School Improvement

The Department for Education’s (DfE) guidance document ‘Every School a Good School – A Policy for School Improvement’ (2009) aims to raise standards and promote equality in all our schools. Its vision is to embed across all schools the characteristics of effective schooling: effective leadership; child-centred provision; high-quality teaching and learning; and a school connected to its community.  At the core of the policy is self-evaluation, using performance data and other information, leading to sustained self-improvement.

The guidance emphasises that school improvement is first and foremost the responsibility of the school, based on the premise that schools themselves are best placed to identify areas for improvement and to implement changes that can bring about better outcomes for pupils.

Here at The King’s resulting actions and targets arising out of our self-evaluation are captured in our academy development plan (ADP). Whilst our ADP has actions and targets ranging over one to three years, we review it annually in order to make any necessary adjustments in light of new information flowing from our self-evaluation. 

The Academy Development Planning Cycle

In summary, our academy development cycle follows five steps:

The Academy Development Plan (ADP)

The King’s academy development plan is underpinned by four key areas. We believe that asking what we want to achieve in each of these key areas is crucial to our continuous school improvement journey. The four key areas are:

A Safe Learning Environment:

First and foremost, a school needs to be a safe and inclusive environment where students and adults alike can flourish. The King’s will be that serendipitous moment for a child, where their life chances are improved. Without this all else fails. The strategic area of a safe learning environment will deliver, in line with all statutory obligations, the very best possible working practices in keeping students and adults protected and safe; that working practices respond in a timely manner to students’ educational needs. The academy will draw on the support of a wide range of external agencies, in order to respond in a timely manner to an individual student’s need in order that they can be the best that they can be. 

Leadership:

Second, a school needs great leadership. Great schools have great leaders who have an internal compass, know the direction that needs to be taken and recognise and nurture leadership as it emerges from any part of the organisation – recognising that leadership is not by virtue of position alone. It will deliver clarity and transparency of roles, systems and processes across the school leading to the strongest possible relationships with all stakeholders. The strategic area of leadership is focused on delivering and sustaining strong ethical leadership and management at all levels across the school by investing in people, retaining talent and adding strategic capacity. It will deliver approaches to the use of data, student assessment, monitoring and tracking of performance. 

Teaching and Learning:

Third, teaching and learning is recognised as the 'CORE BUSINESS' of school life and delivers an unwavering focus on creating for our students learning experiences that will last a lifetime. The strategic area of teaching and learning will nurture exceptional professional development for staff, informed by research, in order to reduce the variation in the quality of teaching and learning so that it is a consistently outstanding experience for all learners. 

Curriculum Development (including SIAMS):

Fourth, the curriculum is built from a core discovering life in all its fullness. People get your ‘why’ not your ‘how’, so the academy will ensure that all stakeholders understand the ethical and Christian narratives that drive The King’s school community; that as far as is humanly possible all stakeholders work from a knowledge of the reality and not a perceived reality. It will ensure that students can transition seamlessly between the different phases of their education, delivering a provision of study that meets the needs, aspirations and ambitions of all students so that they are able to make a positive contribution in the world, through the manifestation of our Christian values.