challenge partners: introduction pack - lampton … · 4 challenge partners introduction pack 1....

November 2011

Challenge Partners: Introduction Pack

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Challenge Partners Introduction Pack

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Challenge Partners: Introduction Pack

Contents

1. Welcome ........................................................................................................ 4

2. Introducing the Challenge Partners ................................................................ 5

3. Background .................................................................................................... 6

4. Aims of the Challenge Partners ...................................................................... 8

5. Main Activities ................................................................................................ 8

6. The Partnership .............................................................................................. 9

7. Network of Hubs .......................................................................................... 10

8. Organisation Structure and Governance ...................................................... 11

9. The Quality Assurance Review...................................................................... 14

10. Network of Excellence .................................................................................. 18

11. Engine of Improvement ................................................................................ 21

12. Source of Efficiency ...................................................................................... 22

13. Financials ...................................................................................................... 23

Appendix 1: Senior Partners ................................................................................... 26

Appendix 2: School Improvement Menu ................................................................ 27

Appendix 3: Directory of Expertise ......................................................................... 28

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1. Welcome

The Challenge Partnership was launched in April 2011 and has rapidly become the largest school improvement network in the country.

The Partnership was founded by schools that wanted to retain their individuality yet realised that they were stronger together, that collaboration is key to continued success. We believe there is much that is good about our schools, yet we also know that there is more we can all learn.

Building a healthy system of knowledge management requires a moral commitment to sharing and learning. Collaboration is at the heart of that all we do in the Challenge Partnership, and the activities within the group are underpinned by an ethos of open accountability and trust.

By joining the Challenge Partners you are not only committing your school to self-improvement, but also to the corporate mission of ensuring that a whole generation of students achieves more than the one before, be they in your school or someone else’s.

Continued membership of the Partnership is predicated on sustained commitment and contribution to the Challenge Partners community. So if you are only in this for your own benefit, then this is almost certainly not the place for you.

As you join with us, we trust you will find it a beneficial and enjoyable experience. We hope you are able to learn and benefit from learning and best practice from within the Partnership, as well as being able to contribute to the wider educational community by sharing your knowledge with others.

Together we aspire to become world-class community, leading the way in school improvement nationally and internationally, and raising the standards of education for all.

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2. Introducing the Challenge Partners

The Challenge Partners is a collaborative group of schools focused on school improvement. We have a moral commitment to ensure that we maximise the life chances of all our students and, through collaborative learning, ensure that each generation of students achieves more than the one before.

The success of the Challenge Partners will be judged against our stated aims, which are to:

• Increase our students’ performance in public examinations at a rate considerably higher than the national average

• Increase the number of Partner schools that are outstanding and meet the National Teaching School criteria

• Improve the Partner schools’ Ofsted rating and National College school-to-school work designation at a considerably higher rate than the national average

• Develop internationally the concept of effective collaborative learning between schools and contributing to national research and policy making.

Our practice derives from, and builds upon, research and best practice to emerge from Ofsted, London Challenge and the National College; and our decision making structures draw on those embraced by groups such as the John Lewis Partnership.

The Partnership is built around a network of hubs, complemented by centrally run activities. Schools seeking to improve are subject to tighter control and greater prescription, whilst high performing schools are encouraged to innovate and share their learning.

The activities of the Challenge Partners are focused on three strategic areas:

1. Network of excellence; a school improvement network, led by schools, which provides capacity to support others, based on a peer review, data analysis and a rigorous methodology for school to school work

2. Engine of improvement; using the strong to help the weak, turning failing schools around and reducing the disparity in performance through effective learning partnerships

3. Source of efficiency; through collaboration, sharing of resources and group purchasing; enabling greater and more effective investment in teaching and learning.

The Challenge Partnership desires to be a world-class community that others would wish to join and will serve as a benchmark for professionalism, underpinned by an ethos of open accountability and quality assurance systems. Our quality assurance and assessment is built around a professionally led peer review, which identifies areas of strength and those for development, leading appropriate intervention measures.

We will make a contribution to the wider educational community by sharing our knowledge with others, contributing to political and research documents and actively seeking to influence the formulation of education laws.

We aim to provide a vehicle for schools that wish to retain their individuality yet learn from the best of their peers and have an educational, political voice nationally and internationally.

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3. Background

The London Challenge school improvement programme was established in 2003 to improve outcomes in low-performing secondary schools in the capital. The programme uses experienced education experts to identify need and broker support for underperforming schools.

According to the 2010 Ofsted review,1 secondary schools in London have performed better and improved at a faster rate than schools in the rest of England in terms of their examination results, since the introduction of London Challenge. After the summer examinations in 2010, only four London secondary schools (about 1%) now remain below the floor target. Primary schools that have become partners with London Challenge are also improving rapidly, despite having only joined since 2008. The contextual value-added measures of the participating schools, taken all together, have risen significantly from below average in 2008 to above average in 2010.2

Ofsted praised the London Challenge for motivating London teachers to think beyond their intrinsic sense of duty to serve pupils well within their own school and to extend that commitment to serving all London’s pupils. This has encouraged successful collaboration between London school leaders and teachers across schools.

Identifying what it is that is key to system improvement is a complex challenge. Each school situation is unique, and each faces its own expectations and challenges. However, a recent study by McKinsey3 suggests that school systems that have been successful in improving, select an integrated set of specific actions appropriate to their level of performance. The six interventions identified in the report are:

• revising the curriculum and standards • ensuring an appropriate reward and remunerations structure for teachers and principals • building the technical skills of teachers and principals • assessing students • establishing data systems • facilitating improvement through the introduction of policy documents and education laws

Furthermore there is a correlation between a system’s performance stage and the tightness of central guidance to schools. Schools seeking to improve from poor to fair require tighter control and greater prescription with a focus on supporting students in achieving the basics in literacy and maths. In contrast, providing loose guidelines on teaching and learning processes for high performing schools, that have already mastered the basics, encourages innovation and excellence.

The Department for Education's White Paper, The Importance of Teaching, 4 introduces the designation of Teaching Schools. This is intended as the highest accolade schools can aspire to achieve, giving outstanding schools the role of leading the training and professional development of teachers and head teachers. The Teaching Schools concept was developed in collaboration with the National College, and provides the platform for a school-led, collaborative system that is ultimately 1 Ofsted, London Challenge, 2010

2 At their most recent inspection, 30% of London’s local authority controlled secondary schools were judged to

be outstanding, reflecting the positive impact of London Challenge. This compares with 17.5% for the rest of England. Of the 34 academies in London that have been inspected, eight have been judged to be outstanding (24%), compared with 22% of all inspected academies (84) judged outstanding. Only 2.4% of London’s secondary schools are currently judged by Ofsted to be inadequate, compared with 4.1% in the rest of England, and 9% of London academies. Across England, 9.5% of academies that have been inspected have been judged to be inadequate. 3 McKinsey, How the world’s most improved school systems keep getting better, 2010

4 The Importance of Teaching White Paper, 2010

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self-sustaining and which is focused on improving the quality of teaching and leadership, leading to

school improvement and better outcomes for children and young people.5

Whilst it is clear that there is no one path to improving school system performance, London Challenge has demonstrated the efficacy of linking schools; the findings of the McKinsey report provide an additional framework to rigorously assess schools and enable implementation of the most appropriate set of intervention measures; and Teaching Schools present an appropriate mechanism as well demonstrating the political appetite for a school-led approach.

5 http://www.nationalcollege.org.uk/index/about-us/national-college-role/teachingschools.htm

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4. Aims of the Challenge Partners

The Challenge Partnership is a group of schools which aims to raise standards of education. The Challenge Partners exist to:

• Increase our students’ performance in public examinations at a rate considerably higher than the national average

• Increase the number of Partner schools that are outstanding and meet the National Teaching School criteria

• Improve the Partner schools’ Ofsted rating and National College school-to-school work designation at a considerably higher rate than the national average

• Develop internationally the concept of effective collaborative learning between schools and contributing to national research and policy making

5. Main Activities

The Challenge Partners is focused on three strategic areas:

1. Network of excellence; a school improvement network, led by schools, which provides capacity to support others, based on a peer review, data analysis and a rigorous methodology for school to school work

2. Engine of improvement; using the strong to help the weak, turning failing schools around and reducing the disparity in performance through effective learning partnerships

3. Source of efficiency; through collaboration, sharing of resources and group purchasing; enabling greater and more effective investment in teaching and learning.

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6. The Partnership

The structure of the partnership draws upon those developed by groups such as Best Western hotels and the John Lewis Partnership. Their structures give the management the freedom to be entrepreneurial and competitive in the way the business is run, while giving the company's owners, the Partners, the rights and responsibilities of ownership through active involvement in the business.6

The Challenge Partners is focused on improving school system performance, and all schools will contribute to that end. Membership operates at different levels, each with associated roles and responsibilities. Schools seeking to improve will be subject to tighter control and greater prescription, whilst high performing schools will be encouraged to innovate and share their learning.

Partners

Partners are full member schools. Partners participate in an annual school review and assessment; contribute to, and benefit from, learning and best practice from within the Partnership; take part in school improvement programmes; and have access to contracts for goods and services procured centrally through the Challenge Partners.

Senior Partners

Senior Partners are the representative voice of the Partners. Senior Partners have governance responsibility for the organisation; they control entry into the Partnership and provide strategic leadership. Senior Partners agree the quality assurance framework within which the Partnership operates. Each Senior Partner is responsible for a hub of Partner schools, and is appointed to the position either through proven experience as a Teaching School (or other significant contribution) or as an elected representative from within the hub of schools.

Associates

Associates are schools deemed not yet capable of being Partners. Associates join a hub run by a Senior Partner and are required to federate either with a Senior Partner or the Academy Trust of the Challenge Partners. They are closely governed, subject to tighter control and greater prescription. Associates participate in school improvement programmes, including peer-to-peer coaching and teacher training programmes.

Entry into the Partnership is restricted to those who have worked with, or are known to, the Senior Partners. Additionally, Associates may be introduced to the Challenge Partners by the Department for Education or a local authority looking for assistance with an underperforming school.

Continued membership of the Partnership is predicated on sustained commitment and contribution to the Challenge Partners community.

6 www.johnlewispartnership.co.uk

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7. Network of Hubs

Whilst recognising the strength of time-bound school improvement programmes and intervention initiatives, it is recognised that close on-going relationships are essential for sustained improvement. In light of this Challenge Partners is built around a network of hubs, to complement the centrally run activities.

Challenge Partners groups schools into embryonic hubs focused on improving school system performance. Each hub is built around a Senior Partner, and each consists of other schools at different stages of development. Hubs form out of relationship rather than any prescribed criteria and may be cross-phase or not, local or national. Hubs vary in size, but are anticipated to grow to about 8 to 12 schools each.

The Senior Partner controls entry into the hub and manages underperformance within it. As schools develop and improve they may seek Teaching School status, with new hubs branching off and forming as the schools’ journeys of improvement dictate. All Partners may initiate and/or deliver activities within, and outside of, their hubs for training and improvement. These hubs form the structure for the decision making process for the Partnership. The Seniors Partners form the representative voice of the Partners as they seek to shape the direction of the Challenge Partners.

Challenge Partners encourages the forming of links with other hubs for cross-hub opportunities, especially in areas of particular strength where a single hub may not have the requisite scale or expertise. Partners can form knowledge groups around each specialist area which provide the platform for coaching and training for the benefit of others in the Partnership. All Partner schools will be expected to develop at least one specialist area within two years of joining the Challenge Partners.

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8. Organisation Structure and Governance

Organisation Structure

The Challenge Partners organisation will be a charity and company limited by guarantee, registered with the Charities Commission, accountable to a board of trustees, with representatives from education and business. All financial benefits from the group’s activities will be reinvested into the charity.

Governance responsibility for the organisation lies with the Senior Partners, who make up the Partnership Board. As the representative voice of the Partners, the Partnership Board agrees the frameworks within which the Partnership operates.

The Challenge Partners was created as a joint venture between three parties – Olevi, Learning Plus and additional key individuals – between which the intellectual property has been developed. A working Management Board has been established and is comprised of individuals from each of the founding organisations as well as elected representatives from Partnership Board. The Management Board is responsible for the five interim working groups which defined and mobilised the key aspects of the programme.

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The following individuals have been appointed to the Management Board, and are responsible for the interim working groups:

Governance: • Dr George Berwick CBE

Operations:

• Mr Mark Goodchild • Ms Catherine Stevens

Partnership:

• Dame Yasmin Bevan (Denbigh High School) • Mr Robin Bosher (Fairlawn Primary School) • Ms Desi Lodge-Patch (Woodfield Secondary School) • Dame Susan John (Lampton School) • Ms Teresa Tunnadine (Compton School)

Review and Improvement:

• Mr Richard Lockyer (Olevi) Data Analysis:

• Ms Kate Reynolds (Learning Plus UK)

The Challenge Partners Academy Trust will be managed by the charity and provides a vehicle for weaker schools to convert to academy status, associated to the Challenge Partners. The trust will be a majority trust and will appoint the governing body for any schools under it. The trust will own the school budget, including any money allocated for turnaround activities.

Operating Model

Following the initial setup activities, the ongoing operating model for the group will be structured around the key strategic objectives outlined earlier.

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Governance, strategic and management responsibility of the group will lie with the Group Executive. The Group executive includes the Chairman, Chief Executive, Director of Strategy, Director of Operations and the Senior Partners.

Management and coordination of the partnership will be conducted by a central team, accountable to the Executive Group, comprising:

• Chief Executive o Overall responsibility for the vision, leadership and direction of the organisation, and

activities including stakeholder management and fundraising

• Director of Strategy o Responsible for ensuring high standards in teaching and learning, through research

and capture of best practice; knowledge management; training and development

• Director of Operations o Responsible for management of financial resources and resource planning for future

needs, including procurement and management of all central contracts o Responsible for the daily operations including: review and assessment; partnership

brokerage; and programme management

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9. The Quality Assurance Review

Collaboration is at the heart of that all we do in the Challenge Partnership, and the activities within the group are underpinned by an ethos of open accountability and trust. Within this we recognise the importance of strong quality assurance.

The Challenge Partners quality assurance and assessment is built around a professionally led peer review focused on teaching and learning. The review highlights areas of strength, including outstanding knowledge within hubs and across the Partners; and it also identifies those areas for development, bringing key challenges to schools for the coming year.

The review comprises data analysis and a school visit. It identifies areas of strength and those for development and provides the basis for an appropriate course of improvement measures.

The strength of the review lies in how it brings together the rigour and professionalism of Ofsted with the care and collaborative approach of a partnership. This is a joint exercise between the review team and the school. This approach enables honest and open conversations about where the school is and where it is going, to the benefit of all concerned.

Another of the significant benefits that the review brings is the development opportunities for senior staff. By nature of being a peer review, conducted by current practitioners, those on the review team itself receive a rich developmental experience as they step into another environment working alongside a trained Ofsted inspector; experiences and learning which they can then take back to their own school.

Content of the Review Report

The key output of the review is a report which covers six areas. The first four provide a review of where the school appears to be positioned relative to its most recent Ofsted inspection, while the final two focus more on the school’s contribution to, and participation in, the Partnership.

1. Context of the School: Taken from the most recent Ofsted report

2. Pupil Performance: Data analysis taken from Learning Plus UK and judgements on attainment and progress based on Ofsted criteria

3. Quality of Teaching: Narrative of strengths and weaknesses (including evidence from observations and pupils’ work) and judgements on the quality of teaching based on Ofsted criteria

4. School Improvement Strategies: Narrative of the school to self-assess and continue to improve, as indicated by the Self Evaluation Form (SEF) and School Improvement Plan (SIP)

5. Quality of Area of Outstanding Practice: Narrative of strengths and aspects of exemplary practice. The key skill areas will be chosen from the National College’s directory of expertise

6. Engagement with Challenge Partners: In the first year, this will be a description of the likely impact on the Partnership, thereafter a description of the types of activities and their impact on school improvement.

The report contains a coversheet on which any judgement statements will be made, and which the school may attach or detach should it wish to share the contents of the review.

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Outline of the Review Process

The school visits for the review are carried out during the autumn and spring terms each year and conducted by a team which consists of one Ofsted accredited inspector (Lead Reviewer) and two to four senior leaders from a Partner School.

The review process itself is a development opportunity for the senior staff, who observe the school under review. The Lead Reviewer then assesses the work of the senior leaders, and writes up the review report. It is expected that the time and expenses for the senior leaders is funded by their own school as part of any Continuing Professional Development (CPD). The review assesses the aggregate performance of the school and not the performance of individuals. It may not therefore be used as a case for removing a teacher or head teacher.

It is expected that every school in the Partnership will participate in the review each year. However, in the instance where a school has recently had, or is imminently due, an Ofsted whole school inspection (this excludes themed inspections), a school may opt out without damaging the rigour of the overall review process. A standard school visit is conducted over one and a half days with four senior leaders; however for smaller schools (2FE and smaller) only two senior leaders are necessary.

Secondary school leaders review 2 schools in a week, and so are out for 5 days, while primary and special school leaders review only 1 school in a week, taking them out of school for only 3 days.

The Review Week

Pre Review Analysis:

The Lead Reviewer with the senior leaders prepare a Pre Review Analysis (PRA) for each of the 2 schools to be reviewed that week. The PRA takes account of the identified area of outstanding practice (if applicable) and includes:

Analysis of school data

Possible strengths and weaknesses of identified area of outstanding practice (if applicable)

Timetable for lesson observations (to be joint with the school where possible)

Staff names for interviews

Review in school – Day 1:

The first day commences with a meeting of review team and senior leaders in school to discuss the PRA. The School provides an overview of quality of teaching and learning which the review will triangulate and moderate. Throughout the day, the team undertake review activities (lesson observations, work scrutiny, staff interviews, discussion with school regarding the School Improvement Plan and area of outstanding practice). The day ends with a meeting of the review team and senior leaders in the school to discuss findings and to plan further activities for the final day.

Review in school – Day 2:

The team spends the morning conducting review activities, then meets with the leadership team to discuss the content of the review report before finally meeting by themselves to evaluate their own performance.

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After the Review:

Following these activities, the Lead Reviewer writes the Review report and sends it to the Challenge Partners Head Reviewer (Joanna Toulson) for review, who sends it to the school for comment. The Lead Reviewer then finalises the Review report and sends the final version to Challenge Partners Head Reviewer and the School.

Selection Criteria for Senior Leaders

The criteria for the Senior Leaders on the review team are based on the National College’s designation criteria for specialist leaders of education. The Senior Leaders shall come from a Partner school and will:

Be an outstanding practitioner

Be on the school’s leadership team

Have a successful track record, supported by impact evidence, of working effectively within their own school and/or across a group of schools, or working with a range of staff within a single school

Have evidence of successfully using coaching and/or facilitation skills to bring about improvement

Have excellent communication skills, with the ability to work sensitively and collaboratively with peer colleagues

Have an understanding of what constitutes satisfactory, good and outstanding elements of school practice and have the ability and confidence to articulate this

Training is provided for senior leaders seeking to conduct the school reviews. Schools are encouraged to put forward their best senior leaders to ensure high quality outcomes and so maintain the integrity of the review process. Challenge Partners may seek accreditation for this review training, which would also enable the service to be sold outside the group.

Data Analysis

The data analysis service and support for the QAR is provided by Learning Plus UK. Learning Plus UK has created and will continue to develop a tailored Datadashboard in collaboration with the Partner schools.

The aim is to create a data service which supports school collaboration and improvement across the Challenge Partners. The high level aspects of such a service include:

• Key performance data and analysis at all key stages • Comparison of performance across hubs and against national and regional averages and

trends • Analysis of data against socio-economic factors – particularly free school meals, ethnicity,

gender, looked after children • Online access through Learning Plus UK’s website • A RAG system which enables early identification of schools requiring additional support • Support for senior leaders, governors and others to enable them to understand, challenge

and use the data to drive school improvement

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The Partnership issues performance data dashboards for each school, initially on unvalidated data in September, followed by a finalised version on validated data in the spring. In the first year of the Partnership, the data analysis has been derived from publically available data.

Over time, more detailed analysis will be developed focusing on the needs of individual schools within their hubs as part of a differentiated menu of learning activities. Schools will be entitled to a core Datadashboard as part of their involvement with Challenge Partners and will be able to purchase more detailed Datadashboard analyses and support dependent on need.

Using the Review

The quality assurance and review process will identify areas of outstanding knowledge and practice as well as areas for development within hubs and across the Partners. The review itself does not recommend a set of improvement measures; however it does form the basis for such.

The collaborative has a set of core values which at its heart, respects and retains the individuality of each school and its community. We are openly accountable, embracing national and our own quality assurance systems, which define our integrity and our aspirations. Hubs grow out of relationship, creating a strong bond, united in ambition, and a culture built on respect where sharing is valued. In light of this, Partners are encouraged to share their review report with those in their hub to facilitate the collaboration process.

Following the review, Partners should meet together in their hubs to discuss the outcome of the review and determine how they can best work together to capitalise on their strengths and address their areas for development, drawing upon the expertise both within their own hub and across the wider Partnership. The review should inform where a hub will invest in teaching and learning in the coming year as well as which services a school may seek to prioritise and purchase from the partnership’s directory of expertise.

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10. Network of Excellence

The Challenge Partners is formed around a cohort of head teachers and schools focused on improving the quality of teaching and leadership, leading to school improvement and better outcomes for children and young people. We recognise that no school has all the answers, and all have capacity to improve, even those at the top. Our aim is to provide a vehicle for schools that wish to retain their individuality yet learn from the best of their peers.

Challenge Partners facilitates a menu of differentiated learning activities to drive improvement, available to all schools:

• Whole school improvement; school-to-school mentoring from National Support Schools (NSS), coaching from Local and National Leaders of Education (LLE/NLE) and Specialist Leaders of Education (SLEs) and access to high quality programmes such as Good to Great

• Teacher development; specific programmes aimed at improving the quality of teaching and learning, including the Improving Teacher Programme (ITP) and Outstanding Teacher Programme (OTP)

• Outstanding practice sharing; programmes and peer support on specific areas including all subjects on the curriculum and topics such as leadership, behaviour, early years, inclusion and Special Education Needs (SEN)

• Narrowing the gap; programmes to reduce the disparity of the performance of looked after children and those on free school meals

Schools provide, to varying degrees depending upon their position in a knowledge meritocracy, learning for others in the Partnership. The Challenge Partners brokers relationships, pairing schools and heads for school improvement activities to ensure matches that meet identified needs and result in the best possible outcomes, making best use of the skills and resources across the Partnership.

For each of the available options from the centrally managed menu of school improvement tools, Challenge Partners will be responsible for ensuring appropriate quality assurance measures are in place to maintain their effectiveness and high quality of output. Initially, only programmes that have been used by the London Challenge; or subject areas which have been accredited by the subject review and whose staff have passed the Challenge Partners’ coaching and mentoring training course, will be approved to the centrally managed directory.

Whole School Improvement

We recognise the power of close collaboration and school-to-school mentoring. Challenge Partners will work with the National College and London Leadership Strategy, promoting high quality programmes such as Gaining Ground and Good to Great. These provide schools with support from National Support Schools (NSS), coaching from Local and National Leaders of Education (LLE/NLE).

For schools in need of significant intervention measures, Challenge Partners’ approach is outlined in the next chapter.

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Teacher Development

Challenge Partners recognises the fundamental importance of high quality of teaching and learning in ensuring best possible outcomes for our children. We are therefore committed to eradicating all unsatisfactory teaching across the Partnership by providing specific programmes aimed at improving the quality of teaching and learning. These programmes will include the successful the Improving Teacher Programme (ITP) and Outstanding Teacher Programme (OTP), as used in the London Challenge.

In order to achieve this goal, each year Challenge Partners will subsidise each hub to run teaching programmes for the teachers within their hub. These will include:

ITP – a 6-week programme (six half days) designed for trainee teachers (SCITT / NQT) or for those teachers who want to improve their teaching and learn to deliver consistently satisfactory/good lessons

OTP – a 10-week programme designed for teachers who have a few years’ experience and who have the capacity to raise the quality of their teaching from good to outstanding

Outstanding Practice Sharing

Challenge Partners, in conjunction with the National College’s Specialist Leaders of Education (SLE) accreditation7, leverages specialist skills and knowledge across the group. Hubs nominate schools with a subject or area specialism to be accredited within the Partnership. They will be subject to data analysis and review appropriate to the nature of the subject of area of strong practice. This review will carried out as part of the school Quality Assurance Review outlined above, and carry appropriate accreditation.

Challenge Partners encourages the forming of links with other hubs for cross-hub opportunities, especially in areas of particular strength where a single hub may not have the requisite scale or expertise. Partners can form knowledge groups around each specialist area which provide the platform for coaching and training for the benefit of others in the Partnership, and may include the creation of new training programmes and the publishing of papers. These networks will form around teaching and learning in curriculum subjects, as well as specialist areas including data handling, early years and Special Educational Needs (SEN). All Partner schools will be expected to develop at least one specialist area within two years of joining the Challenge Partners.

In order to facilitate this, Challenge Partners may invest in particularly strong schools or departments to benefit the wider network. This will enable staff there to be more readily released to undertake school improvement activities across the group. The allocation of this investment will be demand led and all facilitators will be required to be appropriately trained (to a level recognised by the National College) and have a strong track record in that area.

Challenge Partners will maintain a directory of the areas of outstanding practise that have been identified and make this available to all in the Partnership. Monitoring of the quality of supply as well as the demand levels across the Partners will ensure that investment is directed where it is most needed and most effective.

7 SLEs will be excellent professionals in leadership positions below the head teacher (such as deputies, bursars,

heads of department) who will support others in similar positions in other schools.

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Schools will be encouraged to purchase school improvement activities (training courses, mentoring etc) from each other through this central directory, for which the Partnership has agreed rates for services offered inside and outside the hub, to ensure an equitable market.

Challenge Partners will also run courses in coaching and mentoring, and in the Olevi training methodology to support the creation and development of new materials and training programmes across the knowledge networks.

Narrowing the gap

As an immediate priority, Challenge Partners will focus on ‘narrowing the gap’ in educational achievements for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Reducing the disparity of the performance of looked after children and those on free school meals. We will bring together the learning already present in the Partner schools and develop a peer-to-peer training programme which can be used across the Partnership and beyond. This will increase whole school capability through school-to-school work, and include structured training programmes at three levels: leadership, teacher, and pupil intervention.

To fund the development of the programme, we have submitted an application to the Education Endowment Fund for an ambitious and exciting programme to be led by Lampton School, which has narrowed its own gap from 22% to 7%. The programme will build on the learning from programmes delivered by the City Challenges, the Extra Mile and Breaking the Link. It will also draw on in-school work by many of the members of the Partnership that have a specialism in this area.

Additional Activities

Challenge Partners is committed to improving whole school system performance, which includes growing the top. We recognise that no school has all the answers, the highest performing schools will be encouraged to learn from each other. Challenge Partners will look to the creation of new knowledge through research and links to other knowledge holders, such as other school groups and systems, both nationally and internationally, universities, commercial and charitable organisations, creating effective learning partnerships.

Drawing upon the expertise developed across the Partnership, Challenge Partners will seek to put together joint bids for both research and delivery work commissioned by central bodies including the Department for Education and the National College.

Furthermore, Challenge Partners will make a contribution to the wider educational community by sharing our knowledge with others, contributing to political and research documents and actively seeking to influence the formulation of education laws.

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11. Engine of Improvement

Using the resources of the organisation including income from other activities, Challenge Partners will turn round failing schools and bring improvement where it is most needed.

The Challenge Partners Academy Trust provides a vehicle for weaker schools to convert to academy status, associated to the Challenge Partners. Schools wishing to join the Partnership rated ‘Inadequate’ will be required to federate either with a Senior Partner or the Academy Trust. Subsequent to the review, Challenge Partners will, in partnership with a Senior Partner School, initiate a set of turnaround activities.

A Senior Partner will be appointed to lead the intervention activities, carrying out rigorous diagnosis, identifying necessary change, developing and implementing a change plan, and providing coaching and support to the turnaround school.

Challenge Partners will ensure the injection of excellent practice, pairing weak schools and strong ones, and using skills across the Partnership to solve entrenched problems, create change and improve practice.

The Challenge Partnership will use a combination of nationally recognised school improvement experts and some of the country’s leading schools, pioneers of school-to-school improvement, to turn around schools facing the most serious problems.

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12. Source of Efficiency

Through collaboration, sharing of resources and group purchasing; the Partnership will enable greater savings for the schools. Challenge Partners will seek to generate savings from:

• External contracts; individual schools have little purchasing power and many have contracts which provide little value for money. Significant savings can be achieved through group purchasing and greater negotiation

• Staff costs; by sharing specialist staff, both teaching and back office, schools can both reduce costs and increase the quality of resources available to them

Schools will not be mandated to route all, or any, of their contracts through the Challenge Partners. Responsibility of their budgets will remain with the individual schools, however Challenge Partners expects to be able to negotiate rates and terms that would otherwise be unavailable to individual schools, and therefore anticipates that most schools will centralise some of their back office and bought-in functions.

Challenge Partners will conduct an audit of contracted services, which schools may opt to participate in. This will identify disparity between costs for services and highlight the best available rates and terms.

Procurement is the obvious starting point since schools’ purchasing is often poor. They have little purchasing power and often purchase in areas where they have little expertise or useful bench-marking data. We will carry out detailed spend analysis, benchmarking, piloting and re-contracting. We expect savings of up to £100k per secondary school, which will be shared between school and Partnership.

Although an initial focus on procurement, additional services may include:

HR – recruitment, training, staff restructuring, temporary cover, performance management

Professional Services – legal, finance

ICT – requirement analysis, data storage, security, compliance

Staff Roles suitable for sharing across schools include: Business Manager, Administration, Inclusion Manager, EAL Manager and other curriculum specialisms.

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13. Financials

It is the intention that the organisation be funded through the contributions from the member schools rather than through external funding. However it is recognised that additional funding has been required in order to set up the infrastructure and support the programme before it reaches capacity.

As outlined earlier in this document, the Challenge Partners has a tripartite set of activities; each of these has its own business and revenue model.

Network of Excellence

Each school in the Partnership contributes a per pupil fee to fund the costs associated to the review, school improvement and central activities.

The per pupil fee is used to fund the following:

• 15% of the per pupil fee is used to fund the central management activities. The contribution to central management costs will not exceed 15%; should any additional funding be required to satisfy all of the central expenditure in the early years, this will be funded separately and not by the schools

• The per pupil fee funds the cost of the annual review and assessment process. The peer review and data analysis provide the platform for open accountability and collaboration

• The remaining balance from the per pupil fee is used to purchase Priority school improvement services, which will be agreed each year by the Senior Partners.

For the Review, the fees cover the time of the Lead Reviewer (the Ofsted accredited inspector) to both visit the school and write up the report, along with any training that is required for the review team. The time and expenses for the senior leaders is funded by their own school as part of their Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as it is recognised that the review provides excellent development opportunity for them.

The scope of the ‘Priority’ activities will be agreed each year by the Partnership. This is initially focused on two areas: first, teaching and learning; and second, the sharing of outstanding practice.

Challenge Partners subsidises each hub to run teaching programmes (ITP and OTP) for teachers within their hub. Additionally, each school has received an allocated credit to enable them to purchase school improvement activities from each other, to facilitate knowledge transfer.

The National College has defined the role of Teaching Schools such that they will be responsible for the training and professional development of teachers, support staff and head teachers as well as contributing to the raising of standards through school-to-school support. School awarded this designation are proposed to receive funding from the Department for Education to enable them to fulfil these responsibilities. As a vehicle to enable Teaching Schools to do this, Senior Partners that

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are Teaching Schools will contribute a proportion of this allocation to Challenge Partners in addition to the per pupil fee.

Challenge Partners facilitates a directory of the areas of outstanding practise that have been identified, and Partners are encouraged to use them to help drive up standards across the group. Schools seeking to improve may purchase services (training courses, mentoring etc), from other schools within the group, hence creating a market within the Partnership. Challenge Partners has agreed rates for services offered inside and outside the hub, to ensure an equitable market. Each programme and initiative is priced individually with full transparency.

It is anticipated that in the pursuit of continual improvement all schools will buy services, although the balance between services bought and sold will depend on a school’s individual needs, strengths and capacity. Therefore Associates will exclusively buy whereas Partners may sell more than they buy. Either way, each school will benefit financially and/or in school performance.

Whilst high performing schools may be able to make this self-financing, it is recognised that struggling schools may need to commit significant finances in order to improve. Challenge Partners acknowledges this and it is assumed that underperforming schools will receive additional budget for school improvement from either their local authority or the Department for Education. However Challenge Partners also believes that if a school is serious about school improvement then this should be reflected in what it prioritises in its budget.

Partners are encouraged to serve, not only those within the group, but also those beyond it. School improvement services may be offered to school outside of the Partnership providing a further source of revenue.

Engine of Improvement

The Challenge Partners Academy Trust provides a vehicle for weaker schools to convert to academy status, associated to the Challenge Partners. We acknowledge the additional effort that is required in turning around weak schools and a Senior Partner will be appointed to lead the intervention activities.

The intervention approach will draw upon the capabilities and capacity of the Senior Partner schools and the wider network. The activities will be funded using resources from Government and additionally from revenue earned by the Partnership from efficiency savings.

Source of Efficiency

Through collaboration, sharing of resources and group purchasing; the Partnership will enable greater savings for the schools. This may be structured on a fixed fee or percentage savings basis. Challenge Partners will negotiate rates and terms centrally that would otherwise be unavailable to individual schools and take a proportion of the savings enabling it to support this function. It is assumed that these activities will pay for themselves and reduce costs with no need for upfront spend from the individual schools. Initial enquiries suggest typical savings in the region of 8-10% of a school’s budget, which will be shared between the schools and the Partnership.

Challenge Partners will encourage the hubs to build longstanding relationships enabling them to share specialist resources on an ongoing basis, especially in small schools which cannot support fulltime roles on their own. This may apply to both teaching support staff, such as an EAL manager, and back office staff, such as a finance or maintenance manager.

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Appendix 1: Senior Partners

The following head teachers are the Senior Partners of the Partnership (hubs in parenthesis):

• Ms Dana Ross-Wawrzynski (Altrincham Hub) • Dame Yasmin Bevan (Denbigh Hub) • Mr Robin Bosher (Fairlawn Hub) • Mr George Croxford (Wootton Bassett Hub) • Dame Susan John (Lampton Hub) • Ms Desi Lodge-Patch (Woodfield Hub) • Sir Alastair Macdonald (Morpeth Hub) • Mr Kieran Osborne and Mrs Barbara Rhymaun (Ravens Wood and Hayes Hub) • Mr Adrian Percival (Haberdashers’ Aske’s Hub) • Mr Roger Pope (Kingsbridge Hub) • Mrs Carolyn Robson and Mrs Susan Jowett (Rushey Mead and George Spencer Hub) • Ms Teresa Tunnadine (Compton Hub)

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Appendix 2: School Improvement Menu

Challenge Partners facilitates a menu of differentiated learning activities to drive whole school improvement, from which schools may purchase according to their needs. Approved School Improvement Programmes will include:

• Keys to Success • Gaining Ground • Good to Great • Going for Great • VIP: Sixth Form Programme • Inclusion Support Programme • Improving Teacher Programme • Outstanding Teacher Programme • Narrowing the Gap • Moving to New Headship • Subject Specialist Support

For each of the available options from the centrally managed menu of school improvement tools, Challenge Partners is responsible for ensuring appropriate quality assurance measures are in place to maintain their effectiveness and high quality of output. Initially, only programmes that have been used by the London Challenge; or subject areas which have been accredited by the subject review and whose staff have passed the Challenge Partners’ coaching and mentoring training course, are accredited for use.

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Appendix 3: Directory of Expertise

A directory of expertise lists the key skill areas of knowledge and outstanding practice which we share within the Partnership. This directory taken from the National College Specialist Leaders of Education (SLE) directory and is based on the new key areas of focus for Ofsted. See the table below for details of the key skill areas

Key area Area of expertise

Leadership and management academies/academy transition

federations

school business management/financial management

teams, staffing, restructure and performance management

quality standards

subject/key stage/phase/faculty leadership and management

strategic analysis/diagnostics

networks, partnerships and collaboration

self-evaluation

Pupil achievement English

maths

science

geography

history

modern foreign languages (MFL)

literacy

numeracy

all other subjects

curriculum

special education needs (SEN)

support for the most able pupils

moderation

tracking pupil progress

data

English as an additional language (EAL)

mobility

Assessment for Learning (AfL)

sixth form

early years

closing the gap, with a focus on free school meals and vulnerable groups

Quality of teaching teaching and learning

development of initial teacher training (ITT) and recently or newly qualified teachers (RQT/NQT)

ITT mentoring

creative learning/co-operative learning

Behaviour and safety safeguarding learners

behaviour/discipline

attendance

pupil leadership/voice

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