New Lady Barn headteacher has his sights on the future
LADY Barn House Preparatory School has welcomed a new headteacher to the helm.
Mark Turner has taken the reigns from Sheila Marsh who retired over the summer.
The expert on the ancient world has his sights firmly on the future as he takes up the role.
He said: “The children in our care now will live on well into the 21st and even into the 22nd Century and we need to give them the skills and attributes to enable them to make the most of all the opportunities ahead.
“This means not only embracing new technologies but, as the pace of change inevitably gathers pace, giving them the self-confidence to have a go and take risks; the versatility to solve problems and the team-working and collaborative skills to lead and shape not only their own futures but those of others as well.
“On first visiting Lady Barn, I felt immediately in tune with its strong emphasis on family values, academic excellence and extensive and creative extracurricular provision, but I also believed that I had something to offer the school and lead it through the next part of its exciting journey.
“There isn’t the slightest hint of pomposity at Lady Barn, which can perhaps be evident in the independent sector, just teachers, staff, parents and pupils working happily together. It’s no surprise the school is so popular and well regarded with this as its recipe for success.”
Mr Turner, a former rugby fly-half and attacking batsman, took his first teaching post at a secondary school in Northamptonshire after gaining his teaching qualification at St John’s College, Cambridge.
He also has a first class honours in Classics from Exeter. He was appointed deputy head at the largest primary school in Gloustershire before earning his first headship in the Cotswolds.
He went on to become deputy head at the Royal Grammar School in Worcester before being appointed headmaster at Warwick Preparatory School.
He says his first task at Lady Barn is to examine the school across the board to determine what more can be done to make it even better, taking feedback from staff, directors, children and parents, while maintaining those qualities that have made it “such a wonderful place” for a child’s primary school years.