Vicky beer manchester secondary heads (1)

Vicky Beer CBE

Regional Schools Commissioner Lancashire and West Yorkshire

The Road Ahead: Academies and the School-Led System @RSC_LWY

vicky.beer@education.gsi.gov.uk

@VickyBeer1

August 2015 “Five hundred new free Schools, every school an academy, and yes – local authorities running schools a thing of the past. I want the power to be in the hands of the headteacher and the teachers rather than the bureaucrats“ David Cameron

March 2016 Educational Excellence Everywhere Schools White Paper

May 2016 Next steps to spread educational excellence everywhere announced Secretary of State

Educational Excellence Everywhere Great teachers – everywhere they’re needed Great leaders running our schools and at the heart of our system A school-led system with every school an academy, empowered pupils, parents and communities and a clearly defined role for local government Preventing underperformance and helping schools go from good to great: improvement, scaffolding and support, where it’s needed, so that no school falls behind High expectations and a world-leading curriculum for all Fair, stretching accountability, ambitious for every child The right resources in the right hands: investing every penny where it can do the most good

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May 2016 Next steps to spread educational excellence everywhere announced  it is not necessary to bring legislation to bring about blanket conversion of all schools to achieve this goal.  continue to require underperforming schools to convert to academy status where they can benefit from the support of a strong sponsor.  continue to support ‘good’ schools to convert and to take the lead in supporting other schools as part of multi academy trusts.  where it is clear that the LA can no longer viably support its remaining schools because a critical mass of schools in that area has converted.  where the LA consistently fails to meet a minimum performance threshold across its schools, demonstrating an inability to bring about meaningful school improvement

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Progress so far‌ As of 1 May there are 5685 open academies, free schools, Studio Schools and UTCs in England.

Academy growth since September 2010

66% of secondary schools and 19% of primary schools are academies.

227 applications to convert last month – the most since the programme began!

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Progress so far‌ As of 1 May there are 5685 open academies, free schools, Studio Schools and UTCs in England.

66% of secondary schools and 19% of primary schools are academies.

Academy growth since September 2010

In LWY the number of applications to convert has increased by 304% compared to this time last year

227 applications to convert last month – the most since the programme began!

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Academies... The Ten Myths 1. By making every school an academy, education is being privatised.

2. Academies don’t lead to higher standards.

3. Multi-academy trusts are national, remote organisations that don’t give local schools and communities a say.

4. All schools will have to join multi-academy trusts.

5. Academies won’t be accountable to parents.

6. Academies will be forced to cut all ties with the local authority.

7. Academies aren’t transparent.

8. Becoming an academy will mean my good school has to change.

9. Converting will be a bureaucratic and financial burden to schools.

10. There is no longer a role for the local authority in schools.

10 facts you need to know about academies https://www.gov.uk/government/news/10-facts-you-need-to-know-about-academies

Vision of the academy system 

School-to-school support and collaboration: redefine the concept of school as a group of schools (Federation or MAT)



Self-managing, self-improving system – including at trust/sponsor level: the importance of MATs, governance and RSCs as well as TSAs



Goal: More children achieving much more, regardless of starting point

Regional Schools Commissioners …

Regional Schools Commissioners (RSCs) are responsible for making decisions about the academies and free schools in their region on behalf of the Secretary of State for Education.

Their main responsibilities are to: • Monitor the performance of the academies in their area and take necessary action when an academy is underperforming.

• Approve changes to open academies, including: o changes to age ranges, o mergers between academies, o changes to multi-academy trust arrangements.

• Decide on the creation of new academies.

• Encourage organisations to become academy sponsors.

• Make recommendations to ministers about free school applications.

… promoting and supporting new models of system leadership

There is an increasing body of evidence for the benefits of close collaboration between schools.

Evidence suggests that formal collaborations, where there is shared accountability, are more likely than informal partnerships to deliver the benefits … Looser collaborations do, of course, have an important part to play in a selfimproving school-led system … however, formal partnerships are more likely to lead to long-term school improvement.’

Forming or Joining a Group of Schools: staying in control of your school’s destiny http://www.ascl.org.uk/help-and-advice/help-and-advice.forming-or-joining-a-group-of-schools-staying-in-control-of-your-school-s-destiny.html

The Education and Adoption Bill • Will provide new and strengthened powers to intervene in underperforming maintained schools.

• Designed to speed up the process by which the worst schools are transformed, removing bureaucracy and scope for delaying tactics.

• Action will be taken from day one to turn every failing school into an academy, giving sponsors clear responsibility and freedom to transform schools.

• The Bill also tackles schools which are coasting along at ‘just good enough’ and are not fulfilling the potential of their pupils.

• All children should be given the chance to succeed and this Bill ensures that coasting schools can be challenged and supported to become excellent.

The capacity & performance challenge

Growth? Skills? Locations?

https://www.academyambassadors.org/

Scott Walker Regional Director East Midlands & Humber, Lancs & West Yorkshire, North 07717 507676 academyambassadors@newschoolsnetwork.org

Future Local Authority role Local authorities will continue to have an important role in the following areas:

• Admissions • SEN • Safeguarding including identifying those at risk of extremism • School transport • School places – Free School presumption - only expand places in good schools

• But also concentrate on • Cohesion of the community • Delivering the Prevent duty • Outcomes for all school leavers

The Era of the Stand Alone School is coming to a close …

Collaboration is going to be the key to system wide school improvement.

Sir David Carter National Schools’ Commissioner

The Educational Landscape Recruitment Leadership Finance Ofsted Rising Bar of accountability Local authorities – school improvement

£10 million to support primary schools through the process of conversion £10 million fund for small schools to secure expert support and advice. £300 million to support schools to convert and, in particular, support sponsors to turn around failing schools.

£300 million will support strong and effective MATs to grow and improve.

In recognition of the costs that local authorities and church dioceses face, funding will also be provided to them.

The Era of the Stand Alone School is coming to a close …

Collaboration is going to be the key to system wide school improvement.

Sir David Carter National Schools’ Commissioner

The Educational Landscape Recruitment Leadership Finance Ofsted Rising Bar of accountability Local authorities – school improvement

Strategic alignment of strong school networks, developing collective accountability & responsibility is key.

Vicky Beer CBE RSC Lancashire & West Yorkshire

564 open academies in LWY: 22 of which are all-through; 3 of which are 16-plus only

26 Special and AP 55 open free schools (inc UTC and

The LWY Academy Footprint

studio schools)

80 60

118 approved sponsors

40 20 0 mies

Manchester

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National

% of s e

aries % of Prim

ta ools tha % of Sch

LWY

Size matters!

Size of multi-academy trusts in Lancashire and West Yorkshire

35

33

30

28

24

# of MATs

25 20 15 10 5 0

3

1

2

3

12

4

2

5

6

4

5 1

7

Size of MAT (# of schools)

8

9

3

10+

Size of multi-academy trusts in Lancashire and West Yorkshire

35

33

30

24

25

# of MATs

162 SATs

28

20 15 10 5 0

3

1

2

3

12

4

2

5

6

4

5 1

7

Size of MAT (# of schools)

8

9

3

10+

So you want to join an academy trust? Make sure you ask these 7 questions first Many schools will be thinking about joining a trust or federation… but groups of schools come in all shapes and sizes. We have to look behind the label and discover what is really going on.

These sorts of decisions are hard to undo and success is often governed by intangible factors such as values and culture – there will be groups in which you will thrive and achieve more than you thought possible alone; and there will be groups that suck the joy out of leadership. How do you tell the difference?

The 5 things we look for in schools wanting to join our academy trust.

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Educationists often are asked to behave like used car salesmen to promote their wares, but always take a proper look under the bonnet before you make long-term commitments.

When I’m considering schools that want to join the Ormiston Academies Trust (OAT) – and we’re not short of requests – I go through a number of questions.

Schoolsweek January’16

Characteristics of Successful MATs 1.

A well communicated strategic vision & plan that moves seamlessly from implementation into impact

2.

Clear accountability framework for the performance of the Trust

4.

Clear quality assurance systems

4.

Clear delegated governance framework

5.

Trust-wide school improvement strategy

8.

Systematic programme of school to school support

7.

Skilled management of Trust Risk indicators

8.

Clear succession plan for the key posts within the MAT

12. Trust-wide commitment to making a contribution beyond the MAT http://tinyurl.com/ninecharacteristics

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A Multi-Academy School-Led System 5 – 6 academies, single region

5 – 15 academies,

cross LA/ Region region

15 – 30 academies, across three or more regions

System Leader 30 + academies, multi-regional

My last Annual Report in December painted a stark picture of a nation divided at the age of 11. Too many children in the North and Midlands, I reported, are being taught in schools that are not good enough.

Nearly 1 in 3 secondaries there requires improvement or is inadequate compared to 1 in 4 elsewhere. Of the 16 local authorities nationally with the poorest performing secondary schools, 13 were above a line from the Bristol Channel to the Wash.

Manchester and Liverpool are at the core of our ambitions for a northern powerhouse. They are the engines that could transform the prospects of the entire region. But as far as secondary education is concerned, they are not firing on all cylinders. In fact they seem to be going into reverse.

Sir Michael Wilshaw

February 23rd 2016 Institute of Public Policy Research

Lancashire and West Yorkshire Blackburn with Darwen Blackpool Bolton Bradford Bury Calderdale Halton Kirklees Knowsley Lancashire Leeds Liverpool

Manchester Oldham Rochdale Salford Sefton St Helens Stockport Tameside Trafford Wakefield Warrington Wigan Wirral

37% of schools in Lancashire and West Yorkshire are diocesan schools.

Church of England: Diocese of Liverpool, Diocese of Blackburn, Diocese of Chester, Diocese of Manchester, Diocese of West Yorkshire and the Dales Roman Catholic: Archdiocese of Liverpool, Diocese of Lancaster, Diocese of Leeds, Diocese of Salford, Diocese of Shrewsbury

Lancashire and West Yorkshire

Outstanding: Luddendenfoot Academy, Calderdale (from RI): Brighter Futures Academy Trust SS Simon and Jude Primary School, Bolton (from Good): lead school in the St Simon and Jude Church of England Academy Trust Good from Inadequate: BBG Academy, Kirklees – Rodillian Multi Academy Trust Crawshaw Academy, Leeds – Interserve Academies Trust Salford City Academy, Salford – United Learning Trust

The Dean Trust: Lord Derby Academy, Huyton: The Co-operative Academies Trust: Co-operative Academy of Manchester:

Increased attendance from one of the worst in the country to 97%, placing it in top 2% of secondary schools nationally for attendance.

Woodlands Primary Academy, Leeds:

KS2 performance jumped from 45% in 2014 to 71% in 2015

Doubled the number of admissions to Year 7.

Forest Gate Academy, Trafford:

KS2 performance has risen dramatically since joining the MAT: 63% in 2013, 72% in 2014, 92% in 2015.

Northern Education Trust: The Ferns Primary Academy, Bolton: KS2 performance has risen: 62% in 2013, 69% in 2014, 88% in 2015.

‘Our leadership must be active, passionate, ethical and driven by our collective dedication and effort. We need to break the “mind-forged manacles” that chain us to accept certain beliefs or ways of doing things.’

ASCL : A blue print for a self improving system 2014

The role that governance plays in ensuring that every child receives the best possible education has never been more important.

The huge changes to our increasingly autonomous education system over the past 5 years, including the rapid growth of academies and free schools, has placed more power into the hands of governing boards than ever before.

We should not underestimate just how vital the role of governors and trustees has become in helping to raise standards. It is also why Ofsted now shines a brighter spotlight on the effectiveness of governing boards, and reports on their performance and their impact in greater detail.

In short, the role is so important that amateurish governance will no longer do. Good will and good intentions will only go so far. Governing boards made up of people who are not properly trained and who do not understand the importance of their role are not fit for purpose in the modern and complex educational landscape.

Unfortunately, such strong, dynamic and cohesive governance is far from universal. Ofsted comes across too many schools where oversight is weak and the governing board is struggling to have the necessary impact.

Sir Michael Wilshaw HMCI

21st century governance needed for 21st century schools November 2015 https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/hmcis-monthly-commentary-november-2015

Multi-school governance Strong and dynamic governance to underpin a self-improving and autonomous education system. • We need to focus even more on skills. • We need to see more boards governing groups of schools.

A smaller number of accountable bodies governing larger numbers of schools is a crucial step to higher quality governance across the system - fewer, more highly skilled people with a more strategic perspective at board level, who can compare and contrast performance across their schools to create more robust accountability, greater efficiency and more effective school improvement.

Does membership of a MAT reduce autonomy?

•

Yes it probably does!

Not in every respect!

Ensures entitlement to the best education possible – Systems and Operating procedures – Data Collection Points – Common Exam Syllabi – Assessment and Reporting – Key Educational Policies – HR practice as one employer

– – – –

Culture of the school Uniform Enrichment Relationship with the local community – Educational networks unique to the school

The Road Ahead ….

smaller MATs

SATs

MATs

Local geographical clusters

Underperforming Schools

Sponsorship?

Brokerage or Free Schools

Converters

smaller MATs

SATs

MATs

Converters

RI School

Local geographical clusters

Coasting School

Underperforming Schools

Teaching Schools Underperforming Academies

Sponsorship?

Brokerage or Free Schools

Strategic alignment of strong school networks

It’s complex not complicated!

A Sequence of Structural and Cultural Shifts From – Changing the status of your school – Being part of single Teaching School Alliance – Governance – Single School Leadership – Informal Partnerships – School led Accountability – Relative Isolation

To – Using the status to drive change – Joining TSA together to add capacity – To strategic capability – Multi School Leadership – Formal Partnerships – Trust led Accountability – Collaborate to Improve

Key Questions schools and GB should be asking themselves 1. Are we strong enough to lead a MAT or become a sponsor?

2. Who should we consult with and talk to in order to inform our decision making?

3. What are we good at that we could share with other schools with credibility?

4. What are the current relationships and partnerships we value that we would not want to lose?

5. What aspects of our current performance need to be improved?

6. What are the future challenges that we can anticipate that we do not have a solution to today?

7. Do we really understand what being in a MAT means? How do we find out?

8. What non educational ‘services’ could we access more easily to build greater educational capacity if we were in a MAT arrangement?

9. How strong is our governance model? Should we commission an external review or use a tool to self-audit?

10. What are the risks to becoming an academy and what are the risks if we don’t

A Sequence of Structural and Cultural Shifts

The mind-set that underpins future Leadership thinking Scanning the Horizon and looking ahead Preparing and Anticipating change Collaborate with people who are different to you Too many collaborations reinforce similarities not the differences Be bold enough to abandon the past Dare to be different and stand out from the crowd

‘The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails’ William Arthur Ward