Www.northumberland.gov.uk Copyright 2009 Northumberland County Council Early Years and Schools Service FACT Conference June 2011

www.northumberland.gov.uk

Copyright 2009 Northumberland County Council

Early Years and Schools Service

FACT ConferenceJune 2011



Relationships between the Local Authority and

Schools



Early Years and Schools

• Celebration of the current position of Northumberland schools

• Key principles of school improvement and system leadership

• Implications of the Education Bill

• School improvement and school support in the future









KS2 English and Maths Trend 2004 - 2010

KS2 Eng & Ma Combined Trend 5+ All 2004 - 2010

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

N'land National Linear (N'land)

* 2010 Does not include schools that boycotted the SATs – Cragside Primary, Delaval Middle and NCEA

KS2 Eng & Ma Combined Trend 4+ All 2004 - 2010

60

65

70

75

80

85

90

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

4+ N'land 4+ National Linear (Northumberland)



GCSE Trends 2002 – 2010 5+ A*- C inc Maths & English

GCSE Trend 5+ A* - C inc M&E

38

43

48

53

58

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Northumberland National




Ofsted Inspection Judgements

-10

10

30

50

70

90

110

Outstanding/good Satisfactory or better

Northumberland

National




• Every school a good school– Implementing the national strategies in a local

context– Recognising the importance of the 5

outcomes of every child matters– Focusing on teaching and learning, leadership

and management– Promoting a moral purpose, encouraging

partnerships of schools




GCSE 2010 - % achieving by Ofsted judgement outcome

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

70.0

80.0

90.0

5+A*-C 5+A*-C inc E&M

Satisfactory Good or Outstanding Northumberland National




Education is undergoing continuous change– System leadership

• Public service with moral purpose– Raising the bar and closing the gap of student learning (and achievement)– Treating people with demanding respect– Altering the social environment for the better

• Commitment to changing context at all levels– The structures and cultures within which one works; school, partnerships, system

• Lateral capacity building through networks– Leaders and teachers collaborating with other schools to learn from and contribute to school

improvement• Intelligent accountability and vertical relationships

– Combine self evaluation and external evaluation• Dual commitment to short-term and long-term results

– Actions to obtain early results but also building elements• Deep Learning

– Openness, intelligent use of information and learning form experience• Cyclical energising

– Times of full engagement and breaks for energy replenishment• The long lever of leadership

– Leadership at all levels is the primary engine if the system is to become sustainable




• Coalitions plan to change the shape of school system– New balance national/local centralisation and powers and

responsibilities of schools– Headteachers accept responsibilities beyond the boundaries of

their own school– NLE, LLE, federations

• Self improving system of schools – will require clusters of schools accepting responsibility for self

improvement of the cluster as a whole – A NEW COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY – shared targets

• Challenge one another, support one another and celebrate individual and collective achievements




• This process is akin to the changes of LMS financial delegation of responsibilities to schools in 1980s




• Creating a self improving school system – In an era of diminishing centralisation, accelerating

the rate and depth of school improvement and reducing the number of underperforming schools requires a new vision

– Increased decentralisation offers an opportunity for the school system to build on these (increased leadership capacity and experience of working in partnership/collaboration) and become self improving




4 building blocks of a self improving system• Clusters of schools – the structure• Local solutions approach and co-construction –

the 2 cultural elements• System leaders- the key people

• In place – but need to be strengthened so that schools collaborate in more effective forms of professional development and school improvement



Education Bill

• Themes – Using resources fairly

– Freedom

– Accountability and responsibility

Plus

– Behaviour



Freedom

“We want every school to be able to shape its own character …. free of either central or local bureaucratic constraints”.

• Enable schools to decide how to co-operate • Academies programme extended to 16-19 Academies and

alternative provision Academies; streamlining land transfers – National curriculum – School Teachers Pay and Conditions

• Repeal the diploma “entitlement”• Free local authorities to fulfil their role to act as champions of social

justice: admissions; advice and guidance



Accountability

“Alongside school autonomy, accountability for student performance is critical to driving educational improvement”

• End Ofsted routine inspections of outstanding schools and colleges• Ofsted to focus on 4 key areas• LA duty to provide school improvement partners removed• Powers to tackle under-performing schools and colleges • Strengthen Ofqual governance; and require it to compare standards

internationally. Sampled schools take part in international surveys • Governing bodies chosen on skills rather than constituency • Five arms length bodies abolished



Using resources fairly

• Free early years provision for disadvantaged two year olds

• Introduce the pupil premium• Introduce a more progressive higher education student

finance system – real interest rates; cap of part-time fees• Focus the “skills entitlement” on those up to 24 • Re-define apprenticeship offer to make it deliverable and

focused on priority groups• A more cost-effective complaints system



Conclusions

• Fundamental 1996 Education Act Local Authority duties remain– Section 13 - General responsibility– Section 13A – Duty to promote high standards– Section 14 – Duty to secure sufficient schools

• Significant centralisation of power in the hands of the Secretary of State




Three Key Changes and their implications

• Localism v Centralisation

• Academies and Free schools

• LA plans for underperforming schools




• LA services provided to all schools

• LA services provided to maintained schools but not academies

• LA services that can be traded with schools and academies

• Other providers of services




• TES 17th June– Gove forces academy switch on primaries– ‘worst’ 700 to take on new status with

outstanding schools as sponsors

Documents

Www.northumberland.gov.uk Copyright 2009 Northumberland County Council Early Years and Schools Service FACT Conference June 2011