Staff stories: Simon

Simon Gayle, Vice Principal, Dixons Kings Academy

Our mission is to challenge educational and social disadvantage in the North. We do this by establishing high-performing, non-faith academies which maximise attainment, value diversity, develop character, and build cultural capital.  

We know that we can’t achieve our mission alone, and we know that to break down some of the barriers that exist for our students beyond the classroom, we need incredible, mission and values aligned people on board. Ensuring members of Team Dixons have our mission, and the best interests of our students at heart is imperative for us to continue to challenge educational and social disadvantage in the North. 

In a recent interview Simon Gayle, Vice Principal, Dixons Kings Academy, shared how our mission impacts him, and he said, “I have a real desire to work with people who need the most help, and I think that disadvantaged students are the ones who need the most help in and around education, to make sure that they can go on to lead happy and successful lives.” 

Across our trust, we have an incredibly diverse workforce and student population, with over 2/3 of students and 1/3 of staff coming from black and Asian ethnic minority backgrounds. Research shows that having teachers from a range of diverse background leads to better student outcomes. It is pivotal that students can see themselves represented in the education system. 

We have been working hard behind the scenes to develop our trust equality, diversity and inclusion strategy which is split into three pillars, culture, representation and our curriculum. It’s an incredibly important strategic priority for us, and ED&I is in absolutely everything we do. 

We recognise that, in line with the wider sector, significant commitment and effort are required to address the lack of diversity at senior levels within our trust. There is much to do for us to ensure fair representation, especially in relation to ethnicity, considering the make-up of the communities that we serve. 

In 2020, our anti-racism action plan was developed. A key driver for this was the growing body of research confirming the importance of effective role models in improving student outcomes. Research shows that having teachers from a range of diverse background leads to better student outcomes. It is pivotal that students can see themselves represented in the education system. 

In this context, tackling racism and historic under-representation of staff from diverse backgrounds, especially at senior levels in our schools, has been a top priority. We also created an anti-racism cross cutting team (CCT) as part of our strategy, recognising that it was important to listen to the reality and narrative of those who have experienced racism. 

Simon spoke to us about his experience on the anti-racism cross cutting team. “Outside of my main role at Dixons, I also sit on the anti-racism cross cutting team which looks at the anti-racism agenda across the trust to make sure that we are dealing with things in the right way.  

The anti-racism CCT also ensures that we’re looking for greater diversity across our schools and within them and looking at the way we deal with any racist behaviour or incidents, to make sure we’re doing it properly and giving everybody a fair chance.” 

We are proud of our strong culture, and the sense of belonging we work hard to create and maintain for our staff teams and our students. Our workforce is made up of individuals each with their own identity, and we want to create a culture where there is a sense of belonging and togetherness and where everyone can be their authentic selves at work. At Dixons, everyone has the right to the same sense of belonging and human connection, no matter their background.  

Our teams pride themselves on being highly professional, but also energetic and positive team players who have the best interests of our students, and their colleagues at heart. We work hard to create a culture where our staff and students are helpful, and our teams support each other.  

We asked Simon what he loves most about his role, and he said, “the best things about working at Dixons are the students, they’re enthusiastic and they want to be successful which makes them a great group of people to work with. The staff also want the best for the students and it’s really great to work with members of staff who want the best for the students. 

Dixons Kings Academy is a really nice environment to work in, I feel supported by the staff around me including my managers.” 

Since our interview with Aroosa, we have launched our innovative flexible working campaign which aims to give all teachers at Dixons a nine-day fortnight, starting in the new academic year. We want to retain and attract passionate, committed and like-minded teaching professionals, and we acknowledge that change is needed within the education sector as it is essential that we have a well skilled and well looked after workforce. We understand that attracting and retaining talented educators is paramount to our success.  

In line with our deep commitment to self-determination, we want to give our teachers more agency over their roles by offering a flexible working plan that will give them time back. Find out more about how we’re making flexible working a reality for our teachers here. 

As we continue to champion change and progress within the education sector, we invite passionate and dedicated individuals to join us on our mission. If you’d like to find out more about what it’s like to be a part of Team Dixons, take a look at our interview with Simon, and view our current opportunities here.