I’ve no idea how many school business leaders there are in the UK – tens of thousands, I’d imagine – and every one of us will be at a different stage of a similar, but distinctly personal professional journey. Our school settings are all unique, our job descriptions all slightly different and our experiences hugely varied.
But get a group of SBLs in one place (what’s the collective noun for SBLs? A bursary? An efficiency?) and talk will eventually turn to those rites of passage that shape our journeys. What are these professional milestones? Qualifications, promotions? Well, yes – but not in the way you might think. See how many of the following you can tick off your own list of achievements…
1. Your first budget
Whatever point in the year you joined your school, you’ll almost certainly have inherited someone else’s budget. But it’s only when you’ve created your own and nurtured it from its first funding statement through governing body sign-off, watched it take its first wobbly steps through month 1, fly through quarters 2 and 3 and glide back to the ground in month 12, spent, that you can truly call it yours.
2. Your first HR hearing
There’s nothing that can prepare you for your first HR hearing besides being in one. Whatever the outcome, you can take real professional pride in the preparation and delivery of a thorough and well-evidenced management case. They’re nerve-wracking, but one of the best HR learning experiences you can have.
3. Your first drain survey
My personal favourite. One thing they never tell you in the job description or at the interview is quite how much time an SBL will spend discussing toilets and blocked drains. Discovering that drain surveys are a thing, and watching your first one, is a rite of passage no SBL ever forgets…
4. Your first audit
There’s nothing like the fear and stress of your first audit. It requires the work and prep of a full Ofsted inspection, but rather than every member of staff giving it their all, there’s just you, your finance regs and a free coaster completely alone, ready to face the unknown.
5. Your first hard hat
This is less common now that no one can afford to build anything, but an SBL’s first major building project is an important milestone. Not just because of the professional experience it brings, but because it’s an opportunity to buy one’s own hard hat. Mine’s pink, but other colours and effects are available.
6. Your first unplanned fire evacuation
However well trained you are, the first time you hear the school bell ringing outside of a lesson changeover you’ll experience a sense of dread like no other. The ability to hold your keys, clipboards, two walkie talkies and an emergency bag whilst putting on a hi-vis is one only the most elite SBLs have mastered.
What did you score?
1-2: Novice
Consider buddying up with a more experienced SBL to prepare for when these events happen – because they will.
3-4: Intermediate
You’ve got some great experience but there’s always more to learn. Keep going, because you’re well on the way to mastery
5-6: Expert
You’ve nailed it, so sit back and enjoy the rest of the ride. Just kidding – get yourself out there, find a new SBL to mentor and pass on all that wonderful knowledge.
Hilary Goldsmith is director of finance at a secondary school in Brighton; she blogs at sbl365.co.uk and tweets as @sbl365.
