Leadership and Learning to improve outcomes for pupils

identified with SEND

Professor Sonia Blandford

Lamb Inquiry (DCSF, 2009) said:

• Change the culture in schools for children with

SEN

• There should be a relentless drive to improve outcomes for all children

• Bring parents into contact with schools to discuss their children, their interests and their targets.

SEN and inclusion

• Research shows importance of head teacher in developing an inclusive school (Kugelmass, 2003)

• Leadership central to Achievement for All –pilot focussed on 4 key areas of inclusive leadership identified by National College-vision, commitment, collaboration and communication (NCSL, 2010)

Whose responsibility ?

‘School leaders set the ethos that either welcomes or side lines disabled children and children with SEN’

(Source: Lamb Inquiry, DCSF, 2009)

Key task for leaders

• Develop a system where teachers are supported and challenged to search for more effective ways of enabling all students to learn.

Teachers beliefs, attitudes, values and actions create the context in which children are able to participate and learn.

Learning from the research • Supporting vulnerable learners is more about social

learning within a particular context rather than using particular techniques or organisational arrangements

• Changing outcomes for vulnerable learners is unlikely to happen without changes in the behaviours of adults

• Starting point-enabling staff to enlarge their capacity of what might be achieved and increase their sense of accountability for bringing this about

(Source: Chapman et al, 2011)

School Leaders

Have a crucial role in sustaining change in beliefs, values and practices

This implies that becoming more inclusive requires:

• Thinking

• Talking

• Reviewing practice

• Refining practice

• And making attempts to develop a more inclusive culture

Creating the right climate

Values should show commitment to

offering educational opportunity to all students and this should be shared

across staff

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Features of successful schools in promoting achievement of children with

SEND (Chapman et al., 2011) • Culture and ethos-a shared common purpose

across the school

• Practices-staff working together to share practice, adapt lesson plans in response to individual need (sometimes on the spot)

• Structures and systems-excellent and focussed on supporting the learning of individual students and staff

• AND……………………….

Management and leadership- School leaders:

• Model deep commitment to the learning of every child

• Lead by example

• Distribute leadership

• Give staff freedom within a framework of high standards

• Develop strong lines of communication

• Encourage team work

Inclusion and School improvement

Inclusion can be seen as a process of ‘school improvement with attitude’

(Source: Ainscow, Booth & Dyson, 2006).

Achievement for All works in partnership with schools to provide :

• A framework for school improvement- implemented through the 4 key elements of leadership, assessment and data tracking, parental engagement and wider outcomes.

• It focuses on children with SEND but the impact is much wider across the school.

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Achievement for All is not about reinventing the wheel: it is about redeploying resources and rethinking approaches.

Achievement for All works with schools to:

• Create a culture for improvement

AND

• A culture for children with SEND

Achievement for All:

based on 3 approaches to improving outcomes and involvement

• A focus on improving aspirations, progress and attainment of all children through high expectations

• Supported and informed by improved engagement with parents through structured conversations, where parents explore what would help their children

• And improving what happens in the classroom

School improvement involves

• Strategic planning

• Operational planning

Schools need to know how to:

• Collect the right data

• Analyse the data

• Set targets

• Involve parents in their children’s learning

• Plan

• Implement

• Monitor and evaluate

Developing school culture for ALL children

• Focus on school leadership

• Focus on pupil progress-all pupils

• Train teachers and other staff

Achievement for All: Effective leadership

• A strong vision for all pupils- supported by commitment, collaboration and effective communication with parents/carers, pupils, teachers and leaders;

• Strong values- demonstrated by the behaviour of staff, governors and pupils;

• Leadership strategies- embedding Achievement for All in all classrooms;

• Professional development- for all leaders, teachers and support practitioners to engage pupils and parents/carers in learning; and

• A focus- on the achievement, access and aspirations of all pupils

Developing and sustaining systems of accountability- in practice this means: • Developing rigorous systems • Understanding and working with governance

structures (including sponsors and executive structures)

• Understanding financial planning • Using data to improve standards • Recruiting and retaining the best staff and

developing individual talents • Developing systems leadership • Developing partnerships with other schools

Teaching and Learning

• Put in place effective assessment

• Put in place effective tracking of pupils

• Track progress and attainment

• Set appropriate targets for pupils

• CPD for teachers

Changing school and teacher attitudes

"It’s about saying, is this progress as good as it should be? And if it isn’t, why isn’t it? And what are we doing about it?" (NS Regional Advisor)

Focus on raising attainment= learning + attainment in the classroom

In practice:

• Rigorous assessment and tracking of pupil progress

• Set challenging targets for pupils

• Interventions-where appropriate

• Improve literacy and numeracy

Identifying SEND- how accurate?

By end of pilot- 5.6% of pupils in the target cohort were no longer considered to have SEND by their schools (the majority were previously at School Action)

(Source: DfE, 2011)

Possible reasons for change: a systematic approach? (adapted from DfE, 2011)

1. Achievement for All Provided

schools with the opportunity to reflect on how

SEND is defined and understood

2. This enabled schools to target provision more effectively and

efficiently for their most vulnerable

learners.

3. Teachers’ classroom practice

became more inclusive in

meeting the needs of all pupils in the

classroom.

4. Thus, what was required to meet

the needs of certain pupils was

no longer considered to be ‘different and/or additional’, as it

had become embedded in

everyday practice.

Haverstock school reduced the numbers on the SEND register and boosted attainment

Haverstock began their AfA journey in 2009…

Secondary, 1,300 pupils

>50% on SEN register

>60% EAL

>70% ethnic minorities

38% achieving 5A* - C GCSE (inc. English and maths)

AfA has been a whole-school priority in the school since 2009, fundamental to improving practice and supporting staff, especially with regards to SEND

…with impressive results

SEN register has fallen by 11%

5A*-C at GCSE (inc. English and maths) rose to 50% in 2011

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In addition to improved outcomes, AfA saves schools and Local Authorities money in cash terms

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16

Exclusion, per pupil

Support per disruptive pupil

Specialised interventions, per pupil

Persistent absence, per pupil

Achievement for All, per school

Annual costs associated with behaviour and attendance (£ 000's) 10% drop in persistent

absenteeism across pilot schools

Significant reductions in bullying and behavioural problems reported by teachers

Many schools saw reduced exclusions, saving cash for the school and Local Authority1

AfA costs less per school than many interventions associated with behaviour and attendance, per pupil

Pilot schools made significant savings on these interventions

1. Exclusion data was not reported in the evaluation report, however, anecdotal evidence suggests significant drops in the exclusion rate 28

Achievement for All: Value for money

• Exclusions: the cost of one excluded child is in the region of £14,664pa

• Persistent absence: dealing with each absentee cost is in the region of £1,696pa

• Specialised interventions: intervention costs between £1,000 and £3,000pa

• Disruption: costs of supporting a disruptive pupil in school are around £6000pa

For every school, Academy Group or Local Authority, there are at least 10 good reasons to join AfA

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1

1. There is a high degree of overlap between pupils with SEND and the lowest performing 20% in terms of attainment