Meet Richard Kielty
The new Head of Amble Middle School talked to The Ambler.Richard grew up in North Yorkshire, and attended University in Newcastle. After qualifying as a primary school teacher in 1994, he became involved in the North East’s “Thinking through Humanities” team, and helped establish the “Thinking for Learning Unit” in 2004. He has taught at all levels and went on to become Deputy Head at St Benedict’s school in Ashington before taking up the post of Head at Amble Middle School. He has a Masters Degree in Educational Development and a Post Graduate Diploma in Psychotherapy.
Richard specialises in approaches to learning that reduce unwanted behaviour.
“When I was at school I was told I was clever but lazy. I only worked hard in the subjects that interested me. When I was at University I realised I wanted to teach and in particular help children who had also had a problem with learning. I’m fascinated by why people learn” he said “Why people like or don’t like to learn.”
Richard often refers to family when talking about his new job and what it’s like working in Amble.
“I grew up in a small town in North Yorkshire called Loftus, which is not too dissimilar to Amble in many ways; it’s an ex-mining village in a beautiful part of the world. My Mother had a real sense of belonging to that community. Come January we’ll be one school on three sites. What potential we could have when we think of ourselves as one family almost. I notice the children here in school – they have a politeness, a respect for teachers and adults. They are very respectful and if you respect them then they’ll run through walls for you. They smile, hold doors open. These are qualities instilled by parents, so credit to them. I try to engage as much as I can with the children – for example I will have lunch with them, we chat together about the football and things like that. Good families talk, share concerns, sit down and eat all together. I want to create that here – a sense of family, community.”
Richard is also committed to developing teachers’ learning skills, and has coached teachers and was a tutor on the Graduate Teacher Programme at Northumbria University. “It’s a passion, to improve the teaching and learning skills of teachers.”
What else interests you? He laughs; “I’m a Middlesbrough Football Club fan! A hideous experience at the moment!”
Anna Williams
Why have the middle school appointed a new head teacher at all? Surely a deputy head or senior teacher/manager would have been more appropriate and more cost-effective.
I thought that the new head at the high school was head of all 3 schools (Coquet, Amble and Druridge Bay) as part of a cost-cutting and reorganisation scheme This new appointment seems an un-necessary and expensive duplicate of management especially for a school system already struggling finanacially.
While I am on the subject I think the governor’s attempt to make the middle and high school system in this area entirely based in Amble is an outrageous abuse of power.
Alan, the “Head of School” position is a fancy name for a substantive Deputy Headship. The Head of James Calvert Spence Acklington Road, Christine Graham, is Headteacher in all 3 Federated schools.