Kate Beecroft
From eight years old, Kate Beecroft knew she wanted to be a teacher. She’d create reading logs for her teddies, take them on school trips down to the bottom of the garden and, even back then, had learning outcomes for them all.
Her new role as Head of Beaufort Primary School in Chaddesden, part of the Odyssey Collaborative Trust, is the result of a life dedicated to becoming and excelling at being a teacher.
“My whole educational career was based around becoming a teacher,” said Kate. “I chose my GCSEs, my A-levels, my University, all based on how good they were for becoming a teacher.”
Kate studied Primary Education at Manchester Metropolitan University before getting her first job as a teacher at Underwood West Junior School in Crewe – a large, three form entry school in quite a deprived area. She stayed there for five years and, during that time, was given responsibility for pupil progress, becoming the Lead for Assisting Pupil Progress across the school, and then one of the leads for Cheshire East.
It was a huge role for her first job in education and one which she relished. It gave her a taste of leadership and in her next position, at a very small school in Macclesfield with just 97 pupils, she was given responsibility for all Key Stage 2 pupils.
“It was a very small school but having that responsibility was fantastic for me and I absolutely loved it,” said Kate. “The head teacher, John Daley, was also inspirational and showed me the true meaning of a great leader and I learned a lot from his philosophy.”
She moved back to Derby for her next job at St Mary’s School in Darley Abbey as Deputy Head. After two years there, the dream opportunity came knocking.
The Bemrose School opened up a Primary department and Kate was selected to head it up. She was there from the beginning when it was still a building site, to when it opened with 28 pupils, to when she left in January with 400 pupils.
“I’m really proud of what we achieved,” she said. “I’d be there most days on the building site wearing a hard hat and being involved in all the tiny details, how the classrooms were designed, where outside taps were, just everything really. We opened the school to Foundation Stage children and then opened it up to Year 3 and we had 28 children and were based in the secondary school while the primary school was finished.”
Kate has nothing but fond memories of her time at The Bemrose School and her working relationship with its executive head teacher, Neil Wilkinson. But she said she felt the time was right to take the next step in her career and take full responsibility for an entire school.
She made a wish list of the things she was looking for and in the summer of last year, she saw the job at Beaufort Primary advertised.
“It was everything I was looking for,” said Kate. “When I came to the school, I know it sounds like a cliche, but I just remember the children here, they sold it to me. They are brilliant and an absolute joy. They were so polite and funny, I could just feel the goodness in them.”
She began the role in January and has already set out her areas of focus.
“The Foundation Stage is a huge priority for me and supporting our children with SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities),” explained Kate.
“I would also love to drive up the sense of community here. Parents and carers clearly love the school, many of them came here themselves and have now sent their children here. They live and breathe this community and are very loyal to it and I want to bring that community back in to Beaufort.”
Kate has also already started putting on more activities for children which get them out of the school and visiting places.
“I am really keen to get the kids out more, taking part in events across the city and I’m determined to improve the cultural capital,” she said.
“The children went to an athletics event the other week and it was the first time they have done a sporting event outside the school in two years.
“Those experiences will be what change their lives. They are the experiences which will make them think “That’s what I want to do, I want to be like that sports coach, I want to be a cyclist.” That’s where dreams are made. We can provide them with a curriculum and academic levels, but it’s life experiences which make the change for them.”
Kate already has activities and visits planned for the children this year, as well as organising events which welcome the parents into the school, including coffee mornings to chat to them about what they want to see improve.
Ian Dewes, Chief Executive Officer of Odyssey Collaborative Trust, said he was delighted to have welcomed Kate to the school and the Trust’s family.
“Kate has fantastic experience in leadership and teaching in primary schools, but above all, what stands out is her passion for education and her genuine care for the children.”
