Making School Unmissable

Rachel Macfarlane is the Director of Education Services at Herts for Learning and has previously served as head teacher at three contrasting schools over a sixteen-year period. Between 2009 and 2018 Rachel was project director of the London Leadership Strategys Going for Great (G4G) programme, which involved working with leaders of outstanding schools to share good practice and produce case studies for dissemination to London schools.

Paul Jenkins has worked in education for over 25 years. Trained in English, Drama and Media Studies, he has taught a range of subjects up to A-level. As a leader, he worked as Head of VI Form, Deputy Head, Headteacher and Executive Headteacher. He currently works as an educational consultant for standards and curriculum. He has mentored and trained new headteachers and written articles and award-winning scripts for theatre and television.

Whats brilliant about Making School Unmissable is that, without underplaying the extent of the challenges, it offers practical ways of reimagining schools so that everyone wants to be there and all can flourish. We need five senses, the authors argue, to understand the point of school, to share a common identity, to celebrate the strengths of all young people, to boost their learning power and to create a sense of adventure. Simple really! Get yourself a copy of this book and youll see these senses make great sense!  Professor Bill Lucas, author, education reformer and co-founder of Rethinking Assessment

"Amid so much gloom about education, here at last is a book that is unflinching in recognising the problems, but then setting out a series of solutions. Without being soppy or trite, Macfarlane and Jenkins provide a call-to-arms for how all of us involved in education might better engage those young people who see schooling as marginal or irrelevant. Its a book which mixes principles with strong evidence and practical proposals. Recommended."Geoff Barton Geoff Barton, former teacher, head teacher and union leader

Making School Unmissable is a book that will help to make the job of teaching feel really enriching. It speaks to schools about why they exist and how they can make every child believe they matter.Mick Waters, Educationalist and author

Making School Unmissable confronts the uncomfortable truth that school is currently very missable for many young people. Unsurprisingly, as its written by two authors with a combined seven decades of experience in schools, it is deeply practical about what leaders can do to make education as unmissable as it has been for those like me who have great memories of school. Rachel and Paul go far beyond platitudes about belonging, however, as they deftly grapple with the challenges of contemporary society and schooling. Children whose school leaders engage with this book will see their friends want to, rather than have to, come to school. Dr Tim Coulson CBE, Director General, Regions Group, DfE 

Making School Unmissable confronts the uncomfortable truth that school is currently very missable for many young people. Unsurprisingly, as its written by two authors with a combined seven decades of experience in schools, it is deeply practical about what leaders can do to make education as unmissable as it has been for those like me who have great memories of school. Rachel and Paul go far beyond platitudes about belonging, however, as they deftly grapple with the challenges of contemporary society and schooling. Children whose school leaders engage with this book will see their friends want to, rather than have to, come to school.   Tier Blundell, Chief Executive of Excluded from School