Headteacher relishes role

Liesl Ganney took over the reins at Robert Peel Lower School in Sandy at the start of term and has very much taken to the close-knit atmosphere there.

Ms Ganney has worked in teaching for 15 years and is a former head of year at Burgoyne Middle School in Potton, where she was a teacher for seven years.

The 38-year-old arrives at Robert Peel Lower after five years as a deputy headteacher at a junior school in Milton Keynes.

She said: “I haven’t been here long but I have settled in very quickly.

“The school has a friendly, family-like atmosphere which is very welcoming and really appealed to me when I first applied for the job.

“There are 300 pupils here so it is fairly close-knit.”

Though she has taught students at different stages and of various ages during her career so far, Ms Ganney says the challenge is similar whatever the tier.

She added: “I tend to find every child has their own specific needs and targets but the challenge that a teacher or headteacher faces is similar – to get the very best possible from that student.

“So it doesn’t really matter whether they are just starting out at school or whether they have been in education for a few years – a teacher’s objective will always be the same.”

Continuity is also an important part of education for Ms Ganney.

She is keen to support the Pinnacle Trust, a group of lower, middle and upper schools in Sandy which work together to provide continuous education for youngsters.

She said: “I’m very much in favour of such arrangements.

“They help to provide as much continuity in a child’s schooling as is possible.”