ABOUT
Since starting out as an education consultant in January 2022 I've had the great pleasure of working across the UK with leaders and teachers in a range of primary, secondary and all-through schools, as well as some alternative provisions. I've also had the chance to work with some national organisations such as the National Institute of Teaching and Oak Academy, writing materials, delivering training and consulting on curriculum design.
Much of my work has been in curriculum development - an area of education that I get quite geeky about! I've also spent a lot of time training and supporting subject leaders to ensure that those all important broader curriculum subjects are taught really well in their schools. I love working collaboratively with school staff, getting to grips with the needs of each school, finding the right solutions and, in all this, empowering leaders to do an excellent job long after I've gone home.
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When I first started my teaching career at 21, I was determined never to go into leadership or management. 16 years later, I was the Deputy Head of a busy through school in the heart of Bradford, having held various SLT roles.
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Why the change? The investment in me by my own leaders, through coaching and training. This is what gives me my passion for helping schools implement long-term, sustainable solutions to improve teaching and learning, fostering enjoyment of the job, teacher well-being and ultimately giving children the opportunities that will change their lives.
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I'm married to Bec, who runs a thriving cake business, and I'm dad to three energetic girls, one lazy greyhound and one chilled out cat. I live in Keighley, West Yorkshire, and I've worked in the Bradford area since graduating from St Martin's College in Lancaster, including several Dixons Academies where I was Primary Lead Practitioner from 2017-18. I was privileged enough to work with Bradford Research School during this time, designing and delivering CPD, before becoming Deputy Head at Dixons Allerton.
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My biggest learning curve has to have been arriving at Dixon's Manningham as Assistant Head in 2014 which was in Category 4 at the time and was situated within a completely different demographic than my previous schools. It was a huge challenge but together we turned the school around to achieve a 'Good' Ofsted within 3 years, during which time I completed the Teaching Leaders qualification with Ambition Leadership which really cemented my desire to continue leading.
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My experience in the centre of Bradford has meant that inclusion and diversity within the curriculum and workplace is close to my heart and my practice.
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You might know me as "That Boy Can Teach", the Twitter pseudonym that saw me through years of blogging and social media networking. Thanks to Alison Philipson, a valued colleague, my "Reading Roles" resource continues to be widely used throughout Bradford Schools, a symbol of the enthusiasm I have for nurturing a love of reading in children and teachers alike.
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I thrive on collaborative trouble-shooting, analysing and strategising in order to continually improve schools in every area, from value added to staff morale to children's development and this is why I set up my own education consultancy: Aidan Severs Consulting. I'm looking forward to meeting you and your school and finding out how we can work together to achieve great things.
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Aidan Severs has written several articles for TES magazine and has penned chapters in A Quiet Education by Jamie Thom, The CRAFT of Assessment by Michael Chiles, Primary Curriculum Leaders' Handbook (ed. Roy Blatchford) and Teacher Resilience by Jamie Thom. He has spoken at Reading Rocks and Transition Ed Conference (both times on the same platform as Mary Myatt). He has also written for Teach Primary Magazine and HWRK magazine.
