Why do school initiatives often fail to achieve intended outcomes? One key challenge is leadership, addressing issues at the top of an organisation has dramatic impacts throughout school communities and on outcomes.

The work of leadership consultant Patrick Lencioni, particularly ‘The Five Dysfunctions of a Team’, can be applied in a school context. This session will introduce the principles of the approach in theory before applying it to the school context. I will then discuss my own experiences using this approach to introduce trauma-informed practice in an English secondary school against the backdrop of increasing need and declining resources.