Leading together
The return of Stormont has, perhaps somewhat surprisingly, brought with it a degree of stability and a platform for education to move forward in Northern Ireland. The pay deal and workload agreement unlocked the stalemate of industrial action, which in turn has meant a transition to normal working practices in schools and the possibility for the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) to implement its new inspection framework. As in England – no single-word judgements and a more collaborative approach with the school.
The Independent Review of Education identifies key areas where real change is required to make a difference, and work is afoot to start to address these – special educational needs (SEN) and statutory assessment for example. There is much more of course, and the report really must be implemented in full, but there are small encouragements to be taken.
This year, the theme at our Annual Conference is ‘Leading Together’, and this is borne out of the need we see for greater, meaningful collaboration across the sector. As highlighted above, there is much work to be done and as your professional association and trade union, we want to encourage a more joined up approach to make things happen.
How many of you have been invited to join a practitioner group by the Department of Education and then asked to contribute in a similar way by the Education Authority? Two groups, where one collaborative forum would have been much more effective and efficient. We want to encourage organisations and people to talk to one another, to understand different perspectives and to move forward together. That includes working with the other teaching unions and encouraging you to get more involved in the work of ASCL Northern Ireland.
Let me encourage you to reach out, to get involved and to engage as we embrace a rare opportunity to move things forward.
John Trueman
ASCL Northern Ireland Director
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@ASCLNI
Here for you
I am the new Director of ASCL Cymru. Before taking on my role at ASCL, I was headteacher of Rhyl High School. No one ever really prepares you for school leadership. I remember many a meeting that started with, “Well this was never on the NPQH.” It is a hugely difficult and occasionally impossible job, but it is also a job we adore.
Our last ASCL Cymru director, Eithne Hughes, is a remarkable woman who has represented us so well in Wales and across the UK. Eithne has made ASCL Cymru a voice to be listened to and courted. She has shown our strength to challenge but also the integrity to co-construct. The legacy Eithne has left is huge and we are all profoundly grateful to her.
It is the people who work in associations such as ASCL who make the difference. The leaders who had walked a day in our shoes and whose opinion we respect. They understand what we do and why we do it. They provided the most effective challenge, the most accurate evaluations and the support and friendship every school leader needs. To me they made the difference. They helped me be the best version of myself. I found these people through ASCL Cymru.
ASCL Cymru is about speaking for our members, and I will never forget how vitally important this is. I look forward to listening to you, our members, sharing your opinion, and ensuring that our values are maintained within the policy decisions of the Welsh government. However, ASCL Cymru is about more than this and that is what makes it so special. It is about acting on behalf of children, the reason we join education, the reason we work so hard and give so much of ourselves. We are their voice, and I will make sure they are heard loud and clear.
Claire Armitstead
Director of ASCL Cymru
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@ASCLCymru
All change
There has been significant political change since the last
Leader magazine. A new UK government and a new Scottish government, now led by former education secretary, John Swinney.
Changes in Westminster are impacting Holyrood, particularly financially, and influences from south of the border, such as pay claims and the removal of single headline grades from school inspections, could shape developments in Scotland. We're currently negotiating our pay claim, and the new Education (Scotland) Bill, which is about to go through the Scottish Parliament, includes setting up an independent inspectorate.
We are pressing for similar gradings on different quality indicators in His Majesty's Inspectorate of Education (
HMIE) reports to be removed and replaced by a narrative of improvement for each inspection. This would detail where a school is now at, how it got there and where it needs to go next as part of a journey of improvement.
We believe the Chief Inspector should have the power to instruct a local authority or governing body to set up a ‘team around the school’ to ensure there is appropriate support available to help a school improve. Not all local authorities or governing bodies can adequately assist schools post-inspection due to resource limitations, thus help from outside may be required.
Rising additional support needs (ASN) pupil numbers, forecast years ago and worsened by Covid, remain a concern for our School Leaders Scotland (SLS) members. Violent incidents in schools have surged since the pandemic, and while the Cabinet Secretary's advice on relationships was welcomed, no extra resources were provided.
The Cabinet Secretary’s paper on mobile phone policies was also welcomed, allowing heads to decide the policy in their school.
Other educational reform is still in the pipeline and by the time you read this, we may even have a response from the Scottish government on the Hayward proposals for Assessment and Qualifications Reform.
Graham Hutton
General Secretary of School Leaders Scotland (SLS)
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@LeadersScotland