We had a number of school inspections in Camden in the Spring term, and Ofsted have remained in the news since the tragic death of Ruth Perry. The most recent statement from HMCI sets out some emergent thinking, though many feel this doesn’t go far enough and that schools should be trusted more to set out their own improvement journey.

Effective schools make sure that they know themselves well. They are committed to finding out what is working and taking effective action to further improve the outcomes for their pupils, setting ambitious targets for improvement. However, there is always the risk of familiarity bias obscuring higher standards and expectations. In their influential paper school self evaluation what works and why? Christopher Chapman and Pamela Sammons speak of school improvement as a process, not an event. Ross Goldstone drew on the work of this, and earlier researchers in stating that self-improving schools require a culture that is committed to and recognises the value of self-evaluation in its own right, not as a precursor to external inspection.

Despite teachers and school leaders being the key agents of change, effective self-evaluation on its own is often not enough and it is here we see the importance of supported inquiry and review as a driver for school improvement. At the Heads meeting just before the break we outlined plans for some changes to the organisation and reporting from Camden Professional Partners to ensure that the balance of support and challenge is right. To help this, we are asking Headteachers to complete this short survey to inform our understanding of the impact Camden Professional Partners are having. Some partners will change in the Autumn term and we are also seeking to know your thoughts about the current support you have. All responses will of course be treated in confidence. Thank you for your help with this process.

It was privilege to see Camden young people performing at the Royal Albert Hall on Monday evening. Among many other things, this event was a celebration of the great music offer we have. This is something that has been emphasised to me on school visits, where more than once I have visited classrooms to a background of a brass band rehearsing in the school hall. An event of this size involves a huge amount of organisation. Thank you to all the music team for their work on this, along with you, school colleagues and pupils for committing to make it a success.

Make sure that you enjoy the long weekend!

Stephen Hall

Chief Executive Officer, Camden Learning