Since we were set up over five years ago, SCHOOLS Northeast has tracked the development of new and diverse partnerships, collaborations and models for joint working and support between schools across the North East. From informal groupings of school leaders choosing to come together, to the emergence of multi academy trusts and Teaching school alliances, there are now a plethora of different forms of partnership and collaboration operating in our region. The vast majority of schools are involved in one or more these arrangements and many are currently pursuing, or in active discussions about, the further development of collaborative arrangements to drive school improvement in the future. It is not surprising, therefore, that the cross-party Education Select Committee recently decided to hold an inquiry into school partnerships and collaboration, the findings of which were released today.
Based on evidence gathered from over 50 written submissions and two oral evidence sessions, the Committee welcomes the increasing importance of partnerships between schools and is enthusiastic about the mutual benefits of school collaboration for all involved. It urges Government to continue to promote this message “so as to reassure reluctant governing bodies and promote equality of esteem among all participants”.
Diversity
The report welcomes the diversity of models emerging in the system, stating:
“We believe that, in common with the Government’s view of the education system, schools are best placed to identify the most effective ways to work with other schools, based on their particular history, ethos and challenges. Schools should be able to adopt models of partnership and co-operation that suit their needs within a legislative and policy framework that is as non-prescriptive as possible. “
However, the Committee identifies that from the evidence they received “school partnerships with clear lines of accountability and some element of obligation are more likely to be successful in achieving gains from collaboration.”
Evidence of impact
With significant investment in and emphasis on school collaboration, the lack of evidence or robust evaluation of the impact of school partnerships concerns the Committee. It recommends that the Government embed evaluation into all further initiatives and collects ‘systematic’ evidence on ‘what works’.
Data and families of schools
The report highlights the need for data and systems to support schools in forming partnerships and identifying schools to work with.
The Government’s recent publication of ‘Similar Schools data’ is seen as a useful first step, but the Committee is critical of the limited nature of this data when compared to the ‘Families of Schools’ data produced for the City Challenges. They ask DfE to “review the presentation of similar schools data in consultation with schools in order to provide richer and more easily accessible information on possible partners.”
Geographical coherence
The report stresses the advantage gained from schools working in collaboration with others in close proximity to them or in a geographically coherent area. The Committee suggests that the DfE should “bear in mind the significance of this when identifying sponsors for academies and should ensure that the advantages of geographical proximity are set out in relevant guidance on school partnerships and cooperation more generally.” Specifically, the Committee draws attention to the difficulties for schools in rural or coastal areas in participating in collaborative models and calls on Government to do more to address this issue.
Incentivising collaboration
The report weighs up the merits of a range of different mechanisms to encourage schools to support each other by incentivising partnerships:
- Ofsted - the Committee concludes that it “would be incorrect and confusing for Ofsted to label outstanding schools differently according to their excellence in supporting other schools, when they deliver just as good levels of education to the pupils in their care.” But they strongly support the proposal recently outlined by Sir Michael Wilshaw for an excellent leadership award to be given to school leaders who support underperforming schools in disadvantaged communities. This they suggest should be seen as the ‘highest accolade’ for a Head Teacher.
- Accountability measures - the committee regrets the current lack of a workable model of school accountability that ‘incentivises schools to form partnerships, whilst preserving school level responsibility and retaining the impetus to maximise their pupils’ performance’ and calls for further work on this.
- Financial incentives - the Committee states that it believes that schools should be provided with funding from government to help meet the costs associated with taking part in collaboration. They express concern that the current funding incentives are too narrowly concentrated on academy sponsorship and call on government to open this funding up to meet the costs of formalising other forms of partnerships, particularly primary school federations.
Independent State School partnerships
With specific regard to the development of partnerships between Independent schools and state schools, the Committee considers that the Government’s limited focus on academy sponsorship is ‘not always the right engagement model for such partnerships’ and recommends the re-introduction of ‘targeted seed corn funding to encourage the establishment of sustainable Independent State School Partnerships’.
Coordination, oversight and capacity
Drawing on evidence from the London Challenge and City Challenge, the report suggests that oversight might be best organised on a regional basis and discusses the risks of a lack of strategic oversight in the education system and emerging gaps in provision.
The Committee views Local Authorities as having a critical role to play in a school-led improvement system in creating ‘enabling environments within which collaboration can flourish’. They call for clarification of what is expected of local authorities in the ‘new system’ and recommend that the ‘Government set out clearly the role of local authorities in helping to broker school-to- school partnerships and acting as champions of all parents and children, with particular reference to academies in their region’.
The Committee also calls on the Government to set out how organisations in the ‘middle tier’ will be held to account for strategic oversight of partnership working in all schools and how it will ensure that gaps are not allowed to develop or remain.
Addressing concerns as to the capacity of a schools-led improvement system to provide all of the necessary expertise schools require, the Committee asks the DfE to do more to ensure schools are aware of where they can access advice and review the provision of expert advisers.
Systems leaders and Teaching Schools
As pillars of a school-led system and agents of school to school support, the role of systems leaders such as NLEs, LLEs and Teaching School alliances, and the challenges they face, are addressed in the report. The Committee received evidence arguing that incentives had been created for Teaching Schools to focus on ‘commercial opportunities rather than ensuring collaboration works to enhance the quality and range of educational opportunities available to pupils’.
A number of the witnesses to the Committee argued that some funding for Teaching Schools should be extended beyond the initial three years to continue to ‘stimulate the collaborative working of Teaching School alliances’. But this view was rejected by the Committee. It agreed with the DfE that despite the challenges posed by the nature of Teaching School funding, it was right that only start up costs were provided with an expectation that they are self-sustaining thereafter.
The report includes concerns about the inconsistencies in coverage and deployment of Teaching Schools and National Leaders of Education and the Committee recommends that the DfE and NCTL ‘take steps to identify and designate system leaders, such as National Leaders of Education and Teaching Schools, in areas where they are currently lacking’. It also suggests that DfE and NCTL explore sub-regional or local level coordination of system leadership and offer increased incentives for existing system leaders to work in the areas of greatest need.
Academies and collaboration
On academy chains, Committee calls for Ofsted to be given the powers needed to inspect academy chains and recommends that the procedures for schools to leave academy chains by mutual consent are formalised and published. They also suggest that schools consistently judged ‘Outstanding’ should have the flexibility to leave an academy chain even where this is against the wishes of the chain management.
Converter academies
The Committee echo concerns in other recent reports (including the Academies Commission) regarding the lack of accountability on the expectation that converter academies support another school. They recommend the introduction of more rigorous processes at the conversion stage and ongoing monitoring to assess commitment and track involvement and impact.
The Committee also urges Government to ensure that outstanding converter academies are ‘able to support other schools in the ways they think will bring about the best results’, suggesting that schools should be positively and actively encouraged to support others through models other than that of sponsoring another academy.
Your view
What do you think are the barriers to increased school collaboration? What incentives would you like to see to encourage schools to work together and support each other especially with regard to schools in challenging circumstances? Are Teaching Schools working and should they have access to ongoing funding beyond the initial three years? Is a diversity of models a help or hindrance to system-wide school improvement? What is the role of the Local Authority in a schools-led system?
Let us know your views – email think@schoolsnortheast.com
Further reading
• Government's flagship academies are ‘failing to help weaker schools,’ says select committee report (Independent)
• Top heads should run two or more schools, say MPs (Telegraph)
• Academy chains should face Ofsted inspection, say MPs (BBC)