ADVANCED
SCHOOLS
Background
The Advanced Schools programme is designed to
improve standards and transform secondary education. The commitment
from the White Paper, Schools Achieving Success, and Investment
for Reform is to establish a network of 300 Advanced Schools
by 2006. The aim is that our best secondary schools will lead
the way in their local areas, using their experience for the benefit
of the system, spreading their excellence and inviting other schools
to work with them to raise standards, drive school improvement
and test innovative ideas.
Any secondary school that feels it fulfils the
criteria may apply. Existing secondary Beacons will not automatically
qualify but should be well placed to meet the application criteria.
The Advanced schools programme has been developed
to build on the lessons learned from the Beacon schools programme
and will replace Beacon schools in the secondary phase, taking
Beacon practice to the next level.
Selection and proposed activities of Advanced
Schools
— Advanced schools will be selected
from amongst the most successful and progressive secondary schools
in the country.
— Advanced schools will be intensively
collaborative schools; working with a group of schools to raise
standards and share good practice.
— Advanced schools will work with low
achieving schools and those in difficult circumstances in order
to drive up standards and encourage excellence.
— They will be at the cutting edge
of innovation, guiding schools towards improvements that will
advance the secondary education system and deliver real gains
in standards.
— They will link with higher education
institutions to contribute to Initial Teacher Training.
— They will actively participate in
research into educational strategies and pioneering experimental
approaches to learning, to ensure that these ground-breaking techniques
transform the secondary education system.
— Guidance about the criteria and application
process is available on the website.
Latest Facts
— Initial applications and proposals
are due by 31 January 2003
— The first group of Advanced schools
will begin operation in April 2003.
— Core funding of up to £60,000
a year for three years for an agreed programme of activities will
be made available to Advanced schools.
KS3 STRATEGY
The Government has acted to address the widely
recognised problem that too many pupils fail to make sufficient
progress at Key Stage 3; and lose motivation and engagement. As
many as 1 in 3 (200,000) pupils a year currently do not achieve
the standard expected for 14 year olds. This year's results, although
showing some improvements, reflect on the whole a similar picture
to previous years. This supports the decision to introduce the
Key Stage 3 Strategy.
The aims of the Key Stage 3 Strategy are to
raise standards for all pupils throughout Key Stage 3, by spreading
excellent teaching and learning practices to every classroom.
The strategy aims to raise standards for all 11-14 year old with
the objectives that the majority should reach the expected standards
in English, mathematics, science and ICT; should benefit from
a broad curriculum; learn to reason and think creatively and logically;
and take responsibility for their own learning.
The strategy is designed to aims raise standards
for all pupils. It also focuses on pupils who need extra support
and who are falling behind their peers. The Strategy includes
specific measures that will support improved transfer arrangements.
A new transition package (worth £10,500 per secondary school)
includes training and resources for: transition activities, literacy
and numeracy summer schools, catch up programmes and additional
support in the second and third years for pupils who still need
it. Training and materials to support specific group of pupils—those
from ethnic minorities; the gifted and talented and with special
educational needs—are also being introduced.
Last year, when we launched the strategy we
advised schools that one way to manage its introduction was by
focusing on years 7 and 8 in its initial stages. As the strategy
moves into the second year, it is important that this focus is
extended to include all years and the core subjects at Key Stage
3, particularly ensuring that improved standards are reflected
in pupils' test results.
The national results have improved by one percentage
point from last year for English and mathematics to 66% and 67%
respectively, while the results for science, at 66%, have stayed
the same as 2001, following a rise of 7% in the previous year.
These are modest, but welcome, improvements, particularly as the
Strategy had only been underway for two full terms when the test
were taken in May. Gender issues are significant at Key Stage
3, and there continues to be large gap between boys and girls
performance in English, with girls being 17 percentage points
ahead in 2002.
The big task now is for schools to renew efforts
in securing significant improvements for 2003 and beyond. It will
be important for schools to focus on all years groups at Key Stage
3, and in particular raising standards for pupils in Year 9, taking
the tests. Year 7 catch up and Year 9 booster programmes are being
strengthened through improved materials, with catch up being supported
by a new Year 7 test available from 2003. Improvements to English
material will include addressing changes to the national curriculum
test from 2003 and place emphasis on boys writing.
The contribution of headteachers is imperative
in ensuring that the strategy is implemented successfully in their
schools. Their commitment and strong leadership roles are key
if we are to transform the Key Stage 3 results. We know that Headteachers
are willing to show their commitment, as demonstrated from the
Mori poll in July, which found that 93% strongly support the strategy.
14-19 POLICY
The Green Paper 14-19: extending opportunities,
raising standards was published in February 2002, and consulted
widely on until the end of May.
The main proposals in the Green Paper were:
— Creation of new pathways of learning
to meet pupils' needs and aspirations;
— Reforming the 14-16 curriculum in
order to increase its flexibility through narrowing the curriculum
and providing `entitlements' to subjects;
— Making high quality vocational options
available to all students, which are highly recognised and offer
the opportunity of entry to HE;
— Building parity of esteem between
vocational and academic GCSEs/A Levels;
— Encouraging young people to progress
at a pace that is right for them including accelerated and slower
paced learning according;
— A new A distinction grade at A Level
to stretch the most able;
— Creation of an overarching award
to mark achievement at 19;
— Ensuring provision of systematic,
high quality advice and guidance to help students acquire the
skills to make choices at 14 and then plan, manage and review
their progress throughout the 14-19 phase and beyond;
— Promoting increased collaboration
between education providers;
— Using pathfinders to develop best
practice in collaborative working.
These proposals are designed to enable all pupils
to fulfil their potential. We want to provide tailored programmes
of learning that meet young people's individual needs and aspirations.
These proposals will deliver a range of high
quality, high status academic, vocational/technical and mixed
options. This will help to ensure that schools offer something
relevant and attractive to all pupils, not just the academically
minded.
The rationale for the policy is both social
(reducing the likelihood of exclusion in later life, through raising
young people's qualification levels and employability) and economic
(meeting certain skills shortages; creating savings through preventing
social exclusion).
14-19 PATHFINDERS
A pathfinder programme is underway to test different
models of collaborative working in different circumstances in
order to secure greater choice of curriculum pathways. Pathfinders
will:
— Test out a range of ideas and discover
new ones
— Develop best practice in 14-19 education
and training to guide the steps to and pace of a staged national
roll out
— See how 14-19 policy will fit with
other policies, identify barriers to a coherent 14-19 phase and
design ways to overcome them
— Show that a coherent 14-19 phase
can be achieved nationally in a variety of locations with different
social circumstances and different mixes of schools and colleges.
TRAINING SCHOOLS
Training Schools were established following
the 1998 Green Paper: Teachers— meeting the challenge
of change, to:
— demonstrate and develop best practice
in initial teacher training
— explore and try out new approaches
to train teachers; and
— carry out and use teaching research
Training schools were also expected to build
up and share good and developing training practice with other
schools and partners within and outside their networks.
Following two application rounds there are currently
82 Training Schools in place:
— 61 secondary, 21 primary
— 21 hold Beacon status, two are City
Technology Colleges and 28 have specialist school status
— there are training schools in each
Government region
Funding
£9 million will have been invested in the
programme to 2002-03, with schools receiving an average of £50,000
per annum
Progress to date
The impact of the Training School programme
has been:
— growth in initial teacher training
activity
— an increase in the range and number
of trainees undertaking teaching practice and other placements
— better quality placements and experiences
for trainees compared to their peers
— improved use of technology to support
initial teacher training activity
— the introduction of accredited mentor
training and greater use of mentoring in schools
— wide ranging Continuing Professional
Development activities and greater awareness of development opportunities
available
Expansion
By 2005-06, the total number of Training Schools
is due to expand from 82 to some 260.
The current application round closed in September
2002 and was open to all maintained schools (except those in special
measures or serious weaknesses). There has been significant interest
and demand far exceeds the 60 likely to be approved for 2003.
Schools submitted four year plans against pre-set
criteria. Successful schools will receive up to £55k per
year for Secondary and up to £45k per year for Primary.
Next steps
The White Paper commits to achieving better
coherence across the diversity programmes and we are working together
to align our key processes.
EXCELLENCE IN
CITIES
Coverage
— Excellence in Cities covers 58 whole
local authorities which together cover all the major cities in
the country, with a further 24 local authorities involved in Excellence
Clusters covering smaller pockets of deprivation beyond the cities.
— Over 1,000 secondary schools, and
over 1,000 primary schools, benefit through the main programme
and the Primary Extension Project respectively.
Content
— The main programme currently has
seven strands: extended opportunities for gifted and talented
pupils; Learning Mentors; Learning Support Units; City Learning
Centres; more Beacon schools; more Specialist Schools; EiC Action
Zones.
— EiC is designed to ensure a strategic
approach across partnerships to the use of shared resources like
CLCs, Beacon, and Specialist schools, and a targeted approach
to the distribution of Learning Mentors and the location of Learning
Support Units.
— In the Primary Extension Project
and Excellence Clusters the strands are restricted to:
— Primary Learning Support Units;
— Enhanced opportunities for gifted
and talented pupils. Excellence Clusters have the same and
— (in the case of Excellence Clusters)
a tailored strand
As well as the Primary Project Extension some
EiC areas (13) benefit from a pilot scheme which intensifies support
for low attaining primary schools through the use of specialist
consultants, working to recognise specific needs and raise standards
in literacy and mathematics.
Achievements
— GCSE performance tables for 2000
and 2001 show that on average results, in terms of five good GCSEs
or equivalent, rose faster overall in EiC areas than elsewhere.
Provisional results this year tell a similar story with nearly
80% of EiC Partnerships making further gains on these successes.
— Last year Key Stage 3 results in
English and Maths were particularly encouraging—with EiC
areas improving four times more on average than non-EiC areas
in English. This year early indications are that EiCs (Phase 1
+ 2 + 3 + Clusters) have again improved.
Expansion
As a result of the Spending Round Excellence
in Cities will be sustained to 2005-06 and there will be:
— further expansion of Excellence Clusters
— expansion of the EiC Primary Extension
Project
— increases in funding for developments
focused on EiC areas, which include:
— the new Leadership Incentive
Grant
— additional funding for new and
current behavioural improvement strategies and
EiC Excellence Clusters
— Clusters are designed to bring the
benefits of the Excellence in Cities programme to smaller pockets
of deprivation.
— Like Excellence in Cities, they focus
on some of the most deprived areas of the country, using a structured
programme designed to raise standards.
— Clusters benefit from extra resources
to provide the three core strands of the Excellence in Cities
programme:
— extended opportunities for gifted
and talented pupils;
— access to full time Learning Mentors
for pupils who need them in schools in the EiC areas;
— Learning Support Units to
tackle disruption.
— A fourth strand of funding is available
to target particular local issues, as identified by the schools
in each Cluster.
— The first round of Clusters began
operation in September 2001, with further Clusters in subsequent
years.
— There are 12 Clusters in the first
round. They are situated in: Coventry, Croydon, Dewsbury and Batley,
East Lancashire (Burnley and Nelson), Huddersfield, Portsmouth,
Shepway (Folkestone and Hythe), Tameside, Tilbury and Chadwell,
Walsall, West Cumbria and West Lancashire (Skelmersdale)
— These Clusters started in September
2001, with the exception of Tilbury and Chadwell, which started
in January 2002.
— In October 2001, Stephen Timms announced
the second round of Excellence Clusters. These Clusters started
in September 2002 and are situated in: Barnet, Bishop Auckland,
Crewe, Derby, High Wycombe, Hillingdon, Lancaster, Milton Keynes,
Norwich, Peterborough, Stockport and Wigan.
— In October 2002 David Miliband announced
the third round of Clusters. These will start in September 2003.
They are situated in Ashford, Bexley, Boston, Chesterfield, Grantham,
Gravesend, Harlow, Havering, Maidstone, Northampton, Scunthorpe,
Spalding and Swindon.
SCHOOLS FACING
CHALLENGING CIRCUMSTANCES
AND LEADERSHIP
INCENTIVE GRANT
— We are committed to raising standards
in all of our schools and to narrowing the achievement gap between
our highest and lowest performing schools. We need the best heads
for the toughest schools. So much in any school depends on the
quality of the head and the senior management team. So much more
depends on them in schools which serve the poorest communities.
— Some schools facing challenging circumstances
already have this kind of "transformational" leadership.
Leadership teams have pushed through changes that lead to dramatically
higher standards.
— The new Leadership Incentive Grant
will enable us to invest in leadership reform. 1,400 schools will
each receive around £125,000 in each of the next three years.
Funding will be targeted on schools in our cities and other secondary
schools facing challenging circumstances. This includes schools
with less than 30% five GCSEs at grades A*-C and those with more
than 35% of pupils eligible for free school meals.
Facts and figures
— 25% or more of their pupils should
achieve five A*-C grades at GCSE (or equivalent) by 2006.
— In 2001, the number of schools where
less than 25% of pupils achieved five good passes at GCSE fell
to 372. 155 schools achieving 25% or less in 2000, exceeded the
target in 2001.
— Action to support schools with low
levels of GCSE attainment began with 70 pilot schools in December
2000 and was extended to all schools with 25% or less five GCSES
at A*-C from April 2001. £210 million funding is available
in 2002-03 to LEAs and schools from the Standards Fund School
Improvement Grant to help schools to improve. 15% of this is earmarked
for schools causing concern. Secondary schools with high levels
of free school meals or low levels of attainment at KS4 and schools
in special measures will receive up to £70,000. Schools will
decide how best to spend these additional funds to raise levels
of attainment at Key Stage 4.
Background
Schools can access a range of support including
advice and good practice (for example, "Narrowing the Achievement
Gap" a CD Rom featuring case studies of schools successfully
tackling particular challenges), a pilot Trainee Head scheme to
develop effective leaders for schools facing challenging circumstances
and a new pilot scheme working with four LEAs to improve pupil's
literacy skills. Ofsted monitoring helps schools to identify priorities
for improvements and provides valuable evidence for policy development.
The Schools facing extremely challenging circumstances action
research project is currently in its planning stages and aims
to learn about what works in the most difficult of circumstances.
In this years Spending Review, the Chancellor
announced a new Leadership Incentive Grant and allocated £175
million for each of the next three years. This money will go direct
to 1,400 secondary schools who will each receive around £125k
for three years.
LEADERSHIP INCENTIVE
GRANT: SUMMARY
— 1,400 mainstream secondary schools—all
EiC plus those in danger of missing floor targets—will receive
£125k pa LIG for three years from April 2003. Non-EiC schools
will receive an extra £50k to facilitate partnership building.
— Prime purposes: raise quality of
leadership at all levels [aiming to be "transformational"]
and raise attainment of all pupils.
— Schools will be categorised through
discussion between LEA and school's SMT/GB according to the level
of autonomy they have in drawing up and implementing their plans.
CASS will adopt LEA role in Academies.
— Four levels: full autonomy [1], light
touch [2], support from LEA and Consultant HTs [3], and major
intervention [4]. Where disagreement occurs between school and
LEA, another LEA [nominated by DfES] will decide.
— Level 3 schools cover a wide range:
from making some progress to complacent and coasting.
— All Level 3 and 4 schools will be
required to work with Consultant HTs. The involvement will depend
on their needs.
— Level of autonomy determined by all
schools undertaking with LEA a standardised process linking examination
performance and leadership.
— LIG Assessment Tool is designed to
aid self- and peer-assessment [a key aspect of the process].
— Collaboration is key. EiC partnerships/Clusters/EAZs
will have to agree plans for collaboration and submit brief, strategic
summaries to DfES. Non-EiC groups will agree similar plans with
their LEAs—DfES EAs will provide monitoring.
— LEAs will have to show how they will
collaborate with other authorities.
— Progress and level of autonomy will
be reviewed annually.
— Evaluation will be based on a narrow
range of criteria linked to attainment, T&L and the quality
of leadership [as assessed by the LIG Assessment Tool].
— LEA staff and potential Consultant
HTs [in the first instance nominated by their LEAs and NCSL]
will be trained by DfES and NCSL in January. There will also be
training for EiC staff.
— A range of support to enable schools
to deliver necessary improvement is being arranged. It includes
guidance for planning, deploying staff, organising the curriculum
and pedagogy.
— Further funding to strengthen leadership
will be available from April 2004 in the shape of the Leadership
Reserve: proposals for its use will need to be put to HMT and
No 10 in the course of the next few months.
SCHOOLS CAUSING
CONCERN
Categories
Through Ofsted inspection there are four categories
recognised. These are schools requiring special measures, schools
with serious weaknesses, schools with inadequate sixth forms and
underachieving schools. LEAs are also under duty to monitor their
schools, recognise when they are causing concern and challenge
and support with intervention in inverse proportion to success.
Policy
The Department's role is to develop and implement
policy on schools causing concern and help reduce the number of
schools requiring special measures or judged to have serious weaknesses.
We encourage the use of a wide range of strategies and consideration
of the use of intervention powers by LEAs. These are to add additional
governors and/or take back a school's delegated budget or replace
the governing body of school with an interim executive board.
Consideration will also be given to the use of the Secretary of
State's powers to add additional governors, replace the governing
body or close a school. New guidance has recently been sent to
LEAs.
Policy is that schools in special measure or
with serious weaknesses should be turned around in two years or
closed. A school may also be given a Fresh Start, a school closed
and a new school opened on the same site, though this is an option
of last resort.
Progress
The White Paper Schools Achieving Success
recognised that there has been significant progress in tackling
failure in schools and the numbers of schools in special measures
and judged to have serious weaknesses continues to fall. There
currently 50 secondary schools in special measures compared to
88 secondary schools in summer 1998 and there are 80 with serious
weaknesses.
New Measures
It was recognised, however, that any failure
is unacceptable and more could be done to turnaround schools as
quickly as possible and ensure those with serious weaknesses do
not decline and require special measures. The new measures in
the Education Act 2002, which came into force in September
and October, allow LEAs to use intervention powers at an earlier
stage for schools in special measure and those with serious weaknesses.
The Secretary of State's powers have also been extended to cover
schools with serious weaknesses.
LEAs and schools are also encouraged to take
partners and the Secretary of State has powers in the Act to require
them to take partners where they have not done so and if it seems
this will allow for more rapid and sustainable change. We are
currently funding 11 partnerships to inform this policy and pilot
some school improvement strategies. These partnerships range from
fairly loose arrangements to full federation.
PART FOUR
FUNDING TO
SUPPORT INITIATIVES
RELATING POST-ELEVEN
EDUCATION
"Details of funding for each type of school,
including per pupil funding where there is a difference"
SCHOOL DIVERSITY PROGRAMMES
| Programme | Funding
| Tasks/Responsibilities | Basis for Funding
|
| Specialist Schools | £150K capital (inc. £50K sponsorship)
£123 per student p/a recurrent
| Capital development
Supports an objective and target based development plan in the specialist curriculum
| Funding is both an incentive and designed to meet costs of development and implementation of school plans, community outreach and maintenance of capital assets.
|
| Advanced Schools | up to £60K p/a
(Schools in receipt of the Leadership Incentive Grant will not get additional funding for Advanced activities)
| Advanced schools will lead the way in their local areas, using their experience for the benefit of the system, spreading their excellence and challenging other schools to work with them to transform secondary education, drive school improvement and test out innovative ideas.
| Funding will support costs of associated activities.
|
| Training Schools | £55K p/a to secondary schools
£45K p/a primaries
(These apply to schools admitted into the programme from Sept `03—previously funding varied depending on proposals).
| To develop and disseminate practice in ITT and continuing teacher training, and undertake research in ITT and CPD
| Funding meets costs of associated activities
|
| Extended Plus Schools | £162K start-up funding
£93K per year thereafter
| Schools will develop a range of services, including as a minimum childcare, health and social care, study support and adult and family learning
| Start up and ongoing costs eg costs of community development manager, capital adjustment costs etc.
|
| Academies | Varies. Capital grant from DfES and up to £2m contribution from sponsor. Recurrent funding from DfES as for maintained schools.
| Replace an existing school(s) facing challenging circumstances, where other forms of intervention or support have not worked or as part of a wider reorganisation; or establish a new school in a disadvantaged area where there is need for additional school places. To raise standards for their own pupils and, through outreach work, to help raise standards for pupils at other local schools.
| Capital grant meets costs of new build or refurbishment of existing buildings. Recurrent funding comparable to local maintained schools in similar circumstances with a specialism.
|
Other Initiatives Relating to Secondary Education
14-19 pathfinders
| £10m is available in 2002-03. The programme is jointly funded by DfES and the LSC.
| Supports testing of new ways of working including increased collaboration between institutions in different circumstances; development of best practice in 14-19 education and training and identification of barriers to a coherent14-19 phase and solutions.
| Extension of collaboration in innovative ways. Pathfinders must show added value, contribute to the evaluation process and share good practice in return for additional funding.
|
| KS3 | £25K—32K per secondary school per year
| Professional development to improve teaching and learning in KS3, inc. additional teaching and support to pupils attaining below their peers
| Cost of school improvement activities |
| Excellence in Cities (EiC) | Secondary—£143 per pupil for G&T, LM, LSUs strands and training and evaluation.
EiC EAZ—300k pa
CLCs—£1.2m capital build, £150k capital redevelopment fund and £220k running costs
Primary EiC—£211 per 5-10 pupil for G&T, LM and LSU running costs
See footnote
| To transform urban secondary education in our major cities where standards have been too low for too long. The programme also includes the Primary Extension Project. EiC partnerships are required to effectively deliver the EiC plan approved and raise attainment levels in doing so.
| Funding is provided based on the entitlement of Free School Meals and pupil numbers.
|
| Excellence Clusters | £140 per pupil
| To provide the benefits of the EiC programme to schools in areas outside of the EiC initiative which experience smaller pockets of deprivation.
| Funding is provided based on the entitlement of Free School Meals and pupil numbers.
|
| Leadership Incentive Grant | £125K a year for three years to 1,400 schools
Funding to schools commences next financial year
| To support schools to:
Develop leadership for transformation
Speed up the pace of improvement in teaching and learning
Collaborate with other schools to strengthen the wider school system
| Schools identified for the grant will be in EiC areas, excellence clusters, education action zones, and will include schools facing challenging circumstances outside of these areas.
|
| SFCC | £70K p/a secondary in non EiC areas
£20K p/a in EiC and EAZ areas
Schools in EAZs receive an extra £30K from the partnership
| Must have a "raised attainment plan" which is cleared with the LEA before funds are released to the school
| Cost of school improvement activities |
| Special Measures | £70K p/a
| Must have a post-Ofsted plan agreed with the LEA. Funding goes to the LEA but need not be pass-ported to the school
| As above |
Footnote: This column identifies the costs of the
main EiC strands, excluding funding of additional Beacon and Specialist
schools which are accounted within the relevant national programme.
DIVERSITY IN
SECONDARY EDUCATION
PART FIVE
PQ from Mr David Chaytor MP
Written Reply: Wednesday 17 July 2002
Mr David Chaytor (Bury North): To ask the Secretary
of State for Education and Skills, if she will list the specialist
schools for which progress reports were submitted in September
(a) 2000 and (b) 2001, broken down by (i) local education authority,
(ii) specialism, (iii) status of the school, (iv) the total number
of applications for places, (v) the number and percentage of pupils
selected by aptitude, (vi) the number and percentage of pupils
with statements and (vii) the number and percentage of pupils
receiving free school meals. (68173)
MR MILIBAND:
The information requested is provided in the attached tables[1],
except that we do not hold information on pupil application numbers
for individual schools or the actual number of pupils selected
on the basis of aptitude.
Data on Free School Meals and Pupils with statements relate to
the 2001 School Census.
Not printed.
1
Not printed. Back
|
