The Schools Blog

The strongest schools and colleges in the country are being urged by the government to export their formula for success and collaborate with weaker schools to bring standards up to the levels of the best.

Schools Minister Andrew Adonis has launched a prospectus explaining how high performing schools, sixth-form and FE colleges can do even more for their communities by getting involved in academies and trusts.

The Government is providing up to £300,000 set-up funding for high achieving schools that sponsor less successful schools to become academies to help raise their standards.

The government suggests that some weaker schools have made huge leaps in results thanks to federations with stronger schools and today’s announcement takes forward Children, Schools and Families Secretary Ed Balls pledge in July that successful universities, colleges or schools would be exempt from paying £2 million to sponsor an academy.

The argument is that good schools can support struggling ones by becoming part of an academy federation, enabling them, supported by state capital and funding, to share quality teaching and learning and their good leadership and ethos. 

Adonis’ line is that, “Good schools will be able to spread educational excellence to more children in their local communities. In return partnership with an academy or within a trust offers reciprocal benefits such as staff development, sharing of expertise and best practice and expanded learning opportunities for students.

Examples of good schools which have become involved in weaker ones through trusts, academies and federations include: Thomas Telford School; Greensward College, The Bramston School and The Rickstones School in Essex; The Priory Federation of Academies in Lincoln; the Ridings High School and King Edmund Community School in South Gloucestershire; the Haberdasher Academy Federations; and Chester-le-Street Learning Community Trust in Durham.

34 schools have become trust Schools and 307 schools are working towards trust status, of which 218 are working in partnership with other schools to acquire a trust, enabling schools to develop formal collaborative arrangements.

Latest figures show about 30 FE and sixth form colleges have already expressed an interest in the trust schools programme and seven are confirmed trust school partners.

For schools the message is obvious.  For business there is an opportunity too, because one of the biggest issues will be the question of how information is shared, and how communication between schools is improved.

The prospectus “Academies and Trusts: Opportunities for schools, sixth-form and FE colleges” is attached

You can read more news on www.schools.co.uk

If you work in a school you can receive additional news through our regular email news service by signing up at http://www.schools.co.uk/subscribe.html    These services are free.

[ CLICK HERE FOR ATTACHMENT]

Tony Attwood

These notes on schooling and education are written by Tony Attwood.  You can read more news on www.schools.co.uk   If you work in a school you can receive additional news through our regular email news service by signing up at http://www.schools.co.uk/subscribe.html    These services are free. 

Today’s story… 

All parents will get regular electronic reports on their children’s progress in future – going far beyond the traditional annual school report, Schools Minister Jim Knight announced this week.All secondary schools in England will be expected to have ‘real-time’ reporting systems up and running by 2010 and all primary schools two years later - although many schools already run these systems.

Real-time reporting means parents will be able to access frequently updated information on children’s achievement, progress, attendance, behaviour and special needs wherever, whenever they want – using secure, online systems.

Other systems could include text alert systems, school intranet, email or even video-conferencing.

A £600,000 pilot is being run by Becta the government-industry body specifically looking at lowering the cost of devices and connectivity and informing parents about the educational benefits of a home computer.

The Government has invested £5billion in schools ICT since 1997, with another £837million earmarked over the next three years – leaving it with the highest levels of embedded technology in classrooms in European Union and one computer for every three pupils.

Here’s the full detail

a 12-week public consultation on the best way to achieve universal home access – focusing on key issues such as who should pay for access and how do to ensure that children use the internet in a safe and purposeful manner.

a £600,000 Becta pilot scheme to test different ways ensuring all families have access to a computer at home in 50 schools across Birmingham, Worcestershire, Stockton and Brent - working with partners Dell, Intel, RM and PC World to reduce the cost of devices and broadband connection – and stress the educational benefits of home access to parents and teachers. This includes subsidising the cost of acquiring home technology for a whole year group – with direct funding for schools and parental contributions.

an additional £30million for low income families from the most disadvantaged areas gain access to internet and computer technology at home – funding from within the Department’s current budget which is being diverted to this particular programme. The Government has already invested £60million in the two-year Computers for Pupils scheme, which target 1000 schools in England’s most deprived areas.

a high-level study, called Beyond Current Horizons, working with the best thinkers in education and involving a focussed consultation with the industry, parents, learners and the community, to access the long-term social, economic and cultural impact of technology on children’s lives, their education and beyond between 2008 and 2025.

There’s a lot more information and a link to every school in the UK on www.schools.co.uk   If you are looking to sell products or services to schools you’ll find a lot more information on www.educationmarketing.org.uk

Tony Attwood