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Short Term

The Trust has invested in several Trust appointments to deliver support across all schools. Leaders, curriculum specialists, attendance and safeguarding experts have been appointed to deliver bespoke, high-quality support to all schools. The Trust develops external partnerships across the sector to supplement the in-house support offer and meet specific development needs. The Directors of Education further support the teaching and learning improvement needs across all phases of the Trust. We believe this level of expertise and leadership capacity will accelerate School Improvement across our primary schools and enable us to work on transition and other shared priorities across all Key Stages. 

Principals' Group

All Principals and the Directors of Education meet fortnightly with a School Improvement focussed agenda. In addition, each Principal is visited by the Director of Education at least once a fortnight individually, for learning walks and a review of progress against Academy Development plans. Support and development needs are identified through these visits and the completion of the Academy on a Page self-review. The outcomes of these meetings collectively inform the Trust wide School Improvement strategy and CPD offer.

Trust-wide Education Activities

There is a Trust wide calendar for core education activities. Shared assessment windows enable cross moderation. Data is interrogated and the impact of intervention is reviewed. This process ultimately feeds into the Trust Education Standards Committee, where the Directors of Education and Principals are challenged and held to account for outcomes several times per year.

External Reviews

The Trust commissions several external reviews for our schools each year. Working with Challenge Partners, former senior HMIs and other external organisations, each school is visited regularly and given feedback on strengths and areas of development. This feedback is then built into Academy Improvement Plans. Progress against these targets is monitored by the Directors of Education, CEO, and ultimately the Education Standards Committee.

Professional Development 

There is a comprehensive continuous professional development (CPD) calendar in place that includes a range of short courses available to all. We select courses or commission bespoke training to address specific development needs and Trust priorities. This supplements individual School CPD Programmes.

Because of our long-term commitment to high quality CPD, we have a growing number of coaches and colleagues with specialist professional qualifications in our schools. They are able to provide support to colleagues within their own schools. They are also encouraged and supported to collaborate across schools via our Curriculum Hubs. Principals also release specialists and experts to provide support across the Trust as required.

The Trust Safeguarding Lead provides high quality CPD to all employees across the trust. They also provide supervision to colleagues. They ensure DSLs and other senior safeguarding colleagues are up to date with the latest knowledge, guidance and legislation. The Trust Safeguarding Lead provides guidance when complex or concerning cases arise. When required, the Trust Safeguarding Lead will join a team to resolve difficult issues.

The Trust employs several highly qualified, experienced senior leaders who are ready for the next step. We are able to use School Improvement funds to create secondment opportunities for these talented colleagues into the areas of greatest need. This accelerates School Improvement in the short term, but also provides CPD for these leaders and those who step up in their home schools to fill the gaps.