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Colin Bell is the chief executive of the Council of British International Schools (COBIS), a role he has held since August 2010. He is also a strategic adviser on the Department for Business and Trade’s Education Sector Advisory Group, and a member of the International Advisory Group for Ucas. He writes:

Compassion, kindness, small acts of care, looking out for people - these have always been a really big aspect of leadership for me. I remember at secondary school, where there were pupils from quite deprived backgrounds, the teachers were always looking out for them, even in the smallest ways - like quietly helping teenagers to learn how to tie their shoelaces because no one had taught them. That’s always stayed with me.

I was at a school in Liverpool when the Hillsborough football disaster occurred. With tragic loss of life in my school and close community, it was a really difficult time, as you can imagine. Over the years, seeing how individuals have led the quest for justice - and now the Hillsborough Law - and what that shows about fighting for fairness and standing up for what’s right, that is very ingrained in me.

When I went for my final interview for the COBIS role, I had just become the father of twins, and I remember having this feeling that anything was possible. The organisation was smaller than it is now and less international, but I could see its potential to grow. So I went in determined to be myself and say what I really thought, rather than what I assumed people wanted to hear. I was polite and constructive, but clear that there was so much more it could do - and that, with a long-term strategy, we could achieve it. That experience reinforced for me the fact that leadership is about authenticity. If you are yourself, you have much more credibility and integrity - and it’s something you can sustain over the long term.

One of the great things about this job is the amount of travel and the opportunity to meet so many people - not just students, school leaders, educators and support staff, but also ministries of education, regulators and partners around the world. Through that, you realise how vital diplomacy is. Leadership is about building trust, being credible and consistent, and demonstrating that you are who you say you are. Often that means investing time in conversations that don’t yield immediate results but are essential for long-term progress. In a fast-paced world, that patience is easy to overlook - but it’s fundamental to building something meaningful.

Both my parents were teachers, and I saw how much work goes into education - not just in school but behind the scenes - to make things happen for others. There was always a willingness to roll up their sleeves and get stuck in.

My dad was a headteacher, and his school hosted a big gala every year. I’d help with the set-up the night before, and then the next day he’d be in the stocks having sponges thrown at him. Along with my elder sister and brother, I was always first in the queue! It showed me that leadership can be visible, human and part of the community. That blend of work and family is something I try to carry forward. My own children have featured in many COBIS conferences - reading out prizewinners, meeting and greeting, and playing ping-pong with delegates - and that sense of openness and connection is important to me.

For me, fun and kindness should never be mistaken for weakness or a lack of responsibility. Leadership is about being optimistic but grounded in reality. You take the work and the responsibility seriously, but not necessarily yourself.

If people don’t feel a sense of belonging, you can have all the action plans, strategies and in the world, but you won’t get very far. But if you build that sense of belonging, and bring the right team around you, while recognising that you don’t have all the answers - and I certainly don’t - then you can really move forward together as a team and as an organisation. You may not get everything right but you’ll keep moving in the right direction.

I love reading, and when I visit a new country, I’ll often pick up a book or two to understand the country better. But there’s no substitute for talking to people - taxi drivers, shopkeepers, people at the airport or staff and guests in hotels. It keeps you grounded and reminds you that everyone has their own story. The theme of our COBIS conference this year is “Listen, Learn, Lead”, and that really reflects how I see leadership. Three separate, yet interconnected, co-dependent components.

I studied plant physiology for my first degree, and that love of nature has never left me. I’m a big advocate for getting outside, away from screens, and giving yourself space to think, reflect and be creative - what the Japanese call “forest bathing”.

I often say that people in education work in the futures market, because what we do is about developing the next generation. At a time of global uncertainty and geopolitical volatility, there’s no more important role than helping young people to develop stability, curiosity, compassion and determination. And that’s something we do collectively - as caring and optimistic humans, as schools, as organisations like COBIS, and as a global education community.

Colin Bell was talking to Dan Worth

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