The effect of distributed and specialised professional development on the quality of provision.
Information about the school
Canolfan Addysg y Bont is a 3-19 special school that is situated in the town of Llangefni and is the only co-educational special school that serves the Isle of Anglesey. Pupils and students span a wide spectrum of needs which include autism, communication difficulties and physical disabilities and some can demonstrate challenging behaviours. Currently, there are 125 pupils on roll, 28% of whom are girls and 72% are boys. Of these, 45% are eligible for free school meals. There has been an increase of 35% in pupils over the last four years. Welsh is the main language of the school. There are 64 staff working at the school.
The aim of the school is to support pupils to achieve their full potential by reducing the negative aspects of their disabilities in an environment that provides warmth, safety, consistency and understanding. To achieve this, we offer a structured, broad, balanced, relevant curriculum and provide experiences and skills for students to develop as much independence as possible. Our pupils have access to a calm and consistent teaching climate, which succeeds in responding to their learning needs and additional individual care needs and addressing their diagnosis. Effective communication on many levels is a key factor. We have high expectations and believe in an open and honest partnership with parents/the family unit and also with a wide range of external agencies, who are key to achieving our shared learning aims and intentions.
All pupils at the school have a statement of ALN (5%) and/or a School Development Plan (95%). The school is organised into three main groups – nursery/primary (7 classes), secondary (7 classes) and a special care class. All pupils follow one or more of our learning pathways, namely the Informal (including Pre-informal), Semi-formal or Formal Pathway. The school has incorporated the Curriculum for Wales by blending the learning pathways with the specialist provision.
Context and background to the effective or innovative practice
The decision was made to plan to place a significant focus on the professional development of all of the school’s staff in 2018. In an increasingly stark climate, where the ability and capacity of other services to provide the school with input and support is/was decreasing, it was agreed that the school needed to be more self-sufficient and ensure better resilience and quality in terms of provision and internal support.
This means that the school would be in a better position to respond proactively and comprehensively to maintain, extend and improve provision. A specific emphasis was also placed on specialist support in general, as there is a particular emphasis on care, well-being and health in an educational setting such as this. The school’s leaders felt that developments within the special sector now occur frequently and quickly across the range of additional needs and that they have a duty to enable a more effective response across the school. This was reflected mainly in the school data which showed clearly the significant increase in the level of pupils’ needs i.e., they were progressively more profound and complex when starting school. For example, there was an increase of 22% of non-verbal autistic pupils. Put simply, it was decided that there was a need to develop and operate in a more suitable, specialist and individual way to avoid over-reliance on external agencies.
A firm consensus was reached and rooted that the school would be able to manage and monitor the quality and consistency of provision more effectively by introducing teaching systems and approaches that would better reflect the school’s current narrative and situation. This would also lead to establishing better confidence in our early intervention arrangements and intervention programmes that would target specific individuals and groups. This also coincided with the beginning of the school’s journey, when initial decisions were made about the development of the Curriculum for Wales within the school.
Time and money were invested in a wide range of individuals with specialist training to realise the vision of a school community that is more self-sufficient, which would also, in turn, lead to a continuous climate of sustainability inside and outside the school.
Description of the nature of the strategy or activity
Provision was evaluated and aspects and areas were identified where the school considered itself to be over-reliant on the input of external agencies. At the core of the objective was to identify leaders at all levels, including specialist areas, where a high level of motivation and willingness to upskill the member of staff was necessary. To promote this, more distributed ownership was given to the workforce, as they took more responsibility for their ongoing professional development. The vision of being a centre of excellence was shared regularly, mapping clearly the outcomes that would have a favourable influence on the quality of provision over an extended period of time. Central to the vision was the theory that leaders develop other leaders.
Inevitably, honest and open informal and formal discussions were needed at the beginning of introducing the strategy, with a particular focus on identifying individuals, producing a CPD timetable and identifying sources of funding. It is appropriate to note the importance of research which is key to identifying suitable high-quality providers, considering the special nature of the sector. Careful attention was needed when considering any costing scheme in the School Improvement Plan.
Two distinct streams to the strategy were highlighted; developing leaders at all levels and developing individuals to lead on specialist aspects. When allocating leaders to be developed, close discussions were held with the consortium to support the objective. Thirty-five members of staff have been trained and have qualified in various areas over a 5-year period and up to the present day. It is worth noting that the school has considered the risk and planning for staff who are very likely to move on (due to promotion/career progression), as this is core to the concept of creating sustainability within provision.
What impact has this work had on provision and learners’ standards?
Over a period of time and in the context of the range of upskilling, provision has been strengthened at all levels across the school. A natural consequence of this was the very positive effect on learners’ standards, including their health and well-being. This includes:
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Nearly all pupils make notable progress from their starting points, including in oracy, reading and numeracy.
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A sound increase in the communication skills of most pupils and their participation.
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An increase in the quality of positive inter-relationships between pupils, their behaviour and their ability to express their feelings and manage their emotions.
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Positive development in pupils’ independent learners skills over time.
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An increase in the range of accreditations offered, and data shows an increase in attainment.
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A very few pupils have made significant progress over time and have transferred to mainstream schools on a full-time basis.
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An increase in teachers’ expectations of their pupils.
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A significant strengthening of the relationship between pupils and staff, and clear evidence that staff have very good knowledge of their pupils’ strengths and needs.
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The CPD plan has created a strong sense of teamwork.
How have you shared your good practice?
An internal programme of sharing good practice was prioritised. This has led to a programme of regular professional development that drives continuous improvement on the classroom floor and spans the school’s range of INSET days. All staff, whether new, inexperienced or otherwise, are encouraged to ‘drop in’ to sessions where leaders lead learning. After-school training sessions are held often and the ongoing system of holding reminder and/or induction sessions has been implemented. The main result of being able to organise qualified trainers internally to lead training is that individuals and/or groups can be targeted quickly without the need to consider costs or practical issues, such as space and providers. This also creates more time for leaders to address alternative priorities that are in need of attention.
The school shares good practice and advises mainstream schools where the need arises and time allows. Often, teachers and/or assistants from other institutions visit to see good practice in action and established similar intervention programmes. Leaders within the school advise schools on producing effective Individual Development Plans as the ALN Bill comes into statutory force. The school’s good practice is shared with key stakeholders, such as the region’s special schools, Children’s Specialist Services and local colleges, and this has a purposeful effect on promoting any transitional plans or care arrangements that are common between institutions.