Fiona Creaby
Manchester Metropolitan University
Dr Fiona Creaby specialises in leadership and business management in education and the public sector and has an interest in social theories of learning and identity in the context of leadership preparation and development in education. Fiona undertakes independent research and consultancy and also works as an Associate Lecturer across three HEIs in the UK: Manchester Metropolitan University supporting executive management programmes in the Business School and supporting education programmes the Faculty of Education, including Early Years courses; University of Manchester as a postgraduate dissertation supervisor on MA Educational Leadership, Education (international) and Teach First Leadership Development programmes; and Nottingham Trent University as a MBA tutor. Fiona has undertaken commissioned research for the Institute of Leadership and Management on leadership diversity and The Institute of School Business Leadership (ISBL, formerly NASBM) on the development of the profession. As a Fellow of the HEA, and an experienced course-writer, assessor and verifier, Fiona develops and delivers accredited qualifications, bespoke training and CPD programmes to education and public sector professionals. Prior to her work as an academic and consultant, Fiona spent over a decade working in charities and UK state schools as a business manager leading a range of support services, teams, business functions, projects and departments at senior leadership level, and spent time managing education programmes in the Australian childhood education and care sector.
With rapid education reforms and systemic change sweeping through compulsory education in England and Wales, how schools operate to achieve educational outcomes for children is increasingly complex. New risks, accountabilities... [ view full abstract ]
With rapid education reforms and systemic change sweeping through compulsory education in England and Wales, how schools operate to achieve educational outcomes for children is increasingly complex. New risks, accountabilities and governance structures are emerging, along with increased attention on resource efficiency and financial sustainability in the face of budget constraint and impending changes to national education funding.
Acknowledged as an international evolution of professionalisation across the public sector workforce, School Business Professionals (SBPs) are increasingly acting as key players in schools as they undertake crucial aspects of management and leadership, both operationally and strategically. Although there is evidence outlining the important contributions made to schools by SBPs in England over the last two decades, there is limited research that explores the impact of recent reforms on this vital community and the challenges and opportunities this brings to practice as schools evolve to meet the growing need to self-manage in increasingly strategic and innovative ways.
This paper discusses research undertaken in 2017 with practising SBPs situated in a range of school types across England and Wales. Its aim is to share practitioner perspectives on matters of professional confidence and growth in the context of recent reforms. Using a small-scale mixed methods design, data collection took place between July and December 2017 via an online survey, three focus groups and ten semi-structured interviews, which (combined) gained the views of almost three hundred SBPs holding membership of the Institute of School Business Leadership (ISBL).
Initial survey results suggest that a good level of professional confidence was present amongst participants, along with confidence in their ability to professionally grow in the future. However, this was tempered with apprehensions regarding the changing nature of school structures, evolving accountabilities, and a continuing lack of understanding of the contribution and value of the SBP community across the wider education sector. Appearing increasingly diverse and faced with many pressures, SBPs raised challenges around funding, role capacity, governance, academisation and MAT formation, as well as their increasing involvement in managing risk and change. The importance of strategic thinking and diverse structures that go beyond traditional school leadership models were deemed as vital in meeting the increasing demands to self-manage across all school-types. Overall, the initial findings present the SBP community as having much to contribute to the structural evolution of education across England and Wales including a wealth of business knowledge, experience, and great passion for children’s learning.
