacher is bumping into ex-pupils, and HGS of England in July 1980 and signed as anstudies came to an end, I secured my firsthas a huge number of alumni who are all apprentice professional footballer for Boltonteaching post in my home town of Bolton. over the world. I often wear my HGS jacket Wanderers Football Club. It was my dreamI spent a term at my first school, Rivingtonproudly in this city and in other parts of the to be a footballer, and for the next two yearsand Blackrod High School, before movingcountry, and I have been amazed at how I trained every day and worked as hard as Ito St Jamess CE School, where I spent fiveoften I am stopped by an older person who could to make a career for myself in the game.very enjoyable years. I learned how to berecognises the famous school badge. Those a really good PE teacher and threw myselfof you who are pupils at this remarkable I made quick progress and was soon in theinto lessons and extracurricular sport. I usedschool are very fortunateyou are all part of reserves team, playing against top clubsto referee Saturday morning school footballa rich history and legacy which is HGS.around the country, and playing on thematches, before having a quick shower and league grounds of those clubs. I rememberdashing off to play semi-professional football playing at Everton and Newcastle in my earlyaround the north west and the Midlands. It days, and all seemed to be going well. I alsowas all great fun.combined this job with studying part-time for my A levels, which was one of the conditionsIn 1992 I moved my parents had insisted upon when I signedto Birmingham for the Wanderers. and quickly After two years and despite my efforts, mybecome the Head dreams were shattered as I was released byof PE at a school the club. It was a blow. I then signed for acalled Archbishop season with another north west club, PrestonGrimshaw School. North End FC, and continued to play in theirAgain, I worked very reserve team. At that time, I went back tohard and built up the my old school, which was a boys grammardepartment, as well school, very much like HGS. I spoke toas continuing with my my old PE teacher, with whom I am still inlove of school sports. I ran football teams 6'