CLF Institute Director Alison Fletcher has been appointed to one of the government’s flagship RISE teams after being identified as one of the UK’s ‘best of the best in school improvement’.
The RISE (Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence) teams are a successful initiative designed to drive up standards in schools that have previously struggled.
RISE was initially piloted in 32 schools, but ministers are now injecting a further £20million to expand the scheme into 200 more, with a combined reach of more than 120,000 children.
That growth has seen an additional 45 expert advisers recruited to the RISE scheme across the country, with five in the South West – including Alison, who will combine her position at the Institute with a part-time RISE secondment for the next two years.
The government says every adviser has been handpicked because of their proven track record of improving schools.
In announcing the RISE expansion, Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson said: “No child should be spending precious days, let alone years, in schools that are underperforming.
“Our new RISE teams, made up of the best of the best in school improvement, can be the spark that turns around the life chances of tens of thousands of children.
“RISE teams have already hit the ground running, and as we deliver on our Plan for Change, I am determined to make sure we lift every school, for every child, up to the standard of the best.”
RISE advisers will work with more than 600 ‘stuck’ schools in England that have received consecutive poor Ofsted judgements, and which are attended by more than 300,000 children.
Data shows that those RISE schools we are now supporting, have spent an average of 6.6 years rated by Ofsted as below good or equivalent – equivalent to a child spending their whole primary or secondary school years in an underperforming school.
Each school will benefit from a bespoke improvement plan drawn up by RISE advisers, which could involve them being paired with a high-performing multi-academy trust.
Alison – who has been part of the CLF since 2015 – says she is looking forward to making a difference across the region within her new role.
Alison said: “It is a privilege to have been appointed as one of the South West RISE team.
“This is an opportunity to build on the work we have done through Teaching School Hubs and Team SW, to help all schools and teachers to access high-quality CPD to support their school improvement and better outcomes for all children in the region. This will be through the new Universal Service.
“Collaboration and connectivity between schools will underpin the success of this work and this feels like an extension of how we work within our trust.
“The RISE teams in each region are also responsible for helping schools that are really struggling to improve, through the new Targeted Service. There is determined commitment from the government for RISE to have a positive impact, especially on these schools and for children experiencing disadvantage, and it will be exciting to work with DfE colleagues to make this happen in the South West.”
CLF CEO Steve Taylor said: “Alison is uniquely qualified for this work; her knowledge and understanding of the educational and school improvement landscape in our region and beyond is second-to-none. As well as steering the excellent work of the CLF Institute over recent years, she has also been chairing Team Southwest, a network which is now taking centre stage in the RISE Team’s approach to securing school improvement across the region.
“In the CLF we have always sought to be outward-facing, promoting system altruism and collaborative practice both within and beyond our own trust, and Alison has been the embodiment of this work. I am extremely proud that she now has the opportunity to play such a pivotal role going forward, and delighted that we still have all the benefits of her brilliance and expertise in the CLF. It’s good news for the children of our region.”
