The next tranche of leaders joining the government’s school improvement squads have been named – with over 80 per cent of them coming from trusts.
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson has revealed the RISE teams are now set to start working with more than 200 schools, having focused their attentions on 32 primaries and secondaries since their launch in February.
Forty-five more school improvement experts have been recruited to the divisions as advisers to work alongside the 20 selected earlier this year and civil servants (see full list below).
Of the latest appointments, all but six (13 per cent) have most recently worked in academy trusts. Five work for councils or their school improvement arms, while one is a consultant.
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “No child should be spending precious days, let alone years, in schools that are underperforming.
“Our new RISE teams, made up of the best of the best in school improvement, can be the spark that turns around the life chances of tens of thousands of children.”
The teams – backed by £20 million of government cash – will commission support for struggling schools from bodies such as trusts, councils and federations.
The Department for Education said today that “the first schools we began working with in February have started to be paired with supporting organisations, including high-quality [MATs]”.
These include the Mulberry Schools Trust, L.E.A.D Academy Trust and Northern Education Trust. Those receiving support are in line for up to £100,000 to help turn them around.
DfE analysis suggests the schools the RISE teams are now supporting have spent an average of 6.6 years rated below ‘good’ by Ofsted.
This amounts to “a child spending their whole primary or secondary school years in an underperforming school”.
Forty-two have been considered “stuck” – those with consecutive Ofsted judgments of ‘requires improvement’ or worse – for more than 11 years.
A full list of the schools getting support will be published next week, Schools Week understands.
Government also noted that it will create “a RISE operational stakeholder group to advise on delivery to ensure views are reflected” and “continue our engagement with the sector”.
The 45 new RISE advisers
| Alison Fletcher, Director of CLF Institute, Cabot Learning Federation |
| Amanda Griffiths, Teaching School Hub Director, L.E.A.D Academy Trust |
| Anita Cliff, Chief Executive Advisor, Manor Multi Academy Trust |
| Annie Gammon, former Interim Director of Education, Plymouth City Council |
| Anthony Quinn, Director of Education, Our Lady of the Magnificat |
| Chris Gould, Director of Education/ Deputy CEO, Truro Penwith Academy Trust |
| Claire Lowe, CEO, Inspire Learning Partnership |
| Clare Flintoff, CEO, Asset Education |
| David Boyle, CEO, Dunraven Educational Trust |
| Christopher Mansell, former CEO of Birmingham Diocese Multi-Academy Trust |
| Herminder Channa, Regional Director for West Midlands, Oasis Community Learning |
| Emily Walker, Director of LEARN SEND Hub, part of Community Inclusive Trust |
| Emlyn Wright, Service Lead Standards and Learning, Wigan Council |
| Emma Bradshaw, CEO, Alternative Learning Trust |
| Heather McLachlan, CEO, Potteries Educational Trust |
| Jamie Clarke, CEO, Tove Learning Trust |
| Janet Sheriff, CEO, Collaborative Learning Trust |
| Jo Stoaling, Head Teacher, Three Ways School |
| Jonathan Bishop, CEO, Cornerstone Academy Trust |
| Jonathan Britton, CEO, Wonder Learning Partnership |
| Julian Axford, Director of School Improvement, Chiltern Learning Trust |
| Julie Waddington, Director of Education, King Edward VI Foundation and Multi Academy Trust |
| Lucie Calow, Director of SEND, Unity Schools Partnership |
| Lucy Scott, CEO, Eastern Learning Alliance |
| Maria Williams, Head of Service – School Improvement and Early Years, Bradford Local Authority |
| Mark Bedford, former Headteacher, Twyford CofE High School |
| Martin Finch, Chief Quality Assurance Officer, Tapton School Academy Trust |
| Matt Dickson, Senior School Improvement Adviser, The Education People |
| Melissa Young, Director of Education, Warrington Primary Academy Trust |
| Mike Ion, former Education Director, Avanti Schools Trust |
| Narinder Gill, Director of Leadership and Transformation, Inspiring Generations |
| Nic Brindle, CEO, Youth Engagement Schools Trust |
| Nick Blackburn, CEO, Lingfield Education Trust |
| Nina Dohel, former Assistant Director for Education at Southwark Council |
| Pan Panayiotou, CEO, South Downs Education Trust |
| Paul Drew, COO, The Lighthouse Federation |
| Paul Heery, CEO, White Hills Park Trust |
| Pippa Irwin, Headteacher, Beverley School |
| Rob Carpenter, CEO, Inspire Partnership Academy Trust |
| Sharron Philpot, CEO, Victoria Academies Trust |
| Sian Hampton, CEO, Archway Learning Trust |
| Simon White, former CEO of Vision Academy Learning Trust, director of Omnis Education Consultancy Ltd. |
| Tim Coulson, CEO, Unity Schools Partnership |
| Tim Mills, Executive Director of Primary, STEP Academy Trust |
| Tom Twort, Deputy Director of Education, REAch2 Academy Trust |
