Blind Recruitment. Claire Cuthbert - CEO, Evolve Trust

These days things are going well for Claire Cuthbert. She always knew she wanted to be a teacher. When she became one, she progressed quickly.

The time soon came for her to apply for headship - one at a start up school in a mining community. Both the interviewers and applicants for the position were all, as Claire describes “middle aged white males in grey suits”, and to be honest that’s par for the course, but what happened next wasn’t.

To her surprise, Claire progressed to the second round but when it came down to the last two, the ‘manel’ told her that, while she was a great candidate, “We believe the local mining community would be more aligned to a male figurehead than a female one”.

Now, Claire is the CEO of The Evolve Trust and winning national awards for school governance.

This week we learn how her own experience of sexism has informed how she recruits teachers. And how she gives her team the time and space to look beyond their MAT, and even beyond education, to design processes to ensure they get the people and the culture right.

(Natalie Elliott (SLT & English Lead), Claire Cuthbert (CEO), Dawn Pare (Operations and Marketing Lead)

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The best ‘In Beta’ bits

Every episode, I curate the practical strategies and solutions to the challenges guests face so you can learn from them.

In next week’s newsletter Claire shares:

1. Her favourite piece of research

2. The book that’s had the biggest impact on her career

3. The Evolve Trust’s gender pay gap report

4. Their blind recruitment policy

5. Their culture deck

6. The reading list that has helped them create their culture

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Thanks for reading.

Thanks for playing your part in making education the place we all know it can be.

Speak soon,

@NiallAlcock

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