How should a school handle bad news? The London Academy in Edgware faced a crisis when a pupil was killed outside its gates. Principal Phil Hearne talks about the lessons from his experience of the media.
Kiyan Prince was a popular pupil at the school, and its community was devastated when he was stabbed and killed outside the school gates. The circumstances of his death became a huge national news story and the school was swamped by the media.
Hearne meets with public relations expert Mark Leech to talk through how the school handled the media pressure. He talks about how pupils were offered money, followed and harassed, and his attempts to control the media interest and help the school face the crisis. Together they hope to help schools nationwide handle the effect of bad news and move on.
