Paige MacKinder

Class Teacher at Bishop Alexander Academy

I’ve started my journey within the L.E.A.D. Academy Trust five years ago, having joined Bishop Alexander L.E.A.D Academy in 2018. I’ve always wanted to work in education, particularly educating young children, having initially trained and worked in Early Years at different nurseries, before working in other roles.

I decided to undertake a Primary Education course across three years at Bishop Grosseteste University, in Lincoln. The last three weeks of my training were deployed at Bishop Alexander. It was an amazing environment to be a part of, so when an opportunity arose at the school, I applied, and was successful with gaining a place of employment.

Currently I am a Year 1 Class Teacher, Key Stage 1 Phase Leader and Phonics Lead, looking to continue my training to further develop my Leadership toolkit.

The past five years working at Bishop Alexander have been rapid within my career development. The Academy and the Trust have been incredibly supportive with my CPD, and my experience has been that everyone around me has been supportive and encouraging, as I’ve progressed.

Becoming a Phase Leader last year was a progressive step for me, and my leadership training has been invaluable. The organisational skills I’ve picked up throughout my working life, and whilst taking care of my young children while studying, have supported me in my current role.

As I’ve taken on more leadership responsibilities, it’s been eye-opening to experience school life beyond my own classroom, and the accountability and oversight I now have for staff and pupils. It’s been a quick learning process.

During my time at the school, two of those years took place during the upheavals of Covid. This presented a monumental challenge to my development and reemphasised the importance of perseverance and adaptability, as the way we taught changed dramatically.

Since coming out of lockdown, I’m extremely proud of how much development I’ve been able to make, taking on these additional roles.

We have a highly motivated team at Bishop Alexander, and in the past year we’ve made some positive developments - through changes and implementations to our phonics delivery, we’ve seen a real upturn in outcomes for pupils, amongst others.

This year, I have also mentored my colleague Kate Wilson as she completed her SCITT training. It has been enjoyable to work with someone following my own career path, and it has helped me reflect on my own practice, as a teaching practitioner and leader.

Joining Bishop Alexander and the L.E.A.D. Academy Trust has been transformative for my career.

I’ve seen myself develop rapidly, and been given the opportunity to prove myself and earn my progress into leadership roles.

With the collaborative and supportive environment that the Trust has helped foster at Bishop Alexander L.E.A.D Academy, I’m excited about looking forward to a bright future at the Academy.