Archived decisions

Contact: Bob Lloyd-Jones, ext 6364

1. Summary

1.1. This report describes the government's recently announced Advanced schools programme and the processes being developed for its implementation.

1.2. A policy for adoption by the County Council is suggested so that:

(i) a framework for supporting schools seeking Advanced status may be established

(ii) schools may have a clear understanding of the criteria which must be met in order to achieve LEA support.

1.3. Members are asked to advise the Executive Member for Education of their views of the suggested policy, presented in Appendix 1.

2. Background

2.1. The Department for Education and Skills (DfES) recently launched the Advanced schools programme as part of its commitment to "put some of the best secondary schools in the driving seat to transform secondary education". The government intends to establish a national network of 300 Advanced schools by 2006, with the first group to be established by April 2003. (Copies of the documents about Advanced schools, printed from the DfES website, are available in the Members' room.)

2.2. The DfES wants Advanced schools to build on the successes of the Beacon Schools programme and talks of enabling the "best to lead the rest". The DfES clearly recognises that not all of the best practice will reside in Advanced schools but it believes that such schools will be capable of developing networks and mechanisms for identifying best practice, and "moving that best practice throughout the system, raising standards as it does so".

2.3. The strategy for extending and replicating good practice through networking and consortium working is well established in Hampshire. The County Council takes a lead in providing frameworks, guidance and support. For example, many of the county's secondary schools already work in consortia as a part of the agreed strategy for responding to the specialist schools initiative (of the 71 secondary schools in Hampshire, 21 now have specialist school status).

3. The County Council's role in supporting secondary school bids for Advanced status

3.1. In making a bid for Advanced school status, the DfES expects a school to submit a letter of endorsement from the LEA. This practice is consistent with that of making bids for specialist school status.

3.2. For the necessary endorsement to be provided, it is suggested that the County Council's own criteria should be met. These criteria would closely reflect those of the DfES but would provide an important means for the LEA to maintain a strategic overview of the many initiatives for raising standards in other schools.

4. Financial implications

4.1. There should be no financial implications for the County Council as the local education authority. This is in contrast to schools with successful bids who should receive additional annual funding of up to £60,000 per annum for three years, to be spent on the promotion of collaborative working and the dissemination of innovation and good practice.

Recommendation

That the Executive Member, Education, agrees the policy set out in Appendix 1 of this report.

Section 100D - Local Government Act 1972 - Background papers

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB: The list excludes:

1. Published works

2. Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

Information about Advanced schools printed from the DfES Standards website.

SC\2002\DEC283LJgg

Appendix 1

Policy statement: Advanced schools

Hampshire County Council will endorse applications to the DfES for Advanced school status from those schools which meet the following criteria:

1. High standards of achievement: a school must be in at least the upper quartile of Hampshire secondary schools and be judged to be 'highly effective' according to the county's own categorisation process.

2. Evidence of collaborative working: a school must have a proven record of active and effective collaboration with other Hampshire secondary schools, in support of teachers' professional development.

3. An admissions policy with no criterion related to Advanced status: the County Council will not support any bid from an admission authority school which, for example, proposes to introduce an admission criterion allowing them to select pupils on the basis of aptitude for a particular subject.