National Challenge
Strategy launched to ensure more children get better GCSEs
DEPARTMENT FOR
CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES News Release (2008/0109) issued by
The Government News Network on 10 June 2008
£400m FUNDING
AVAILABLE TO SUPPORT SCHOOLS TO IMPROVE AT ENGLISH AND MATHS
Ed Balls today set out the next phase of the Government's
School Improvement Strategy - National Challenge - to transform
schools, raise results in English and maths, and tackle
underachievement by young people.
The Children's Plan sets out that by 2020 at least 90 per
cent of children will achieve the equivalent of five higher level
GCSEs by age 19.
National Challenge is important step on the way towards this - to
meet the goal that in every secondary school, at least 30 per cent
of its pupils will achieve five good GCSEs including English and
maths by 2011.
In 1997 there were 1,610 schools below this 30 per cent minimum
standard; today there are 638 - the National Challenge sets out
how we will reduce this number to zero.
Ed Balls announced that he would double the £200m previously
announced in the budget to £400m to help local authorities and schools.
The extra funding could mean that up to 70 National Challenge
schools could be converted into Academies over and above existing
plans, and that up to 120 new Trust schools could be created. This
120 could include 70 National Challenge Trusts where a school
links with another high performing school as well as an external
partner such as a university or business.
To kick-start the National Challenge, Ed Balls asked local
authorities to set out by the end of the school summer term,
individual action plans for how they will transform results in
each National Challenge school from now until 2011.
The plans must contain realistic expectations of how school exam
results will improve in 2008, 2009 and 2010 and assessments of
whether their schools are high, medium or low risk of meeting the
2011 goal. He also asked governing bodies to hold meetings as soon
as possible to review how they would need to support their Heads
and teachers in improving results.
The key aspects of the National Challenge plans are:
* £400m available to support National Challenge schools over the
next three years - £200m announced in the Budget - plus a further
£200m allocated from existing resources and re-prioritised towards
National Challenge schools;
* More one-to-one tuition and study support in English and maths
for children in National Challenge schools; plus extra support
from National Strategies' experts for weak English and maths departments;
* Additional support for senior leaders in schools to support
maths and science departments;
* Highly respected education expert Sir Mike Tomlinson will chair
a new National Challenge Panel of Expert Advisers to support low
attaining schools. The panel will consist of heads who have
successfully turned around underperforming schools, City Challenge
Advisers and Directors of Children's Services;
* Each National Challenge school will be allocated a National
Challenge Adviser, who will work with the school leadership to
develop a tailored package of support;
* By 2011 150 more National Leaders of Education - outstanding
super-heads with past experience of turning schools around - will
work alongside Heads to help solve problems at the schools;
* The new Masters in Teaching and Learning will be made available
in National Challenge Schools;
* As well as Academies, where a school is completely unable to
raise their exam results, the Government will encourage local
authorities to close the school and replace it with a National
Challenge Trust, providing that they forge new improvement
partnerships led by a successful school and a business or
university partner. The aim would be to give the school and the
community a fresh beginning and a break with previous underachievement;
* Encouragement to use tried and tested school improvement
models, such as partnerships with successful schools (federations)
or partnerships with business or universities (Trusts), so that
National Challenge schools benefit from new governance
arrangements and best practice;
* The Government will legislate to take new powers to direct
local authorities to issue a warning notice where there is clear
cause for concern - such as exam results getting worse; to appoint
Interim Executive Boards where the school is under a warning
notice; and to require a local authority to take on advisory
services where there are large numbers of schools with
unacceptably low standards.
Ed Balls said:
"Schools have made huge progress. In 1997, there were 1,610
schools where fewer than 30 per cent of pupils gained five good
GCSEs including English and maths; today there are 638.
"Our goal over the next three years is to get every school
to this minimum 30% standard and to get that 638 down to zero.
Every parent needs to know that their local school will get to
this basic standard.
"Most areas still have at least one National Challenge school.
"GCSE success is not the only measure of how a school
performs, but it is critical - teenagers need these qualifications
to go on to further study, work and prosperity. A young person
with five good GCSEs will almost always earn considerably more
than a teenager who leaves school with no qualifications.
Employers expect these qualifications as a minimum.
"I know that teachers in National Challenge schools are
working hard often in difficult circumstances. They need more
support so that these schools and their children can reach their
full potential. We need rapid but sustainable improvement to raise
children's aspirations and their job prospects.
"Of course National Challenge schools face real challenges
but no child and no school is on a pre-determined path to low
results. There are many schools in communities of high
unemployment and low aspirations where children achieve excellent
GCSE results. For each National Challenge school, another school
facing similar problems has already turned itself around.
"I don't want to see excuses about poor performance - I
want to see clear plans to raise standards."
Jim Knight said:
"We know that excellent leadership is the route to excellent
results. But good leaders need the right support; and good
teachers need the space to concentrate on teaching.
"I would like running a school in tough circumstances to be
viewed as a plum job for which the best teachers compete."
National Challenge is based on the successful London Challenge
scheme, which is transforming results in the capital's schools.
Andrew Adonis said:
"London Challenge is going national. The success of London
Challenge shows that targeted interventions work. Since 2003
London schools have had an intensive focus on improvement, with
targeted support for different schools. London's inner city
schools are amongst the fastest improving schools in the country
so it makes sense to learn from that experience."
Sir Mike Tomlinson said:
"I am delighted to be chairing this panel of expert
advisers. It is really important that all Local Authorities who
need it have access to support from people with expertise. The
Panel reflects some of the best names in the business. Everyone
should be clear that we are here to provide a source of advice and
support to Local Authorities: we're not going to sit around
but will expect to get stuck in."
The National Challenge is part of the School Improvement
Strategy, the Government's drive to transform education for
the long term. Forthcoming plans will look at improving results
in 'coasting' schools - where pupils get high results
but make slow progress; good schools which have the potential to
be outstanding schools; and primary schools.
Many of the local authorities with the most National Challenge
schools are those in selective areas where "secondary
moderns" face particular challenges. As part of the School
Improvement Strategy there will be intensive engagement to raise
attainment in these schools where pupils often start school with
low aspirations. One of the panel of experts, Richard Wallis, has
considerable experience of what turns around attainment in
"secondary moderns". 60 per cent of secondary moderns
already have results that meet the National Challenge 30 per cent standard.
NOTES TO EDITORS
* National Challenge documents are available at http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/publications/nationalchallenge
* For enquiries please call 0870 000 2288
* The Children's Plan sets out that by 2020 every child will
be ready for success at secondary school with at least 90 % at or
above the expected level in English and maths at age 11 - and at
least 90 % achieving the equivalent of five higher level GCSEs by
age 19. The School Improvement Strategy is a key part of achieving
these goals.
The National Challenge announces that Sir Mike Tomlinson will
Chair a National Panel of Expert Advisers. Other members of the
panel include:
* Chief Adviser to Greater Manchester Challenge, Professor Mel
Ainscow
* Chief Adviser to the Black Country Challenge:
Professor Sir Geoff Hampton
* The Principal Adviser to the
City Challenges, Professor David Woods
* Director of
Children's Services, Kent, Graham Badman
* Directors of
Children's Services, Walsall, David Brown
* Directors of
Children's Services, Tower Hamlets, Kevan Collins,
* Dr
Liz Sidwell: Executive Head of Haberdashers' Aske's
Academies
* Sir Michael Wilshaw, Mossbourne Academy and
formerly St Bonaventure's, Newham
* Richard Wallis of
Sandwich Technology College (Secondary Modern Expert)
* David
Kershaw, former executive head, currently Strategic Lead for
Transforming Leicester's Learning.
£400million to support National Challenge schools
* Budget 2008 announced investment of £200million to support
National Challenge schools over the next three years. In addition,
we are now able to allocate a further £200million of existing
resources to the National Challenge. The additional financial
support available from Government to help schools and local
authorities meet the National Challenge by 2011 will thus be £400million.
* We will provide universal support across all National Challenge
schools, including a National Challenge Adviser (NCA) in each
school9, at an expected cost of £20million. These Advisers will
both support each school directly with their expertise, and will
broker a tailored package of additional support for every school.
These school plans will draw on £380million of National Challenge
funding, and will need to reflect the individual circumstances of
each school and their risk of not reaching the 30% benchmark by 2011.
* Lower risk schools will need less support. Higher risk schools
are likely to need significantly more support, including
structural solutions. Schools and local authorities, working with
the Department, will need to identify the appropriate package in
each case. The table below sets out an illustrative and feasible
scenario for how the funding could be allocated.
Indicative allocation of £400m National Challenge funding
National Challenge Advisers £20m
National Leaders of Education and other leadership support £20m
Teaching, learning and study support £100m
Academies £195m
Trusts £65m
On this basis, we would be able to transform up to an additional
70 National Challenge schools into Academies over and above
existing plans. There are currently 83 open Academies, with
another 50 due to open in September 2008, and 55 more in each of
September 2009 and 2010. The additional
National Challenge funding means that we could now be able to
expand the Academies programme to up to 80 and then up to 100
Academies opening in 2009 and 2010. There would then be more than
300 Academies open in September 2010, and Academies would have
replaced more than 200 National Challenge schools.
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