Trust Leadership Today - Summer 2024 by williamclarence

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PUBLISHER

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The William Clarence Education Group is a leading education publisher and provider of admissions, recruitment and careers solutions for parents, leaders and schools across the world. williamclarence.com

DISTRIBUTION

(PRINT & DIGITAL)

Trust Leadership Today is distributed as follows: all UK Single and MAT Trusts; Schools & Academy Show, NEC.

Quarterly print reach: 5,000; digital reach: 65,000; social reach 25,000.

No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the permission of the publisher. The information contained in Trust Leadership Today has been published in good faith and every eﬀort has been made to ensure its accuracy. All liability for loss, disappointment, negligence or damage caused by reliance on the information contained within this publication is hereby excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.

FOREWORD

We have a new government!

A new start. This new reality brings with it new opportunity for the academy trust sector. What is in store for us over the next 5-10 years is unknown, but it will involve challenge, the need for resilience and the ability to adapt. The need to stay informed will be essential.

TRUST LEADERSHIP TODAY IS A DEDICATED PRINT AND DIGITAL

PUBLICATION, CREATED FOR YOU AND BY YOU.

Consequently, I am delighted to welcome you to the ﬁrst issue of Trust Leadership Today (TLT)

Part of the School Management Plus publishing group, Trust Leadership Today is a dedicated print and digital publication, created for you and by you – the academy trust sector. Education leadership is in our blood. With two other quarterly titles for the independent and international education sectors, TLT will complete our portfolio and ensure that we have education in the UK covered for a broad readership base.

TLT will help to galvanise the sector and work closely with the leading associations and key ﬁgures in order to bring the most trustworthy and accurate thought-leadership content to you. Our aim is to cement the

community of trust leaders together within a sector that is approaching a phase of rapid change.

The plethora of changes, challenges and opportunities on the horizon are too vast to list here, but we will be dedicated to the task of showcasing the most diverse opinion on staﬀ and leadership recruitment challenges, government policy, inspection legislation, procurement best practice, marketing and growing your MAT, sustainability, safeguarding and much, much more.

So whether you are a leader in a single academy trust, or large multiacademy trust, we are here to serve and listen to you.

We will publish in print quarterly and daily across our digital platforms, including eight social media channels and regular newsletters. Distribution of the print magazine will be via the main associations and key sector trade shows.

Follow us on Linkedin @TrustLeadershipToday; your support is much appreciated – so please keep in touch with us via our digital platforms.

Steve Spriggs and the School Management Plus team

STEVE SPRIGGS is Managing Director of The William Clarence Education Group, School Management Plus and Kampus24

@TrustLeadershipToday @SchoolManagementJobs

Books Inspire Books Inspire

Better Writing Better Writing

Ann Mroz Former

Louise Bennett CEO, IDPE

Alex Russell CEO, Bourne

Samuel Skerritt Director of Public Aﬀairs and Policy, CST

Andrew Thraves Chair, Big Education Trust

David Walker Director, BSA

Dr Helen Wright Educational Consultant and Coach

Our

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FUNDING FUTURES A PARALLEL DEBATE

Samuel Skerritt shares an insight into the current funding landscape and explains why CST is calling for reform of how schools are funded, believing that additional funding is the best economic investment available to government.

Whichever way you look at it, school funding is a major challenge for the sector. While the overall funding envelope is approaching a return to 2010-levels, real terms school costs have resulted in a 5% reduction in per pupil spending power from 2010-11 to 2022-23. With the impact of inﬂation and other cost pressures and increasing demands (not least 1.6 million pupils with a special educational need), the reality is individual schools feel much worse oﬀ.

Indeed, in the 2022 edition of our annual survey of trust CEOs, 77% were confident in the financial stability of their trust; in 2023, this figure dropped to less than half at just 46% (our 2024 survey will be published in the autumn term).

HERCULEAN PRESSURE

At the same time, schools have found themselves as the ﬁnal defence and fourth emergency service. Whether it be providing food, uniform and laundry services, having to hire mental health practitioners or family support workers, or recalibrating after pay awards and pension changes are announced postbudget deadlines, everything points to Herculean

pressure on CEO and CFO colleagues trying their best to make ends meet.

Meanwhile, child poverty has reached a record high (the latest release of government Households Below Average Income data in 2023 shows there are over 4.3 million children are living in relative poverty – 30% of all children, which equates to 3 every classroom) and the sector is haemorrhaging staﬀ without being able to recruit (the latest data show in 2023, there were 44,002 full-time equivalent entrants into the sector, while the FTE number of leavers was 43,522).

This isn’t new, nor is it a secret; myriad sources –think tanks, trade unions, charities, schools, parents and others – have been raising the alarm for some years, and respected players like the Institute for Fiscal Studies have evidenced the decline in school spending power since 2010. Indeed, CST raises the issue with policymakers and ministers on an almost daily basis.

But frankly, so does every other player across public services: health, crime, defence, housing, transport – take your pick, and you’ll ﬁnd noble arguments for additional funding.

IF EDUCATION IS THE CLOSEST THING TO A SILVER BULLET WE HAVE FOR TRANSFORMING LIFE CHANCES, THE STATE PROPERLY FUNDING STATE EDUCATION IS THE STARTING SHOT.

EDUCATION AS INVESTMENT

With the state of the economy as it is, everybody recognises money is tight and Treasury need spending to have a meaningful impact. With that in mind, we commissioned leading economic consultancy Compass Lexecon to undertake new research looking at economic return on investment as it relates to school funding.

FUNDING FUTURES: A NEW MODEL

1. A fully implemented National Funding Formula

The NFF needs to be fully implemented as soon as possible, backed by a realistic transition plan, and supported by a new national forum of education bodies, local authorities, economists, Treasury oﬃcials and others, so changes to funding match actual costs of delivering provision.

Now, I’m definitely not an economist so I won’t try and do justice to the full report (you can find that on our website), but even with my limited understanding, their finding that an average yearly benefit of £95 billion to the Exchequer from an average yearly investment cost of £17 billion seems to me like a remarkably convincing outcome.

Coupled with some clever targeting (early years and disadvantage being most impactful according to Compass Lexecon’s work), we could transform not only our schools but move towards the society we want to see; the research ﬁnds that additional spend would result not only in higher earnings, but better health outcomes, improved civic engagement, reduced crime and more.

available provision’, High Needs top-up funding can be just that –and be delivered based on the cost of provision, not arbitrary ﬁgures attached to proving what a child can’t do.

3. Holistic capital funding

We also think there should be an element to cover basic capital costs, worked out on pupil numbers and ﬂoor area, and special schools and AP settings should have their ordinary running costs covered through the NFF.

2. A new approach to funding SEND and Alternative Provision

SEND/AP funding needs a radical overhaul. If the NFF funds ‘ordinarily

into lengthy and expensive contracts (we also want to see existing PFI contracts dealt with once and for all). Our best solution is expanding the Infrastructure Levy or introducing a Civic Duty Levy by ring-fencing a small amount of main rate Corporation Tax to be made available to public services for infrastructure projects.

4. The introduction of a Policy Premium Mechanism

Capital investment is desperately needed, but the approach to generating billions of pounds is divisive. We do not foresee a government committing to the billions necessary. Instead, we think lessons from the PFI approach of yesteryear need to be learned, so no private investment can trap schools available means a new initiative appears.

With those three areas addressed, we will still need a standing mechanism for additional funding to be delivered without the NFF being changed whenever a global event, policy decision, or change of government means a new initiative appears.

We’ve called this the Policy Premium Mechanism and suggest it should be time-limited so a decision has to be made as to whether the funding should be moved into the NFF, stopped, or continued for a short period in certain circumstances.

If education is the closest thing to a silver bullet we have for transforming life chances, the state properly funding state education is the starting shot.

HOW, AS WELL AS HOW MUCH

So, if we take as read that school funding needs an urgent boost, and the evidence suggests viewing school funding as economic investment is a sensible shift that’s both good for the economy and good for wider society, we’d be somewhere closer to where we need to be.

And while we absolutely must increase the amount of funding, that alone isn’t enough. We also need to address the current approach to how schools are funded so that it is more sustainable, more consistent, and more targeted.

When I joined CST, I quickly realised just how complex and burdensome the existing landscape is (a view I hold more fervently day-by-day). As I started working closely with members, and with our indomitable funding policy specialist, Susan Fielden (I could write an entire article purely on how incredible Susan’s brain is, as well as how lovely and generous she is to the CST team and our members, but I’ll spare her blushes), I kept ﬁnding myself asking ‘Why is the second biggest area of public service spend (behind health) delivered in such an unhelpful way?’.

I should caveat that point: That is not a criticism of civil servants, or of governments. I think it’s more that

years of tweaking, reforming, re-prioritising etc. has left us with an undesirable smorgasbord of funding elements, grants, premiums, and so on. But that unhelpful smorgasbord is ineﬀective, ineﬃcient, and infuriating to navigate.

FUNDING FUTURE: REFORMING SCHOOL FUNDING IN ENGLAND

We set about thinking how it could be improved, establishing a set of principles to guide our work, and over the course of a year consulted with members, civil servants and others to test our thinking, happily binning several ideas along the way, until landing on the model set out in our recent paper, Funding Future: Reforming school funding in England.

Our model suggests three areas to be reformed, plus the introduction of a new initiative, which would consolidate the existing span of funding sources so (in the best cases) schools would receive all funding through just one route (or, at worse, four).

The full paper, which includes a technical note, carries the detail, but at a high level we think the National Funding Formula (NFF) needs to be fully implemented, through a realistic transition plan that utilises evidence, and includes basic operating costs for special and AP; radical reform to SEND/AP, that properly funds provision and moves away from the existing deﬁcit model; capital funding that provides a national programme of maintenance and upgrade,

FIVE PRINCIPLES FOR A BETTER FUNDING LANDSCAPE

1. Fair, transparent and equitable:

Our starting point is that the context of a school matters greatly. Decisions being taken on national averages might seem logical, but a large trust of inner-city secondary schools

will have diﬀerent funding requirements to a small trust of rural primary schools. This is particularly prevalent considering a declining birth rate beginning to impact primary schools, where pupil numbers are not dropping enough to replace a class, so per pupil funding levels have dropped but the operating costs remain the same. These diﬀerent scenarios need to be adequately funded in a fair and equitable way, with a transparent methodology

built on solid evidence. The same goes for a school for children with profound and multiple learning diﬃculties compared with an alternative provision setting. As a minimum, we want all state schools –mainstream, special and AP – to receive NFF funding that covers the basic operating and staﬃng costs.

2. Strategic, coherent and predictable

To meet the required operational and compliance

expectations, trusts need to be able to plan strategically over medium and long terms. This is impossible when funding announcements arrive on an ad-hoc basis, particularly in-year pay and pensions changes for staﬀ.

driven by sustainability; and the introduction of the Policy Premium Mechanism, so genuinely timelimited, policy-driven initiatives can be delivered without undoing the NFF.

STARTING A CONVERSATION

Like I’m not an economist, I’m not a school funding expert either (as generous as Susan is, nothing short of a brain transplant will get me there), so we’re not claiming this Future Funding model is a perfect replacement.

But we do think it would be a much more efficient and empowering system, and if nothing else provides a reasonable starting point for further exploration. In that spirit, Funding Futures as a concept has morphed into a broader umbrella. We’ve already identified around 15 specific areas we want to look into next (small schools, the NFF transition, minimum per pupil funding etc.) and we’ll do so using real data from the sector to model our thinking.

With that in mind, the invitation is open; let us know what you think, what you’d have done diﬀerently, which bits you like and which you despise. Because ultimately, more money being delivered ineﬃciently will not have the same impact as wellconsidered delivery that allows long-term planning. And that ability to budget strategically over a more substantial period of time is, I hope, something we can all agree on. ■

SAMUEL SKERRITT joined the Confederation of School Trusts as Head of Policy in February 2022 and has been Director of Public Aﬀairs and Policy since September 2022.

Prior to joining, he was for six years Head of Content and Communications at New Schools Network, a charity set up to support free schools. Samuel joined NSN from the London Academy of Excellence, a Sixth Form free school in East London, where he was responsible for marketing and admissions, and was also Head of House.

Samuel previously served as curriculum and inclusion link governor at a primary school in Manchester.

At the very least, annual increases in pay need to be funded in-year for budget setting to retain integrity (and it needs to be true for both teaching and non-teaching staﬀ, so reﬂective of changes to the Minimum/Living Wage).

3. Evidence and policy led

Funding needs to be more robustly evidenced – both in relation to real-terms cost pressures facing schools (rather than consumer, retail or other measures used across government), and in response to policy priorities. It is no good for government to expect their policy ambitions will be realised without the requisite funding attached.

4. For an ambitious future, not the past

If the English state school system is going to be the

best system in the world at getting better, it needs funding that enables it to ﬂourish. This means looking at school funding as investment in the society we want to live in, beyond dayto-day delivery and survival.

5. Reﬂective of a maturing trust system

As of April 2024, half of all state schools are in trusts (circa 11,000, up from circa 200 in 2010) with no signs of conversions slowing – but the funding system, and too often funding decisions, still use the legacy ﬁnancial year

April-March, while trust ﬁnances follow the academic year September-August. This should change, and we also think the landscape needs to begin shifting to funding the relevant responsibility body that runs a school (i.e., a trust or Local Authority).

AI IN EDUCATION GAME

UP? OR GAME CHANGER?

Sir Anthony Seldon considers the impact that the arrival of AI will have on education and acknowledges that there is much that we still don’t fully comprehend about this gamechanging development.

At the start of the 2023-24 academic year, there was very little clarity about AI and its role in education. Is it all just hype, or is it the biggest game changer in town? For many, these questions remain as we end this academic year and are well into planning for the next one. So let me try to help provide some clarity by answering ﬁve questions you may never have asked.

WHY CAN’T WE JUST PUT A MORATORIUM ON AI TO ALLOW EVERYONE TIME TO CATCH UP AND FOR THE RISKS TO BE PROPERLY ASSESSED?

When ChatGPT-4 was launched in March

2023, an open letter was published signed by some of the biggest names in the industry calling for a minimum six-month pause in training of powerful AI systems. The idea was imaginative – but naive, a forlorn Canute-like gesture against an unstoppable incoming tide of innovation. All we can do is to try to understand what is happening. Sticking our heads in the sand ostrich-like is no way to respond to the silicon revolution. No power on earth is capable of stopping the ineluctable momentum of AI.

WILL AI BE JUST THE LATEST INNOVATION, E.G. LIKE INTERACTIVE WHITEBOARDS – EXPENSIVE AND BENEFICIAL BUT NOT REVOLUTIONARY?

AI will change every single aspect of schools and colleges, from the way students learn, the way teachers teach, administrators administer, pastoral tutors tutor, premises managers manage, leaders lead, the careers that career advisers advise on, and what governors govern. No area of school life, however small, will be left untouched by AI. Its ability to crunch vast quantities of data and provide individuated responses is changing not only education but every aspect of the world for which we are preparing our young people, including work. So, in short, it's not just the latest innovation.

NO POWER ON EARTH IS CAPABLE OF STOPPING THE INELUCTABLE MOMENTUM OF AI.

CAN WE GUARANTEE THAT THE BENEFITS OF AI WILL OUTWEIGH THE DOWNSIDES?

Not yet. Schools could find themselves investing considerable money and time in AI to find little or no benefit and, worse, that it had a negative impact on staff and students’ welfare. We are not even aware of all the risks and downsides of AI. Because it’s developing so rapidly, many applications are still not apparent, and there’s been no time to do the research to inform us reliably about risk. The dangers we are aware of today –including cheating, invasion of privacy, deep fakes and manipulation, addiction and infantilisation – may only just touch the surface and there could well be far deeper dangers of which we are not yet fully aware.

On the flipside, the benefits are enormous – personalised learning and individualised formative assessment, bringing subjects to life in ways beyond the imagination and reach of any teacher, all delivered individually to each student at any time of day or any time of the school term or holiday that best facilitates their learning. Schools have a weighty responsibility to ensure that the benefits are maximised, and the potential downsides minimised through careful planning and considered risk mitigation.

AI IN EDUCATION

Originated at Epsom College in May 2023 and in partnership with Bourne Education Trust, AI in Education is an independent, not-for-proﬁt body, composed of leading educators from all phases, sectors and settings, as well as heads of each of the UK's examination boards. Their work is guided by a panel of UK and international digital and AI experts, and a cross-party group of political advisers, providing specialist guidance on how to navigate the rapidly evolving AI landscape purposefully and safely.

foreseen. Nor do we see today the gigantic impact that AI will make. Some have a sense, and are already successfully applying it. But it is still in its infancy.

WHO CAN SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES TRUST FOR IMPARTIAL GUIDANCE?

The bad news is there is no one you can fully trust. Tech companies will make all kinds of plausible and reassuring claims for their products.

THE BENEFITS ARE ENORMOUS...

HAVE THE USES OF AI BEEN FULLY SCOPED?

Absolutely not. We can compare ourselves to employees of the car manufacturer Benz, in Germany in 1904. The internal combustion engine had been successfully created by them to propel vehicles 20 years before. Employees in the company had some idea that they had instigated a big change. But the full extent of that change in the 20th century, to the economy, to people’s convenience, to leisure and entertainment, to say nothing of the conduct of war which it revolutionised in 1914-18, was not

But we’ve seen again and again the last 25 and more years that their motivation is always to maximise their bottom line, not the welfare of learners. We can trust government more. Important work at the DFE has been taking place in the last couple of years overseen by a group of dedicated civil servants. Ministers though are far behind their opposite numbers in other countries in their understanding and application of AI. We can rely more on advice from Parliament especially the All-Party Parliamentary Group headed by the Lib Dem Lord Clement-Jones. But Parliament's speed is always going to be too slow for schools who need real-time advice on a very rapidly fast-moving ﬁeld.

This is where the body I helped found, 'AI in Education', comes in. Conceived in May 2023, this non-political, non-proﬁtmaking and independent body oﬀers advice to schools and colleges on the how, why, when and where of using AI.

The organisation is guided by seven panels: one for strategy, another involving leading scientists, one for heads and school leaders of AI, one made up of senior politicians, one for examiners with the heads of the diﬀerent bodies, one reporting on what is happening with AI in education globally, and one for students. The website is readily available, and we are gearing up considerably from September 2024 as we go into the new academic year. We do hope you ﬁnd it helpful. Please feel free to get in touch at info@ai-in-education.co.uk should you have any questions or wish to contribute to this initiative. ■

SIR ANTHONY SELDON is a British Educator and contemporary historian. He was previously Vice-Chancellor of the University of Buckingham, Master of Wellington College and Headmaster of Epsom College. In 2009, he set up The Wellington Academy.

AWARD-WINNING TG ESCAPES PROVIDE NET-ZERO BUILDINGS THROUGHOUT THE EDUCATION SECTOR

TGEscapes bespoke, modular, timber frame system has been utilised for hundreds of school buildings including SEND facilities, classroom blocks, dining halls and drama studios. The biophilic approach ensures that these spaces are full of natural light and have easy access to the outdoors. The impact on students is pronounced, with a calming effect that helps to reduce stress and increase focus. They are particularly active within the SEND and SEMH fields, producing a range of specially designed spaces intended to benefit students with diverse needs.

They offer a turnkey approach to clients across the UK, designing, manufacturing, installing and finishing each building. Everything starts with a free site survey and bespoke design process, after which they provide a comprehensive fixed price covering every aspect of a new school building.

They oﬀer several clear beneﬁts to schools:

• Stunning Bespoke Designs: The inhouse team of architects and engineers is able to produce wholly bespoke designs to meet a school's speciﬁc needs. They can feature a variety of ﬁnishes from natural timber to brick or render.

• Cost-Eﬀective: Modern methods of

construction oﬀer cost savings at every stage, which are further enhanced by an in-house manufacturing and turnkey service. Streamlined oﬀsite construction minimises waste, and quick onsite installation minimises labour.

• Quick Installation: Components are delivered to a school site in a controlled manner and sensitive to the school’s timetable, which minimises disruption allowing education continuity.

• Biophilic Principles: TG Escapes has long been a proponent of biophilic design principles, emphasising a connection to nature with each of their buildings. They incorporate natural light, views of nature, physical access to the outdoors and advanced ventilation systems, all of which have a profound impact on stress, mental health, and even exam performance.

• Net-Zero Design as Standard: Through a combination of energy-eﬃcient materials, a fabric ﬁrst approach, solar panels, advanced ventilation technology and expert design, they achieve netzero in operation as standard and, due to their use of timber, can also certify the buildings as lifetime net-zero if required.

• Built for Long-Term Performance: These permanent buildings satisfy or exceed all regulatory compliance and TG Escapes are Gold Members of the Structural Timber Association and Platinum Members of Construction Line.

• Turnkey Service: They cover everything from the initial design

to the ﬁnal handover of keys, for a single upfront price. This includes site preparation, all foundations, planning permission and service connections. Throughout the project, clients have a clear point of contact with their friendly team who will manage the project from start to ﬁnish.

TG Escapes have won multiple MMC and Education Estates Awards and with over 800 buildings UK wide they are dedicated to oﬀering an unparalleled service to education clients, with an average score of 4.9 out of 5 from over 189 customer reviews. ■

"TG Escapes responded quickly to any questions or concerns we raised with them from the design stage to completion. They worked with us to ensure that the school could continue to operate safely whilst they were on site. Any issues that were raised with the site team were immediately addressed and they followed our school risk assessment. They made the experience far less stressful than we had anticipated. The project was delivered ahead of time to a high standard." – Mrs Gill Farmer, The Good Shepherd Trust Business Manager.

For more information call 0800 917 7726, email info@tgescapes.co.uk or visit tgescapes.co.uk time to a high standard."

A JOURNEY OF SELF-DISCOVERY

WHY EVERY SCHOOL LEADER DESERVES A COACH

Dr Helen Wright explains why she believes it is essential for school leaders to have coaching support if they are to realise not only their own potential but also that of their colleagues and their school.

One of the best decisions I made when I was a head was to get a coach. I had no idea at the time that it would be so impactful and in fact

the thought had not previously crossed my mind that I might even use a coach. I was actually a little surprised (sceptical, even) when a coach approached me to say that

she had been observing me for a time, and was now fairly convinced that I would really beneﬁt from coaching. She then put a proposal together, and when I received it, I went through all the steps that I recognise now in others, from ‘how could this possibly help me (because I am doing well enough)?’ to ‘isn’t this a bit of an indulgence?’ to ‘shouldn’t I be spending this money on others in the school?’, to ‘well, I’ll give it a go, and can always stop if needed’.

UNEXPECTED DEPTH

This coach was one wise lady, however, and to this day, I don’t think I have thanked her enough. My doubts were blown out of the water once I embarked on coaching, because I went on a journey of self-discovery and stretch. Coaching brought me an unexpected depth in my thinking and perception of myself, introducing me to parts of myself which had always been there but which now I could articulate, use and enjoy.

A year’s worth of coaching cost my school about the same (or less) than two short conferences and was immeasurably more personally impactful. My experience of coaching led me to train to ILM 7 (Master’s level) as a coach myself, and as a supervisor of other coaches, as an integral part of my portfolio of post-headship roles. One of my core passions is to help school leaders appreciate the value of

coaching for themselves... starting with understanding what coaching actually is!

WHAT IS COACHING?

Coaching does of course come in various shapes and guises, from the more instructional and focused form familiar to athletes, to a broader ‘coaching culture’ approach of dialling up questions, while dialling down telling.

Every coach you come across will have their own particular focus and approach. What really interests me as a coach, for instance, is the individual school leader themselves (and as an extension of this, the team in which they function). I gain enormous satisfaction from helping these leaders (whose role is so vast, and on whom the pressures are often so weighty) to break through the unknown, unseen barriers that are holding them back in ways they have yet to ﬁnd out.

Recognising the value of external support to understand what you don’t know about yourself will underpin your coaching journey because this is a question none of us can answer by ourselves. An insightful and challenging coach will support you in illuminating these ‘Johari windows’ of yours, and in bringing structure to your next steps.

WHAT SHOULD YOU EXPECT FROM COACHING?

In very practical terms, 1-1 leadership coaching at an executive or senior level will typically involve an initial conﬁdential, no-obligation, getting to know you, ‘chemistry’ conversation. In this you would explore with your coach where you are in your thinking about yourself, your leadership, your school, your career … whatever, in fact, that is on your mind. This will enable your coach to suggest the next steps and will help you, yourself, to evaluate whether this is a coach with whom you can work eﬀectively.

A coaching proposal is likely to include a number of elements: your coach might, for instance, suggest a psychometric test that will explore some of your work

behaviours and how you position yourself with staﬀ. They might also ask you for some background information, including any appraisals or 360 assessments you have undertaken, so that they can understand more about you. Or –depending on the coach – they might ask for nothing at all and take you as you turn up!

A typical coaching pattern is an hour-long session every 4-6 weeks, so approximately 10 sessions in the academic year. Your coach should work around you and your schedule; however, each coaching programme will be highly individualised and extremely responsive to the speciﬁc needs of the school and the leader, including needs which emerge as the programme unfolds. While the goals for the programme will be established at the outset, they will of course be reviewed regularly, and revised as appropriate.

IS COACHING WORTH IT?

At the risk of seeming biased, I will state emphatically, from experience, that coaching is one of the most valuable investments that you can make in your own development, and that your school can make in you. Coaching supports the ﬂourishing of schools by helping leaders to ﬁnd the meaning within them that drives them and will help them (i.e. you) shape – powerfully – their current and future practice.

Taking time as a leader to understand what you would hope to gain from coaching is the ﬁrst step to take in your own journey into coaching, so do so mindfully. Don’t delay... as a school leader, you utterly deserve a coach! ■

WOULD I BENEFIT FROM COACHING?

Questions to ask yourself:

• What frustrates me about myself (and my organisation)? What might I like to change?

• What are my ambitions for myself and for my organisation?

• What would be amazing? Do I yet know how to get to this ‘amazing’?

• Does what I do in my role – and how I act – really serve me as well as it could? What would I really like to do better, both in building further on my strengths and mitigating my weaknesses?

• What do I not know that I don’t know about how to improve as a leader in my context, and beyond?

• Would a coach help me to ﬁnd answers to these questions and understand myself and my role better?

...BREAK THROUGH UNKNOWN, UNSEEN BARRIERS...

DR HELEN WRIGHT is a former head of schools in the UK and Australia, who now works with senior school leaders across the UK and internationally. Having coached dozens of senior leaders, and with over 2,000 hours of logged coaching, she has built a reputation as a warm, incisive, challenging coach. She can be contacted via LinkedIn or email.

E: helen@drhelenwright.com

HELPING SCHOOLS SERVE UP SIGNIFICANT SAVINGS

Rupert Weber, Head of Education at apetito looks at how schools can serve high-quality meals, whilst making significant savings.

"At apetito we’re proud to be different. As the UK’s first and only premium pre-prepared meals system, we offer unrivalled food quality and benefits to schools, which can’t be achieved in traditional in-house or contracted kitchens.

“From speaking to schools, we know that cost and eﬃciencies are key priorities. One area that schools can make savings, without compromising on quality is in the kitchen.

UNRIVALLED COMMERCIAL BENEFITS

“By opting for apetito’s premium preprepared catering model, schools can achieve unrivalled commercial benefits. We help schools achieve full control of their menus and staff, whilst delivering exceptional meals. Our service is easily adapted to suit bespoke needs and demonstrates real value for schools prioritising quality, efficiency, and costeffectiveness.

“Our catering system is gaining huge popularity by helping schools achieve immediate savings of 20% on their catering with zero compromise on quality.

CATERING MADE EASY

“The system couldn’t be simpler. Schools have a choice of over 150 meals, enabling bespoke menus to suit every need. Schools can create their menus and place orders using our intuitive ordering platform, myapetito, which also allows schools to manage their allergen and nutritional requirements with ease.

“When kitchen staﬀ are preparing for lunchtime, all they need to do is pop our premium pre-portioned meals into oven trays, placing them in the oven and they

will come out as if they have been freshly prepared on-site, ready to be served. With apetito it really is that simple to deliver exceptional quality, chef-made meals without the stress, risks, staﬀ, or costs of traditional systems.

STREAMLINE & SIMPLIFY

“There are countless benefits to this system. Schools are able streamline and simplify their kitchen operations. Unlike traditional kitchen setups that demand a team of skilled chefs and kitchen staff to source ingredients and prepare meals from scratch for pupils with increasingly diverse dietary requirements, our catering system eliminates much of this labour-intensive work. In fact, our preprepared system typically requires 50% less staff and completely removes the requirement for skilled cooks and chefs.

“By removing the reliance on skilled cooks and chefs, schools can mitigate the impact of ongoing labour shortages and guarantee consistent meal quality whilst delivering signiﬁcant cost savings.

TOTAL CONFIDENCE IN SAFETY

“Food safety is also a huge beneﬁt with our system. Every single batch of meals we make are tested in our on-site laboratories for harmful pathogens, so schools can have total conﬁdence in the safety of our meals.

SAVE ON COSTS & SPACE

“Another advantage of our system is that our model needs far less kitchen space and equipment. Before moving to apetito, many of our partners were facing signiﬁcant costs to refurbish their kitchens. Others did not have a kitchen at all, requiring them to rely on hot food from nearby sites, resulting in poor food quality. apetito enables schools to cook on-site, improving food quality and uptake, with less kitchen space and costs when compared to any other catering system.

One school we partner with were quoted £320,000 to refurbish their ageing in-house kitchen. By partnering with apetito, they were able to save £250,000 on redesigning their new kitchen around our system.

“This is because at apetito, we do the heavy lifting for you. Our team of expert chefs, dietitians and nutritionists have developed a huge range of delicious and nutritious, premium pre-prepared meals so that schools don’t need these specialist skills in-house. Kitchen staﬀ simply need to decant, cook and serve.

“Now every day three kitchen assistants serve over 400 meals, with no chef required. In fact, the school’s hot meal uptake has grown by 300% since implementing apetito six months ago and the school has been able to facilitate this growth without the need for additional kitchen staﬀ. ■

"We are really proud of our catering service because we know it is making a real diﬀerence to schools. We work in partnership with schools to give them full control and ﬂexibility over catering, whilst delivering great quality, highly nutritious meals.” To learn more about apetito’s service contact education@ apetito.co.uk, ring 01223 634845 or visit apetito.link/Trust-Leadership

SUSTAINABLE STAFF RECRUITMENT

THE FINAL FRONTIER

Steve Spriggs argues that the future of teacher recruitment in feepaying and state schools in the UK and overseas hinges on our ability to evolve and adapt our approach to this critical activity.

Schools are now well-used to UK teacher and leader recruitment and retention being in a permanent state of crisis. The worrying shortage of good teachers in certain subjects makes this one of the most pressing topics of our time.

MISSED TARGETS

Just look at the teacher training statistics: the Government missed its secondary school targets by 50 per cent this year. But this masks some even more hair-raising ﬁgures in certain subjects: in Physics, only 17 per cent of the target number of trainees were recruited. Geoﬀ Barton, general secretary of the ASCL school leaders’ union, summed up the situation in the autumn of 2023, saying, “The catastrophic shortfall in postgraduate trainee teacher recruitment has plumbed new depths”.

So what is driving the current shortages? The allure of a booming international schools’ market which values well-trained English speakers is one. How many bright, young teachers can resist the sunny climes and

tax arrangements of a school in an exotic location –and with twice as much PPA time thrown in?

Wage inflation is also an issue, as is fierce competition with the independent sector and a dropping off in undergraduates studying certain key subjects in which teachers are required. You only have to look at the numbers studying English Literature at university; for example, between 2011 and 2021, the number of students studying the subject fell by a third.

A COMPLEX SITUATION

It’s a complex situation and one that will demand innovative solutions.

As it stands, the approach to teacher recruitment often resembles a panicked scramble and schools often have little sense of strategy. Unsure how to play it, they stick with what they know, relying on one or two expensive incumbents to help them reach out to the market.

The traditional method of waiting for vacancies and then resorting to ﬁnancial incentives is no longer suﬃcient and unsustainable in the long-term. Schools need to embrace an ‘always on’ approach. The glossy websites promoting the school usually have parents in mind but not teachers considering huge life changes and relocations.

THE TIME HAS COME FOR A PARADIGM SHIFT IN HOW OUR SCHOOLS APPROACH STAFF RECRUITMENT.

SO, WHAT DOES STAFF RECRUITMENT LOOK LIKE IN 2025 AND BEYOND?

The time has come for a paradigm shift in how our schools approach staﬀ recruitment.

Embracing data-driven talent pools: Schools must harness the power of data to create targeted talent pools. When we can see candidate preferences, skills and experiences, institutions can streamline recruitment processes and identify the best-fit candidates more effectively. This is not an overnight fix though, and needs planning and investment.

It really takes patience to achieve this and the key is to nurture the applicants you do have. Of course, only one person can get the job on the day, but it is worth nurturing those promising applicants who didn’t. Building up a database of quality applicants will pay oﬀ in the future when you’re looking to ﬁll other roles. They can be kept in the loop about new vacancies and may reward you by stepping forward to apply again in the future.

Year-round branding campaigns: Waiting for vacancies to arise before initiating recruitment eﬀorts is no longer viable. Instead, schools should invest in ‘always on’ digital-ﬁrst branding campaigns that highlight their unique ethos, values and opportunities. By maintaining a consistent presence in the job market, institutions can attract top talent proactively. This should involve investing in consistent, branded careers pages and separate strategies and portals for potential candidates.

The investment required is relatively small compared to the huge cost saving, time efficiencies and positive branding they will achieve long term. A standalone careers site gives you freedom and space to really sell the school away from parent eyes on the main website. Showcase your CPD, inspection reports, staffroom culture, leadership programmes, relocation packages and more. Don’t be shy: this really should be the equivalent of a top-level parent website with its videos, prospectuses, smiling children and the forward-facing brand you project when recruiting students; staff are equally important.

Too often, vacancies pages are hidden in the footer of a website and have links to external non-branded

job boards with hundreds of other text-heavy generic adverts. Good luck getting the right talent with that strategy in 2025!

Personalised recruitment strategies: One-sizeﬁts-all approaches to recruitment won’t yield the best results. Schools must promote their individual identity and therefore attract teachers who will be excited by it. Generic appeal is unlikely to resonate.

“Who are you right for?” is a question often asked when devising student admissions strategies; and the same is true for staff. Who is the right personality for your school? The staff culture, the parent cohort and the type of ethos your school follows all matter when recruiting staff. To some extent it is taken as a given that a maths teacher will have the required maths and teaching ability – hence, most job specs look very similar but tell you very little about the nuances of the school and the position.

Eﬃcient routes to market: Go to your candidates, don’t wait for them to come to you.

This means using a wider range of channels, from online platforms to networking events, to engage with potential new recruits. Using new technology can also streamline the administrative side.

Social media and events are key to target the best talent for you. Again, results aren’t immediate and this strategy will bear fruit when you least expect it. If you can create a positive impression on social media, even when an applicant isn’t looking to change roles, a good impression can last for years. All those posts featuring the school under the ﬁrst snowfall of winter, or those uplifting pictures of children helping at a local charity could really pay oﬀ long-term when a potential candidate is looking for their next move.

FUTURE-PROOFING SCHOOL RECRUITMENT

Schools that continue using outdated practices risk failing to ﬁnd the staﬀ they want and compromising educational standards. To ensure long-term success, institutions must embrace innovation, agility and a forward-thinking mindset.

The future of teacher recruitment in UK schools hinges on our ability to evolve and adapt. We are up against some big challenges, but there are big opportunities too. By rethinking our recruitment practices to make them more personalised, more eﬃcient and more sustainable, we can build the workforce our individual schools require. ■

STEVE

SPRIGGS is Managing Director of School Management Plus and Kampus24.

STAFF REDUNDANCIES

KEY CONSIDERATIONS FOR LEADERS

Louise Brenlund explores the issues which senior leaders in schools considering staff redundancies should be aware of before kicking off a formal process.

Recent Department for Education data confirmed that one in eight local authority maintained schools were in deficit in 2022-23, the highest number on record since 1999. With the continuing squeeze on school finances, including rising food, energy and unfunded wage increases, you may find yourself being forced to consider reducing your workforce and staffing costs. This can result in difficult decisions around redundancies and can be a stressful time for the school, staff, pupils and parents. So, senior leaders in schools should be fully aware of the key considerations before embarking on a redundancy process.

It is crucial that your school is clear on its current financial position and why the impact of any financial challenges may have necessitated a review of staffing. School leaders need to have a clear business case to communicate as to why

there is a need for redundancies and to ensure that it is a genuine redundancy situation they are confronting.

WHAT MIGHT LEAD TO A REDUNDANCY?

Most commonly in schools, the need for redundancies may come about due to the following:

• a department is overstaﬀed;

• classes and/or duties are reorganised or restructured so that fewer staﬀ members are required;

• a subject or course is discontinued;

• the school merges with another school;

• the school closes.

HAVE A PLAN

Advance planning is key. Before embarking on any redundancy process, it is important to have a clear, collectively owned plan that follows employment law requirements and your own policies and procedures with appropriate timescales set out. We always recommend taking legal advice as early as possible so you are well informed and legal requirements are built into the plan.

PROCESS

To minimise successful claims of unfair dismissal (for employees with two or more years of continuous service), not only is it important to ensure there is a genuine redundancy situation, but that a fair procedure must be carried out. The appropriate

process will depend on the numbers involved but, as a minimum, this will include individual consultation. Where 20 or more individuals are involved, you will need to undertake both collective (see below) and individual consultation. Collective consultation will include consultation with trade unions (where recognised for this purpose) or with elected employees appointed via speciﬁc statutory rules that apply.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Where possible, objective redundancy selection criteria should be used which are capable of independent verification and supported by records such as HR documents; they must not discriminate against employees. Criteria should be measurable rather than based on personal opinion. It is reasonable for an employer to attach weightings to particular criteria reflecting their importance to the role so long as the weightings can be justified and are not discriminatory.

OTHER THINGS TO REMEMBER

A redundancy process can affect staff morale and retention. Consider what support might be put in place for staff both at risk and not; for example, these could include access to senior leaders and HR and employee support programmes, plus access to counselling or medical support or outplacement services. Also, remember that employees on notice of redundancy are entitled to take reasonable time off to look for new jobs or to arrange training, some of which should be paid.

...A STRESSFUL TIME FOR THE SCHOOL, STAFF, PUPILS AND PARENTS...

Is there anything speciﬁc to schools?

If an employee is made redundant while employed in an independent school, they will not be able to count previous service in local authority or academy employment as continuous service unless their contract of employment provides otherwise. This is different for employees of certain public sector bodies, which include those employed in academy and maintained schools, as there is a statutory Order called The Redundancy Payment (Local Government) (Modification) Order 1999 (as amended), which covers redundancy payments. It has specific rules covering continuity of service and redundancy payments, known as the ’four-week rule’ which, in set circumstances, preserves continuity of service but means no redundancy payment is due. All school employers should be aware of these rules.

Are there any changes that we need to be aware of?

Currently, rules apply that provide that in a redundancy situation employees on maternity, adoption or shared parental leave have priority, whilst on leave, in respect of being oﬀered a suitable alternative role where one exits.

New legislation, the Protection from The Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023, extends redundancy protection as follows:

• For any pregnancies notiﬁed on or after 6 April 2024, or for any maternity leave

REDUNDANCY PROCESSES: QUESTIONS TO ASK

• Are the roles at risk standalone or do they need to be pooled together?

• How is the consultation to be undertaken? Employers need to remember that where 20 or more employees are to be made redundant in a 90-day or less period, strict rules apply. A failure to inform and consult in collective redundancy situations can carry a penalty of up to 90 days’ gross pay per employee. Even where fewer redundancies are contemplated, collective or other contractual agreements might still require an employer to consult in a particular way.

• How will the individuals being considered for redundancy be selected and what objective factors should be taken into account?

• Do managers need training or written guidance on how to conduct consultation/redundancy processes?

• Do you need to notify BEIS on Form HR1? Failure to do so is a criminal oﬀence and could result in your school being ﬁned an unlimited amount.

ending on or after 6 April 2024, the protected period will be for 18 months from the ﬁrst day of the expected week of birth or from the actual date of birth, where notiﬁed to you.

• For adoptions, for leave starting on or after 6 April 2024, the protected period will be for 18 months from the date the child is placed with the employee for adoption.

• For shared parental leave starting on or after 6 April 2024, where taking six or more consecutive weeks but not taken as maternity or adoption leave, protection ends 18 months after the date of birth of the child/date the child was placed for adoption. If taking less than six consecutive weeks, protection applies during any period of shared parental leave only, as is currently the case. Any redundancies will need to take these new rules into account. ■

LOUISE BRENLUND is a Partner and Head of Employment at Warners Solicitors. If you are looking to make redundancies and would like more information, contact Louise: T: 01732 375325 E: l.brenlund@warners.law

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PARTNERSHIPS MAKE A DIFFERENCE WORKING TOGETHER BEYOND FIXED BOUNDARIES

Oliver Blond highlights the benefits of cross-sector working and encourages schools from the independent and maintained sectors to build mutually beneficial partnerships and thereby advance the cause of education as a whole.

THE POWER OF PARTNERSHIPS

Our educational landscape can be viewed in terms of its diﬀerences (of sector, scale or structure), or it can be seen in terms of what unites all schools – an educational vision to do the best not only for your own pupils, but to advance education more widely, and for all pupils.

In a world in which there is so much to be concerned about, let’s not forget that schools are a success story. Not in every case and not in the same way, but in general terms, schools take on the most profound roles in their community and do an incredible job, again and again, across all phases and sectors.

The fundamental connection between schools, their communities and their purpose presents an opportunity to work together beyond ﬁxed boundaries to ﬁnd connections and commonality,

SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS ALLIANCE

To achieve maximum impact through school partnerships, we work to:

• raise the proﬁle and status of, and access to, partnership working

• better understand and evaluate the impact of partnership working

• equip partnership leads with a common language and framework that will help schools at every stage of partnership engagement and development.

and to share resources for the benefit of all. This is not a mere aspiration but a growing reality. In many different ways, all across the country, cross-sector partnerships continue to develop, thrive and make a difference.

THE IMPORTANCE OF PARTNERSHIP

There is no blueprint for an effective partnership structure; each reflects its particular context, meeting the needs of its constituent schools and community. At the School Partnerships Alliance, we work with our members to develop partnerships that make a difference to all the schools within a partnership and to their local communities.

In its most recent census and annual report, the ISC notes that 1,068 of its schools (76%) are involved in partnerships with state schools, collectively running over 9,000 partnership activities. This is positive news, but these numbers may be diﬃcult to understand because they represent partnerships at every level, from those that share resources to those developing profound system-changing projects involving several schools and thousands of children.

All these diﬀerent activities are labelled ‘partnerships’, and because this is a catch-all term, those wanting to downplay the important and growing connection between state and independent sectors can focus on the more nascent examples over those that are making a hugely beneﬁcial and lasting impact.

In response to this, it is important to celebrate the leading schools in this ﬁeld, and share details about those partnerships across the country that have, of their own dedication and initiative,

developed innovative and exciting ways of meeting educational need that are profound, collegiate and deeply collaborative.

Only by learning from those who have found a way to make a real difference can we encourage more schools, state and independent, to see the huge benefits on a local and national level of working in collaboration and in bringing a different approach to bear on some of the most persistent national educational challenges.

A COLLABORATIVE FRAMEWORK

A school partnership can be deﬁned as an ongoing collaborative relationship between schools, aligning their interests around a common vision and combining their complementary resources and competencies, to deliver beneﬁt to each of the partners. The best partnerships and most developed partnerships are also:

• mutual

• strategic

• sustainable

• impactful

• focussed on need.

PARTNERSHIP BENEFITS

All partnerships differ, so the benefits will depend on the aims and objectives, but it’s helpful to think not only of the benefits of the partnership, but the benefits of partnering, which provides a different outlook.

BENEFITS OF PARTNERSHIPS

Improved pupil wellbeing through engagement and mental health support

Improved academic attainment through additional academic provision

Improved co-curricular opportunity in arts and sport

It’s important to recognise that all parties in a school partnership will have diﬀerent concerns, resources and challenges, and building strong and trusting relationships is at the heart of all good partnership work.

CASE STUDIES

TOP TIP

Make sure the school partnerships project is fully resourced and sustainable; transport is often the key ingredient. Get to know the schools and the personalities within them, staﬀ and pupils, and be creative about what you do. Have a very clear goal in mind.

Wherever possible we want partnerships to reach the disadvantaged, those with the greatest learning deficit. At our inaugural School Partnerships Alliance conference we heard from a former student of Knole Academy who attended the Kent Academies Network (KAN), a four-year university access programme for students who face barriers to higher education. KAN aims to remove these barriers by improving student confidence, knowledge and agency. We heard how KAN had offered students the opportunity to experience learning beyond the prescribed curriculum, attend residential courses and visit universities. KAN gave this student ‘a wider and more holistic education’ and she had gone on to study at Goldsmiths university.

BENEFITS OF PARTNERING

• Relationship building

Connecting with other schools, building relationships

• Community impact

Amplifying impact of schools in the community

• Complementarity

Bringing together essential complementary resources

• Diversity

Creating more inclusive solutions, and breaking down social barriers

• Innovation

Combining diverse thinking and approaches

• Shared learning

Collective learning and capability-building

• Synergy and economies of scale Aligning resources or activities

East Kent Schools Together (EKST) is a partnership with mutual benefit and wellbeing at its heart. In EKST, ‘each school contributes and draws from the partnership on an equal footing for the benefit of all’. The programme for students enables them to work side by side, developing their soft skills, and includes art collaborations, drama days and online wellbeing activities. Another strength of EKST is its inclusion of a range of state and independent schools and a fully integrated university partner. Staff from across the partnership benefit from professional development sessions and teacher-meets.

There are many further examples of highly successful partnerships across the country – far too many to mention here, which is why the School Partnerships Alliance is currently producing reports that look at the collective impact of a number of partnerships on speciﬁc cohorts, such as disadvantaged pupils.

TYPE 1 CONNECTION

A school shares its available resources and facilities for the beneﬁt of its partner.

TYPE 3 ALLIANCE

A collaborative partnership, broader in ambition and scope. Combining diverse resources in an ongoing, multi-school partnership.

THE PARTNERSHIP JOURNEY

While schools may develop from a simple connection to an integrated, long-term, formal partnership, quite often all four types of partnership outlined above will co-exist. All add value to their schools and communities, but an understanding of how the best partnerships develop towards greater mutuality, reach and impact over time can be helpful for strategic planning. The above categorisation is not restrictive or exclusive, but was created using evidence from over 40 current examples of partnership practice to provide clarity on the diﬀerent partnership aims, structures and outcomes. A full account can be found in the School Partnerships Alliance Impact Guide. (schoolpartnershipsalliance.org.uk/wp-content/ uploads/2023/01/SPA_GUIDE-2023.pdf)

PARTNERSHIPS IN CONTEXT

Having recently passed through the General Election campaign, it is worth reﬂecting on the historical context of school partnerships. While many partnerships are much older, the ﬁrst central funding for cross-sector partnerships came from New Labour, launched in 1997. Successive governments of all types supported these ‘independent state school partnerships’, investing around £15m across a 14-year period.

While the initial impetus for partnerships may have been about sharing teachers and facilities, many of these collaborations were able to show compelling beneﬁts and therefore has continued long after government funding was spent. In the ensuing years, the number of partnerships have continued to grow, to become more equitable, and to rely not on central government funding but on local commitment, dedication and resourcing.

COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY

By working together across schools, we can contribute to solving some of the key educational challenges

TYPE 2 COLLABORATION

Two or three schools collectively address a shared need or opportunity by combining resources.

TYPE 4 INTEGRATION

Longer-term, formal partnerships (some involving non-school stakeholders) to improve the potential for all children to thrive at school and beyond.

young people face today. Together, we can reach more pupils who face diﬃcult obstacles or who lack the necessary resources to realise the ambitions they have for themselves.

In terms of national challenges, there is a clear opportunity for state and independent sectors to collaborate to bring greater opportunity and support to care-experienced children, to develop strategies to attract and retain the best teachers, to increase opportunities that support academic aspirations and co-curricular opportunity, and to support access to higher education and careers.

The educational challenges that we face nationally are the responsibility of every educational establishment, and only by utilising the strengths of each school can we hope to bring about lasting change for young people.

THE SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS ALLIANCE

The School Partnerships Alliance is a membership organisation and our role is to connect schools, celebrate partnership work, share good practice, undertake research and oﬀer professional development for those working in partnerships. By coming together, we can learn from each other and become even stronger. We invite all schools to join the School Partnerships Alliance. If you want to ﬁnd out more, or want to join while membership is still free, please visit schoolpartnershipsalliance.org.uk or email info@schoolpartnershipsalliance.org.uk ■

OLIVER BLOND is the Chief Executive of the School Partnerships Alliance, a charity which supports cross-sector partnerships. He has been a head in both the state and independent sectors for over 17 years.

DESIGNATED SAFEGUARDING LEAD

A COMPLEX AND EVOLVING ROLE

Dale Wilkins explains why, in some senses, the safeguarding lead in any school has prime responsibility for every aspect of student welfare.

Since the early days of school inspections it has been a school’s responsibility to have proper procedures relating to ‘child protection’. A co-ordinated set of minimum standards was ﬁrst introduced for boarding schools in 2002.

At its core was the requirement for every school to have a ‘designated senior member of staﬀ’ responsible for safeguarding, including liaising with appropriate authorities such as ‘social services’ and the police. In many senses, therefore, the role of Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), or equivalent, has been with us for at least 20 years and, in some form or another, in all regions of the UK. Relevant local guidance also applies, but the principles in this article are universal, so where I use the term DSL, this can equally be applied to a Designated Senior Person (DSP) in Wales, Designated Child Protection lead in Scotland and for other terminology elsewhere in the world.

A FEW SCHOOLS HAVE BEEN LEFT BEHIND.

More recent is the inexorable development of the scope and depth of the responsibility and the fact that many DSLs cannot now reasonably fulfil the role without a considerable team of deputies and other welfare staff around them. Central to this has been the move away from a focus solely on child protection –the basic duty to protect children from significant harm – towards a much broader duty to focus on child wellbeing, as rooted in section 10 (2) of the Children Act. In a sense, therefore, DSLs now find themselves with prime responsibility for every aspect of the welfare of pupils in the school.

COMPLEX ISSUES

Not only has the scope of the role grown, but the nature of the issues being dealt with has also evolved. Although many schools work very hard on their key relationships with local safeguarding experts and partners, it is clear that independent schools are now themselves responsible for picking up much of the

engagement which would previously have been called ‘early help’ given that certain services, particularly around mental health, are very difficult to access because of a hugely increased demand and a much-reduced capacity. Recording and reporting requirements have also grown in complexity, as have the complicated discussions around who has a ‘need to know’ critical information. This has been hugely helped by the range of very effective and well-constructed software packages which pick up much of the burden. But, of course, any information system is only as good as the data which is input in the first place! Equally, they only perform effectively if they have been properly calibrated to ensure communication is fluent and that evolving concerns and patterns of behaviour can be tracked appropriately. Also adding to the burden has been the reduced availability of good-quality training provided by local partners, and the subsequent need for DSLs to source or deliver the training content themselves. Equally frustrating can be the complexities of working across different police and local authority boundaries, where the same paperwork can sometimes be required by different agencies in different formats and on different forms, and sometimes with different thresholds for action. The sometimes maligned ‘Common Assessment Framework’ was never ideal but was at least a step in the right direction!

APPROPRIATE STATUS AND AUTHORITY

With the role having evolved so much, and in so many diﬀerent ways, schools have had to respond rapidly to developments. It is unfortunate, but perhaps not surprising, that a few schools have been left behind by the pace of these changes. However, the expectations of the role of a DSL are very clear, not only in terms of evolving practice but also the requirements for the post-holder to have ‘appropriate status and authority within

the school to carry out the duties of the post’ and to be given the ‘time, funding, training, resources and support’ they need to carry out the role. Obviously, many schools spread this responsibility across a wider team, including a number of deputy DSLs (DDSLs), but it is crucial that the core responsibility, particularly for child protection decisions, remains with the designated lead.

Key questions schools may consider when crafting the role of a DSL can include:

Must the DSL be on the senior leadership team? In England and Wales, it is a core requirement for the DSL to be on the leadership team. It is good practice for all schools.

Should the DSL be a teacher? This will depend on circumstances. In many schools all senior appointments are members of the academic staff, so the designated lead will be too – often a Deputy Head Pastoral or similar. In other schools the role will be standalone with no additional responsibilities. Some schools have moved towards having a safeguarding professional with multiagency experience in this role rather than a teacher. The fundamental requirement is for the person to have sufficient time and resources to fulfil the role successfully.

Must the DSL be available 24/7?

The requirement is for a DSL or deputy to be available all the time in school hours in term time. This is more complex with independent and boarding schools, and it is frequently the case that someone on the team will indeed be contactable 24/7. It is also essential for there to be proper cover available during any holiday trips and activities.

Must the DSL be on site? It is not a speciﬁc requirement for a DSL to be resident or even on site. Each school must risk assess what is necessary and appropriate. A school with a large number of boarding pupils would probably choose to have a member of the DSL team on site at all times. Day schools, or those with very few boarders, might make other arrangements. The key thing is for all staﬀ at all times to know how to contact someone if they have any concerns.

What level of training do the DSL and deputies need? The key requirement is for training to provide all members of the team with the knowledge and skills to carry out the role eﬀectively. For England, Annex C of Keeping Children Safe in Education (2023) contains the core requirements, and these expectations are also universally appropriate.

How does the DSL help raise awareness among staff and volunteers? The DSL must ensure appropriate procedures are in place to ensure that all staff have access to and understand the key documentation, which includes the child protection policy and, in England, Part 1 or Annex A of KCSIE. Also vital is the school Code of Conduct for staff and volunteers. The DSL must also ensure that staff have access to appropriate training, and this must include a full understanding of the DSL’s own role.

What are the DSL’s responsibilities in relation to recording and reporting? Any information which needs to be shared must comply with the relevant requirements that it be shared accurately, proportionately, adequately and in a timely and secure fashion. All information, including decisions to share or not to share, must be recorded properly, and any information systems should give appropriate access to those who ‘need to know’. These are complex issues, and schools should routinely review their procedures.

What about working with local partners? One of the key responsibilities of a DSL is to work closely with those in other agencies, such as external

DESIGNATED SAFEGUARDING LEAD

Key training requirements

• The assessment process, including any local criteria.

• Working knowledge of local procedures.

• Recognition of the importance of information sharing.

• Understanding the lasting impact of adversity and trauma.

• Awareness of the speciﬁc needs of children with particular vulnerabilities, including online.

• Understanding the ‘Prevent’ duty to protect children from radicalisation and exploitation.

• Obtaining access to appropriate resources.

• Creating a culture of listening to children which takes account of their wishes and feelings (including an understanding of what prevents children from approaching staﬀ).

experts and services, social care, health services and the police. The importance of this aspect of the role cannot be underestimated.

Where do parents and carers ﬁt in?

A vital part of the role is to ensure there are suﬃcient procedures in place to liaise with parents and carers in all matters relating to their child.

What are the responsibilities of the wider leadership team? The head and other school leaders have an essential role in ensuring the DSL is fully supported in all aspects of the role and that there is appropriate scrutiny and collective ownership of wider policy and decisionmaking. Leaders make a vital contribution to the oversight of good safeguarding practice by providing professional support for and appropriate scrutiny of those undertaking the role. They also drive the core expectations relating to the overall safeguarding culture within a school, where everyone knows ‘it could happen here’ and everyone is ready to act on any concerns. This is the fundamental reason why an inspection failure for safeguarding is considered also to be a failure of leadership and management. The DSL team should expect and require robust scrutiny from their leadership colleagues, but are also entitled to expect suitable support.

How about the safeguarding governor? Most schools have a governor

with lead responsibility for safeguarding and/or child protection. The lead governor is responsible for scrutinising all essential policies, procedures and practices, for holding the relevant staff to account and for reporting as appropriate to the wider board. It is essential that the person in question has, or is given, sufficient knowledge and training to discharge the role successfully, and that the wider board ensure that this person is carrying out those duties effectively.

Who is ultimately responsible? Governing bodies have the ultimate responsibility. and must ensure that their schools are complying with their duties under legislation and guidance. The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) recommended that there must be ‘openness to external scrutiny, transparency and honesty within the governance arrangements’ and that the ability of governors to have diﬃcult conversations must be secured. Most of all, however, the board is responsible for ensuring that there is a whole-school approach to safeguarding. ■

DALE WILKINS is Executive Director Scotland/Wales and Accredited/Compliance at the BSA and the BSA Group.

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IS GENRE DEAD? LONG LIVE AUDIENCE AND PURPOSE!

HOW CULTIVATING AN AUDIENCE AND PURPOSE CULTURE DRIVES SUCCESS

Donny Morrison believes that embracing audience and purpose over rigid genre boundaries is not only logical but essential for fostering genuine literacy development.

In the ever-evolving landscape of education, one question on everyone’s mind is whether the traditional focus on genre in literacy education has become obsolete. As a senior consultant, I’ve observed ﬁrsthand the transformative impact of shifting our focus to audience and purpose, profoundly inﬂuencing teaching methodologies and outcomes in children’s writing.

CREATING AN AUDIENCE AND PURPOSE CULTURE

Children’s use of language becomes vibrant and meaningful when they understand why they are communicating and to whom. This understanding shapes their choice of grammatical features and vocabulary, leading to more impactful and authentic

writing experiences. When children write with a clear audience and purpose, they often forget they are in an English lesson. Instead, they might see themselves as journalists, politicians, or mystery authors, fully immersed in their roles. Schools that successfully integrate this culture report memorable outcomes for both children and teachers.

RESEARCH-BASED PEDAGOGY

A book-based approach motivates children to write for a range of audiences and purposes. Literacy Tree uses high-quality, diverse children’s literature by signiﬁcant authors to achieve this. This approach immerses children in a variety of literary worlds and themes,

MAINTAINING AN IMMERSIVE, CONTEXT-DRIVEN ENVIRONMENT IS CRUCIAL FOR SUSTAINING ENGAGEMENT AND DEVELOPING WRITING SKILLS.

creating curiosity through process drama, discussion and debate. These methods allow children to see themselves represented in the literature and explore the lives and experiences of others.

Carefully considered sequences of lessons can provide opportunities to explore writing conventions, which can be applied to authentic writing for reallife audiences. We believe writing outcomes should be chosen for their pertinence and relevance to the point in the text, not merely for their genre. This connection helps children see the purpose in the skills they are learning and enables them to practice and consolidate their knowledge eﬀectively

Literacy Tree's approach is supported by research indicating the importance of motivation in writing. For instance, motivation has been identiﬁed as a factor strongly correlated with both pupil attitudes to writing and their skill as writers (Ofsted, 2022). High-quality literature, meaningful writing opportunitie, and engaging contexts foster this motivation.

it has a clear context and audience. But this sense of wonder shouldn’t diminish as they progress through school. Maintaining an immersive, context-driven environment is crucial for sustaining engagement and developing writing skills.

WHOLE-SCHOOL APPROACH

One eﬀective strategy is implementing whole-school events centred around a common book or theme. This approach builds a sense of community and provides a cohesive framework for writing projects. Many schools schedule writing weeks where all children work on a uniﬁed project, culminating in exhibitions or performances. These events foster a shared sense of purpose and excitement around writing.

The explicit teaching of writing conventions, such as grammar and punctuation, within the context of creative writing, has been shown to produce good writing outcomes (Slavin et al., 2019). Linking these conventions to the purpose and audience of the writing provides meaningful motivation for children to use these conventions eﬀectively.

Frequent opportunities to write, with a range of audiences and purposes in mind, are embedded within a book-based pedagogy. This practice is aligned with the idea that pupils who write more, write better.

STARTING EARLY AND SUSTAINING ENGAGEMENT

The journey begins in Early Years, where classrooms are naturally rich with role-play opportunities. From writing recipes in a mud kitchen to taking notes on a spaceship, young children engage with writing when

PUBLISHING AS MOTIVATION

Diﬀerentiating between instant and planned publishing can keep children motivated. Instant publishing involves incidental writing opportunities encountered during a text journey, while planned publishing refers to extended, polished pieces of writing at the end of a sequence. Both forms are crucial for maintaining a dynamic and purposeful writing environment. Using ‘special media’ – like Westminster-headed paper for letters from MPs or actual postcards for travel notes – enhances the authenticity and engagement of these tasks.

THE POWER OF SHARED WRITING

Another critical aspect is the role of shared writing, where teachers model the writing process and think aloud to make explicit the connection between audience, purpose and writing choices. This practice demystifies writing for children and reinforces the importance of tailoring language to fit different contexts and audiences.

The argument for shifting from a genre based to an audience and purpose driven writing instruction is compelling. By focusing on who the audience is and

CASE STUDY: WADE DEACON TRUST

The Wade Deacon Trust, encompassing seven primary and four secondary schools, provides an illustrative example of how a book-based approach can foster a culture of writing for audience and purpose.

Their journey began six years ago with Whiston Willis Primary Academy, which initiated the Literacy Tree book-based approach soon followed by Yew Tree Primary Academy. Since then, the Trust has integrated this approach across all its primary academies, adopting a consistent scheme of work that enhances the teaching and learning of English.

At Wade Deacon, ongoing consultancy and collaboration are key. Termly staﬀ meetings bring together all primary teachers in the Trust with our experienced consultants to ensure that the focus on audience and purpose remains central to their English curriculum. This continuous professional development supports teachers in implementing the approach eﬀectively.

The impact of this approach is evident in the Trust’s academic performance. Schools

like Whiston Willis have seen significant improvements in English outcomes, consistently surpassing national averages. This success highlights how a book-based approach can help children become well-rounded readers and writers who understand the purpose behind their writing tasks.

Juliet Brown, Director of Primary Education at Wade Deacon Trust, notes, “The range of Literacy Tree texts exposes our highly disadvantaged cohorts to books they would not normally have access to. Literacy Tree is now a key expectation when schools join our trust, and this is implemented from day one of academisation.”

By emphasising the audience and purpose of writing, Wade Deacon Trust schools cultivate an environment where children see their writing as meaningful communication. This approach not only improves writing skills but also fosters a lifelong appreciation for literature and eﬀective communication.

why they are writing, children become more engaged, and their writing becomes more authentic. Schools like those in the Wade Deacon Trust demonstrate the impact of this approach. When children see their writing as meaningful communication rather than a checklist task, their creativity and skills ﬂourish. As the educational landscape continues to evolve, embracing audience and purpose over rigid genre boundaries seems not only logical but essential for fostering genuine literacy development. ■

DONNY MORRISON is Senior Consultant at Literacy Tree. He was a primary teacher for 10 years and taught in Scotland and England across KS1 and KS2 since qualifying. Donny has led English in schools as well as holding leadership and phase leader roles and most recently has been a lead practitioner of English teaching for a local authority.

STARTING YOUR FUNDRAISING JOURNEY

WHY SCHOOL FUNDRAISING MATTERS

Louise Bennett outlines the benefits of school fundraising and urges colleagues to support the creation of a development plan and then get going!

Fundraising can make a signiﬁcant impact on educational opportunities and outcomes in state schools. By securing additional funds, schools can enhance programmes, improve facilities and provide a richer learning environment for their students. Such additional income can not only help bridge gaps in government funding but also allow schools to innovate and oﬀer unique experiences that might otherwise be unattainable.

The journey to successful fundraising in state schools is not a sprint but a marathon. It requires patience, resilience and a long-term vision. Schools must invest in systems and people to build relationships with potential donors and develop a sustainable fundraising strategy. The Institute of Development Professionals in Education (IDPE) working with the Wolfson Foundation and More Partnership, has created a toolkit to guide schools through this process, providing examples, templates and case studies from schools across the UK that have successfully enhanced their oﬀer through fundraising. Here, we provide a brief overview of what to consider if your school is starting out on its fundraising journey.

THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP IN FUNDRAISING SUCCESS

Eﬀective fundraising begins with strong leadership. School leaders play a crucial

role in shaping and committing to the vision and strategic plan that underpins all fundraising eﬀorts.

A

long-term vision

Leadership is responsible for crafting a long-term vision for the school, which includes identifying specific projects or needs that require funding and communicating this vision to their school community and potential donors. It is this vision that forms the foundation of the school's case for support, a key document that outlines the purpose and goals of a school’s fundraising efforts. Projects that require significant investment, such as new facilities or major upgrades, need substantial lead-in time for cultivating relationships with potential donors, and therefore having a long-term vision that outlines clearly these needs is essential to allowing sufficient time to fundraise for larger-scale capital projects.

An engaged leadership

In state schools, resources for dedicated fundraising teams are often limited. Therefore, school leaders, including heads and governors, frequently take on the responsibility of fundraising initially until they can prove a case for investment in a professional fundraiser. Evidence from IDPE’s benchmarking of schools’ fundraising demonstrates that in schools where the head is involved in development activities, such as asking for donations and thanking donors, they see signiﬁcantly better fundraising outcomes.

Sustained investment

Fundraising success does not happen overnight. Initial eﬀorts may yield modest returns, but over time, as relationships with donors deepen, the return on investment grows substantially. Building these relationships and inspiring the community to contribute requires a

sustained eﬀort, which in turn requires a commitment from senior leaders right from the outset.

Integration into school life Fundraising should be a visible and integral part of school life. Every staﬀ member has a network of potential

CASE FOR SUPPORT

Key components of a case for support are:

• Vision – Outline the school’s vision, highlighting its unique qualities and successes.

• Need – Clearly state the speciﬁc need and explain why it is important.

• Donors – Describe how donations will meet this need, specifying the costs involved and how the funds will be used.

• Impact – Detail the expected outcomes and impact of a fundraising project, showing donors the tangible diﬀerence to young people that their support will make.

supporters, and their engagement can signiﬁcantly enhance fundraising eﬀorts. Leaders must encourage a schoolwide culture of giving and ensure that fundraising is well-integrated across the school community.

CRAFTING A COMPELLING STORY

A strong story, or case for support, is essential for any fundraising campaign. It articulates the school's vision and the specific needs that fundraising will address; essentially why should your community give? And how can they make a difference? A well-crafted case for support helps to focus fundraising efforts and provides a clear rationale for potential donors.

IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL SUPPORTERS

When starting out in fundraising, it is crucial to identify who to ask for donations and how much to request. Various groups can be potential supporters, including parents, alumni, trusts and foundations, local businesses, and even students.

Primary sources of support

• Parents – Parents are a natural starting point, especially for projects that directly

beneﬁt their children. PTAs can be valuable allies in engaging parents.

• Alumni – Former students often have a strong connection to their school and a desire to give back. Maintaining positive relationships with alumni can lead to long-term support

• Trusts and Foundations – These organisations have been set up to give money away, and they can be lead contributors to a project. They operate with diﬀering degrees of formality –some have more formal application processes with set guidance, whilst others may be the giving vehicle of a person or family and operate in a light-touch way. Some will be national funders, tending to look for beacon projects that reﬂect excellence, while others may be local, and more focused on the immediate community. Both on a national and a local level, trusts and foundations tend to have a clear focus on the type of project they will give funding to. Consequently, it is important to review any guidance and exclusions, as well as look for other projects they have funded in the past as examples to draw upon ahead of submitting your own application. Matching the right project with the right trust is key to securing funding.

• Local businesses – While typically providing smaller amounts, local businesses can offer financial support, gifts in kind, or expertise for specific projects.

• Students – Encouraging current students to engage in fundraising activities can foster a culture of philanthropy that beneﬁts the school long-term.

PRIORITISING POTENTIAL DONORS

In almost all communities there is someone who has ﬁnancial means and a strong bond to your school, town or community who, if approached with the right ask, will give. Such major gifts can be transformational for a state school, therefore fundraising eﬀorts should focus

GETTING STARTED WITH FUNDRAISING

Launching a successful fundraising campaign requires careful planning and execution. Here are some practical tips to help schools get started:

• Leverage existing networks –Utilise existing contacts and relationships to build a base of potential donors.

• Ask for help – Engage the wider school community, including staﬀ and parents, to expand the network of potential supporters.

• Deﬁne a hit list – Identify speciﬁc individuals or organisations to approach, rather than generic categories.

• Balance short and long-term goals – While focusing on immediate projects, keep an eye on long-term fundraising goals and relationships.

on those most likely to give signiﬁcant contributions. Applying the Pareto principle, 80% of income often comes from 20% of donors, identifying and targeting those with the capacity, aﬃnity and propensity to give will maximise fundraising success.

Steps to identify potential donors

• Review past eﬀorts – If the school has previously undertaken fundraising, start with those who have given before.

• Network mapping – Collaborate with staﬀ, parents and the wider school community to identify potential donors.

• Prioritise – Focus on donors with a high capacity to give, strong connections to the school and a likelihood to support its vision.

• Tailored approaches – Develop speciﬁc strategies for diﬀerent donor groups, considering their interests and capacities.

BUILDING THE NECESSARY INFRASTRUCTURE

Effective fundraising requires a solid infrastructure to track and manage donations, communicate with donors, and ensure compliance with fundraising and data protection regulations. Initially, simple tools like spreadsheets may suffice, but as efforts grow, a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system may be needed.

Essential elements include:

• Tracking and management systems

– Keep detailed records of donations and donor interactions; this will enable you to build a picture of your donors and personalise your asks.

• Check compliance – Data protection and fundraising regulations safeguard donors. Schools which are fundraising will likely be processing personal data to maintain supporter records and target their fundraising communications, therefore it is important to update your school’s privacy notice to ensure your community are aware that you are fundraising. The Code of Fundraising

Practice provides legal requirements and best practice in all aspects of fundraising.

• Resource – Whilst you may not be able to aﬀord to pay for a professional fundraiser right from the outset, you do need to consider who will lead on fundraising and who will support them? For example, initially the head may lead on developing a fundraising strategy and case for support, with the Bursar or Business Manager writing appeals or funding bids, and an administrator tracking donations.

START SMALL, BUT START NOW

While it requires time, eﬀort and strategic planning, fundraising in state schools is a powerful tool to enhance educational opportunities and outcomes. By building strong leaderships, crafting compelling cases for support, identifying and engaging potential donors and developing a robust infrastructure, schools can successfully raise funds to support their missions and provide the best possible education for their students. Start small, but start now, and build a culture of giving that will sustain your school for years to come.

IDPE’s State School Fundraising Toolkit has been designed to equip schools with the tools and knowledge they might need to build their fundraising capacity, providing step-by-step guidance on how to set up eﬀective, long-term fundraising programmes in schools. To ﬁnd out more about this free toolkit and how IDPE can support your school’s fundraising journey, please contact info@idpe.org.uk or call 01225 829030. ■

LOUISE BENNETT is Chief Executive of the Institute of Development Professionals in Education (IDPE).

LEADER PROFILE ANDREW THRAVES

Andrew Thraves, a founding member of Trust Leadership Today’s Editorial Advisory Board, talks to Zoe MacDougall about his ideas for the magazine, informed by his long career in publishing and resource development and his current roles within the MAT community.

35 YEARS IN THE EDUCATION INDUSTRY

For over 35 years, Andrew has gathered a wealth of experience in the ﬁeld of educational training and resources. As he says, "My career has spanned an interesting time when educational supply was moving from print to digital. When I started, the market was dominated by a number of traditional educational publishing businesses. Towards the end,

this market was becoming dominated by private equity companies; investors looking to buy and build and to provide complete solutions to schools. I was also in the mix when there was a big change from local authority run schools to academies. And because of that, companies had to change their sales and marketing strategies, to suit a different sort of marketplace, with different procurement rules, different needs."

INSIDE MATS

In 2016, Andrew became a trustee of Academies Enterprise Trust (AET) which, with 57 schools, is the third largest MAT in the country. Unusually, AET has a national, rather than a regional, membership. Whilst its schools can disseminate best practice nationwide, AET has the challenge of maintaining local independence, as well as demonstrating a cultural identity with the central HQ. Cascading good practice across AET's schools is actioned through Project H, a sharing platform which identiﬁes honesty, heterodoxy and humility as its core values.

Joining Big Education Trust as Chair in January 2024, Andrew is enjoying diﬀerent challenges: with a membership of three schools, Big Education is looking to grow. The growth strategy includes codifying and sharing best practice; for example, the Trust initiated Voice21, an oracy scheme. "Labour said if they got into government they would make changes to the National Curriculum – I think oracy will become a bigger thing."

ANDREW THRAVES

is a Trustee of the Academies Enterprise Trust (AET), Chair of Big Education Trust and a Non-Executive Director of the Confederation of School Trusts (CST).

For the last two years, Andrew has also held the post of Non-Executive Director of the Confederation of School Trusts (CST), the national organisation and sector body for MATs and Free School, supporting executive and governance leaders. CST represents more than 70% of the academies in England and advocates for the sector with government and other national policy-makers.

MATS IN CHANGING TIMES

Looking ahead in the light of the recent change of government, Andrew recognises the central role that MATs play in the arena of education. Currently, 82% of secondary schools and 42% of primary schools are academies, reporting directly to the Department for Education without any accountability to their local authority. Previously, as Andrew reminds us, "The Conservative government proposed that all schools should be academised by 2030 – although this proposal was then back-pedalled." Now, post the July 2024 General Election, what changes in education are likely to be made? Andrew forecasts that "there might be some mechanism introduced through which MATs are more accountable; they might be inspected, for example. Labour have also previously suggested they would like to see a new, more extensive role for local authorities within MATs."

KEY CONTENT FOR A CONTEMPORARY SCENE

In their most recent annual survey, published in October 2023, the CST highlighted the key challenges for MATs today.

There are five key priorities identified by this survey, which was produced in collaboration with around 450 MATs. Andrew suggests the survey results should inform the editorial pillars around which this magazine’s content framework should be built, stimulating relevant, contemporary and practical conversations. These are the five pillars, and Andrew’s thoughts on them:

Improving the quality of education

The CST survey recognises that MATs and

Free Schools "are united in their desire to do the best for children, to advance education as a public good and ensure they get the best-quality education possible. To borrow a phrase, trust leaders' priority is education, education, education."

In this context Andrew believes that the School Improvement Hub, the CST's new initiative, looks set to be a talking-point: it will feature case studies from highperforming schools and address topics such as changes in school attainment since joining a trust, Progress 8 scores and workforce data.

Financial sustainability

The CST survey acknowledges that 'This year has seen a rapid shift in trust leaders' perspective on the "business" side of education'. No one in public services ever feels they have enough money to do all they could, but the long-term impact of the pandemic, the shock of high inﬂation on energy and wage costs and concerns about maintaining the school estate means too many are now worrying about the basics.

Growth

Increasing academisation includes existing MATs getting bigger, which Andrew identifies as a key element of financial sustainability. He goes on to explain that "Growth is also about being better able to share best practice, to the benefit of the young people on the ground." Technology is also likely to have a key role to play in growth strategies. Barriers to growth include the changing political landscape, the criteria set by regional directors, financial and legal issues, and an on-going lack of clarity about the perceived benefits of MAT membership.

Workforce development and people strategy

Teacher retention and recruitment is a key issue today. Andrew drills down to a granular level: "The new government talks about recruiting 6,500 new teachers in key subjects. But what mechanisms will be used to identify and then recruit these people? And what will be the role of AI in

helping free up more time of the existing workforce to focus squarely on teaching and learning?"

Key people strategies include attention to Continuing Professional Development (CPD), and broadening routes into teaching apprenticeships, through to schools working closely with their local communities.

Building a strong organisational culture

The culture of a MAT is its philosophy, its raison d'etre. Andrew explains: "Schools need to see the MAT as having a readily identifiable purpose. Externally, it's about that MAT being a key influence in the local community. Additionally, the importance of a strong and proactive relationship between the Chair and CEO of the Trust is essential." Anderson Quigley, the recruitment specialists for schools, are currently undertaking significant research into this area.

A trust's civic responsibilities should also be made clear, as the CST survey indicates: 'Through building relationships across sectors, working strategically with local government, charities, businesses and health services, trusts can work with a raft of stakeholders that can provide the community with the joined-up provision it needs.'

Academy Trust Leadership Today looks forward to collaborating with Andrew and other members of the Editorial Advisory Board to develop content which is both insightful and useful to our readership. We look to stimulate debate and oﬀer practical advice and case studies of best practice alongside news from across the sector. ■

is an educational commentator with extensive teaching experience in the independent and maintained sectors.

ZOE MACDOUGALL

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THE RECRUITMENT CRISIS IN UK EDUCATION

Schools across the country are finding it increasingly hard to recruit the teachers they need. Alex Russell offers some ideas on how the academy trust community could start to address the crisis.

To give an indication of how established staff shortages are in our schools, parents and carers now accept the lack of specialist teachers and support as reasonable explanations for a narrowing of the curriculum or why their child is not experiencing the quality of education that they would have expected. In the past, most would have held the expectation that school leaders would almost immediately remedy instances of long-term staff absence with the employment of supply cover or the reallocation of existing staff. The discussion would have been around the quality of teaching, not the absence of specialist teaching per se.

Government ﬁgures show that the initial teacher training recruitment forecast, based on applications made up to February 2024, suggest that 10 out of 17 secondary subjects are likely to under-recruit in 2024-25. Overall secondary recruitment is forecast to be around 61 per cent of target. Primary recruitment,

however, which is usually at or above its target each year, is forecast to reach only 83 per cent of target next year. Why is teaching so unattractive to our graduates?

WORKLOAD

Despite workload reduction being a policy priority for government, teachers continue to work longer hours than similar graduates in other jobs during a typical working week. This is particularly worrying as workload is often cited as the main reason why teachers leave the profession.

According to the National Foundation for Education Research (‘NFER’), teachers now say pupil behaviour is driving higher workloads and that behaviour management and pastoral care should be key priority areas for workload reduction. Increased support from outside agencies for speciﬁc pupil needs such as special educational needs and disability (SEND) support, mental health and safeguarding are seen by teachers as key to further workload reduction. Sadly, they are not readily available.

PAY

Teachers’ pay has increased at a slower rate compared with pay in the rest of the labour market since 2010-11, making the profession less competitive. Pay in 2023-24 was 12 per cent lower, in real terms, than in 2010-11.

ALEX

RUSSELL is CEO of Bourne Education Trust (BET). He has led BET since its inception in 2012 having previously been headteacher of two secondary schools. Alex also chairs Surrey’s Inclusion Roundtable. He was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in July 2021 for services to education.

CRITICAL STATE

It is generally accepted that teacher supply is in a critical state, putting at risk the quality of education that children and young people receive. The government is not ignoring the problem and has taken the following steps in an attempt to mitigate the current recruitment crisis:

Mental health support A £1.5 million investment has been allocated for a three-year mental health and wellbeing support package for school and college leaders. This includes professional supervision and counselling to enhance teacher wellbeing.

Staff bullying prevention guidance New guidance is being developed to prevent and tackle bullying and harassment of school staff. This aims to create a positive work environment and result in increased staff retention.

Workload reduction taskforce Comprising of unions, teachers and sector leaders, a taskforce is working to reduce teacher workload by ﬁve hours per week within the next three years.

TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE?

• oﬀering a restructured academic year with longer breaks and more even half-terms to reduce staﬀ burnout

• oﬀering wellbeing initiatives in every school

• offering benefits to all staff through ‘My Staff Shop’. This offers a 24/7 remote GP service, cycle to work scheme, confidential employee assistant programme, online fitness and wellness opportunities and a plethora of free or low-cost employee benefits

• considering ﬂexible working arrangements where possible

• oﬀering dynamic and diverse career pathways along with fast-track promotion opportunities to appropriate personnel.

WHY IS TEACHING SO UNATTRACTIVE TO OUR GRADUATES?

Other trusts and schools have gone further. For example, the introduction of nine-day fortnights, allowing teachers to do their PPA at home, and the offer of golden hellos and loyalty bonuses are becoming more commonplace but these will inevitably have a financial impact that not every organisation can afford.

Trusts and schools clearly believe that this is too little, too late and are exploring innovative approaches themselves to mitigate the crisis. At Bourne Education Trust, we are:

• turning to hybrid learning, combining in-person teaching and online learning in certain shortage subjects, particularly in STEM

• running a pilot to assess whether non-specialist teachers can deliver specialist lessons by adopting artiﬁcial intelligence to support their delivery and for students to interact with to develop their understanding of content (early feedback suggests that outcomes are better than if the lesson is simply covered by a general supply teacher)

• training teachers and teaching assistants on the beneﬁts of artiﬁcial intelligence and Edtech to support content creation, adapt teaching resources, assess and provide feedback to students as well as assist with the completion of routine and mundane tasks. Take up of this has been good and feedback universally positive.

• streamlining documents, reducing meeting times and limiting initiatives to protect staﬀ, allowing them to focus on their core roles and responsibilities

• relaunching our careers website to replicate the quality and interactivity of equivalent sites in the business sector so that we are more appealing to potential recruits

MAKING A DIFFERENCE?

Will all of this make a difference? For those trusts and schools that offer incentives of this nature first, or package them attractively, the impact on recruitment will be positive. However, not all schools and trusts will either have the capacity to offer them and, in time, many will match these offers and it is inevitable that some will be left behind, rendering the system unviable. Furthermore, these initiatives, although proactive and positive, are not addressing the key question: How can we change the narrative around teaching and make it attractive to more graduates or career changers?

For teaching to compete with other graduate professions it needs to be seen as modern, exciting, hi-tech, fast moving, forward thinking, highly aspirational and transformational. The education sector boasts visionary leaders capable of driving the change required. However, their eﬀorts will be in vain unless the government is willing to undertake radical reforms of the curriculum, methods of assessment and the inspection framework. Substantial investments are needed to modernise school buildings and infrastructure, ensuring they can support an education system suitable for the demands of the 21st century. ■