Management Information Sheet

In 2013 the Local Authority co- created, with schools, an improvement strategy to drive up standards and improve the percentage of schools judged good or outstanding. This was known as 'A Good School...', now 'A Good Education for Every Norfolk Learner.

To support this strategy we were able to secure some funding from Norfolk County Council to subsidise the development of a targeted school improvement approach called Norfolk to Good and Great (N2GG). The aim was to reduce the number of schools judged to require improvement or those at risk. At the time over a third of Norfolk schools had an Ofsted judgement of RI, and a further quarter had some risk in their pupil achievement data. Denise Walker was employed on a two- year contract to deliver this work. At the end of the first year and following considerable success for those schools involved in the approach this was re branded as Norfolk Better to Best (NB2B), in order to open the opportunity to all schools and to broaden the approach to schools already judged good and aiming for outstanding.

Schools in the programme take full responsibility for their own improvement and choose a tailored support package to assist their efforts. As you are aware this approach has continued to support a significant improvement in Ofsted outcomes for Norfolk schools. So far, 89% of schools, either judged by Ofsted to Require Improvement, or risk assessed by the local authority as requiring improvement in pupil achievement, have been judged good or outstanding in inspections whilst participating in the programme. The current percentage of schools in Norfolk with an RI judgement is now 13%.

By March 2017 the funding, which subsidises NB2B in a modest way, and funds the post of Head of NB2B will cease. However, we wish to enable such a successful and popular approach to school improvement to continue. Over half of Norfolk schools and academies buy into NB2B. As a school led approach, where both school responsibility and accountability for improvement sit at the heart, the local authority remains committed to NB2B. In keeping with school autonomy it is appropriate now that the approach to school improvement encompassed by NB2B sits independently of the local authority.

To that end we have been working to develop an Education Trust which will build on and enhance the work of NB2B. The Trust is in the process of being formally registered and as a charitable company will provide and broker class leading improvement services to individual academies, Multi Academy Trusts (MATs), schools and colleges. The range of services have been developed by school leaders, governors and leading education partners to provide both a continuation of the success of the NB2B approach and a different methodological approach to the creation, on-going support and success of MATs.

Once the charitable Trust is established later this term and over the next two academic years it hopes to support both existing MATs and the formation of a number of affiliate MATs, made up of schools educating a 0 - 19 age range, initially in the East Anglia region, and then more broadly. It will also continue the provision of educational services and partnership to many more schools as part of the wider network.

In the short term schools currently participating in Norfolk Better to Best will see no difference or interruption to their engagement with NB2B. Denise will continue to lead the NB2B for Norfolk County Council until March 31st 2017 and is working with schools and a group of trustees to migrate the approach seamlessly into an education trust.

This is an exciting and unique venture and Norfolk County Council is delighted to be supporting this transition from such a successful approach initiated by the Local Authority to an educational trust sitting a t the heart of the school system. The Local Authority will do all that it can to enable this to happen, but will have no controlling interest in its future entity.

I will keep you in touch with how his venture develops, but if you wish to talk to Denise or me about it further please do not hesitate to get in touch via Anita Lee anita.lee@norfolk.gov.uk or Gemma Wallace gemma.wallace@norfolk.gov.uk.

Chris Snudden
Assistant Director, Education
Norfolk Children's Services