Our Patch AUGUST 2014
Our Patch AUGUST 2014
Y
ou don’t grow up as one
of ten children without
learning a thing or two
about patience. And it’s
that cool head which
defined Sheila Mear’s tenure
as Wendell Park Primary’s headteacher
for the past eight years.
She is a great listener and a popular
leader who loved to watch her pupils
and her staff flourish. Sheila joined
Wendell Park in September 2006 after
working in Gloucestershire as a school
improvement adviser. But her teaching
career started way back in 1979 in her
home city of Bristol.
“My parents came to England from
the West Indies – my mother was a
nurse, my father a manual worker – and
they had really high aspirations for
their children,” she said. “We all did
well and as a result of that I know the
value of hard work. And I want the
children to appreciate that as well.
“The thing with big families is that
the older children get given lots of
responsibilities,” she added. “I never
had any trouble with discipline! We
were never allowed to shout at or hit
our siblings. So we learned at a young
age how to manage them effectively.”
TALKING
HEADS
WENDELL PARK
PRIMARY SCHOOL
COMMUNITY
When asked to reflect on what
she thought of the school when
she arrived at Wendell Park she
said quickly: “I didn’t try to come
in and ‘fix’ anything. I hate that
concept that you have to come
and fix something in schools. It
was already a good school.”
And one of the things that
Sheila believes sets Wendell Park
apart as a school is the community.
“I’ve been fortunate to have the
support of a fantastic staff team
and great parents – and parents
who are willing to turn up and
support their children,” she said.
“It’s a very mixed community. And
the different aspects of the community
Departing headteacher Sheila Mears explains to
Geoff Cowart why the school community is so unique
The Children’s Centre
is opened in 2009
New logo
6 / 7
Old logo - not
print quality
Far left, departing Wendell
Park Primary headteacher
Sheila Mears. Left, the school.
Right, achievement awards. Below,
Sheila’s first class, Bristol 1979
work really well together. We draw from
all over the area, from the families who
live near the park and also from the
local estates. And we’ve been successful
because our catchment area is shrinking
due to the high demand for places.
“All I ever wanted to do was continue
to improve on the children’s academic
achievement. And bar from a dip in
exam results one year, we’ve sustained
them. We’ve worked hard on that.”
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
During her time at Wendell Park, the
school received two very successful
Ofsted reports. “Which I’m thrilled
about,” she said. “Keeping pupil
attainment high and maintaining
that level has been one of the most
important things to me.”
She’s also overseen big improvements
to school’s building, as a striking lime
green overhang and entrance was
created on two sides of the building
to provide more space for a new-look
reception area and playgrounds.
“We wanted to maintain the
character of the building, but improve
access for parents and safety for
children. And with the help of the
governors we worked to improve the
outside of the building,” she said.
“We also opened a Children’s Centre
and we’ve taken on after school child
care provision as well. We have always
run a breakfast club – but now we run
the after-school childcare provision
until 6.15pm, which is shared with
pupils from Good Shepherd.”
AS A TEACHER
When I asked her why she wanted
to become a teacher, she said: “To be
honest, I wanted to teach because I
thought I could do it better than some
of the people who taught me.
Which sounds rather arrogant,
but it’s not. I love teaching and I
know what I enjoyed as a pupil.
“I wanted to make sure that I
was the type of teacher and head
that others would respect and
aspire to be like,” she added.
“And the type of head who
enabled them to be able to go on
and advance their careers.
“One of the things I’m
proudest of is that we’ve had
lots of newly-qualified teachers
start at Wendell. One has
even gone off to be an acting
headteacher.”
RETIREMENT
As she turns 61, Sheila admits she is
looking forward to retirement.
“I’ve worked all my life,” she said
with a laugh. “So I don’t think I’ve ever
had a period of not being employed!
I’m looking forward – for the first term
anyway – to not working and doing
some running. I also love reading. And I
want to do some volunteer work.
“I have two kids – my son is 25 and
my daughter just got married, who
both live in London – so maybe I’ll be
a grandma soon!”