Debden Park High School is a specialist performing arts school, serving an urban area which contains pockets of deprivation. The school is part of the Kemnal Academies Trust and is actively involved in a partnership with local schools.
The school was judged to require special measures in January 2007. Leadership and governance were inadequate and the school had a deficit budget. The Trust was asked by the local authority to provide support to the school, which began in March 2007. A period of significant change followed, including a change of headteacher and a new chair of the governing body. Improvement was rapid and the school was removed from special measures in October 2007. The substantive headteacher initially joined the school on a six-month secondment from the Trust. Key tasks for the new leadership were to build governors’ trust, provide them with accurate information about the school's performance, and establish systems and structures which used time effectively and helped governors to maintain a clear focus on improvement.
Two governors from the Trust brought with them a wealth of experience and expertise in school improvement. They used this to work with the governing body. They demonstrated how to use information that the school provided to ask insightful questions. Governors were provided with a wide range of information about the school’s performance, which was presented in a way that was easily accessible to them. Each governor was linked to a specific aspect of the school’s work, such as ensuring high levels of pupil attendance. Governors were also linked to a named member of staff who had responsibility for an aspect of the school’s work, and a process of regular reporting was established between the two. Reports were then discussed at committee meetings and reported back to the full governing body.
The meeting structure was also streamlined. Two committees, one focused on resources and the other on educational standards, were established. Each had clear terms of reference and a timeline of events throughout the year to ensure that all their statutory duties were met. Meetings were agenda-driven, had a clear focus and were conducted in a business-like way so were not too long. This way of working ensured that governors understood their strategic role and did not stray into operational matters. They understood their roles and responsibilties because there were clear induction procedures. All governors were provided with a governor handbook and there was an initial meeting for new governors with the headteacher, chair of governors and clerk.
Expectations were made explicit. Minutes of meetings recorded challenging questions and action points clearly. The school leaders took time to ensure that governors understood the information they were given. They encouraged all governors to ask questions and listen to what they had to say, providing more information, which included some from external experts. These processes built trust and confidence among governors who understood their role of ‘critical friend’ and were able to make informed decisions about the direction of the school.
The overall effectiveness and governance of the school were judged outstanding when inspected in September 2009.
Tuesday, 31 May 2011
Monday, 30 May 2011
Effective Governing Body Case Study: Danecourt Community School, Medway
Danecourt is a primary special school. The school was originally designated for pupils with moderate learning difficulties but is increasingly catering for those with severe learning difficulties and more complex needs. Since 2004, it has had a designated unit for pupils with severe autistic spectrum disorders that has increased in size.
The development of a programme to create individualised learning experiences for autistic children demonstrated the highly effective levels of governor challenge and support for the school. The headteacher had identified that provision for the growing numbers of pupils with autism was an area for development. Two teachers attended a one-day training course on a programme that used the Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA) approach. They presented the headteacher with a proposal to trial this approach with a small group of autistic pupils. They explained the rationale fully and drew up a detailed proposal for a small-scale trial. The headteacher shared this development with the governing body.
The governing body agreed that members of the curriculum committee would receive a presentation from the teacher leading the initiative. The teacher prepared detailed briefing papers for the meeting and drew up an action plan for the implementation of the pilot. The clerk ensured that the papers were sent out well before the meeting so that governors had time to read them and think through the questions they wished to raise. They asked pertinent questions, made requests for tracking data to be provided to them and sought assurances that the well-being of staff would be considered when implementing the changes. The governors asked for a year’s worth of data to be used to project results which they challenged knowledgably. The teacher reported finding the challenge of the governing body useful rather than threatening because it helped her to evaluate the rationale for change and consider its effectiveness.
A date was set for the teacher to return to report to the committee on progress in implementing the trial. Tracking data indicated that the trial had been a success and the programme was then gradually extended for all the autistic pupils. A few months later, governors visited classrooms to monitor its implementation. The modified provision for autistic pupils was recognised as effective in the school’s inspection in October 2009.
The development of a programme to create individualised learning experiences for autistic children demonstrated the highly effective levels of governor challenge and support for the school. The headteacher had identified that provision for the growing numbers of pupils with autism was an area for development. Two teachers attended a one-day training course on a programme that used the Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA) approach. They presented the headteacher with a proposal to trial this approach with a small group of autistic pupils. They explained the rationale fully and drew up a detailed proposal for a small-scale trial. The headteacher shared this development with the governing body.
The governing body agreed that members of the curriculum committee would receive a presentation from the teacher leading the initiative. The teacher prepared detailed briefing papers for the meeting and drew up an action plan for the implementation of the pilot. The clerk ensured that the papers were sent out well before the meeting so that governors had time to read them and think through the questions they wished to raise. They asked pertinent questions, made requests for tracking data to be provided to them and sought assurances that the well-being of staff would be considered when implementing the changes. The governors asked for a year’s worth of data to be used to project results which they challenged knowledgably. The teacher reported finding the challenge of the governing body useful rather than threatening because it helped her to evaluate the rationale for change and consider its effectiveness.
A date was set for the teacher to return to report to the committee on progress in implementing the trial. Tracking data indicated that the trial had been a success and the programme was then gradually extended for all the autistic pupils. A few months later, governors visited classrooms to monitor its implementation. The modified provision for autistic pupils was recognised as effective in the school’s inspection in October 2009.
Sunday, 29 May 2011
Effective Governing Body Case Study: Boyne Hill CoE Infant & Nursery School
Boyne Hill Church of England Infant and Nursery School, Windsor and Maidenhead
The school is located in a multi-ethnic community. A substantial proportion of the pupils use English as an additional language. The governors have a high profile in the school; they are well known to staff, pupils and parents and operate as a close-knit team.
A clear, shared view of their roles and responsibilities, and high expectations of their effectiveness have been developed and established during the past five years. The governing body used its wider networks to recruit new governors from the local community. This shared view and active recruitment were key factors in sustaining outstanding governance.
A well-managed and efficient committee structure made the best possible use of time. The delegation of specific responsibilities for monitoring and evaluating the work of the school to working groups and individual governors was closely aligned to the school’s improvement priorities. Sharply focused minutes from governing body meetings identified precise actions and arrangements for monitoring and informed further improvement planning.
Governors made a significant contribution to the effectiveness of the school’s engagement with
parents and carers. The responsiveness and approachability of governors were valued strongly by parents. Governors recognised the challenge of communicating with parents in a school where 21 languages were spoken and many ethnicities, religions and cultures were represented. They regularly talked to parents in the playground and welcomed them into the school to celebrate their children’s work and achievements, for example, in contributing to creating a new vision statement for the school. Through this informal contact, parents were encouraged to run clubs and attend workshops and meetings about their children’s learning.
Governors also invested considerable time and commitment to ensuring that the views of parents on their children’s learning and well-being were heard. These views were then taken into account and used to identify priorities for improvement in a more formal way. Governors took responsibility for devising questionnaires that were written in plain and accessible English which could be translated if necessary. The questionnaires were sent out annually with pupils’ reports and whenever a need to consult parents was identified during the year. All responses were read and noted. Parents recognised when things happened as a result of their feedback. The prompt response from governors made parents more inclined to engage further with the school, which was evidenced in their high response rates.
The school is located in a multi-ethnic community. A substantial proportion of the pupils use English as an additional language. The governors have a high profile in the school; they are well known to staff, pupils and parents and operate as a close-knit team.
A clear, shared view of their roles and responsibilities, and high expectations of their effectiveness have been developed and established during the past five years. The governing body used its wider networks to recruit new governors from the local community. This shared view and active recruitment were key factors in sustaining outstanding governance.
A well-managed and efficient committee structure made the best possible use of time. The delegation of specific responsibilities for monitoring and evaluating the work of the school to working groups and individual governors was closely aligned to the school’s improvement priorities. Sharply focused minutes from governing body meetings identified precise actions and arrangements for monitoring and informed further improvement planning.
Governors made a significant contribution to the effectiveness of the school’s engagement with
parents and carers. The responsiveness and approachability of governors were valued strongly by parents. Governors recognised the challenge of communicating with parents in a school where 21 languages were spoken and many ethnicities, religions and cultures were represented. They regularly talked to parents in the playground and welcomed them into the school to celebrate their children’s work and achievements, for example, in contributing to creating a new vision statement for the school. Through this informal contact, parents were encouraged to run clubs and attend workshops and meetings about their children’s learning.
Governors also invested considerable time and commitment to ensuring that the views of parents on their children’s learning and well-being were heard. These views were then taken into account and used to identify priorities for improvement in a more formal way. Governors took responsibility for devising questionnaires that were written in plain and accessible English which could be translated if necessary. The questionnaires were sent out annually with pupils’ reports and whenever a need to consult parents was identified during the year. All responses were read and noted. Parents recognised when things happened as a result of their feedback. The prompt response from governors made parents more inclined to engage further with the school, which was evidenced in their high response rates.
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