Tom Clark - Adapting to a changing landscape: What to do with a greater autonomy and freedom

Freedom and Autonomy for Schools – National

Associationwww.fasna.org.uk

The following presentation was delivered at The Academies Show Birmingham 2014 by Tom Clark, Chair, FASNA

For more information on similar content please visit our website at:

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http://www.fasna.org.uk/




Tom Clark

Chair, FASNA




FASNA is a ‘not for profit’ membership organisation with charitable status, which seeks to promote and secure autonomy for schools and evidence its success

Member schools include VA schools, Foundation schools, Trust schools, Type 1 ‘sponsored’ academies, ‘Converter’ academies, primary, secondary, and special schools

Members include Headteachers, Governors, Clerks to Governors and School Business Managers

FASNA is a-political




FASNA is about ‘Autonomy with Accountability’

not structures




Present landscape




Government has created a ‘market’ of ‘free’ schools, academies (‘sponsored’, ‘converters’ and ‘chains’), UTCs, ‘studio schools’, trust schools, foundation schools, community schools and independent schools




There are 4296 academies

1879 secondary schools 2260 primary schools 129 special schools 28 alternative provision 71% of all academies are ‘converters’ Academies are not all the same - ‘sponsored’ or

‘converter’; ‘stand-alone’ or in MATS; or in larger ‘chains’

(source DfE November 2014)




Standards have become more rigorous and narrower

‘Floor’ and ‘bar’ raised

‘Satisfactory’ is ‘not satisfactory’

Accountability frameworks different and tougher

This is true for ALL schools whether or not they are more autonomous than in May 2010




There is a crowded ‘middle tier’

RSCs, LAs, Trustees, Governors, NLEs, LLEs, Teaching Schools, NLGs, sponsored ‘chains’ of academies, school-led MATS, and ‘commercial’ offers – but much more of it school-led than ever before

It needs time to grow and mature




Governance is now in the Ofsted framework

The 30 year default -

‘Volunteers’, usually parents, with single school perspective

have become…

‘Non-executive directors of autonomous not-for-profit public companies’ – a multi-school framework and perspective

A movement away from the stakeholder model: a movement towards ‘skill-sets’ but also true for allschools




Effective Governance?

Does your Governing Body PASS the FASNA test?

Professional in practice and membership?

Accountable as evidenced through skills based appointments and structures?

Strategic in operation and outlook?

Skilled in understanding data, questioning, challenging and supporting?

Is there a professional process for appointing the Chair of Governors?




The continuing future and beyond




Joined-up future

‘Joined-up’ leadership -the school resource is not just the Headteacher

It’s Headteachers and Governors and School Business Managers

For School Business Managers, status and remuneration comes with co-professional responsibility for strategic direction and pupil progress, not more of the same




There will be: Some big external ‘sponsored chains’(some perhaps

commercial) Local ‘clusters’ of academies, led by schools 100s, if not 1,000s of small schools needing to

collaborate to remain viable Demand for real value for money under procurement

deals Risk of ‘perfect financial storm’ – NI, Pensions, Post 16

funding No National Fair Funding NO MORE MONEY




If Labour is elected:

No going back

Fewer (or no more) ‘converter’ academies and not ‘subsidised’?

Definitely no more grants up to £175K to convert

Some kind of ‘local management’, LAs or Regional arrangement

Some increased freedoms – curriculum, school day, services but not necessarily the full range of current academy freedoms

NO MORE MONEY




Going forwards we need:

The confidence and ability to act independently of LAs - whether you want to or not, whether a community school or not

The confidence and ability to collaborate and compare

The confidence to do something before it is done to you – take control




The BIGGEST Challenge

Accepting that the future may not be what you want it to be

Accepting that you need not be victims




And in fact




“The future is already here; it’s just not distributed very well”

(William Gibson)




"Our new inspection arrangements will focus more on governance and the effectiveness of governance.”Sir Michael Wilshaw, Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Schools.

On sale at the FASNA stand – no. 448; FREE to FASNA MembersTo order copies, please email [email protected], or call 0115 917 0142

Cost £10 per copy (plus P&P for under 5 copies)

Reviews received:Outstanding!‘If you buy one book to help improve your governing body, make it this one’

Top guide for school improvement‘An excellent help to Governors on how to ensure the all the children in their school get the best possible education’


mailto:[email protected]



"I welcome this new publication as a practitioners’ guide with a wealth of up to date examples from successful schools around the country” Peter Lauener, Chief Executive of the Education Funding Agency (EFA)

"This publication is a must-read for aspiring and practising School Business Managers, Headteachersand governors!” Stephen Morales, Executive Director, National Association of School Business Management

On sale at the FASNA stand – no. 448; FREE to FASNA MembersTo order copies, please email [email protected], or call 0115 917 0142

Cost £13 per copy (plus P&P for under 5 copies)


mailto:[email protected]



Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed.

Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death.




It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle…..

When the sun comes up, you’d better start running…..




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Tom Clark - Adapting to a changing landscape: What to do with a greater autonomy and freedom

Education

Transcript of Tom Clark - Adapting to a changing landscape: What to do with a greater autonomy and freedom