My Decision to Leave Mainstream Education and Build an Alternative education provision

For 18 years, I worked my way from a newly qualified teacher to deputy headteacher across a range of secondary and upper schools. Along the way, I navigated endless government reforms, shifting pedagogical trends, and policies that often felt damaging to both staff and young people—while still being expected to present them as being in students’ best interests.

Far from the Role I Was Trained For

Although I trained to educate and inspire young minds, the reality of my role became something very different. I spent far more time investigating staff behaviour, managing complaints, and enforcing tone-deaf policies than I did fostering curiosity or creativity in students.

I wore my resilience like a badge of honour. I was always the first to arrive and the last to leave. I prided myself on absorbing stress and juggling impossible workloads. If colleagues voiced concerns about the toxic environment—or admitted they were struggling—I had little patience. I believed pushing through was simply part of the job.

When I had my son, I returned to work when he was just five months old. I didn’t feel guilty. If anything, I was eager to get back—to feel productive, valued, important.

The moments that prompted me to reassess

The first real shift came when I stepped into a pastoral deputy role. Almost immediately, I saw just how many young people we were failing to support. I began searching for help, but meaningful provision was scarce. Conversations with families became increasingly difficult—they were often desperate, exhausted, and running out of hope.

The decisive turning point came when my son was diagnosed with a condition requiring round-the-clock monitoring and medication.

Overnight, I became everything I had once dismissed.

I struggled to arrive early. I had to leave unexpectedly. My focus was divided, my reliability affected, and my capacity stretched beyond its limits. The long list of “non-negotiable” tasks became impossible to complete.

At the same time, I was trying to support families facing challenges like poor mental health, risk of permanent exclusion, limited SEND provision, and the lasting impact of trauma. I felt like I was failing both at home and at work.

Eventually, the weight of it all left me exhausted, overwhelmed, and searching for something better.

I couldn’t find the provision I believed students needed—and I couldn’t create it within the system I was in.

So I started to imagine what it could look like.

The Phoenix project

Through conversations with trusted colleagues, those early ideas began to take shape. That was the beginning of The Phoenix Project.

Three years on, we are doing exactly what we set out to do. We’ve supported over 65 students to re-engage with learning and return to education. We’ve helped more than 20 young people avoid permanent exclusion. And we now work with schools across the country.

We are only at the beginning—and that’s the most exciting part.

Today, I have a renewed sense of purpose. I feel genuine pride in the difference we make to young people and their families every single day.

I often reflect on my time in mainstream education. I remain a committed supporter of our state system and the incredible professionals within it. The workload, pressure, and expectations they carry are immense.

But I also believe, wholeheartedly, that mainstream education cannot do it alone.

A diverse network of high-quality alternative provision is essential if we are to meet the increasingly complex needs of young people.

Headteacher of The Phoenix project

I am proud to be part of an amazing team working to provide one piece of that solution.

www.thephoenixproject.org.uk