Wiltshire


<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/John-Davies-Dauntseys-head.jpg" alt="John Davies Dauntsey's school " class="wp-image-34694" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/John-Davies-Dauntseys-head.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/John-Davies-Dauntseys-head-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/John-Davies-Dauntseys-head-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>He’s passionate about sourdough, Shakespeare and isn’t afraid to get stuck into a spot of panto. John Davies&nbsp;took the helm at Dauntsey’s in September 2024, and Muddy couldn’t wait to put him in the hot seat. Read on, to find out what really makes him tick&#8230;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-30-second-elevator-pitch-for-your-school-sell-it"><strong>30 second elevator pitch for your school – sell it!</strong></h2>



<p>Happiness is high on the agenda here, and we produce well-rounded children with no sense of entitlement or privilege. A lot of teenagers roll their eyes about school, but when I meet everyone off the bus in the mornings, they are happy to be here &#8211; even on a Saturday. Helen Sullivan, our Head of Admissions, calls us a ‘fresh air school’ and I think that sums it up beautifully. Dauntsey’s may be big, but it doesn’t feel busy. There’s a spaciousness to our days, a close connection to nature and a real sense of fulfilment.</p>



<p>Dauntsey’s has strong academics, but we are equally strong in terms of our co-curricular offering. Our Adventure Programme marks us apart, but that’s not just about having a tall ship. We believe that education is about having a variety of experiences, and we encourage and support children so they can flourish. Ultimately, young people get to be successful in so many different ways here, not just in the classroom.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-who-would-play-you-in-a-movie-about-your-life"><strong>Who would play you in a movie about your life?</strong></h2>



<p>Well, my daughter suggested Ryan Gosling, but I’m pretty sure she was joking. I’m a big admirer of Andrew Scott – he’s a fantastic actor and he’s great in Shakespeare, as well as Sherlock.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-you-ve-been-given-a-1m-donation-for-the-school-what-will-you-spend-it-on"><strong>You’ve been given a £1m donation for the school, what will you spend it on?</strong></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-2024-10-23T075101.412-1.jpg" alt="Dauntsey's" class="wp-image-34752" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-2024-10-23T075101.412-1.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-2024-10-23T075101.412-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-2024-10-23T075101.412-1-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>The facilities are amazing here, we are very lucky. Our Memorial Hall is a fantastic, multipurpose space and one of Wiltshire’s biggest venues, but with £1million we could do something funky with retractable seating. I’d like to enhance it as a flexible performance space but also as hub that can be used by the wider community.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-describe-your-own-childhood-school-days"><strong>Describe your own childhood school days.</strong>..</h2>



<p>I went to a comprehensive school in Scunthorpe, it was very different to Dauntsey’s. I would have given anything to a school like this and I probably would have qualified for a scholarship or bursary, but we didn’t know about those at the time. I had a real mixed bag of teachers &#8211; one biology teacher would literally put on a video then go and smoke in the cupboard.</p>



<p>Resources and opportunities were limited, so I created my own opportunities. I played percussion and drums in the school orchestra, and taught myself bass. I did football outside school and joined an amateur dramatics company at the local theatre. At my previous school I played Tinker Bell and Prince Charming in the staff panto, and it didn’t take long for word to get out when I came to Dauntsey’s. I’m looking forward to getting involved here too&#8230;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-was-the-common-theme-of-your-school-reports"><strong>What was the common theme of your school reports?</strong></h2>



<p>I was fun <em>and </em>frustrating to teach. I was academically bright, but high-energy and easily distracted. I enjoyed being the funny one in class, and my teachers would have said that I could have done better if I’d focused a bit more. I enjoyed class discussions, but if they wanted me to sit silently and focus, that didn’t go so well.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-best-and-worst-subject-at-school"><strong>Best and worst subject at school?</strong></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-78.jpg" alt="Oxford " class="wp-image-34699" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-78.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-78-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-78-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Humanities were my favourites, and I went on to do English at Oxford University. My English teacher was a big character and our energies matched, so I learnt a lot from him. I struggled with physics and biology, but the way it was taught was a bit dry. Knowledge is important but memorising things by rote never fired me up, I liked to debate and interrogate. &nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-did-you-study-at-uni-tell-us-about-the-highs-and-lows-of-student-life"><strong>What did you study at uni? Tell us about the highs and lows of student life</strong>&#8230;</h2>



<p>I studied at Lady Margaret Hall college at Oxford, and I loved it. As a fresher I was nervous I wouldn’t belong, because I came from a comprehensive school in the North East, but I found plenty of other kids from non-privileged backgrounds. I even joined something called the ‘northern society,’ which mostly involved going out for curries.&nbsp;</p>



<p>I was the only student in my college who specialised in medieval English, so I spent most of my course enjoying one-to-one teaching. I was drawn to Chaucer and ancient heroic narratives. I preferred stories about people being hit in the face with spears than the Industrial Revolution.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-if-you-weren-t-a-head-what-would-you-be"><strong>If you weren’t a head, what would you be?</strong></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-75.jpg" alt="sourdough" class="wp-image-34698" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-75.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-75-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/Untitled-design-75-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>I’d be a baker. I’m passionate about sourdough, so my retirement gig might be my own little bakery in Devizes. I have a 15-year-old starter called Hermes, who lives in a fermentation jar in my fridge. I also love teaching, so if I ever stopped being a Head, I’d probably go back to being an English teacher.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-describe-what-s-on-your-work-desk-and-what-s-in-the-top-drawer"><strong>Describe what’s on your work desk (and what’s in the top drawer)</strong></h2>



<p>It’s a little bit messy [for the record, it’s really very tidy]. There’s my ReMarkable tablet – I like gadgets that keep all my notes in one place – and the fountain pen I was given when I left my previous school. In my top drawer I have my new business cards, which is quite exciting, and a posh clicker for when I do presentations. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-your-favourite-books-childhood-uni-and-now"><strong>Your favourite books – childhood, uni and now</strong></h2>



<p>My favourite childhood book was Matilda, I remember a great uncle giving it to me in hardback. The main character is obviously a girl, but I identified with the fact she loved books, and that books were powerful. As a teenager I was fond of Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams, but I still love much older literature like The Odyssey and Shakespeare’s plays.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-book-tv-show-film-or-play-should-all-kids-discover"><strong>What book, TV show/film or play should all kids discover?</strong></h2>



<p>I’d love older teens to discover classics like The Canterbury Tales and The Odyssey. The stories are brilliant, and still so infused in modern culture. I recently really enjoyed Jeff Goldblum’s KAOS on Netflix, which is a great modern reinterpretation of Greek mythology. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-song-you-sing-at-full-volume"><strong>The song you sing at full volume?</strong></h2>



<p><em>Don’t Start Now</em> by Dua Lipa has a great bass line, we all sing it in the car. I love Eva Cassidy’s version of <em>True Colours</em>. It’s soulful and has a beautiful message about being your authentic self, which is so important in leadership. I can hold a tune, but for me singing is more about enthusiasm. I just go for it.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-if-you-want-to-hide-from-the-kids-and-staff-for-half-an-hour-where-do-you-go-nbsp"><strong>If you want to hide from the kids and staff for half an hour, where do you go?&nbsp;</strong></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/John-Davies-Dauntseys-Headmaster.jpg" alt="John Davies Dauntsey's school" class="wp-image-34693" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/John-Davies-Dauntseys-Headmaster.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/John-Davies-Dauntseys-Headmaster-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wilts/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2024/10/John-Davies-Dauntseys-Headmaster-768x511.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>I tend to hide from the adults by seeking out the kids! I rarely want to hide from the children, being around them is my happy place and I want to be in amongst it. Ask me in 10 years and you might get a different answer&#8230;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-advice-you-d-give-your-younger-self-and-your-current-students"><strong>Advice you’d give your younger self – and your current students?</strong></h2>



<p>We talk about the ABC’s at school – that’s being ambitious, brave and compassionate. If we get those things right, we can’t go far wrong.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.dauntseys.org/">Dauntsey’s School</a>, High St, West Lavington, Devizes SN10 4HE</p>



<p>Tel: <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=dauntsey%27s+school&amp;rlz=1C5CHFA_enGB836GB836&amp;oq=dauntsey%27s+school+&amp;gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIMCAEQABgUGIcCGIAEMgcIAhAAGIAEMgcIAxAAGIAEMgcIBBAAGIAEMgYIBRBFGD0yBggGEEUYPTIGCAcQRRg90gEINDAxN2owajmoAgCwAgE&amp;sourceid=chrome&amp;ie=UTF-8">01380 814500</a></p>



<p><strong>INTRIGUED?</strong></p>



<ul>
<li><em>Read the Muddy review of Dauntsey’s, <a href="https://wilts.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/national-school-reviews/dauntseys-school/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>.</em></li>
</ul>



<p></p>


Meet the head: Dauntsey’s School

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