Levelling the playing field
“I’ve always had a fire in my belly and if somebody tells me I can’t do something – because I’m a woman, not tall enough, or some other reason – then it just makes me want to succeed even more.”
Interview: Sue Wilcock | Martine Silkstone
Pictures: Warren Page
Alison Sefton talks to Norfolk Director
As a society, we have come a long way in terms of gender equality, but with women still under-represented in many industries and leadership roles, it is fair to say we are not ‘there’ yet. So, what else can we do to empower young women and help them break through the glass ceiling?
After years of disrupting the prevailing narrative herself – from her degree in chemistry to becoming the first female commissioned officer in her Territorial Army unit (more on that later) – Alison Sefton is working hard to provide answers and opportunities for all those that follow.
As head at Norwich High School for Girls (NHSfG), she is passionate about changing the current perception of a single-sex, private education, and believes it offers a space where girls can be the very best version of themselves, without boundaries or gender-based expectations; building confidence, positivity, and resilience, and ensuring every opportunity is open to every student.
She says: “In a world where the playing field isn’t yet level, providing an all-girls education really is our super-power. We are a school with a rich heritage, but we are also forward thinking, and we allow our students to be themselves and follow their own interests without prejudice. It means they can choose their own pathway and face any challenges. Most importantly, they are not afraid to try.”
Following the twists and turns of her own journey – from RAF childhood to university, through careers in science and accountancy, and finally finding her passion for teaching – Alison knows more than a little about being fearless. But where does that strength come from?
“I’ve always had a fire in my belly and if somebody tells me I can’t do something – because I’m a woman, not tall enough, or some other reason – then it just makes me want to succeed even more,” she explains with a determined glint in her eye. “I suppose I’m just very lucky that I was brought up to want to be the best I can be, and I was told there were no limits to what I could achieve.
“That’s what I want to give the girls here – the freedom to be the very best versions of themselves and the self-belief and confidence to go on and tackle whatever comes next.”
Where it all began
Alison was born in the 1970s.
Both of her parents were in the RAF – her father was a pilot and her mother had worked as an RAF linguist.
With the family stationed on the “beautiful” Moray coast at the time, Alison enjoyed a happy childhood growing up by the sea and fondly remembers taking long walks along the coastline, bundled up against the North Sea wind.
It was here that she began her own education, starting at a local primary school where she quickly developed a love of learning. A few years later, the family was posted closer to Edinburgh, but she says moving around was never an issue and she was always taught growing up that “it doesn’t matter where you are, family is always family”.
Now based near the Scottish capital, Alison was enrolled at a private secondary school where she enjoyed her studies and competed in swimming galas – winning many medals and finding a passion for the sport that continues to this day. Public speaking was also part of the curriculum, and she says that it was just as important as the academic lessons, finding the ability to present – to target what you’re saying to an audience – a valuable skill now when it comes to addressing the whole school, or networking with local groups to discuss the challenges and opportunities being faced each day.
Next steps
However, despite her growing confidence and good grades, as she approached her final exams there was still no clear career path ahead and she felt unsure about what to do next.
She remembers: “I always had a notion that I wanted to teach but wasn’t necessarily encouraged to do it. I had liked science at school – an inspirational teacher who took us on trips to a local microbrewery helped – so I decided to study for a degree in chemistry. If you’re not sure what to do, do what you enjoy, as they say.”
She enrolled at Durham University in 1993, but without a specific goal in mind, says she found her degree “really hard from a purpose perspective”. During her studies, she took a year out to do an industrial placement with an agrochemical company in Yorkshire, and following her experience there, she knew she didn’t want to be an industrial chemist.
“I think that so much of deciding what you want to do starts with working out what you don’t want to do.”
She says: “No career pathway is ever straight, you know, it can take many twists and turns. You have to take each stage as a learning point and move forward. That’s where the confidence is built.”
While finishing her degree – still an important achievement – she began to explore her options.
London calling
After graduating from Durham, Alison decided to move to London and experience life in the big city.
“I didn’t really think about it in any great detail, I just wanted to do something different,” she recalls. “Once there, I liked the buzz of living and working in London, where it feels like there are endless opportunities to visit new places, eat out, and soak up some culture.”
Relocation complete, she began working as a temp, and it was while placed at a recruitment consultancy that a finance director took her under his wing and, having recognised her analytical skills, suggested that she train to be a management accountant.
Alison started evening classes in 2000 and qualified two years later.
She went on to work with teams at different investment banks and organisations, looking at their internal finances and showing them how to use accurate budgeting, forecasting, and KPIs to support and grow their businesses. Those valuable skills – the scrutiny, analytics, and methodology – are something she has brought forward into her current leadership position, where her business mind plays an important part in ensuring the school’s future success.
Of course, alongside her financial acumen, she can also call on a wealth of additional tools gained while she was busy disrupting a very different environment…
New territory
After years of studying and enjoying the mental exercise of work, Alison was ready for some “fun” and physical activity – and that led her to enlist in the Territorial Army (TA), now called the Army Reserves.
Though to begin with it was principally the fitness aspect that appealed, she says it ultimately pushed her out of her comfort zone in many ways and allowed her to build lasting friendships with people from all walks of life.
Of course, it’s fair to say that she pushed the army out of its comfort zone too!
At the time, her local unit (recommended by her younger brother who was serving in the army), had only been accepting women recruits for two years. Alison, not easily daunted, just saw that as another challenge: “I thought: why can’t I do it?”
“For me, pushing yourself physically shows what you are capable of and increases your mental toughness.”
Despite starting out as a female anomaly, she quickly established her place in the regiment and ultimately showed her new team that she was tough enough on many levels, not only disrupting their expectations as a recruit, but also becoming the first woman in The Honourable Artillery Company to commission at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
“My unit had never had a female officer, so I challenged it,” she explains, matter-of-factly. “I said: okay, why not? You need to be physically fit enough? I can train to be physically fit enough. I can learn what you want me to learn, just give me a go. I worked hard and fought for it.
“It’s no different to the girls at school saying: ‘why can’t we wear two earrings?’ or ‘why can’t we have more diversity in the curriculum?’. Okay, give me a good reason why and let’s explore it; present your argument. I think it’s important to have that dialogue and make sure young people are included in change – communication is key.”
During her 10 years with the TA, she also learned valuable leadership techniques, such as the importance of taking a step back to decide the best response when something happens, and how to use the ‘one thirds, two thirds rule’ – a military strategy that involves breaking down the time until a key event as thirds, giving yourself one third to form a plan and explain it to your team, and giving them two-thirds to implement it. Alison describes it as the perfect tool for leaders in education, where you are dealing with three terms each academic year, and it’s something she still uses today.
Indeed, it was here, in her role as an officer leading basic training for regiment recruits, that she re-discovered her love of teaching and came to an important decision about her career.
Back to school
In 2007, Alison began studying for her Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) at Chester University.
With bursaries to help financially, she rented a room nearby and spent one day a week in university and the rest shadowing teachers, with on-the-job training at schools in Ellesmere Port and the Wirral. It was a steep learning curve but having decided to become a science teacher, she says the whole learning experience was much less onerous than it had been during her first degree, as she had a specific goal in mind.
“When you can see the purpose of learning, it’s much easier,” she smiles, “and when it comes to a PGCE, you’re learning your trade in the classroom and given opportunities to try things out, which is really good.”
Reflecting on lessons learned during her training, Alison remembers: “We were taught a few different strategies for dealing with the class. For example, I remember being told that if a student doesn’t do something you want them to do the first time, you remain calm and ask them again. If they still don’t do it, you ask them again and, supposedly, on the third time they’ll do it.”
At this point she raises a dubious eyebrow…
“Around week three of training, I was teaching a particularly challenging class and there was a girl with a big handbag on her lap, filing her nails. I thought great, I’ll try the strategy. They didn’t say what to do if it didn’t work! But in the end it was all right, because after the third time, a boy on the other side of the classroom stormed across, picked up her bag, put it on the floor and said: ‘Right, Miss, now you can carry on’.
“So, it didn’t have the intended consequence, but it did work in a way,” she laughs.
“At the end of the day, teaching is all about building up relationships. You’ve got to engage with young people and that’s not always straightforward.”
Building a career
Newly qualified and looking for opportunities, Alison found her first teaching post at Felsted School in Essex. The independent day and boarding school provided not only a home for her science expertise, but also her passion for adventure through its Combined Cadet Force, where young people were encouraged to develop self-reliance and endurance through a range of outdoor activities and camps. With her background, it was the perfect place to start her new career journey.
She stayed for five years and has many fond memories of their various expeditions, including one climbing Mount Kenya and building classrooms for local children, another sandboarding in Namibia, and once trekking in The Drakensberg (a central Southern African plateau).
She recalls: “It was great fun, sleeping under the stars, cooking your own food, cooking for others…such a wonderful opportunity for young people and I always enjoyed the aspect of seeing them learning in a different environment.”
“It’s the process of taking someone who doesn’t think they can do something, to being able to do it – that was what I really enjoyed doing and I still love that.”
Later, she moved to Welbeck Defence Sixth Form College and then on to Oswestry School in Shropshire where she became deputy head and served as a governor at a local primary school. Enjoying the chance to effect change in a positive way, she then later became a governor at Felsted; a role she still occupies to this day.
But isn’t that rather a ‘busman’s holiday’?
“Governance is different,” she explains. “As a leader, you’ve got to be quite reflective. You have to remember that you’re not an expert at every single aspect of your organisation and may need to ask for help in some areas. Governors provide an ‘internal but external’ support structure for schools; a critical friend who will look at things differently and offer impartial guidance.
“I really enjoy being able to do that, especially in an environment I know so well.”
Now fully established in her career as both a teacher and a governor, it was time for Alison to combine her drive and wealth of previous experience and take on a new role in a new county.
Norfolk beckons
In December 2019, Alison was appointed as head of Norwich High School for Girls and moved to a village just outside the city.
She says her Norfolk home provides the best of both worlds with fabulous countryside found alongside the vibrant city. Her love of the coastline is also clear to see – perhaps a legacy of her childhood in Scotland – and she has found a few ‘foodie’ favourites that many locals will recognise.
“There are so many fantastic beaches nearby and I absolutely love a long walk at Wells-next-the-Sea followed by fish and chips overlooking the harbour – that’s a day well spent,” she smiles. “I also really like Holt with its quirky shops and always stop off at Byfords to stock up on their delicious treats.”
Though she has clearly settled into Norfolk life well, her start at NHSfG wasn’t all smooth sailing. She began as head in September 2020 – right in the middle of a worldwide pandemic. Taking on the role in the middle of Covid brought with it not only the usual challenges of getting to know a new place, but also the added complexities of operating under constantly changing government restrictions while, at the same time, shaping a strategic vision to grow and develop the school.
Nevertheless, she had a plan and one of the first steps was to engage a local creative agency to revisit the brand messaging and communications strategy, adopting a more dynamic approach to marketing and aiming to disrupt the perceived narrative of a private, all-girls education.
“We’ve got to get the message out as to why it’s the right thing to do,” Alison stresses. “If we are asking parents to commit to our school, they’ve got to understand the benefits for their daughters. Some will say it is obviously exam results but, in my view, it is about so much more than that.”
“From when a girl joins us, we strive to give her as many opportunities as possible to be challenged and nurtured; to be the very best she can be.”
“We remove those invisible boundaries and allow our students to have a go at anything. Here, girls of all ages will play football at break-time, and you have many more doing STEM subjects. They will try things because it’s what they want to do rather than being swayed by popular opinion.
“We want our alumnae to be confident, resilient, and aspirational so that they can tackle whatever comes next, whether that’s university, apprenticeships, or work; we want them to have the confidence to use their voice in any environment.
“It’s always lovely when former students come back after they’ve been to university for a year and say: ‘The other girls weren’t putting their hands up. Well, I put my hand up because I’ve got something to say!’ That’s powerful.”
So, What’s next?
“Personally, I enjoy running and swimming, and I recently came back from a fantastic hiking trip to Norway – the vast, untouched landscapes were breath-taking, but what really stayed with me was the sense of peace that came from being so immersed in nature. It was humbling and energising all at once, and I’d like to do more of that when time permits.
“When at home, I love cooking for friends because it’s a way to bring everyone together. There’s something satisfying about experimenting with new recipes and then watching people enjoy the meal. Plus, the best conversations always seem to happen around the table,” she grins.
“Making time is the tough bit because there is so much that I want to do in this role and for the school. I tend to ring fence a little downtime in the holidays, then use the rest for bigger projects and strategic thinking. Networking is also important because it builds connections in the community and helps spread the word about what we can offer in this world that is not yet equal. That ability to stand up and say what we do and why we do it, is so important.
“Working in education has to be one of the best jobs and to watch children grow, develop, and learn is the most amazing thing. To be part of shaping the educational journey that they go on is fantastic.
“Perhaps they will, in turn, positively disrupt within their chosen fields in the future.”
