pupil attainment. One of the most notable examples is St Mary’s Primary School in Kidderminster, which had earned the dubious distinction of being labelled the worst school in the UK. Deputy headteacher Joel Marshall had used Go4it as a catalyst to
transform his previous school and was pinning his hopes on it achieving a similar transformation at St Mary’s. The new leadership team faced multiple challenges: the school was in special measures; only seven per cent of year 6 pupils achieved national expectations; pupils had high levels of special needs, behaviour was poor and permanent exclusion rates were high; 75 per cent of parents were unemployed, many of them long-term. The leadership team used Go4it as a “licence” to take risks. They
rewrote the curriculum and employed the best teachers despite financial constraints. Children take part in activities which develop their employability skills through an initiative called Do Something Different. The school has rocketed out of special measures, attainment levels have soared to 64 per cent, the quality of teaching is now no less than “good” (“outstanding” in many instances) and children are more confident and better behaved. All of these achievements earned the school a place in the TES Outstanding Senior Leadership Team awards this year. When Mr Marshall told colleagues about his new job at St Mary’s, the
news was usually greeted with a sharp intake of breath. Now schools go to St Mary’s to share their expertise and Mr Marshall is more than happy to concede that without Go4it, the school would never have emerged from special measures as it did.
More than 150 schools have now achieved Go4it status, including a
record number of primaries this year. Headteachers tell us that Go4it is not only a unifying symbol for the well-rounded, creative education they want to give children, but also gives them permission to do things differently and swim against the tide. We are beginning to see tangible evidence of the impact of Go4it on
• Anne Evans is chief executive of HTI (Heads, Teachers & Industry), an independent charity that builds an understanding and co-operation between business, education and government to enhance school leadership and improve the employability skills and life chances of young people. It was set up 25 years ago by business leaders wishing to bring the education and business sectors closer to develop a mutual understanding about employability. Further information about HTI’s leadership development programmes and Go4it can be found at
www.hti.org.uk or telephone 024 7641 0104.
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