Culture and clarity: Lekha Sharma inspires staff at Weavers Academy

Drawing from her book Building Culture and her work with schools across the country, Sharma delivered a thought-provoking session centred on the ICAN Framework of Purpose—a practical tool designed to help school leaders at all levels explore their ‘why’ and work collaboratively to build a strong, values-driven school culture.

The ICAN framework guides leaders through four key questions:

• I – Identity: Who are we? What do we stand for?
• C – Contribution: How does this work contribute to the system?
• A – Aspiration: What are we trying to change, improve or achieve?
• N – Need: If we fulfil our purpose, what difference will it make?

Through this lens, staff reflected deeply on their collective purpose, the role they each play in shaping school improvement, and the power of co-constructing the ‘why’ behind the work they do.

A central theme of the session was trust—and how it is built through leadership that is:

• Reliable – doing what you say you’ll do
• Competent – knowing your subject and context
• Honest – saying the difficult things, even if it risks popularity
• Open – translating complex school improvement issues into clear, actionable ideas

Sharma shared that “an effective school culture must focus on continuous improvement, while empowering teachers to be active participants in school improvement as a function of student achievement” (Carpenter, 2015). Her session encouraged reflection, challenged assumptions, and provided a shared language for purposeful leadership.

Assistant Principal for CPDL and Research, Sally Birkby, said: “We are committed to ensuring our professional development is purposeful, research-informed and empowering. Lekha’s work gave us a common language and deeper insight into how trust, purpose, and culture intersect to drive sustainable improvement.”

Next in the Series: Peps McCrea – Tuesday 1st July

Weavers Academy's CPD series continues with Peps McCrea, one of the UK’s leading voices in evidence-informed teaching. As author of the High Impact Teaching series and Director of Education at Steplab, McCrea brings razor-sharp insight into motivation, habit-building, and classroom culture.

His session on Tuesday 1st July will give staff practical, research-backed strategies to improve student focus, boost motivation, and embed consistent, high-impact teaching practices.

Staff can book their place now via Eventbrite:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/weavers-academy-leadership-development-events-tickets-1324911318419