Farewell & Happy Retirement Mr Elphick!

As his last half-term at BGS draws to an end, the staff and students here at Bexley Grammar School are preparing to bid farewell to a figure who has played a pivotal role in shaping the school. After being at BGS for 17 years, with 9 of them as head teacher, Mr Elphick is retiring, leaving behind a legacy of excellence, unwavering dedication and compassion. During his tenure as headteacher, Mr. Elphick has overseen a period of significant growth and transformation at the school, including transitioning BGS into a fully IB sixth form, dealing with Covid-19, as well as securing an ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted rating. Recently, we were given the opportunity to ask Mr Elphick some questions in person before he leaves, where we took a closer look at his tenure as head teacher, his impact on the school community, and the lessons that can be learned from his remarkable career.

Do you miss teaching English or do you enjoy your role as head teacher more?

I think I prefer the role of head - I think it’s the best job in the world and potentially the worst job in the world when things are going wrong, but I love that buzz.

Did you always want to be a teacher?

No, I went to the states after completing my O-Levels (GCSE equivalents) for four years, and long story short, I couldn’t get back into an English university for doing maths, or science or anything like that, but they would take me for English and Philosophy, so that’s what I did because I wanted to study back in England.

After completing my course, I drifted into a PGCE year (the teacher training course) without much thought. I seemed to suit the job quite well, and I didn’t have a burning desire to do anything else, so here I am 35 years later!

Looking back on your career, what are some of your proudest accomplishments as head teacher?

Every year, the results, particularly since being fully IB. I know it’s a bit of a sad thing, but I look at you guys waving your papers on GCSE day and IB day and I think it’s fantastic. I oversaw the transition to becoming fully IB, so I’m really proud of that too - it looks easy from the outside, but I had some real problems with recruitment and things like that. I think keeping all the various house events too - there’s a real pressure on schools to scrap things like house events, and although I’m not directly involved, I am proud to have preserved the time and support for all the extracurricular activities despite curriculum and financial constraints. I suppose in terms of the physical space of the school, K1 and K10 was built under my watch, and I’m really proud of having a theatre there. The sixth form’s always been an obsession of mine - it’s a third of the school, and it’s what makes this school different from so many others, there’s a real buzz in the sixth form, particularly with the IB. So to have more space for the sixth form, where they can study and so on was a really proud moment for me too. I think I’m pretty proud of getting through Covid - I know individual people really suffered, but I think that as a school all together we made some really good decisions during that.

You said that one of your proudest achievements was how you dealt with Covid, but would you also say it was one of your biggest challenges?

It was a massive logistical challenge, but I have to say that bigger challenges for me were things like student tragedies - things like that have been really tough.

If you had to write a book about your teaching career, what would you title it?

I would probably say, since I’ve been talking about it a lot in assemblies ‘Glass half full’ - the power of optimism’ or ‘Clean slate’ and I like ‘clean slate’ because we used to write on slates at school, so it’s a bit of an educational nod, but also every day, you can wipe away all the rubbish from yesterday and come out optimistic, knowing that it’s a new day, new things will happen and not to dwell on things, that’s really important.

What do you hope people remember about you as a headteacher?

I really believe in our slogan - ‘developing compassionate leaders’ - I hope they remember me as a compassionate headteacher who followed his values in all his dealings with people. During the headship training programme that you go through, one of the things they talk about are your core values, and they kept asking ‘what are your core values?’ And I would sit in meetings and lectures thinking : what has being Headteacher got to do with my core values? But it does matter - they’re shown in the ways that you run things and I think you’ve got to be strong enough to believe in what those are and to act on those things, so I hope people remember me as being a compassionate and empathetic leader.

What message would you like to leave with your colleagues and students as you retire from your role as head teacher?

Keep up the amazing work you do.  Look for the good in people, stay optimistic, because you can get quite cynical in this job, sometimes it’s easy to just look for the bad things when there are so many good things, and start each day with a clean slate as best you can.

What's your favourite school event or tradition that you'll always remember fondly?

I was at one the other night - the school concert. I think the House events, particularly house drama, music and dance really get to me because of how all the students come together and create. I love watching the concerts, school plays and the school musical - it blows my mind every time and can move me to tears.

What are you most looking forward to about retirement?

I don’t have any set plans yet but reading more, listening to music, things I just don’t get a chance to do. My wife is probably going to scupper all my plans - she’s got a long list of DIYs for me to do. I’ve been taking up cycling recently - I used to cycle as a kid, but I’ve run since then, however I think I’m going to go back to cycling. I will travel more - travel in term time, I can take a term time holiday for the first time ever!

What kind of music will you be listening to?

A real mix! I’m a Bowie fan, I love Queen, and then I just love a range of classical music. I’ll probably be blasting some symphonies in the garden while I’m doing my wife’s DIY work!

What's the funniest excuse you've ever heard from a student for not doing their homework?

I had a student who came in with a half-chewed up bit of paper, who actually had a note in his planner from his parent saying ‘Honestly, the dog ate his homework’ and I believed him. That’s the one that jumps into my head.

Do you think, with the benefit of hindsight, there is anything you would have done differently as headteacher?

I think I’ve been fortunate to get most of the big decisions right in hindsight. I think I should have found more practical ways to thank staff more regularly for the amazing job they do.

In terms of the school building, I would have liked to have found the money to renovate the PE changing rooms and some of the toilet facilities around the school and as I talk to you, we are waiting to hear the outcome of our 3rd attempt to secure funding to fix a number of leaky roofs around the site. Oh, and air conditioning in the school hall. I really wanted to raise the money to do that - the school productions in the summer would be so much more comfortable!

What do you hope your legacy will be, as you retire from your position as headteacher?

I’ve seen my role as a sort of caretaker position in which I have sought to protect what is special about BGS. I worked most of my tenure under an inherited ‘Outstanding’ judgement from way back in 2007 so, in a way, my legacy, at least in the short term, is an Ofsted vindication of our 15-year outstanding status with a renewed confidence that we are never complacent and that we know how to remain outstanding. A physical legacy is the K10 theatre and K1 for Sixth Form study.

I think I speak for everyone that you’ve had such a significant impact on the students around here. When I’ve heard students in the corridors talking about you leaving, they all say how they will miss you waving goodbye at the school gates.

That’s really sweet. And that’s why I do it - because I like it. That’s the great thing about this job, you get to choose what you do. I think it’s important, so I do it.

Do you have anything else you’d like to say?

I’ll miss this place. I’ll miss all the colleagues, I’ll miss the students. I think students keep you young and keep you optimistic. I keep using the word optimistic, but I think it’s because deep inside I’m a pessimist and I need to be kept optimistic, and everyday walking into school or seeing them leave through the gates I see students going ‘Hi, Sir’ and you just see what students are doing, and you think, yeah, there’s so much sadness in the news and in the world, but the future is you lot, and that keeps you going. And I worry a little bit about being stuck in the garden DIYing that I won’t have that. I’ll really miss that. It’s the people you miss.

On behalf of everyone here at BGS, as you embark on this new chapter of your life, we wish you all the happiness and fulfilment that retirement can bring. Please know that you will be deeply missed, and your contributions to our school community will never be forgotten.

Thank you!

Lydia Walker & Chiani-Rae Garland
Year 12