I became a headteacher in January last year in a school with a predecessor who was a skilled, confident and experienced head. It has also just had an OFSTED inspection, which provided a free audit with nothing at stake for me - an opportunity to be totally objective.

When I first arrived there were not too many demands on my time (it did not stay like this for long). I used this period to carry out further audits - one was to interview all staff; the teachers individually and other staff in groups. I asked three questions: * What is good about the school?

* What needs to develop and to change?

nWhat do you expect from me?

This was the best thing I could have done. It gave me the chance to get to know people quickly, get to know where they stood and praise what was already good about the school.

The response to the third question was the most interesting; varying between nervous downward glances to long lists for me to deal with - preferably in the following two weeks.

I also spent as much time as I could just walking round the school, calling into classrooms, trying to pick up a feel for how the school worked.

Within five weeks of arriving, we began to review the current school development plan and the information gathered from the other audits was put into the melting pot. During the next few weeks the updated plan, which was to provide a new lead for the school, began to emerge. At this stage I needed to have a clear idea where I was in the change process: * Was I at the front leading the troops ?

* Was I guiding the leadership of others?

* Was I listening, supporting, directing?

It was, of course, a combination of all three which is how it should be. It is also a question of maintaining balances, what to change, what to prioritise and what to leave alone.

It was really important, in my view, to make early symbolic changes - pointers to the future - to gather confidence and support cohesion. I chose changes that were fairly certain to work and make a difference quickly.

It has also been important during this time to be open, honest and own up to errors. Try to conceal them and you nearly always get found out (I know from the past). I did my best not to make too many and undermine confidence - I did not want the staff to think I was a blithering idiot too soon.

I have had to remind myself many times that it was a new school only six years ago. Many staff were there at the beginning and could have felt they had a lot at stake.

Early on, in a fairly large meeting, I discovered one of the guiding principles that the school was built on - I was unwittingly questioning it at the time. If the earth could have opened, I would have been happy for it to swallow me up.

Purposeful change does not come easy; easy change is not likely to be real or sustained.

I have often viewed myself as being in a maze trying to get to the other side. There are many dead ends, sometimes the hedge is thin and it is possible to push it aside to get through. At other times, the route is impassable and an alternative has to be found.

The job can be hard. There are mornings when I have woken at 5am. It is at these times that I try to remind myself what the job is; it’s about managing change and handling problems - some are mine, but mostly it’s encouraging others to solve their own problems.

It is vital to praise staff where it is due. It is equally important to find ways of praising yourself or, at the very least, reassuring yourself that you are heading in the right direction.

After two terms in the job, the senior management team produced a list of achievements since my arrival. We also produced a second list of what remained to be done. The second was considerably longer, but the process definitely helped.

A network of support has been vital to retain my sanity - the most important comes from inside the school where the deputy head and other senior staff are a resource of mutual support.

The regular “thinking through” sessions with the chair of governors are an essential feature of development.

And local heads have been highly significant (forget about competition and market forces), particularly when it comes to contextualising issues within a local or middle school framework.

Contacts within the local education authority must not be underestimated; it is amazing what you can still get free - you only need to know what to ask for. The local inspector can be a source of support, inspiration, direction or just bring you down to earth from time to time. A partner who does her best not to glaze over during the ritualistic and inescapable “How’s your day been?” while the saucepans bubble and hiss. Shortly there will be appraisal, but that is perhaps, another story.

Hugh Figgess is head of Scotchman Middle School, Bradford.