OFSTED Assembly corner d to outstanding


status. Building and retaining links with parents and local communities is central to raising aspirations and ambitions for children and can help to broaden their outlook, for example, by making links with schools in other parts of the country or even globally. For staff, partnering with other schools and education providers offers increased opportunity for informal development, allowing them to bring good ideas back into their classroom from external sources. Schools can also make use of external influences


specifically to support their development. A number of the headteachers interviewed cited the value of “external critical friends” who would be available from time to time to visit the school and provide an impartial, external perspective on the development of the school. These critical friends validate changes, champion good practice and identify areas for improvement. All of these areas when put together may seem


like a big task to try and address so it is important to recognise that this is a continual process – change does not happen overnight. Strong leaders recognise that not everything can be achieved at the same time, but that staff can “shift gear” for a sustained period if there is a collective ambition at the school. The key is to ensure that staff are all motivated and


working towards the same goals to ensure that their efforts generate success. Similarly, the start of a new term or a convenient point in the calendar should not be the only catalysts for change; if the school can be improved in any way, the change should be made today.


SecEd


• Tony McAleavy is education director at CfBT Education Trust. Visit www.cfbt.com


Further information


CfBT is contracted to Ofsted as an inspection service provider in the North of England. Every school inspection report is quality assured by Ofsted before its publication. Ofsted has recently published best practice reports on outstanding primary, secondary and special schools and these can be found at www.ofsted.gov.uk


“If you want to succeed in the world you must make your own opportunities as you go on. The man who waits for some seventh wave to toss him on dry land will find that the seventh wave is a long time a coming. You can commit no greater folly than to sit by the roadside until someone comes along and invites you to ride with


him to wealth or influence.” John B Gough (1817 to 1886), American orator


“Do not train children to learn by force and harshness, but direct them to it by what amuses their minds, so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius


of each.” Plato (428 to 348 BC), Greek philosopher and mathematician


“The fruit of liberal education is not learning, but the capacity and desire to learn,


not knowledge, but power.” Charles W Eliot (1834 to 1926), American Academic


for assessing and tracking pupils’ progress. Clear pupil performance data also helps to ensure that all pupils are achieving their full potential and that none are being left behind. All relevant staff should have access to this data and high expectations should be placed on all students. Outstanding schools are highly inclusive in that


all students and staff believe that they are making a contribution to the success of the school. For most of the headteachers interviewed the ability to create a “we” not “I” culture lay at the heart of great schools. In the creation of this inclusive and open


Case Study


When the current headteacher joined this 11 to 16 voluntary-aided school 13 years ago it was regarded by Ofsted as ‘failing’. From this very low point the school moved to ‘good’ in 2007 and ‘outstanding’ in 2010; and this is with a projection of 90 per cent ‘good’ grades at GCSE in 2010, up from just 25 per cent in 1997. To begin its transformation the school focused on four main levers of improvement:


1 Establishing a culture based on making sure that the basic expectations were in place, especially in relation to behaviour, uniform, attendance and punctuality.


2 A curriculum was designed which gave a route to success for every student. 3 Classroom quality was ensured by raising the standards of teaching and learning. 4 Secure management systems were implemented. The school now operates a process whereby any teacher can request assistance from the


senior leadership team for the management of classes which become challenging to them, and the after-school meeting cycle is focused predominantly on developing teaching skills. Through initiatives like this the headteachers have been able to introduce improvement without suffering a huge staff turnover. Senior leaders have a clear view of the strengths of the school and its staff, and of


what needs to be improved. The monitoring of teaching and learning is comprehensive and trends in each area of practice can be plotted and areas prioritised for further staff training or monitoring. The senior leadership team operates a highly distributed approach to leadership, working within a spirit of high trust and autonomy.


culture, schools must actively work on high quality communication processes. Having transparency at the heart of a school’s operations ensures that the school is not sidetracked by rumour and anxiety. An outstanding school is one with an open and


trusting culture in which staff know that success is applauded and failure supportively attended to, rather than blamed. This allows for teachers to share their ideas and learn from each other to identify best practice. As a final point it is important for schools to look externally in their development towards outstanding


get started with Arts Award


Use Arts Award’s fl exible framework to support students’ creative and leadership development and to achieve a national qualifi cation in your school.


Offer Arts Award within the curriculum or to accredit extra-curricular, enrichment or re-engagement programmes.


Kickstart your school’s Arts Award by booking training www.artsaward.org.uk/booktraining


020 7820 6178


enquiries@artsaward.org.uk www.artsaward.org.uk


Image: Arts Award Live event, Nottinghamshire, photo Joe Wheeler


SecEd • June 9 2011


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