By Penny Slater, Partnership Lead
In November we were delighted to be able to support AEPA, the Area Based Education Partnerships Association, of which we are a proud member, to host the first in a series of briefings bringing together the maintained and academy sectors to create a truly inclusive and collaborative education eco-system.
Just two days after the release of the Curriculum Review, over 650 school and trust leaders tuned in to hear Professor Becky Francis explaining the principles underpinning the review and the key themes of its recommendations.
Baroness Estelle Morris, co-chair of AEPA, listened intently and reflected that, “There is a lot of work to be done but the starting point is always important and to know that your curriculum and assessment review is grounded in evidence, that you’ve consulted widely and that you’ve taken the profession with you is very important”.
After her presentation, Becky listened to comments and took questions. Trust leaders and headteachers were commenting and collaborating in the briefing chat, testament to the inclusive community that AEPA has created.
The comments and questions indicated that the school leaders at the briefing were encouraged, believing that the review panel had consulted widely with the sector, listened, and that the report recommendations were evidence informed. Some of the questions did, however, highlight concerns about the timing of implementation, the challenge of creating space in the curriculum, the practicalities of delivering some of the recommendations as well as calls for clarity on the accountability measures.
At HFL, we will evaluate the recommendations and support school leaders in our locality as they do the same. The importance of place and localism in education is at the core of the work of all the partnerships in AEPA, but we also understand the criticality of working together, sharing practice and remaining outward focussed. We will continually work side by side with our AEPA colleagues to break down barriers to learning and accelerate improvement, giving us and you the best chance to improve outcomes for young people.
AEPA will imminently publish a paper titled “Belonging and Excellence: The Importance of Local Education Partnerships”. The foreword is written by the AEPA co-chairs Baroness Estelle Morris and Dame Christine Gilbert, who both chair local partnerships. We have contributed to the paper and will work with AEPA to celebrate the success of the local education partnership model, to argue for collaboration in and between maintained, free and academy systems and to build a case for moving from interventionist, corrective school improvement approaches towards a preventative model where success is identified, celebrated and replicated.
We will share the paper with you as soon as it is published. The case studies included demonstrate the importance of place and collaborative, local, school-led systems on raising attainment and ensuring that schools and settings are taking into account the long-term needs of pupils – and stakeholders – in their area.
If you missed the briefing, Becky Francis’ slides can be downloaded here.
