Tight-but-loose rules and local adaptation

In this second episode of a two-part mini-series, Tara Elie turns the tables and interviews yours truly about the thinking behind Making Change Stick – and why so many school behaviour initiatives fail, even when the policy itself is sound. Following on from the previous episode on the psychology of mattering, this conversation explores what happens after the policy launch: how change is (or isn’t) implemented in real schools, and why top-down, ‘black box’ approaches so often lead to inconsistency, frustration, and drift. I trace my 12-year journey into implementation science, drawing on lessons from healthcare, engineering and systems change – including a powerful case study from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital – to show how schools can dramatically improve uptake, consistency and outcomes by changing how decisions are made. Together, we explore: - Why behaviour is often led by a single senior leader – and why this rarely works in practice - The importance of slice teams: representative groups that bring together staff from across a school (and sometimes students and families) to design, test and refine change - How slice teams improve both decision-making and buy-in by redistributing power without undermining leadership - Why implementation is a process, not an event – and why policies need ongoing review, feedback and adaptation - The role of mattering in behaviour systems: how staff feeling heard, trusted and involved leads to greater consistency for pupils - Practical tools schools rarely use – but should – including root cause analysis, communications plans, pre-mortems and ‘tight but loose’ implementation - How understanding the root causes of behaviour issues can lead to unexpected but powerful solutions (including links to oracy, wellbeing and relationships) - Why fear-based compliance may look like ‘good behaviour’ on the surface, but often masks deeper problems This episode is for school leaders, behaviour leads, teachers and system leaders who are tired of rolling out initiatives that never quite stick – and who want a more humane, effective and sustainable way to improve behaviour, relationships and attendance. Support #repod The Rethinking Education podcast is brought to you by Crown House Publishing. It is hosted by Dr James Mannion and David Cameron, and produced by Sophie Dean. This podcast is a labour of love, with the emphasis on both the labour and the love. If you’d like to support the podcast and convey your appreciation for these conversations, you can: Become a patron: https://www.patreon.com/repod Buy us a coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/repod