Most independent schools are not short of data. You’ve got: Finance systems MIS and timetabling HR and payroll Admissions and enquiries Estates and maintenance logs The trouble is, that information sits in separate silos, owned by different people, in different formats. As John puts it in the episode, it’s a treasure chest that nobody quite has the key to . So decisions get made based on: Gut feel Last term’s report Whoever shouted loudest in the meeting A board paper that wa

If you work in an independent school, you’ll know that “strategy” can easily end up as a smart-looking document that gathers dust between governor meetings. In the first episode of the Periscope Series podcast, former bursar and sector stalwart John Murphie  and strategist Elise Tonnard , together with host Leo, unpack what it really looks like to do strategy well in today’s schools – and how to make it feel useful rather than theoretical. What’s the Periscope Series all abou