SO how does a headteacher set about turning a poorly performing school into one of the top three per cent in the land?

“The first thing I would say is ‘slowly’,” Scott Sissons replied. “There are no quick fixes in terms of turning schools around.

“There are things you can do to make a big difference quickly, but if you want to have a lasting change in a school, it’s a slow process. It’s a root- and-branch process.

“For instance, when I took over 10 years ago we looked at everything – the state of the buildings, the uniform, our relationship with parents – because I think all this has an impact on the important bit, which is what goes on in the classroom between teachers and students and how that works.

“But if the other issues are not dealt with and supported, then what goes on with teachers and students just won’t work.”

Those early changes seem overwhelmingly simple when set down on paper, but they paid dividends.

Money was spent on improving the school’s state of repair – “I wanted the children to feel that when they came to the school it was a school they could be proud of” – as well as improving everything from IT provision to the dining facilities.

When Dr Sissons took over at Dorcan, about 50 pupils per day stayed for a school meal. Of the rest, those who didn’t bring their own lunches opted to leave the school grounds and buy food at nearby shops.

Locals were sometimes unsettled by the presence of so many young people, and there was also a problem with some pupils simply not returning to school in the afternoon.

The headteacher’s solution was to forbid students from leaving school to buy food, and these days up to 700 a day have a school meal.

Security was also stepped up to prevent unauthorised people from wandering on to the school site. “It showed students where they could and could not go, and also created a safe place.”

Clearly defined consequences such as detention were put in place for poor behaviour, and these run in tandem with a system of rewards for good behaviour, with students being awarded points that can be exchanged for prizes. The punishment rate increased, but then fell and was outpaced by the number of rewards.

Dr Sissons – his doctorate is in chemistry – has been a teacher for a little over 30 years. He was born in Bristol and raised in Northamptonshire, one of three sons of an analytical chemist and a full-time mother. One brother is a teacher and the other a Methodist Minister.

At Bristol University he followed a degree in chemistry with successful industry-backed PhD research into plastics and polymers, but became dissatisfied with the narrowness of a field shared only by a small number of other academics worldwide.

“I wanted to do something that involved more work with people,” he said. “A friend suggested ‘Why not try teaching?’, so I did. That was in about 1980.”

Another course of study at Bristol followed, this time a year-long post graduate certificate in education to make him a chemistry teacher, and the first classroom he set foot in was at one of the city’s more challenging schools. Was he scared? He smiles: “I wasn’t scared, but surprised, I think.”

Three years as a chemistry teacher at a school in Malvern was followed by five as head of science at one in Weston super Mare. In 1997 he came to Dorcan as deputy head, and his appointment as head came in 2002.

He has responsibility for 1,023 pupils, 140 staff and a multi-million pound budget.

“I don’t see myself moving anywhere else,” he said. “I’m very committed to moving the school on as an academy and seeing what the next chapter is.

“In many ways children have more opportunities than people have ever had before, but they also have more challenges and competition.”