Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:53 pm on 22 May 2018.
I thank you very much, Llyr. I think, to begin with, I would acknowledge that being a school leader is a challenging, time-consuming, sometimes difficult, job to do, but it is also an extremely rewarding job to do. The impact a school leader can have on the lives of the children and young people who travel through their institution can be absolutely immense. Most recently, I was talking to an ex-headteacher who had gone out for a celebratory birthday meal with some of her own children and was served by an ex-pupil. She stopped to have a conversation and that pupil said, 'I can't believe that you remembered me. I didn't know whether you would remember my name,' and went on to tell them about what they were up to in their lives and how that person had made a difference to their lives. There are few professions, very few professions, that will have a lifelong impact on an individual, but being a headteacher, and being an excellent headteacher, is just that.