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School Development Plan - 2008-09
Timing
This plan will start on September 1 2008 with an interim review in May/June 2009; final evaluation will take place in
October 2009 when it will be formally reviewed by the Governors. Progress reviews will be held periodically through out
the year with reports to governors, as appropriate, at committee meetings. This will enable initiatives started in September
2008 and before to be followed through with the initial impacts on the following school year evaluated.
Key Issues
The aims of the plan are to raise standards through a range of Key Issues which are
then broken down into manageable bite sized parts Key Focuses. These issues reflect
areas that through self evaluation exercises are thought to need to be developed in order to move the school and its
community forwards in the 21st century. This year's plan has been developed out of a much more ambitious document formulated
last year which set the parameters for a three year plan 2006-09. A new three year plan is in process. Hence there are
particular themes taken through this year which have been developed during 2007-08 and there are areas for development
which will appear as key issues in 2008-09 which do not appear this year.
Constructing the Plan
The plan attempts to take into account the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), government and Local
Authority (LA) initiatives which are relevant to the development of Poole Grammar School (PGS). There is also an appreciation
of the demands of the new inspection framework that Ofsted now operates under and the single conversation with schools from
the DCSF and the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT) which gives the school development plan (SDP) and Self
Evaluation Form (SEF) a far higher profile. Of particular note this year is the embedding and development of the new
Performance Management (PM) system introduced in 2007-08, which aims to focus staff further on raising standards and
developing themselves in a professional dialogue with their colleagues. There is reference to the areas of self evaluation
that the new framework suggests we examine throughout this document. Equally important is the embedding of the Every Child
Matters (ECM) agenda in all our activities and the way we will work as part of the newly established South West Academic
Trust (SWAT).
Self Review
At the heart of the SDP is the belief that we are constantly evaluating all that we do whether formally or informally. We
are also aware of the impact that this evaluative culture has on the way we progress change. Hence the need for self-evaluation
to become embedded in the school culture. We can then be certain that we know our school - strengths and weaknesses alike.
With this in mind all members of the school community are developing their self-critical faculties and being given greater
opportunities for contributing to evaluation, change and development. Departments have developed modified SEF forms to aid
their work and to contribute to the school SEF which is a working document that is constantly evolving.
One area that is developing further is that of gaining stakeholder views on key school issues connected to learning and
teaching. This is carried out through pupil, parent and staff questionnaires. Our commitment to staff development and the
principles of the Investors in People (IiP) give staff the context to develop themselves and reflect upon how they contribute
to the learning organisation which will give maximum benefit to all learners in the school community. This is further
emphasised through the implementation of the new PM system in which there is a far greater emphasis on Continuing Professional
Development (CPD) and that PM is an ongoing process of professional dialogue throughout the year.
External Influences
The plan gives a focus for the year as part of a longer term three year strategy for school development in a variety of
areas, focussing heavily on the learner. There are however external influences on our work which influence what we do but
do not necessarily drive our actions, for example 'Personalised Learning', The National secondary strategies, The Targeted
Capital Bid (TCB), Assessment for Learning (AfL), Workforce reforms, Financial Management in Schools Standards (FMSiS),
the 14-19 agenda including Diplomas, Community Cohesion and Extended Schools. The plan reflects what we as a staff feel
are priorities which will enable pupils to reach their full potential and also to develop the learning capacity of the
entire school community in its journey through lifelong learning and create a cohesive society.
Key Issues & Focuses
Raising standards through:
- Enhancing the pastoral system whilst reflecting the Every Child Matters Agenda
- Review attendance policy and practice
- Further development of pupil support systems; mentoring and peer mediation
- Exploration of identification and support for pupils with mental health issues
- Review and refinement of the PSHE and Citizenship curriculum and delivery
- Curriculum development
- Development of the MLE including pupil/parent access to support the curriculum
- Further development of thinking (L2L) and study skills from Year 8 to Year 13
- Further development of enhanced literacy programme
- Review of KS3 - KS5 curriculum and its delivery
- Further development of learning focus
- Further refinement of G+T strategies
- Development of Boy focussed teaching and learning strategies, e.g. homework focus
- Development of student voice to inform teaching and learning
- Specialist Schools Activities
- Maths and Computing SSAT plan
- SEN (Cognition and Learning) SSAT plan
- Our relationship with the wider community
- Enhance parent/school communication
- Develop an effective real time reporting system including exploration of pupil electronic portfolios and our use of AIMHIGH
- Development of Trust School joint activities
- Sharing good practice
- Staff to engage in peer coaching and mentoring to enhance their pedagogic and management/leadership skills using the
expertise of UPS teachers
- Development of lesson planning with planned challenge and stretch (differentiation)
- Develop a rigorous lesson observation protocol to ensure equality of judgements across subjects by members of staff
to support PM and staff self evaluation
Many of these activities will also be shared with other Trust schools and we will look to use their expertise, just as they
will use ours.
Staff Cross-curricular Focus Groups 2008-09
- Work life balance
- Eco-Schools
- MLE/ICT
- Gifted and Talented provision
- Boy Centred Learning pedagogy
- Peer coaching
ICC
July 2008
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