This paper reports on a large national project that explored successful numeracy practices in remote and very remote schools. While there have been a number of significant findings, the middle leader has been identified as a key role in the development of successful numeracy/mathematics practices in schools. The middle leader plays a critical role in crossing the boundaries between the vision of the school and the practices that are enacted at the classroom level. This paper describes the findings from the project and then discusses implications for mathematics education, particularly in the context of remote education provision.