In a class of its own

Rick Hodge, Principal Designate of new Phoenix Free School.

AN adventurer who sailed solo across the Atlantic is at the helm of a new free school which wants to open in Oldham.

Rick Hodge, a former fighter pilot, has been appointed as principal designate of the Phoenix Free School which will be staffed entirely by former military personnel.

Rick flew Tornado F3 fighters in the RAF before spending 11 years working in independent schools, mainly in the West Country, progressing from a physics teacher to head of science.

The 50-year-old was also a physics and engineering lecturer at the University of Prince Edward Island in Canada and has tried most adventure sports, sailing single-handedly across the Atlantic five years ago.

Zero-tolerance
Free schools are state funded but free from local authority control.

As reported in the Chronicle, Phoenix has been given the green light by the Government to open in September, 2014, and negotiations are taking place with Oldham Council to find a site.

The group has opened an office in Retiro Street, Oldham town centre, and the school will combine zero-tolerance discipline with making sure pupils are working at the right level with strong values and competition.

Rick said: “One of the things we are strong on is discipline but people get the wrong impression. It is not harsh discipline, it is the way you go about doing things.

“I think that will be easier with all ex-forces personnel — you understand how to control things without doing any shouting.

“The curriculum also aims to address the basics before it goes on to the higher stuff. That is something I have seen in the independent sector, pupils get help if they need it. This is not always addressed as well as it could be in mainstream schools.”
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