Jump to content

Print Version

Date: 30 Jul 2010
Address: http://www.nationalcollege.org.uk/index/leadershiplibrary/leadingschools/working-in-partnership/ecm/planning-quality-evaluation/ecm-planning-in-partnership-is-key-to-school-improvement

Planning in partnership is key to school improvement

When working with partners to address the Every Child Matters (ECM) agenda, you need to include everyone in the planning process. A shared vision forms the foundation of any school improvement strategy and builds trust among partners. Evaluating the effectiveness of services enhances sustainability and improves quality.

Why planning in partnership is important

By inviting partners to engage in the discussion about vision, priorities and next steps, you are encouraging them to have ownership of the emerging plans. When a vision is developed in partnership it is not only shared but also owned by all involved. Partners are therefore more likely to participate actively in the changes associated with making the vision a reality. This is a big departure from the more traditional planning process that schools have used in the past.

The school improvement planning framework (produced by the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) and the National College) supports you in the planning process. At the heart of the framework is a needs analysis process that helps schools deliberately design provision and services to deliver maximum impact. The framework provides a series of tools to use with partners and stakeholders to help you translate the ECM agenda into practical plans for offering extended services and raising achievement. Using the tools provides robust evidence to support improvement planning decisions for self evaluation.

For further information see:

Why quality assurance and evaluation are important

Quality assurance and evaluation are an essential part of any improvement strategy and inform future planning. Self-evaluation is at the heart of school improvement. Community leadership and multi-agency working can enrich the self-evaluation processes. Effective evaluation in partnership and network settings challenge you to adapt existing approaches and processes to enable meaningful engagement of stakeholders. This process needs to include both quantitative and qualitative measures and outcomes.

Engaging schools in sustainable Every Child Matters and extended services is a self-diagnostic tool that has been developed to support you in evaluating your progress towards the ECM and extended services ES agendas.

For further information see:

Planning and the core offer: issues for school leaders

You need to consider how you provide access to the core offer (which all schools are expected to deliver by 2010). To do this effectively, schools need to plan together to provide access to a range of support services and activities. When you are planning this work, make sure you have a clear idea of what is already available and that you link with partner agencies, including other schools. This ensures that services are not duplicated.

The school improvement plan is the main focus for planning provision, including prioritisation. When working as a cluster, you need to establish a common framework, which can be integrated into each school’s individual plan. Include aims and targets, timescales, costings, personnel and measurable success criteria, as well as monitoring and evaluation. Use existing data to support your planning and target setting.

For further information see:

Incorporating ECM into planning

Keep the aims of the ECM agenda at the forefront of all your planning, remembering the difference you want to make. Look carefully at your existing school and local priorities and consider how extended provision can support these.

Here are some suggestions:

  • Audit what your school is already achieving in terms of its offer of extended services and the impact on learning.
  • Look at the focus and targets in your school improvement plan. How can your extended services support these priorities? Who else could be involved?
  • Consult with the pupils, parents and carers, local community and local agencies. What are their needs?
  • Discuss needs and current provision with your staff and the local authority. What is already available locally? Where are the gaps in provision? Who is best suited to establish what, when and where?
  • List existing partners. Where are the gaps? What are their strengths?
  • Meet with local groups and agencies. Share your aims, objectives and targets. Discuss your priorities and theirs. How can you support each other to achieve these?

Related publications and resources