Curriculum Vitae 2009

Mr. Nigel A. Leech

Home: Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK.

Age: 59       Born: 8/10/49

Married (1983) to Jenny.   Two stepsons aged 12 and 14 at time of marriage. Two grandchildren.

Education

1958-68 Bristol Grammar School

Prefect. Head of House. Queen’s Scout.
7 O-levels. 4 A-levels: Pure Maths, Applied Maths, Physics, Chemistry

1968-72 Durham University (Bede College)

Honours Mathematics degree, upper second. (Breakdown early in final year.)
First year subsidiary subject: Philosophy.
Post Graduate Certificate of Education.
Summer work: two by 8 weeks as fitter’s mate in paper mill. 8 weeks as camp counsellor in USA (followed by 8000 miles touring).

Employment

1972-79 Northampton Grammar School

Rapidly changed to comprehensive upper school: Northampton School for Boys.
Set up ‘Junior Maths Society’. Started annual Yr 9 week at county outdoor centre.
Initiated teaching of computing as extra-curricular activity. Set school moving towards a PSE programme. Successful Form Tutor at 13+ to 15+.
BAAB Senior Coach (Middle Distances). Two athletes coached to minor international level. County Schools team management experience. Hon. Sec. of Northampton Schools Athletic Federation for two years.
Produced and directed a school review show.
Significant local journalism and photo-journalism (paid) including a number of full page spreads.
“Tonight in the Pink: Nigel Leech comments on....”

1979-81 Churcher’s College, Petersfield, Hampshire

Assistant boarding house master (resident). Set up activity club and YHA trips for boarders. RN officer in CCF.
Gained Mountain Leader Certificate (summer). Trained at Plas y Brenin as rock climbing instructor.
Proposed and arranged purchase of school’s first computer and ran lunchtime and after school sessions on using it.

1981-2004 Leeds Grammar School

1990 - 95: Information Technology Development Officer. Managed major changes to computer systems, including network management, designing and writing software for main databases, responsible for all aspects of confidential databases. Successfully introduced both teaching and non-teaching staff to the new technology. I initiated this role.
“Leave a request on Nigel’s answer phone and the goods are in your pigeon hole before you can get back to the Common Room.”
1990 - 95: Database Manager (data on all staff and pupils).
1995 - 98: P.S.E. Coordinator. New post to this school: developing a PSE  programme.
2000 - 2002: Progressed through Anglican discernment process with a view to possibly training as a Priest. It became clear that was the wrong direction.
2003 - 2008 : Theatre Manager & Arts Coordinator
Respected Form Tutor at all levels from 12+ to Upper Sixth.
Set up Outdoor Pursuits Club, and organised a range of expeditions in UK.
Regularly assisted CCF and School Scouts with mountain activities, and generally assisted with Scout camps (younger son in Scouts).
Initiated series of study/thinking skills and PSE age group assemblies, often creating follow-up materials for pupils and Tutors.
Took a range of successful age group assemblies (250 pupils), both Christian and non-religious.
Range of summer and winter mountaineering courses, including 9 day Mountain Instructor Award training (1993).
One term full-time course at College of Ripon & York St. John in ‘Guidance and Counselling’ resulting in Certificate.
Range of other INSET including management skills, and PSE teaching skills.
Wrote successful in-house booklet “Drugs Facts” to fill gap in available material.

Nov 2004 Unable to continue teaching as a result of

several years of chronic physical illness caused by interaction of the stress of teaching with forty years of chronic clinical depression. Also I care for Jenny (my wife) who suffers a worse form of chronic depression including a number of genuine suicide attempts while psychotic. In February 2005 applied for early ill-health retirement, which was approved two days later.

Other interests

My family.

People.

Writing fiction - so far unpublished.

Listening to a wide range of music.

Advances in all aspects of science and technology.

Practical psychology.

Photography and art.

Live performance singing.

Reading.

Many things.

From the age of 15 I’ve suffered chronic depression which has resulted in half a dozen breakdowns over the years. The first kicked off early in my finals year at University, and I’ve not been as good at Maths since then as I was before.

One outcome which I’ve largely been unable to avoid was that throughout my teaching career I was prickly, prone to short temper, moody, and unpredictably very short of energy. For this I can only apologise to past students and colleagues!

Periods of clinical depression have distorted at least three months of every year since I was 15, and typically have come on very abruptly: for instance one January I came second in the County cross-country championships (7.5 miles in about 40 mins), but a week later could barely jog a mile because of depression.

Over the years I’ve found a range of strategies to help me cope better, and medication has improved a lot. Meeting and marrying Jenny was of immense benefit to me, although it did take a while to adapt to taking other people into account. We were unable to have children because of Jenny’s continued depression, and I did the best I could as father to her two children from a previous marriage.

Gradually age and the many stresses of teaching interacted to make me increasingly unwell. For my last six years of teaching my health was very poor, and for the final year I felt like I was still weak from flu. In 2004 I became too ill to teach, and in February 2005 was forced to apply for early ill-health retirement, which was immediately granted. I wish I could have continued teaching, but I certainly do not miss the incredible stresses involved, and I’m happy to be without marking, writing reports, parents evenings, and supervising the lunch queue.