The Education Periscope

In this episodeMost schools can point to a risk register. Fewer can point to the decisions it genuinely changes. This episode gives bursars and business managers a practical way to assess risk maturity quickly, define what “good” looks like in an independent school, and embed a simple cadence so risk stays live — not filed and forgotten.What you’ll learnHow to assess your school’s risk maturity using behaviours, decisions, and evidence — not just documents.A simple maturity model you can run without turning risk into a bureaucracy.How to handle risk acceptance properly: explicit rationale, ownership, and monitoring (not passive avoidance).The fastest operational habit to lift maturity: risk as a standing agenda item at the right levels, with a clear cadence.Core questionHow should a bursar assess risk maturity in their school and raise it meaningfully over the next 90 days?Three takeawaysYou can assess risk maturity quickly by looking at behaviours, decisions, and evidence — not just the existence of a risk register.A simple, school-friendly maturity model works best when it’s linked to ownership, reporting, and how decisions change.The fastest improvement comes from making risk a repeatable operational habit (agenda item + cadence + feedback loop), not a one-off project.Download: Get the one-page episode action plan (and template prompts) from the website.Submit a dilemma: Send your risk question/challenge via the website, email, or LinkedIn — we’ll anonymise it for a future episode. Ahoy@theeducationperiscope.comDisclaimer: This is general guidance based on experience and best practice; it isn’t legal advice.

A short festive bonus from The Education Periscope to close out the year. We’re taking a moment to thank every listener and downloader, reflect on a few highlights from the series so far, and share what’s coming next.In this festive extra, we cover:A sincere thank you to listeners, supporters, and everyone sharing the showKey engagement highlights from recent episodes and conversations sparkedA quick reminder to join our mailing list for updates, takeaways, and extrasAn update on how we’re extending our services to support more of the sectorA look ahead: new ideas and formats to bring more insights and discussion to educationStay connected: Join the mailing list for episode drops, insights, and opportunities to get involved.https://theeducationperiscope.com/If you enjoyed this extra: Follow/subscribe to The Education Periscope and share it with a colleague in the sector.

This episode tackles a quiet but growing issue in many independent schools: everyone feels the risk levels rising – pupil numbers, fees, cyber, estates, complaints – but risk management still lives in a dusty register or an over-engineered spreadsheet. John Murphie and Elise Tonnard strip the jargon out of “business risk” for charity and non-charity schools, and show how to turn it into a simple, live tool for decision-making. They walk through five practical risk buckets that actually matter in schools, share how to avoid tick-box registers, and offer a one-page starting point you can stand up this term without hiring consultants or building a whole new framework.IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN HOW TO:Define business risk in plain language as “uncertainty that affects your school’s objectives”, not a specialist discipline.Sort your risks into five usable buckets – strategic, operational, financial, compliance and reputational – with school-based examples.Build a straightforward, one-page risk log using likelihood/impact and clear ownership, instead of chasing the perfect template.Use simple termly reviews, “what’s moved?” conversations and top-10 lists to keep governors strategic and out of operational rabbit holes.Run a short risk workshop this term that surfaces key risks, assigns owners and agrees on next steps – without turning it into an all-day conference.WHO THIS EPISODE IS FORHeads, bursars, business managers, governors and senior ops leaders in UK independent schools who are juggling sustainability, compliance and reputation, want a clearer grip on risk, and need something more practical than a theoretical risk appetite statement – but lighter than a full corporate framework.RESOURCES & LINKShttps://theeducationperiscope.com/Get in touch

This episode tackles a familiar problem in many independent schools: every board cycle, the paper packs get thicker, the dashboards get prettier… and the big decisions still roll to “next meeting”. John Murphie and Elise Tonnard look at how to move from perfection-seeking reports to nimble, insight-led decisions that actually land within the term. They unpack how to stop “report creep”, what empowered “tiger teams” can do with admissions, cash and staffing data, and why 80% right on time usually beats 100% perfect too late. You’ll come away with simple structures you can pilot this term – including one tiger team and one live dashboard item – without turning your board into an ops review or drowning governors in detail.IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN HOW TO:Spot where your board and SLT are stuck in a “more data, fewer decisions” loop – and how to break it.Frame better board questions that check assumptions and focus on “what’s shifted?” rather than requesting more reports.Set up small, time-boxed tiger teams with clear terms of reference and delegated authority to bring back three recommendations, not thirty rows.Use trends, thresholds/alerts and one-page RAG summaries to keep governors strategic and out of operational rabbit holes.Run a short “data detox” this term, stand up one tiger team (admissions or cash), and trial live dashboards in the room instead of another printed pack.WHO THIS EPISODE IS FORHeads, bursars, business managers, governors and senior ops leaders in UK independent schools who are facing peak paper-pack season want boards to stay strategic, and need clearer, faster decisions from the data they already have.RESOURCES & LINKShttps://theeducationperiscope.com/

This opening episode sets out why static, once-a-year strategies no longer cut it in the independent school sector. John Murphie and Elise Tonnard unpack what “agile strategy” really looks like in a school context: short feedback loops, digestible data, live risk conversations and plans you actually use between meetings. You’ll leave with a handful of simple moves to turn that glossy strategy document into a working tool for this term – plus a teaser for the next episode.IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN HOW TO:Shift from an annual strategy cycle to a lighter, continuous approach that fits around term life.Choose a small set of digestible, actionable data points to steer decisions.Build real-time adjustments into your strategy so you can pivot mid-term when numbers or risks change.Make risk assessment a frequent, live discussion rather than a once-a-year register update.Prepare the ground for more focused, value-added conversations with your board or governing body.WHO THIS EPISODE IS FORHeads, bursars, business managers, governors and senior ops leaders in UK independent schools who are short on time but long on strategic responsibility.RESOURCES & LINKShttps://theeducationperiscope.com/