Consultants
David Harker
David is an education consultant and accredited School Improvement Partner (SIP) and has extensive teaching and senior leadership experience in a wide range of schools across several local authorities, serving a wide range of communities. He has 24 years’ experience of Headship with significant school improvement experience across the Primary phase.
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Profile
His most recent headship was at Christelton Primary School, where he led the school to an Outstanding Ofsted judgement. He also undertook a two-year secondment during his time at Christleton, as a local authority adviser for Cheshire, supporting school improvement in eighteen Primary schools in Ellesmere Port.Ofsted recognised Christelton as a school where ‘pupils make outstanding progress throughout the school and thrive both personally and academically in this happy and caring school’. Ofsted described David as a ‘strong and determined leader and someone who has a clear understanding of the school’s strengths and identified the right priorities for improvement’.
David currently is an ECM Associate.
He is also the School Improvement Lead for the University of Derby, where he has been the Programme Lead for an Education Masters programme, delivering it as a flying faculty in collaboration with Essex LA; he has been the Primary phase representative on Derby’s DfE Opportunities Area board and led the University’s DfE Partners for Progress project with a number of schools in Derby, supporting their school improvement process. Currently David is working with a number of Derby City Primary schools and MATs as a School Improvement Adviser, as part of the University’s Primary School Improvement Offer, which he devised and is now leading on with a team of subject specialists.
He is also an Associate School Improvement Adviser (ASIA) for Halton LA, currently supporting 12 schools with their school improvement process and priorities.
David is passionate about both pupil and staff well-being and mental health issues.
David's areas of strength:
• all aspects of subject leadership and developing leadership throughout the school at all levels
• curriculum development and evidence of impact and effectiveness
• leadership partner visits
• effective governance
• head teacher appraisal
• improving the quality and consistency of teaching and learning across a school
David is passionate about both music and PE/sport and the personal and academic benefits they can have on children’s lives