Roche’s special insight the best of both worlds

Sarah Duggan

By Sarah Duggan
Published February 24, 2016

Principal Sue Roche is comfortable with the notion that leadership in education is not something reserved for those in the top position. Having spent the last 27 years working across both mainstream and special schools in Canberra, and with a recent NEiTA award tucked under her professional belt, the head of Cranleigh School shares her unique approach to leading in a special school and explains how she is working to break down the stigma.

Sue Roche knows what it takes to lead in a special education setting.

You were working in a mainstream school before taking up a deputy position at Cranleigh, what drew you back into ...

This story appeared in the March 2016 edition of Australian Teacher Magazine.

Teaching Assistants Level 2 and 3

Veritas Preston

Teaching - Primary / Feb 13, 2026

Teaching Assistant

Teaching - Primary / Feb 13, 2026

Profound and Complex Needs Support

Veritas Bradford

Teaching Aides & Special Needs / Feb 13, 2026

School news / Union sets stop-work date for Vic public school staff seeking fair pay and conditions

The Australian Education Union’s Primary and Secondary Sector Council has set a date for 24-hour stop-work action in Term 1.

School news / Link between kids’ attitudes to hand writing and motivation/quality: research

Beginner writers’ attitude and motivation towards writing is related to the quality of their writing and writing skills (handwriting vs keyboard automaticity), new research has found.

School news / The need for sex ed focus to be on respect, consent and communication

On the eve of Valentine’s Day, with love and relationships front of mind, educators, young people and parents are being encouraged to look beyond risk-based sex education to focus on communication, consent and emotional safety.

School news / ‘Polycrisis’ threatens future of arts education in Aussie schools: researchers

Sidelined from the early years and scrapped at senior levels, arts education in Australian schools is rapidly deteriorating – and our nation’s creative and cultural capital is now at serious risk of dying out, two researchers have warned.

School news / Oxford’s Aust Children’s Word of the Year reveals positive cultural shift: researchers

Oxford’s Australian Children’s Word of the Year for 2025 has just been revealed, and researchers say it may come as a huge surprise.

School news / ‘The numbers don’t add up’: union slams Catholic employers’ attempt to thwart SIA

Victoria’s Catholic education employers have submitted numbers suggesting that their workforce has somehow miraculously sky-rocketed from under 35,000 to nearly 45,000, the Independent Education Union (IEU) Victoria Tasmania says.

Community / ‘Is that even legal?’: teachers’ CCTV concerns must be taken seriously

In the wake of the deeply disturbing allegations concerning Victorian childcare worker Joshua Brown last year, the topic of CCTV cameras has become more urgent than ever before.

Community / Improving Literacy in Secondary Schools

Despite decades of policy effort, literacy remains one of the most persistent challenges facing Australian secondary schools.

School news / ‘Polycrisis’ threatens future of arts education in Aussie schools: researchers

Sidelined from the early years and scrapped at senior levels, arts education in Australian schools is rapidly deteriorating – and our nation’s creative and cultural capital is now at serious risk of dying out, two researchers have warned.

School news / Wellbeing wisdom: key to avoiding burnout is caring less, expert says

Teachers need to “care less” to avoid burnout and are being asked to care in “all the wrong ways” in our schools, impacting significantly on their wellbeing and job satisfaction.

Comments