Leading the Way – April 2026

Phil Walklate, Headteacher at Erasmus Darwin Academy, Burntwood, Staffordshire. Part of Primitas Learning Partnership with trust-wide responsibility for leadership development, attendance and NPQH facilitation.

From PE teacher to headteacher who puts students before Ofsted: Phil Walklate’s journey proves that context-driven leadership delivers results

Phil Walklate doesn’t make decisions based on what inspectors want to see. He makes them based on what students need. That distinction matters, particularly when you’re running a high performing school in the region and since the introduction of Progress 8, not one single element has been below the national standard.

“Context drives everything,” he says simply. It’s a philosophy that’s shaped every major decision at Erasmus Darwin Academy, from restructuring senior leadership around personality types to building an Engagement Hub that deliberately contradicts Ofsted’s preferred model because it works for the students who need it most.

Phil’s tips:

• Context drives everything – make decisions based on what your students need, not what inspectors want to see
• Put school culture first and be transparent with your ‘why’. Stand for something or you will fall for anything.
• Have integrity and belief in your decision-making

The PE Teacher Who Became a Data-Driven Leader

Phil completed his PGCE in Secondary Education at the University of East Anglia in 2003, qualifying as a PE teacher before gaining his Masters, NPQH and NPQEL. His route to headship was shaped by a challenging first senior leadership role: Assistant Headteacher responsible for Progress, Achievement and Assessment in a school in special measures.

It was there that HMI recognised and praised his “forensic approach to using data to drive improvement.” That phrase matters because it captures something essential about Phil’s leadership: he’s rigorous about what works, not what’s fashionable.

Phil’s tips:

• Stay away from fads in teaching
• Use data forensically to drive improvement
• Be rigorous about what actually works for your context

His career developed across secondary schools in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent before joining Erasmus Darwin Academy as Vice Principal in 2016. He became Head of School in January 2019 and Headteacher in September 2022, allowing the previous Principal to form Primitas Learning Partnership and take on the role of CEO/Executive Headteacher.

Building on Strong Foundations

When Phil took over the headship from his predecessor, he inherited a school with a clear ethos. His job wasn’t to reinvent it but to build on what already worked whilst improving what needed attention.

“What has improved is assessment and teaching and learning,” he explains. “Students and staff live the school values of hard work, high aspirations and limitless opportunities. Positive interactions are encouraged by all.”

Phil’s tips:

• Build on existing ethos rather than reinventing everything
• Ensure students and staff genuinely live school values
• Encourage positive interactions at every level

At the heart of EDA’s approach is something deceptively simple: “Be a good person.” Students are told that they should value being a good person above all things. It’s the kind of message that could sound trite in another context, but at EDA it’s threaded through everything from the Engagement Hub to how senior leadership operates.

Phil’s tips:

• Stick to values that resonate and pass these on to staff and students
• Make values concrete and actionable, not just words on a wall
• Ensure character development sits alongside academic achievement

The Engagement Hub: Choosing Students Over Ofsted

The most telling example of Phil’s context-driven leadership is the Engagement Hub. It’s a small, purpose-built facility designed for students who struggle to attend school. Students enter the Hub and are supported to reintegrate back into the mainstream environment when they’re ready.

Phil knows this contradicts what Ofsted would prefer. He’s doing it anyway.

“I know this is against what Ofsted would want, but it is what is best for the students,” he says directly. The Hub started with older students last year and proved successful enough to roll out to lower year groups. It’s not an alternative provision that warehouses students. It’s a deliberate intervention that works.

Phil’s tips:

• Have the unequivocal belief that every child can succeed – don’t leave anyone behind
• Make decisions based on student need, not inspection frameworks
• Build interventions that genuinely reintegrate students, not remove them permanently
• Don’t be afraid to pilot new initiatives before scaling up

The impact? Students at EDA achieve way above the national average in all areas. Progression from Year 7 is consistently high. Of the students who join EDA, 97% of them remain until Year 11. And that 98% retention rate in the Sixth Form speaks to something working that goes beyond academic outcomes.

Building Teams That Reflect Reality

Phil has been deliberate about developing diverse teams across every level of staffing at EDA. It’s not just leadership. It’s teachers, support staff, administrative teams – diversity runs through the entire staffing structure.

It’s a model that reflects the student body, but it’s also grounded in something Phil knows works: diverse teams spot what homogeneous ones miss. One person sees what others don’t. That diversity of perspective delivers better outcomes.

Phil’s tips:

• Grow your own leaders and build diverse teams at every staffing level, not just leadership
• Ensure your teams reflect your student body
• Recognise that diverse perspectives catch what homogeneous teams miss

This approach extends to how he’s restructured senior leadership, enabling staff to be in positions that fit their personality types. It’s an unusual approach in schools where leadership structures are often inherited or built around traditional hierarchies.

Phil’s tips:

• Restructure leadership around personality types, not just traditional hierarchies
• Give staff genuine autonomy over their working patterns and embrace flexible working
• Prioritise staff wellbeing concretely, not just rhetorically
• Develop others, never judge them

The impact has been tangible: staff retention is strong, the school holds a gold charter mark for staff wellbeing, and staff are given autonomy to either stay at school or go home and work if they’re not timetabled to teach.

But Phil hasn’t retreated from the classroom himself. He still teaches classes, maintaining direct contact with the work his staff do every day. It’s a deliberate choice that reinforces something he believes deeply: no “us and them” culture.

Phil’s tips:

• Be a hands-on headteacher
• Stay connected to classroom practice
• Model the expectations you have of others
• Avoid creating an “us and them” culture between leadership and teachers

Growing Your Own Leaders

Phil’s approach to staff development is rooted in something practical: he employs former students who have an understanding of how the school works. They know the ethos because they lived it. That foundation matters when you’re trying to build a culture where people go above and beyond.

“Grow your own leaders,” he advises. It’s not just about succession planning. It’s about creating pathways for people who understand your context and share your values.

Phil’s tips:

• Grow your own leaders rather than always recruiting externally
• Employ former students who understand your school ethos
• Create clear pathways for staff development
• Invest in people who share your values and understand your context

The trust-wide responsibility for CPD that Phil holds reflects this commitment. His approach is deliberately no-nonsense: one CPD session per week, focused and purposeful. No fads, no box-ticking, just professional development that actually develops professionals.

Phil’s tips:

• Take a no-nonsense approach to CPD – one focused session per week
• Avoid CPD for the sake of CPD
• Make professional development genuinely developmental

Transparency as a Leadership Tool

Phil is transparent with staff about plans, challenges and decisions. That transparency, he’s found, encourages staff to be on board with where the school is heading. Leadership decisions will always divide opinion but explaining the reason for the decision will help staff appreciate the decision making process.

It’s particularly relevant when it comes to newer challenges like AI implementation. The trust has a well-structured team of computer technicians supporting implementation. Trust-wide governors have had training on AI. At EDA, AI implementation is being thoughtfully rolled out with staff training and the creation of AI Champions roles.

Phil’s tips:

• Be transparent with staff about plans and challenges
• Build support structures before implementing new initiatives
• Train governors alongside staff on emerging challenges
• Create champion roles to support implementation

It’s the opposite of the “announce and implement” approach that creates resistance. Phil’s method is to bring people along, explain the thinking, and build capacity before expecting change.

Opportunities Beyond the Classroom

Phil provides extensive opportunities for students through trips and visits. He provides the same for staff through training. Both matter because both send the same message: this school believes in broadening horizons, not just delivering curriculum content.

But there’s a pragmatic edge to Phil’s leadership too. He avoids financial risks and anything that risks jobs or would cause staffing challenges. That’s not caution for its own sake. It’s recognition that the stability which allows everything else to work depends on not gambling with people’s livelihoods.

Phil’s tips:

• Provide extensive opportunities for both students and staff
• Avoid financial risks that threaten jobs and stability
• Recognise that sustainable improvement requires stable staffing

Advice for Aspiring Leaders

Ask Phil for advice and you get something practical rather than aspirational:

“Stick to values that resonate and pass these on to staff and students. Have integrity. Develop others, never judge them. No us and them culture. Put school culture first. Context drives everything. Stay away from fads in teaching. Every child succeeds, don’t leave anyone behind. Grow your own leaders. Be a hands-on headteacher.”

Phil’s tips:

• Stick to values that resonate
• Have integrity in all decisions
• Develop others, never judge them
• Avoid “us and them” culture
• Put school culture first
• Remember context drives everything
• Stay away from teaching fads
• Ensure every child succeeds
• Grow your own leaders
• Remain hands-on as a headteacher

It’s a list that reveals priorities. Values matter. Integrity matters. Culture matters. Context matters. People matter. The rest is noise.

The Results Speak for Themselves

Erasmus Darwin Academy is one of the highest-performing schools locally, regionally and nationally. Students achieve way above national average in all areas. High progression from Year 7. 98% retention through to Year 11. Gold charter mark for staff wellbeing and the Inclusion Quality Mark with Centre of Excellence status was recently awarded in December 2025.

These aren’t just numbers. They’re evidence that values-led, context-driven leadership actually works when you’re willing to make decisions based on what students need rather than what frameworks prefer.

Phil’s journey from PE teacher to headteacher who builds Engagement Hubs that contradict Ofsted preferences suggests something important: the best school leaders know their context better than any inspector ever will. They make decisions accordingly. And they’re transparent enough about their reasoning that staff, students and families understand why those decisions matter.

At Erasmus Darwin Academy in Burntwood, that approach is working. Perhaps it’s time more school leaders had the confidence to do the same.

How This Relates to Meta Pedagogy and AI

Phil’s leadership demonstrates the principles Meta Pedagogy brings to AI implementation: context-driven decision-making over framework compliance, transparency with staff, thoughtful rollout with champion roles, and governor training alongside teacher development. Just as Phil built the Engagement Hub because students needed it (regardless of what Ofsted preferred), we support schools to implement AI strategy based on their actual context, not corporate tech assumptions or policy fads. His approach to CPD – focused, purposeful, no-nonsense – mirrors our rejection of generic AI training that wastes staff time. When you’re ready to implement AI with the same rigour Phil applies to everything else at EDA, we’re here to support that work.

Ready to implement AI with integrity and purpose?

Book a free 30-minute consultation to discuss what context-driven AI implementation could look like in your school. No fads, no box-ticking, just strategic support from people who understand real schools.

Get In Touch

Get in touch to discuss your school’s AI strategy admin@metapedagogy.co.uk