What it's really like setting up a brand new school abroad

'What’s the point of school?'

The words of a fractious 5 year old perhaps, or even a mutinous 15 year old?

No, rather the question that has become my ohrwurm, circulating continually around my mind over the past six months as a result of accepting the invitation to establish a brand new 3-18 school in Lisbon, Portugal. What a challenge and what an opportunity. To be handed a blank piece of paper with the chance to start afresh is something many heads, if not many teachers, would desire most. With no legacy or track record, a blank piece of paper can be both exciting and daunting at the same time. I wouldn’t want to speak for every head, but I have little doubt that the motivation for many in taking on the role of head is in making a positive difference to the community that we take over. This is a chance to actually create traditions, to entrench the ethos from the start, to piece together a team and to decide in which areas the school will shine and be recognised.

Having been a head for eighteen years I have been handed a chance to play 'fantasy Head' and given an opportunity of a lifetime to build a school from scratch with a generous two years in which to achieve this goal. All this and in beautiful sunny Lisbon. What could possibly go wrong?

Well, not wrong exactly – but one has to learn very quickly that things do not always go as planned and that to become increasingly adaptive one needs to be prepared for anything. Surely running a school during the last two years has prepared all heads for anything? If I compare the first days in my last two roles they could not be more different. Six years ago, I was greeting a stream of beaming children (& parents!) in the car park, keen to learn new names and eager to get stuck into a new project. A coffee appeared on my desk at break time and a well drilled team ensured the day went smoothly. Fast forward to the 1st September 2021, which found me in an empty office that could have been anywhere in the world and certainly was not a school. There was one chair and a table. One trip to IKEA in a hire van later, and I at least had shelves, proper desks and a few chairs, should I ever receive visitors, as well as a coffee making machine. If I hadn’t realised beforehand, I now saw that I was quite literally, going to build this school from scratch!

An empty office and no bells is only the beginning. Where should one start when building a new school? Initially the sun and friendly vibe that pervades through Lisbon gave a feeling of being on holiday and even losing my phone in a taxi on day 4 was just a small issue. However, the feeling of bonne humeur gradually eroded, as the distance from both family, friends and my new employers became clearer and the enormity of the task ever more apparent. This was not just planning a new building nor meeting potential parents and pupils and philosophising about the state of education in the world today. This was setting up everything: from picking the right curriculum for the children of today, to getting to grips with the market, the educational regulations in a new country as well as the boring but important business side of a new school, new banks, new accountants and lawyers. All of which meant I had little idea where to start.

To compound matters I had no handle on the Portuguese language – flirting with Duolingo over the summer holidays revealed that my German teacher, Mr Hill, of a few years (quite a few years) ago was indeed correct when he told me that I’m not a natural linguist. Several times during those first few weeks I craved the relative 'safety' of the bell, timetables and routines. Actually what I really missed then – and still do today – is the buzz of a school created by the people. However, the goal of recruiting my own staff and pupils and creating our own community from scratch was the motivation. I am determined to speak Portuguese if it is the last thing I do before we open. Life became much easier once I had recruited my first few staff, including a much needed PA who spoke fluent Portuguese.

What makes this project extra special is the fact that we have taken on an Edwardian pasta factory as a site for this amazing project in an up-and-coming area of Lisbon. For those who have not visited this wonderful city, it is made up of many tight streets and unlike other European capitals there are few large open areas within the city itself. This site is one of very few opportunities available for development for a large (1,200 children) school in the city itself. I have to admit my first visit was rather muted, recognition that this was the base for everything in the project, and rather like meeting an unknown opponent on the golf course, we were wary of each other. Many site visits later with architects, interior designers and our first few prospective parents mean that now I can’t wait to visit to see how the interior is developing. Each new pile of mud or hole that appears where a classroom will soon take shape is exciting. The office – or marketing suite, as it is now rather grandly known – is just across the road, and I drag every visitor around the building site at every opportunity. I also have my very own hard hat and hi-vis jacket, so I am now a fully paid up member of the world of builders or a long forgotten member of Village People, depending upon your perspective!

My new employers, , had not only given me a blank sheet of paper when it came to creating ethos, curriculum as well as the shape of the school, but they have generously given me two years to achieve this goal. This could be a seemingly expensive way of building a school, however my first few brushes with Portuguese planning and bureaucracy soon proved this would still be a tight deadline. As I write this I am just completing stage four of a seven-step process to gain a licence in order to operate as a school and the 'paperwork' is detailed to say the least, especially as it all needs to be translated. As if to vindicate this decision to open after two years, we have planned an underground car park and begun the excavations to facilitate this. These have been placed on hold as the local metro announced an extension to the network that will pass close – possibly too close – to our site. Rather than fret, I find myself embracing the fact that the metro will open up the school to even more potential pupils around the city.

When it came to planning the school, instead of starting with one aspect of the school, I started with everything. This scattergun approach may sound chaotic but it became apparent early on that I would need to set a number of balls rolling in order to bring them to fruition at the same time. To touch on just a few areas, I wanted to set out a school that would be a happy and open environment, and I knew that picking the ideal team would be key to this. I produced an 'ideal' shape of the day, however, pick-up and drop-off in a crowded city street soon compromised this. My enthusiasm to embrace the different opportunities available here meant I could not cram everything I wanted to during a school day, but who wouldn’t want surfing on the menu in a city school at the very least? I could write a whole article on the ideal curriculum. It would be easy to buy one of the numerous international programmes available on the market. But I sense that an opportunity would be wasted if I didn’t establish a school that looks forward and not merely builds on what has come before.

I have chewed many pencils trying to establish just how far to rip up the current model especially when it comes to exams and the curriculum to be taught at the top end of the school. I spoke to numerous schools in the UK and around the world, forever grateful to them for their time and expertise on what they would do faced with the same blank sheet. What do the children of the 2020s need from school and especially in their learning? I’m fairly sure it isn’t the same as what children needed even ten years ago, yet the free rein has to be tempered by two factors: the expectations of universities in many countries around the world, as well as parental aspirations. So, we will have to compromise a little – but the range of subjects and the manner in which they are constructed remains dynamic and exciting. I hope the educational world is ready!

So, just six months into this project I have learned new skills, and not just where one can buy salad cream in Lisbon (although a few personal indulgences make a big difference every now and then). I have just recruited three hugely qualified senior members of staff to work alongside me next year and they come from a variety of schools around the world. An exciting moment and another skill learned. While not a whizz previously when it came to reading a balance sheet, I now feel that constructing a budget from scratch enables one to understand each and every line smoothly. On a personal note, I have learned to play padel – and what a great sport that is! If you plan a new sports facility and want an easy sport for children of all ages to participate in, consider building a padel court. I think this may become a very popular sport worldwide and not just here where it is thriving.

Most importantly, I have learned to question why we do what we do in education, and ensure that it is all for the best for the children. Soon enough, we will hear them racing along the corridors of this new school.

Martin Harris is the former headmaster of Sandroyd School and Cheam School and the current principal of .

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What it's really like setting up a brand new school abroad

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