September 2014

The know zone

  • Thinking alike...
    ASCL’s first independent schools conference heard how the key challenges of a modern, self-improving education system are actually common to schools and colleges of all kinds, says Rosanne Musgrave. More
  • A lighter touch
    Suzanne O’Farrell looks at the changes to Ofsted inspections being introduced this year ahead of a new framework in September 2015. More
  • Moving on up
    Introducing Ahead – ASCL’s new support services for ambitious middle leaders More
  • Shaping the future
    World Shapers is a whole-school approach to global citizenship from Oxfam Education that has been developed with schools. World Shapers aims to embed global citizenship throughout all areas of school life, enabling students to become world-aware and understand the power of their voice in a global society. Oxfam works with participating schools to provide a bespoke programme and ongoing support. More
  • Performance-related positive
    Done openly and constructively, performance-related pay (PRP) can speak positively about the status of teaching, ensuring that decisions about pay and promotion focus on objective evidence and a consideration of the impact that a teacher is having on very specific aspects of school or college improvement. More
  • Tied or tested?
    The new Progress 8 performance measure is due to come into effect in 2015. What are your thoughts on it? Is Progress 8 a better way of assessing school performance? Are you thinking of opting in to the new measure or are you undecided? Here ASCL members share their thoughts on this important issue. More
  • Leaders' surgery
    David Snashall talks about three real situations from the calls received through the ASCL hotline all to do with social media – an issue that some school and college leaders are inexperienced with. More
  • Endangered species
    Hiding behind lengthy titles and even longer PowerPoint presentations while cooking up strategic action plans and implementing universal solution provision, just what is the point of that army of jargon-spouters invading your school life? More
  • Powers of intervention
    Events towards the end of the last school year have made the basis and extent of powers of intervention in schools of greater interest, as Leora Cruddas explains. More
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Events towards the end of the last school year have made the basis and extent of powers of intervention in schools of greater interest, as Leora Cruddas explains.

Powers of intervention

Leaving aside independent schools, there are essentially two systems of intervention: one for maintained schools and one for academies.At present, the primary power and duty to intervene in a maintained school is vested in the local authority (LA) that maintains it. An LA can intervene in a maintained school if:

  • standards of performance of pupils at the school are unacceptably low and are likely to remain so unless the authority exercises its powers; and/or
  • there has been a serious breakdown in the way that the school is managed or governed that is prejudicing or likely to prejudice the standards of performance; and/or
  • the safety of pupils or staff at the school is threatened

In these situations, the LA should issue a warning notice unless there is a particular reason not to do so. A warning notice gives the governing body 15 days to put right the problem or to appeal to Ofsted. A warning notice must set out the matters on which the LA’s concerns are based; the action that the governing body is required to take; and the action that the LA is minded to take if the governing body does not take the required action. All warning notices must be copied to Ofsted.

If having given consideration to the governing body’s response to the warning notice, the LA is minded to intervene, then it can take the following action:

  • Suspend the delegated authority for the governing body to manage the school’s budget.
  • Apply to the Secretary of State for consent to constitute the governing body as an interim executive board (IEB) – usually where there is a serious breakdown of working relationships within the governing body.
  • Appoint additional governors.
  • Require the governing body to enter into arrangements for specified services of an advisory nature or collaborate with the governing body of another school, a further education body or take steps to create or join a federation.

The Secretary of State for Education has her own powers. She can direct an LA to issue a warning notice. She can appoint additional governors and pay them, require an IEB, make an academy order or close a school. In respect of an academy, the Secretary of State can also terminate a funding agreement.

The Secretary of State has set out to devolve operational decision making (with regard to academies) from Whitehall to Regional School Commissioners (RSCs). It is not yet completely clear what role civil servants will play in supporting the Regional School Commissioners in their detailed work. However, the powers are similar to those that exist in relation to maintained schools.

The DfE recently announced the appointment of the eight Regional Schools Commissioners (RSCs) who will take on key decisions regarding academies and free schools in their regions on behalf of the Secretary of State. Each RSC will be advised by a headteacher board (HTB) made up of four elected academy headteachers and experienced professional leaders, to provide sector expertise and local knowledge. Details of the newly appointed RSCs and HTBs are as follows:

RSC (region)  Elected headteachers (school)
Paul Smith (Lancashire and West Yorkshire): former Executive Principal, Parbold Douglas Church of England Academy and Teaching School Jane Acklam (Moor End Academy), Pamela Birch (Hambleton Primary School), Martin Shevill (Ossett Academy and Sixth Form College), Alan Yellup (Wakefield City Academy)
Janet Renou (North): former Executive Head, Skipton Girls' High School Zoe Carr (Town End Academy), Chris Clarke (Queen Elizabeth School), Nick Hurn (Cardinal Hume Catholic School), Lesley Powell (The Academy at Shotton Hall)
Dominic Herrington (South London and South East): former Director of Academies Group, Department for Education Rhona Julia Barnfield (Howard of Effngham School), Ian Bauckham (Bennett Memorial Diocesan School), Andrew Carter (South Farnham School), Denise Shepherd (Rochester Grammar School)
Martin Post (North West London and South Central): former Headmaster, Watford Grammar School for Boys Richard Edwards (Nicholas Hawksmoor Primary School), Sir Michael Griffiths (Northampton School for Boys), Claire Robins (Sir John Lawes School), Teresa Tunnadine (The Compton School)
Pank Patel (West Midlands): former Headteacher, Wood Green Academy Mike Donoghue (John Taylor High School), Billy Downie (The Streetly Academy), David Andrew Seddon (Baxter College), Sally Yates (Deanery Church of England Primary School)
Sir David Carter (South West): former CEO, Cabot Learning Federation Dave Baker (Bradley Stoke Community School and Abbeywood Community School), Lorraine Heath (Uffculme School), Lisa Mannall (Trenance Learning Academy), Roger Pope (Kingsbridge Community College)
Dr Tim Coulson (North East London and East of England): former Director of Education, Essex County Council Caroline Mary Bronwyn Haynes (Tendring Technology College), Stephen Munday (Comberton Village College), Debbie Rogan (The Wickford Church of England School and Briscoe Primary), Margaret Wilson (The King John School Academy Trust)
Jenny Bexon-Smith (East Midlands and Humber): former Executive Principal, Tudor Grange Academies Trust Chris Beckett (The Deepings School), Hugh Howe (Beauchamp College), Christine Linnitt (Holywell Primary School), Geoff Lloyd (Tuxford Academy)

Leora Cruddas is ASCL Director of Policy

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