WILLOW TREE ACADEMY TRUST DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2019-2022 ‘TOGETHER ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE INTRODUCTION Willow Tree Academy was born out of the desire to ensure that all Rotherham’s children have the same entitlement to the profound primary educational experience they deserve. It is our aim that all our schools will be outstanding, vibrant centres of learning Our founding school, Herringthorpe Junior School was judged ‘outstanding’ in July 2014, became a National Support School in 2015 and a Teaching School in 2017, whilst also being endorsed as a sponsor by the DfE in the same year. The school is an inclusive, rich and diverse multi-cultural learning community, having 39% BME children who speak eleven different languages. It is a centre of excellence for the Arts, Sport, Enterprise, STEM and ICT. Achievement of pupils is outstanding; this means that the school and its staff are in a strong position to support other schools in challenging circumstances. From 2011 the school engaged in school-on-school support and in 2013 was asked to support Greasbrough Primary School; the school moved rapidly from Special Measures in November 2012, to be a good school with outstanding leadership, this was further supported by a short inspection by Ofsted April 2018, who stated ‘Based on the evidence gathered during this short inspection, I am of the opinion that the school has demonstrated strong practice and marked improvement in certain areas. This may indicate that the school is improving towards being outstanding. Therefore, I am recommending that the school’s next inspection be a section 5 inspection.’ We see this is an endorsement of our SEF judgement of outstanding. The EYFS provision at Greasbrough, having been inadequate for the previous two inspections was also judged outstanding in 2014. Again this was acknowledged by the Ofsted inspector 2018 to have become embedded outstanding practice, we share this widely with other local schools both through our teaching school and the LA. This was achieved in such a short time through the LA brokering of the leadership of the Executive Head Teacher and the support of Herringthorpe Junior School, together with key appointments of outstanding leaders. Through working within the 1
collaboration the Greasbrough continues to thrive and has moved rapidly to provide an outstanding provision, being graded the fifth school nationally for Closing the Gap with Disadvantaged children in 2015; this achievement has been sustained. In 2016 Willow Tree Academy was formed to strengthen and sustain the partnership between the two schools. Following this success, we were asked to support Roughwood Primary School, who joined our academy in Autumn 2017, again we were able to swiftly improve the school to good, after many years as a requires improvement school. In May 2017, the LA sought Willow Tree Academy’s support for Rockingham Junior and Infant School; further endorsed by the DfE who named the Academy as sponsor for the school. The journey from Special Measures continues as we rebuild all aspects of the school’s culture and provision. Rockingham joined Willow Tree Academy in June 2018. Although Willow Tree Academy schools serve areas of extreme deprivation, we ensure that all our schools are joyous centres of excellence where we strive to meet the diverse needs of all our pupils. We know that by working in ‘partnership to engage hearts and minds in the joy of learning’ - ‘together, anything is possible’. We aim to ensure that all our pupils have a first-class education, rooted in our Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural education and underpinned by the learning skills necessary to a 21st learner.
VISION AND VALUES: The strategic aims of the multi academy Trust are as follows: ● To provide welcoming, secure and caring environments where worthwhile and satisfying relationships are formed and where respect and empathy are our guiding principles. ● To provide enriching and stimulating curriculum experiences that promote active learning and enable pupils to achieve success in all they do. ● To have high expectations of what we can all achieve by working together. ● To develop pupils’ confidence in their capacity to learn, both independently and collaboratively. ● To foster an effective partnership between home and school, so that families can learn together. ● To ensure the continuous professional development of all staff and value their personal contribution to the school and to Willow Tree Academy.
FOUR SCHOOLS; ONE VISION, SHARED VALUES AND CONSISTENT, SUSTAINABLE PRACTICE 2
The work of the TRUST is underpinned by the vision statement:
‘TOGETHER ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE’ All aspects of our work are related to our shared values and it is expected that all pupils and staff adopt them in everything that they do. Each school has its own identity but the strong links between the schools, underpinned by these values, has enabled high quality collaboration to ensure the continued and developing successes of everyone in the partnership. It is expected that anyone who works in a Willow Tree School will have; Passion — Working in education, we have the ability to profoundly change children’s lives; the stakes are incredibly high. Our aim should always be to provide for the pupils of our schools what we would want for our own children. Positivity — Staff have a responsibility to be positive and supportive of each other. Negativity leads to low expectations and a culture where excuses are tolerated. Aspiration — Embodied in the Trust motto, “Together anything is possible” all members of staff aim for excellence in their individual professional roles. Commitment — Staff are prepared to go the extra mile to provide the best possible education for their pupils. The interests of children are always placed ahead of those of staff. Tenacity— The amount of time children spend in education is finite, there is a sense of urgency to our core purpose. We have a responsibility to ensure every moment a child is in a Willow Tree Academy school must be spent productively. Once wasted, it is gone forever and cannot be given back. We teach children to be resilient and tenacious in their quest for learning and expect the same of our staff.
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We believe that learning and working within Willow Tree Academy means that experiences and outcomes are enhanced for both pupils and staff: BENEFITS FOR PUPILS ✓ A shared set of values and expectations across all four schools ✓ Consistent shared policies related to school improvement strategies e.g. quality of teaching, behaviour and safety, achievement and target setting and leadership and management ✓ Access to an outstanding curriculum with a wide range of opportunities within which to develop skills and a love of learning ✓ Access to outstanding staff expertise ✓ Outstanding resources which can be shared and utilised by all
BENEFITS FOR STAFF ✓ Increased opportunities to work collaboratively with other and engage in peer challenge through research studies with colleagues across schools ✓ Increased levels of delegated leadership through phase teams ✓ Enhanced opportunities for continuing professional development through in house and external training ✓ Opportunities to work, develop skills in different schools ✓ Opportunities to progress and develop own leadership skills
Impacts directly and positively on the quality of education in the schools within the trust
ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE - GOVERNANCE The Multi Academy Trust (MAT) has a governance structure in place across the four schools. The roles and responsibilities of the Trust and Local Governance are made clear through the scheme of delegation. This is revisited annually to ensure it still reflects the needs of the Academy and is fit for purpose. In 2018 we moved towards School Improvement Boards in our schools – this is to ensure that local governance is precisely directed to their core purpose – to improve outcomes for pupils. The Finance and Audit Committee oversees all the school budgets and makes strategic decision regarding the financial probity of the Academy. The CEO/Chief Accounting Officer, the Chair of the Trustees and Director for Finance lead the committee. 4
The committee, made up of the Chief Finance Officer and School Business Managers from the schools, also work on economies of scale, audits etc. LEADERSHIP STRUCTURE Trust development is led by the belief that everyone has a moral purpose and responsibility to support the education of all children within the MAT and that we are ‘four schools with one vision’. We are committed to developing leaders of the future and have developed a leadership structure that enables staff, at all levels, to have a voice in school improvement and to develop their skills in trust wide positions. We aim to keep our most effective teachers and staff in Willow Tree Academy through ensuring high quality CPD that prepares them for leadership at all levels. Succession planning can be evidenced in the movement of key personnel to drive school improvement in our vulnerable schools.
WILLOW TREE ACADEMY STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP TEAM
CEO/EXECUTIVE HEAD TEACHER STRATEGIC VISION
HEAD OF SCHOOL CURRICULUM
HEAD OF SCHOOL TSA
HEAD OF SCHOOL INCLUSION
HEAD OF SCHOOL ASSESSMENT
WILLOW TREE ACADEMY SENIOR LEADERSHIP TEAM The wider Willow Tree SLT comprises of leaders from across all our schools, in English, Mathematics, Science, ICT/STEM, SEND, Assessment, Pupil Premium and Phase Leaders. This team meets termly with the CEO to further develop and steer the strategic direction of the Trust, engage in research and self-evaluation. Outcomes of this work are then further developed through academy wide teams or within individual schools. The Personal Development, Behaviour and Welfare of our pupils is key to all we do and we pride ourselves on rigorous safeguarding policies and procedures that ensure all our children are protected. Our Pastoral Leader manages the work of a 5
team of Behaviour for Learning Leaders across our schools. Their work is imperative to the success of the pupils in our Trust and their families.
TRUST SELF-EVALUATION AND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING The developments of the Trust and priorities within each of the schools are based on continuous, rigorous self-evaluation processes. These include: ● On-going tracking of pupil data and outcomes to support the academic success of each learner ● Regular monitoring (lesson observations, planning, book scrutiny, pupil progress meetings, learning walks, pupil voice) ● Self-evaluation against key documents, i.e. SIP, Ofsted descriptors and DfE documents, i.e. ‘Characteristics of Successful MATs’ ● The Trust is outward looking and seeks challenge of the EHT/CEO and Heads of School through working with an externally appointed HMI at regular intervals throughout the year. ● We also invite scrutiny through LA Testing the Mission days and external advisors who support both evaluation and CPD. ● Governors and Trust Directors bring a further external layer of monitoring and evaluation through their varied expertise in Teaching and Learning, STEM, H & S, HR and Finance. ● Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for leaders at all levels is planned and coordinated and links directly to the SEF and School Improvement Plans. In-house training is strong, this includes Peer Challenge programmes, mentoring and coaching and evidence and action research through school based projects. ● Individual plans are in place for all staff needing additional support.
WILLOW TREE ACADEMY TEACHING SCHOOL Herringthorpe Junior achieved Teaching School status in 2017 and we have extended our offer to include all Willow Tree schools in the delivery. We work within the Learners First Teaching School Alliance, a professional development organization of which the WTA CEO is a director. One of the main aims of the Willow Tree Teaching School is that we carry out the important role of securing high quality entrants into the profession. 6
Herringthorpe Junior has been involved in the design, development, delivery and evaluation of high quality ITT programmes over the last four years, in partnership with Learners First, Sheffield Hallam University and Huddersfield University. We have played a lead role in the school-led training aspect of the School Direct programme. In addition, we have a number of trained school-based mentors who also contribute to the QA team. We are committed to ‘growing our own’ and building the necessary capacity for the academy to thrive as well as contributing to the wider system. We are heavily involved with the selection and interviewing of trainee teachers, this ensures we are consistent in our expectations of the knowledge, skills and attributes we expect trainees to have. All teachers in the school, and SLT members at Greasbrough and Roughwood Primary Schools, make a significant contribution to the programme and it is an expectation that working with ITT trainees is an integral part of a teacher’s own professional development programme. School-led ITT has had a positive impact on the Academy especially in trainee progression; one trainee has rapidly progressed from NQT to AHT in five years and is now two years on is a Head of School for the Trust. Our recently qualified teachers take on leadership responsibilities quickly, these include; MfL, STEM ambassadors, phonics champions and arts specialists as well as leadership of year group teams and phases. Within five years of starting their career, there is an expectation that teachers will have accessed professional development programmes such as NPQML/SL and that this is a right as a developing professional. Being involved at such a level has enabled a clear rationale to be developed for Willow Tree Academy in how we recruit outstanding teachers into the profession and how we retain them.
OVERVIEW OF OUR TEACHING SCHOOL OFFER
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SUMMARY OF TRUST SCHOOL PRIORITIES 2019-2020
WIDER TRUST SCHOOL PRIORITIES 2019-2022 8
Leadership ● To continue to develop leaders of tomorrow through coaching and mentoring programmes, implementing IRiS to support ● Continue horizon-scanning for trust growth opportunities ● Recruit and retain outstanding educators who are committed to the WTA values and moral purpose to improve society through education Quality of Education ● To address the changes to the Ofsted Framework Sept 2019 and review any changes necessary to the WTA curriculum ● Continue to ensure exceptional education is delivered consistently Finance ● Deliver robust financial security through all leaders understanding the need for prudent financial management within a climate of reduced spending ● Seek economies of scale, using best-value principles ● Track the impact of extending the age-range at RPS/GPS in terms of building financial viability
SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES 2019-20 THE FOCUSSED FOUR
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NEMESIS – Novel Educational Model Enabling Social Innovation Skills Education Herringthorpe Junior School was chosen as a ‘world leader in Enterprise education’ to be a partner in the NEMESIS project. Funded by the EU, the project aims to create and test an educational model to introduce social innovation to primary and secondary students. For three years, thirteen partners from seven EU countries - researchers, entrepreneurs and schools - will work together to develop a model that embeds the competences and philosophy of social innovation into schools. Ultimately, NEMESIS is about giving students the necessary tools and skills to become critical and active citizens. Social innovation, we believe, can play a key role to encourage students to drive positive social change and create value for others in their community
and beyond, regardless of their career path. NEMESIS is a perfect vehicle to support and develop the Willow Tree philosophy and create the opportunity for social mobility that our pupils desperately need.
TRUST SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES 2019-20 THE FOCUSSED FOUR AGAINST THE OFSTED FRAMEWORK THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION
❖ To further improve the quality of curriculum intent, implementation and impact ❖ To ensure that all pupils develop the skills and knowledge we intend and to apply these across the curriculum ❖ Pupils to have regular opportunities to develop reading, writing and math skills and apply across the curriculum ❖ To enable teachers, through continuing professional development (CPD), to plan for and deliver appropriate learning challenges which promote depth of learning RJI/RPS ❖ To continue to make effective use of monitoring and evaluation systems, tracking systems and data available to ensure that work in lessons is 10
accurately matched to pupil need, provides appropriate levels of pace and challenge leading to better than expected progress ❖ To further develop the ‘behaviours for learning’ necessary to promote higher levels of resilience in our pupils, promoting independence – all schools ❖ To ensure children have the opportunity to respond to marking in a timely fashion and that all teachers are providing constructive feedback that impacts on pupil progress – all schools ❖ To further develop effective deployment of teaching assistants to ensure that they are able to deliver recognized, structured interventions on a regular basis ❖ To develop the use of the outside areas to support learning in the EYFS and throughout key stage 1 RJI/RPS/GPS LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT ❖ To ensure that leadership and management at all levels is effective and leads to improved capacity and improvement in standards and quality of provision for all pupils ❖ To enhance levels of staff accountability through rigorous performance management systems and appraisal of meeting Teacher Standards RJI ❖ To deliver high quality programmes of Continuing Professional Development to enhance effectiveness of all staff in achieving improved outcomes for all pupils ❖ To further develop governance structures within the MAT to ensure that all bodies are contributing effectively to school improvement and are able to challenge school leaders. ❖ To audit and monitor safeguarding provision and procedures on a regular basis, reporting outcomes to the Trust Board PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT and BEHAVIOUR ❖ Enhance the behaviour and nurture provision across the trust to allow all vulnerable pupils to access their learning through the introduction of the THRIVE approach ❖ To further embed strategies and teach values to ensure that all children develop high levels of resilience, positivity and independence in their learning and display excellent attitudes and behaviour in all aspects of school life ❖ Establish a higher level of parental engagement to have a positive effect on pupil achievement and attendance 11
❖ To continue to address attendance rigorously, especially that of PA children and be proactive in ensuring our pupils attendance is the best it can be PREMISES ❖ To continue to upkeep and upgrade all school buildings and grounds to ensure that they are safe and create outstanding learning environments ❖ To continue to develop the ICT capacity, infrastructure and resources at GPS/RPS/RJI in line where possible with HJS
WILLOW TREE ACADEMY GROWTH The trustee’s vision for the future direction includes expansion of the academy trust to comprise five schools within the next two to three years and we are working with the Regional Schools Commissioners Office to identify schools that are in need of intensive support in order for them to improve. We have a strong track record of school-to-school support since 2011 with the primary objective being to support schools in challenging circumstances. The success of our work has seen Willow Tree Academy nominated a sponsor by the DfE. JKF OCTOBER 2019
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