Author: jameshempsall

Schools used to commonly say “we are here to educate and not to care for children”.  And we all rightly criticised them then.  The Victoria Climbie Inquiry report called out such practices as short-sighted, unhelpful, and failing.  We all agreed with Lord Laming then and signed up to the five Every Child Matters outcomes he recommended (Being Healthy, Staying Safe, Enjoying and Achieving, Making a Positive Contribution to Society, and Achieving Economic Well-being).  Many of us miss their application terribly, although I noticed some missed a golden opportunity by not fully engaging with the economic one. 

It has been a while since I have heard it said by schools, but I would be willing to believe the view education is somehow delivered in a vacuum without due regard for children’s wellbeing and welfare, still exists.  Surprising given we are more attuned to mental health, food poverty, and the effects on child development than ever.  Some of these unhelpful thoughts have been increasing since Covid, promoted by the resultant delays upon some children’s development we have observed since.  Things have undoubtedly changed for this new generation, and we must all change in our response – swiftly and positively.  We must all adjust to fit the child and their families, and not be rigid and unmoving.  We should not expect by some miracle they will adapt for us instead. 

Now, and this is the bones of this blog.  Having criticised schools for taking an isolationist view on their work in the past, some in early years are now doing the same some 20 years later.  They are artificially separating the noble role of child carer from early educator.  The concern is by offering a childcare service, to support the economic wellbeing of a family and its children, that it somehow diminishes the role and status of the early years practitioner, the provider, and the profession as a whole.  I would venture it shares the same root cause that fuelled the narrative of schools.  Like most in the early years sector, I also want more.  I want us to do more, be given more, and to be recognised and valued more for the outcomes and impacts we achieve.

The lobby though is clumsy.  Some in our sector call out “we are not babysitters!”.  Why connect us to the activity of a 16-year-old earning pocket money at the home of family or friends?  The easiest way to make people think about you in the wrong way is to do just that – say what you are not.  Just like when someone says, “I’m not upset”, we immediately think ‘why say that, they must be?’.  We may as well be shouting “we are not pumpkins!”. 

There is an alternative and this is the call to action.  Instead, we should say what we are, what we deliver, and what will make everything better for everyone.  To be solution focused, positively, always.  To be delivering early education, childcare to support families to economically engage, to feed and nourish our children so they get the most out of their days, months and years to come. 

Childcare is everybody’s business, everybody’s concern, and everybody’s responsibility.  Every experience of childcare is a learning opportunity.  It is the foundation of healthy child development, attachment, play, learning, self-actualisation, and economic wellbeing amongst other things.  It is impossible to meet anyone’s needs in any context without having due regard for their care as the basic foundation upon which to build.  Basic Maslow theory is that.  We should be proud to be early years and childcare, delivered seamlessly together for better and multiple outcomes for children, their families, and those that work in the sector, in all the different ways and settings we do it in. 

It was almost a year ago when I met HVH Arts for the first time.  I was presenting the Childcare Works Choice Award for excellence in the provision of Holiday Activities and Food programmes (HAF for short), in the grand location of the House of Commons terrace no less.  The winner was the Sir Hubert Von Herkomer Foundation (more easily known as HVH Arts), who provide HAF in the Kentish Town area of Camden.  We love HAF at Coram Hempsall’s and Childcare Works.  So, it was especially brilliant to be there that day and to present the award – shining the spotlight on what works well. 

HAF is both ambitious and life-changing and we are privileged to play our small part in its continued success.  The experiences that children and young people enjoy in their school holidays help them and us all to achieve better outcomes throughout their continued learning, education, and development, and into their future lives.  And over the past year it has been great to visit HVH and to keep in touch.

In selecting the winner of the Childcare Works award, we were looking for achieving such great outcomes through tangible and transferable approaches, and proving the difference made through data and evidence, examples of collaboration, and achieving added value.  We also needed to know that HAF was truly engaging communities, offering development and capacity building that reduce stigma and social isolation, all through the offer of new opportunities because of attending HAF.  Debbi and colleagues from HVH were thrilled to be the winners and extended an invitation for me to visit their summer activities in 2023.  What I found, that August, was all of that and more, all discharged through a vibrant programme of arts focused activities like graffiti workshops, community kitchens, fashion photography and various other things.

It’s not every day you attend a party with Kings.  But that’s what happened the other day.  I joined HVH Arts to celebrate the work of their organisation, the achievements of children and young people through HAF, and to see three young people receive bursaries, in the name of the late great actor Helen McCrory, to support their continued development in the arts.  The kings I refer to were Emmy and Golden Globe winner and HVH patron Damain Lewis (King Henry VII in Wolf Hall), and Kingsley Ben-Adir (Bob Marley in One Love) – himself brought up in Kentish Town. 

This struck me profoundly, I know from personal experience, when I was a marginalised white working-class boy, how the world was opened-up to me through quality, enabling, and equitable services just like HAF in my school holidays.  My wider world was on screen, TV, or film, that is where things seemed to happen for me, and it was where I could escape to, be inspired by, and dream about.  I ought to mention we were also joined by Royal Ballet principal dancer Reece Clarke, actor and producer Sadie Frost, and TV actor Fay Ripley.  Still now, I get a thrill if I see someone or meet them in ‘real life’.  I could see in the faces of those children and young people attending the launch, that they thought and felt much the same as me.  But the serious point is that such opportunities connect artistry with aspiration and achievement.  A job well done HVH.

Louise leading the HVH graffiti workshop in August

Oh dear, I have noticed a trend. And it is something I think stimulated by a combination of basic human needs and the tools of social media.

There is a place in this world for people to stand up and speak. Whilst it isn’t everyone’s bag, we all need them. And we thank them. We rely upon all sorts of people making the case for a cause, leading new behaviours, calling for change, or simply entertaining us. We need people to speak on their specialisms, share their expertise, and/or explain their missions, ideas, or campaigns.

I am one of them. And I feel great privilege when asked, and aim to use the time and opportunity, so it benefits as many people as possible. Everyone’s motive should be altruistic, inspiring, enabling, and/or philanthropic. It most often is. The trouble is, sometimes, when I listen to people up there on the podium, or read their posts, it isn’t. Far from it.

This blog isn’t a criticism of any of that. It is a warning. Hopefully it offers some form of helpful guidance, indeed a checklist, to avoid the traps that have opened up.

It isn’t anyone’s fault. In these days of online dialogues and blurred boundaries between public, personal, and professional selves in the virtual, online, and physical worlds, we are lured into these attention-needing behaviours. We have become our own agent-, director-, and editor-free broadcasters. And this environment tempts us to chase more and more quantifiable gratification in the form of likes, followers, comments, and/or plaudits. We want to be liked, to be in like-minded company, and to be recognised in ever increasing quantities.

This contemporary pursuit is all too seductive, addictive even. Many of us are ostensibly needing regular affirmations, comments, re-shares, and other overt measures of engagement. We have become thirsty for all of that. It’s like pouring petrol on a barbeque. So much so, some platforms are actively hiding such data so not to add fuel to our fires.

The learned behaviour is our actions are being constructed, manipulated even, to stimulate all this glorious response. Content is more about the speaker than the message. The broadcaster is super interested and focused upon who is agreeing, listening, or noticing, and who is disagreeing, blocking, or even not engaging. And all that creates its own whirlwind of content, as the discussion plays out these noisy dynamics on social media in particular. All in the vain attempt for Warhol’s prophetic fifteen minutes of world-fame (more like fifteen hours of fame these days thanks to the world wide web). Personally, I take small hope and comfort in Banksy’s take on the matter “in the future everyone will want to be anonymous for fifteen minutes”.

An extreme example is how one ex-President exploits online content (through words and pictures) and how it builds his profile. No matter how extreme or shocking, their behaviours result in a reported growth in support and their approval ratings.

I call it ‘attention speaking’. We should all be aware of it. It is all about garnering a response, achieving attention, creating noise, generating agreement and disagreement in equal measure. It is polarising, not coalescing. None of this is altruistic, inspiring, enabling, and/or philanthropic. Therefore, it fails the test of the speaker achieving their primary objectives and key responsibilities.

The questions for all of us are, do we want and need this for ourselves? Are we mirroring these behaviours to any extent? Are we stuffing our content full-to-bursting with ego affirming noise? What’s important is we engage in ego-free dialogues. This requires us to put content before fame, or purpose before personality. Take a moment to take the temperature of behaviours, and the language used, so you can hold yourself and others to account and avoid its pitfalls. Ask others around you, what do they think? And don’t just listen to the likes, those who agree, or your followers. That is my well-intentioned advice.

Having overheard a colleague saying they had recently published a blog post that had been generated by Artificial Intelligence (AI), my curiosity was sparked.  Naturally.  A quick internet search found a site.  I asked it to write a post.  What title I thought?  I settled very quickly on: The Top Three Things Leaders Should Do in Business. That seemed like a reasonable ask.

Within a few of the briefest moments, some 1,500 words popped up.  I started to look in disbelief as what seemed like a well-constructed piece, with a compelling opening to set the scene, appeared on my screen.  What’s more, it looked like the three top things were indeed set out.  How clever I thought.  Each title was sub-divided into three further sections.  Even cleverer I said under my breath.  What a crafty device to squeeze in more content and circumvent the brief – I must do that myself one day.  It felt like rubbing Aladdin’s lamp, and using one of your three wishes to ask for unlimited wishes – that cunning childlike fantasy trick! That was lesson one. 

Then, a major flaw became apparent.  After I scrolled through the third heading, there was a surprise fourth, then even an unexpected fifth.  An epic fail!  Could you imagine asking a real person for an article on three things and then getting five?  Maybe, maybe not. I would imagine in my office they would be asked to rethink, and to follow the brief, unless there was a cogent argument for five.  I started to resent the handful of sections with three sub-sections each, totalling 15 top things a leader should do.  A dozen more than the brief.  Is AI disobedient and obedient in equal measure I pondered. That was lesson two. 

I read on. The preamble was convincing, and I quote: “Leadership plays a critical role in driving success and growth within any business. Effective leaders possess the ability to inspire, guide, and empower their teams to accomplish extraordinary things. However, with numerous responsibilities and expectations, it can be challenging for leaders to prioritize their actions. In this article, we will explore the top three things that leaders should focus on to propel their businesses forward. From setting a clear vision and goals to building a strong and empowered team, we will delve into fostering a culture of innovation and adaptability, effective communication and collaboration, and the importance of continuous learning and development. By understanding and implementing these key strategies, leaders can create a solid foundation for success and drive their organizations towards excellence”.  I can easily subscribe to all of that, and it seemed very reasonably put.  That was lesson three.

But what, I think you need to know, were those three/five things?

1. Setting a Clear Vision and Goals

1.1 Defining the mission and purpose

1.2 Establishing long-term goals

1.3 Creating a strategic roadmap

2. Building a Strong and Empowered Team

2.1 Hiring and retaining top talent

2.2 Fostering a positive work environment

2.3 Empowering employees through delegation

3. Fostering a Culture of Innovation and Adaptability

3.1 Encouraging creativity and idea generation

3.2 Embracing change and overcoming resistance

3.3 Promoting a learning mindset and experimentation

4. Effective Communication and Collaboration

4.1 Establishing open and transparent communication channels

4.2 Encouraging active listening and feedback

4.3 Promoting cross-functional collaboration

5. Embracing Continuous Learning and Development

5.1 Investing in employee training and development

5.2 Encouraging personal growth and learning opportunities

5.3 Emphasizing the importance of knowledge sharing

Each section was clearly and helpfully explained too.  The piece concluded, “by prioritising these top three (sic) areas, leaders can maximise their impact and drive success within their businesses. Setting a clear vision and goals, building a strong and empowered team, fostering a culture of innovation and adaptability, effective communication, and collaboration, and embracing continuous learning and development are essential pillars of effective leadership. By consistently focusing on these aspects, leaders can create a thriving and resilient organisation that can navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and achieve long-term success. With a strong foundation in place, leaders can inspire their teams to reach new heights and drive their businesses towards a prosperous future”.  There was even some FAQs to support those asking more detail on how to do these things.  Lesson four and five. 

The sixth lesson is from me to AI, three means three, not five, and certainly not 15.  That’s natural intelligence.  And I wrote all this blog myself thank you very much. Although it did take me 45 minutes and not 45 seconds.