Leading Aspect Award
Learning Trust for Excellence receives award for working together to improve teaching and learning
We are delighted to announce that, as part of the Learning Trust for Excellence, we have been awarded a Leading Aspect Award in recognition of the impact of the wide range of collaborative work taking place. The Leading Aspect Award is a national award that identifies and celebrates leading practice in education.
The award recognises the quality and commitment of all involved in the Learning Trust for Excellence It acknowledges the significant contribution the collaboration is having on improving teaching and learning in our schools. A range of people including teachers, parents, governors, pupils and Head teachers were interviewed as part of the verification process required in order to achieve the award.
Thank you to everybody who has been a part of this. We are so proud that the work we have done with the other schools and partners has had such a positive impact on us all, and most importantly our children.
The Learning Trust for Excellence has lots of exciting plans for 2015 so watch this space.
The Learning Trust for Excellence comprises a group of seven high achieving schools in Sutton Coldfield with experienced Headteachers who work collaboratively to learn from the strengths of each other, share excellent practice and work together to be the best they can be in order to provide the best possible life chances and education across the Trust. The involvement of key partners to support the achievement of the vision is crucial, offering mutually beneficial opportunities in the pursuit of excellence in education and high aspirations for the whole learning community. The primary schools involved are Coppice, Four Oaks, Langley Special School, Little Sutton, Hollyfield, Moor Hall and Whitehouse Common. They have worked together with the King Edwards Schools, BCU, UCB, the Co-operative College and Rotary. The collaboration is a proactive response to the changing educational landscape, inspiring excellence and furthering opportunity for all.
The core co-operative values underpinning the partnership are fundamental to the success - self help, self responsibility, democracy, equality, equity, solidarity. These Trust values are central to all involved in the collaboration and are a high priority for the children. They visit other Trust schools taking part in working days exploring the values with others in their year group. An award is given out in each school every term to pupils demonstrating the Trust values. The children have also been involved in dedicated collaborative activities, raising money for the Rotary campaign against polio.
Working together has made a real difference, continually improving the quality of teaching and learning. Both teaching and non-teaching staff at all levels, as well as Governors within the schools, have been encouraged to work together to share excellent practice, support development and tackle new agendas introduced by both local and national government. Representatives across the schools and partners work together to develop curriculum, share expertise and learning from one another, devise common policies and take ideas and best practice to suit the individual needs of each school. Working groups have been tackling topics including maths, literacy, the early years programme, special education needs,Year 6 work and developing a strategic approach to the use, management, teaching and assessment of ICT across the schools. There is also a focus on school procurement and achieving economies of scale. Furthermore, the Trust is developing its own high quality training, ranging from short sessions on specific aspects of the curriculum, to an 8 week programme on developing outstanding teaching for NQTs across the Trust. The Trust has been sharing the outcomes of their work with other schools across the city and will also help other schools set up Trusts of their own.