Sensemaking is pivotal in shaping organisational activities, such as instructional leadership actions in schools. This study used sensemaking to explore the outcome when two middle schools with similar multi-deprivation settings followed different instructional leadership enactment trajectories for science and mathematics. Two schools with effective and ineffective instructional leadership enactment strategies respectively were purposively selected from the same locality to participate in the study. Data were obtained through semi-structured interviews with 10 participants, as well as unstructured observations. Emerging data were analysed for content by means of the technique of constant comparison. The findings of the study indicate that, although multi-deprivation conditions have the potential to shape instructional leadership, schools can use sensemaking to forge unique practices that culminate in effective instructional leadership. Since ineffective sensemaking of instructional leadership generally characterises schools in multi-deprived settings, the findings of this study make it essential for districts to provide tools that support schools' effective sensemaking of instructional leadership.