The sad and horrifying news of the murder in Leeds of the much loved teacher, Ann Maguire, at the school she had dedicated her life to, for 40 years, has thrown into sharp focus not only the random nature of such acts, but also the significance and value that teachers such as Mrs Maguire can make in the lives of our young.

Seeing the outpouring of grief and the tributes from her community, colleagues and pupils past and present gave us all a brief glimpse of the devastation that had been brought about by a seemingly needless and negative act.

The ‘hows’ and ‘whys’ will no doubt be trawled over during the coming weeks and no doubt many theories will be explored as to what might lead to such a drastic and seemingly callous act.

Whatever the eventual outcome, it does make you reflect on the position of teachers and support staff in schools and the truly immense responsibility we lay at their door.

We don’t only expect schools to academically and intellectually educate our children, but also to make up the emotional deficit that too many of our young experience in this ever more fractured society.

Emotional literacy is thankfully higher on the list of essential, core skills for our young, but in real terms isn’t prioritised anywhere near the degree that it should be.

Emotions are what drive us. Left unattended or misunderstood, they can leave many suffering trauma and desperation and may spill out in truly devastating ways. The negative repercussions are not only to the individuals involved but also, as in the case of Ann Maguire, to the school and wider community.

Although this dreadful incident happened in Leeds, it does make me think about the nature of the teachers in our locality and how we would react if such a situation should occur closer to home.

We, as an organisation, have daily contact with individuals whose passion and commitment to the young people in their charge is often the key difference in the positive outcomes of many of our less fortunate children.

We all probably remember the significant teachers in our lives, some perhaps less than positively, but on the whole we will all hopefully have fonder memories of the stand-out teachers, who inspired us at a time and age when our place in the world was less defined.

I am eternally grateful to those brave souls who encouraged me in my formative years some, thankfully, still doing their best, at Sheldon and Hardenhuish schools to this day.

There is one who I see from time to time, out and about in Chippenham, who I like to greet with the Wilfred Owen quote: “dulce et decorum est pro patria mori” by way of letting her know that, contrary to all expectations, her inspiration has stuck with me.

I am also mindful, through our ongoing partnerships with a whole cross-section of mainstream and alternative education providers, of the passion and dedication these wonderful individuals possess and how, without them, we would be in trouble as a society. The roles and responsibilities performed by the great majority of educators and support staff is truly phenomenal, everything from parenting, counselling, feeding body and soul, to all the extracurricula activities.

Perhaps, at times such as these, in the shadow of despair, following the harrowing experiences in Leeds, we should give thanks and no small amount of praise for our wonderful schools and teachers, whilst sparing a thought for the family and friends of Ann Maguire.

We should also spare a few for the inspirational teachers in our own communities, without whom all our lives would be the poorer.