New girls school headteacher speaks of excitement at the role ahead

Nicola Tribe has taken over as the new headteacher of Adcote School, the girls school based near Shrewsbury.

She has spoken of her ambitions for the school and its students, and her passion for the task ahead.

She said: "I am incredibly thrilled to announce my appointment as the new Headteacher of Adcote School. I believe my diverse experiences and passion for education will greatly benefit our school community."

Nicola, who has a first class honours degree in Civil Engineering from Liverpool's John Moores University, moved to Shropshire from Merseyside in 2012, and took the decision to retrain after realising she missed the engagement with schools and her love for teaching.

She retrained and earned a PGCE in Secondary Education with a focus on Physics and Maths from the University of Wolverhampton, standing out as the only woman in the cohort in this subject.

After qualifying as a teacher, she began her teaching career at Bridgnorth Endowed.

In 2014, she joined Adcote School, where she supported the improvement of science provision and results, particularly taking ownership of physics and introducing ideas such as the Science Fair and astronomy club.

After two years, she was promoted to Head of Sixth Form – a role she describes as highly rewarding due to the strong relationships formed with students.

She was then asked to take on the additional responsibility of Head of Academics, where she introduced grading, tracking, and monitoring initiatives.

In 2018, she was part of the team headed by Diane Browne that developed the CLEAR learning initiative, which has won awards for the school.

Her work in the initiative and others led to improved value-added scores and results in the first year.

Nicola's dedication and success led to her promotion to Deputy Head in 2022, focusing on improving teaching and learning.

The new headteacher has now said her vision for the school is "rooted in inclusivity, innovation, and academic excellence".

She said she aims to create an environment where every student feels valued and empowered to reach their full potential.

Key goals outlined include enhancing students' career decisions to "break the mould and pursue non-traditional paths", implementing digital technology to improve results and communication with parents, introducing new subjects that enhance the learning experience, and co-implementing a new six-period day to improve lesson efficiency and increase contact time for English, Maths, and A-level subjects.

Nicola has acknowledged the challenges of the new role, particularly from the uncertain economic climate, which can impact school funding and resources.

She has also highlighted the rapid advancement of AI technology which will impact learning and careers in the future for her students, presenting both challenges and opportunities.

Nicola said she is forward to seeing the positive impact she can have on the school community and is excited about the journey ahead.