school leaders survey 2015 73341 · ASCL General Secretary Our school leaders survey with Browne...

School leaders survey 2015

Executive summary

Putting aside the detail of the findings for one moment, one of the very interesting aspects of this year’s survey is that, unlike in previous years, there is far less divergence of opinions between academy and maintained school respondents. This perhaps reflects the fact that we are now entering into the sixth year of the expanded academies programme and all schools are feeling the continued effects of the changing accountability measures, frailties of the examination system as well as financial restraint in the public sector.

Two clear themes struck me when looking at the survey findings. The Government’s education programme heavily relies on school leaders and it is clear more needs to be done to support current leaders as well as identifying and developing the leaders of the future. With continuation of the academy programme at pace and the emergence of more local school groups this will be a critical part of succession planning at both a local and national level.

This Government also needs to follow through on

its manifesto commitments on schools funding. The Conservative manifesto made a commitment to provide ‘proper funding’ to every school and to ‘make schools funding fairer’. However, Nicky Morgan has said the new funding formula will not be ready until September 2017 at the very earliest. Many will remember the last Education Secretary of State started consultation on fair funding in 2012 but progress soon stalled.

Whilst 2017 will feel too late for many, it is important to ensure that this time real progress will be delivered for our worst funded schools and their pupils. The Prime Minister’s announcement in July this year that the additional £390m previously confirmed for 2015-16 would be base-lined in budgets for future years was a welcome start. Any additional measures the Chancellor can facilitate in the comprehensive spending review to help narrow the gap pending the full implementation of fair funding will be very welcome.

If you would like to discuss our findings, please get in touch.

Nick MacKenziePartner - Browne Jacobson LLP

Welcome to the report on the findings of our third annual survey

of school leaders. Once again we are delighted to have carried

out this year’s survey in partnership with ASCL. This year’s

survey provides an interesting opportunity to look back and see

how opinions and attitudes have changed following the general

election earlier this year.

About Browne JacobsonBrowne Jacobson is an award winning law firm offering a unique range of education legal and HR support to schools

and academies from its five office network. The team works alongside ASCL and are approved partners of FASNA,

NGA and NASBM. They currently support in excess of 1,000 schools and academies. The team of specialist education

lawyers and HR consultants are independently recognised as one of the leading education teams in the country. If you

wish to find out more please visit www.brownejacobson.com/education

| school leaders survey 2015

school leaders survey 2015 |

Foreword

It is not hugely surprising that the extreme pressure on the system is reflected in the findings of this survey. The biggest concern is clearly funding, with budgetary pressures set to result in staffing cuts over the next 12 months in more than half of the schools surveyed. School leaders do everything in their power to minimise the impact on their pupils, but fewer staff inevitably means cutting courses and increasing class sizes.

The funding system is complex but the problem is simple. Schools face rising costs without any additional money to meet them. Those in the worst-funded areas, under our wildly inequitable system, are suffering the most.

We have been campaigning for more than 20 years for a fairer school funding formula to end the current postcode lottery which results in some areas receiving more than £2,000 less per pupil than others and we hope the Government will act over this long-running issue. In addition, overall funding needs to be sufficient, and the current shortfall, particularly in post-16 provision where funding levels are woefully inadequate, is having a significant and detrimental impact in our classrooms.

Education is an investment in the future of young people and the economy. We are failing to put enough money into that investment and without urgent action we will pay a long-term price.

Brian LightmanASCL General Secretary

Our school leaders survey with Browne Jacobson comes at a

critical point, with schools facing severe funding pressures

at the same time as an escalating recruitment crisis and an

unprecedented plethora of curriculum and assessment change.

Given these circumstances, it is a wonder that ASCL members

found the time to complete this survey, so we are particularly

grateful that so many have done so and our sincere thanks to them

all.

About ASCLThe Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) is a leading professional body representing more than 18,000

school, college and system leaders across the UK. It’s members work in more than 90 per cent of secondary schools

and colleges of all types, and are responsible for the education of more than four million young people. ASCL works

to shape national education policy, provide advice and support to members and deliver first-class professional

development across the sector. To find out more visit www.ascl.org.uk or ring 0116 299 1122.

Key findings

Staffing cuts

Over half of schools (55%) are looking to reduce their overall staffing levels in the next 12 months, with 71% citing reduced funding and 62% budget pressures as the reason.

Of schools looking to make cuts, more than three-quarters (78%) will reduce the number of teaching positions with a similar number making cuts to support staff; 43% are planning to reduce leadership posts.

Six out of ten leaders (61%) are looking to reduce staffing levels by between 2-5% with one in four (26%) seeking cuts of between 6-10% over the next 12 months.

Priorities

Managing a reduced or stagnant budget will be a priority for 90% of school leaders over the next year.

In addition, more than 90% of school leaders say that implementing the curriculum changes coming on stream is a priority this year.

Fewer than one in ten leaders view joining a formal school group, becoming or joining a teaching school alliance or creating or expanding a school group as a major priority.

Leadership concerns

More than one-third of school leaders (36%) are planning to reduce the overall size of their leadership teams in the next 12 months.

More than half (52%) questioned whether Regional School Commissioners (RSCs) were sufficiently resourced to intervene and implement improvement measures in schools.

Similar levels of concerns surfaced when it came to assessing the pool of future leaders with 43% of respondents feeling negative about whether there was a sufficient pipeline of potential leaders coming through the system at a local level.

Government policy

Three-quarters of leaders (72%) felt negative when asked about the impact the Government’s education policy is likely to have on their schools compared to 12 months ago. Fewer than one in ten school leaders were positive about Government policies.

92% of school leaders were dissatisfied with the Government’s funding of schools of which 60% were very dissatisfied.

Half of all school leaders felt negative when asked about the educational prospects of their pupils compared to 12 months ago as a result of Government policies.

Prevent in the classroom

A significant number of school leaders have expressed concerns about discharging the new legal duty placed upon them under the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015 with one in five school leaders (21%) identifying a need for greater training to assist staff.

About the research

Research for the school leaders survey 2015 was carried out between 14 September and 28 September 2015.

1333 school leaders took part in the survey, of which 45% were head teachers and principals. The remainder included CEOs, MDs, deputy CEOs, deputy MDs and principals, assistant principals, finance directors and business managers. 38% of schools that took part were maintained and 53% academies. Of the total, 76% of all schools taking part were secondary and 8% primary, with the remainder including all-through schools and special schools.

All percentages quoted in this report have been rounded to whole numbers. Where the results do not add up to 100%, this may be due to rounding.

Browne Jacobson and ASCL are grateful to all the school leaders and senior managers, both members and non-members of ASCL, who have generously participated in this study.



Staffing cuts crisis

Whilst the Government has gone to great lengths to stress that it is committed to protecting school finances, the everyday reality for school leaders paints a somewhat different picture. Going back as far as last year ministers were warning schools to prepare for a tougher financial environment and so it has proved for the vast majority of leaders taking part in our survey.

In real terms many schools are seeing their budgets under intense pressure from rising salaries, pension and national insurance contributions leaving school leaders little or no option but to make cuts to the front line, in some cases as much as 20%.

Over half of all school leaders (55%) we polled indicated they were looking to reduce their overall staffing levels in the next 12 months, with 71% and 62% citing reduced funding and increased budgetary pressures respectively as the reason. Three-quarters of those looking to make

cuts (78%) have identified teaching posts. A similar number are looking to cut support staff and 43% will be reducing leadership posts.

Of those looking to make savings six out of ten (61%) are looking to reduce staffing levels of between 2-5% with one in four (26%) seeking cuts of between 6-10% over the next 12 months. One in every hundred school leaders are looking to make cuts of more than 20%.

This raises the important issue of teacher workloads. In 2014 Nicky Morgan told The Independent she wanted “to listen to teachers and lighten their burden”. This came only a few months after the Government launched its Workload Challenge. Whilst the message will have chimed with school leaders at the time the reality, according to our survey findings, is that schools face some difficult decisions now which on the face of it will only increase that pressure and burden.

10%

30%

20%

50%

40%

0%

80%

70%

60%

100%

90%

78%

43%

78%

5%

Teaching staff

Leadership posts

Support staff

Other

Q: Among which groups are you looking to make cuts?

Base: 706 respondents

NoUnsure

Yes

55+28+1755%

28%

17%

Q: Are you looking to reduce your staffing costs in the next 12 months?


In light of the growing financial pressures schools are facing it is not surprising that managing budgets will be a priority for 90% of school leaders over the next year. Of these, 60% of school leaders saw it as a major priority. This is growing in importance year on year. In 2014 it was 55% and 40% the year before with all the indications suggesting this upward curve will continue in future years.

Getting priorities straight

60Managing a reduced or stagnant budget

54Improving exam

results

53Implementing curriculum/qualification

changes

44Improving the quality of teaching 38

Preparing for inspection

27Demonstrating

capacity to improve

Q: To what extent is each of the following likely to be a major priority over the next 12 months? (%)

5%

10%

0%

20%

15%

17%

10%9%

7%

Personal job security

New building/capital

projects

Strengthening governance

arrangements

Joining/becoming a

Teaching School Alliance

17%

5%

3%

Creating or expanding a school group

Joining a formal

school group

Changing terms and conditions

24Staff

restructuring


Improving exam results and implementing curriculum and qualification changes were also named as priority areas by more than 90% of school leaders, with 54% and 53% respectively saying they were major priorities. These figures are likely to reflect the high-stakes culture of the exam system for both students and schools.


A significant number of school leaders (43%) are negative about the pipeline of leaders coming through the education system at a local level. This is a situation that is likely to get worse before it gets better, especially when you take into account our finding that one-third (36%) of school leaders are looking to reduce the size of their leadership teams in the coming year.

The Government’s agenda to promote a collaborative approach as part of its vision for a self–improving school system appears to be under pressure with fewer than one in ten schools looking to create or expand a school group, become or join a teaching school alliance or join a formal school group.

In 2010 teaching schools became a key plank of the Government’s approach to raise standards and it is interesting to see the trend in attitudes since then. In our 2013 school leaders survey 19% saw becoming a teaching school or joining a teaching school alliance as a major priority. Two years on that now stands at just 3%. With the latest round of applications closing earlier this month it will be interesting to see if the Government has hit its target of 600 teaching schools by September 2016.

The numbers of those interested in creating or expanding a school group has seen a more dramatic fall; in 2013 35% identified it as a major priority compared to only 7% in 2015. Whilst clearly the fact that nearly 30% of respondents are already in a school group will impact on this, it is nonetheless surprising that more leaders do not cite this as a major priority.

While the creation of completely new groups may start to slow, the direction of travel appears to be for existing groups to grow around local clusters. Perhaps leaders are focusing on managing their financial position before bringing in another school or schools that may add to the fiscal challenge they have to address. There is no doubt economies of scale from larger groups can help but it is certainly no ‘silver bullet’ to the financial challenges schools face.

In September last year eight Regional School Commissioners (RSCs) took up their posts as the Government’s ‘middle tier’ of accountability for academies and free schools. Our survey identified that over half (52%) questioned whether the RSCs were sufficiently resourced to intervene and implement improvement measures in schools. There were no discernible differences between academy and maintained schools with 49% and 54% respectively questioning their capacity.

The Education and Adoption Bill, which is currently making its way through Parliament, will significantly increase the powers of RSCs by allowing them to force ‘failing’ schools to become sponsored academies and to intervene in ‘coasting’ schools and academies. It will be interesting to see what additional resources, if any, will be put at the RSCs disposal and how perceptions will be affected once the Bill becomes law and RSCs start to use their enhanced powers.

Leadership concerns

Neither negative or positive

Negative or very negative

Very positive or positive

Don’t know/unsure

18+29+46+7+A31%

43%

9% 17%

Q: How do you feel about the pipeline of leaders coming through the system in your area?


71%

18%

2%

School leaders remained overwhelmingly negative about the impact of the Government’s policy on their establishments, the educational achievements of their pupils and it’s funding policy.

Seven out of ten school leaders were negative when asked about the impact Government education policy would have on their school compared to 12 months ago with fewer than one in ten feeling positive.

Many respondents were clearly concerned about the effect that Government policies will have on children’s educational prospects, with half feeling negative or very negative, and only 27% saying they were positive or very positive.

School leaders also remain unconvinced about the Government’s education funding policy. Nine out of ten leaders were dissatisfied, of which 60% were very dissatisfied.

The financial strains are clearly being felt with 90% of secondary school leaders feeling negative or very negative when asked about the financial prospects for their schools today compared to 12 months ago; this probably goes some way towards explaining why two–thirds (65%) of secondary school leaders identified managing their budgets as a major priority over the coming year.

Government policies


Negative or very negative

Neither negative nor positive

Don’t know/unsure

Very positive or positive

20%

40%

0%

80%

60%

100%26%

50%

23%

1%

5%

85%

9%

1%

9%

Q: How do you feel about the impact of education policy on your organisation compared to 12 months ago? (%)


Q: How do you feel about the educational prospects of the children at your organisation compared to 12 months ago? (%)


Q: How do you feel about the financial prospects of your organisation compared to 12 months ago? (%)



On a more positive note the Government’s commitment to reduce the burden of inspections appears to have struck a chord with school leaders. We have seen a steady decline in the levels of dissatisfaction towards Ofsted and the inspection regime since we first launched this survey with the biggest fall appearing in the last 12 months.

In 2013 68% of school leaders expressed dissatisfaction with Ofsted. This fell to 63% in 2014 but our 2015 survey registered the largest fall – less than half (43%) of school leaders are now dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the school’s inspection regime. When asked about their thoughts on the new common inspection framework 28%

Ofsted and inspections

Q: How do you feel about the new common inspection framework (including a common set of judgements) for early years, schools and FE?


10%

20%

0%

40%

30%

50%

2%

Very positive

26%

Positive

49%

Neither negative or

positive

14%

Negative

3%

Very negative

6%

Don’t know/unsure

said they were positive or very positive, compared to 17% feeling negative or very negative.

The changes to the inspection framework this autumn, with a greater focus on professional dialogue and a shift towards placing more of an emphasis on pupil progress rather than just achievement will have certainly helped ease tensions. Also the announcement earlier this year that Ofsted was taking steps to improve the quality and consistency of inspectors and bringing oversight in-house, rather than outsourced to independent providers, may have gone some way towards improving perceptions of the inspection regime.

From July this year the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015 placed a legal duty on schools to ‘prevent people from being drawn into terrorism’ - a central plank in the Government’s Prevent agenda.

It is a theme that the Prime Minister returned to at the 2015 Conservative Party conference when he identified confronting terrorism and extremism as the ‘big social reform in our mission to rebuild Britain as an even greater country’.

Our survey suggests that a significant proportion of schools are concerned about the complex and significant requirements placed upon them by this legislation, with only 26% feeling positive or very positive about discharging this duty, and 29% feeling negative or very negative.

When we probed into the potential reasons one in five (21%) highlighted concerns over training suggesting schools clearly need help identifying good quality training providers. While the basic Prevent duty may be covered within general safeguarding training, for other staff, including the designated safeguarding lead, WRAP training or other more comprehensive training may be required.

Effective inter-agency working is also crucial if schools are to successfully discharge their duty but according to our survey 21% of school leaders felt limited access to appropriately skilled local authority staff was one of the key issues that needed addressing.

Prevent in the classroom

10%

20%

30%

40%

0%3%

Very positive

23%

Positive

40%

Neither negative/positive

Very negative

5%

24%

Negative

5%

Don’t know/unsure

Q: What do you consider the greatest implementation issues in discharging this duty?

11%12%21%21%21% 7%7%Identifying appropriate training for staff

Obtaining appropriate, skilled local authority staff

Staff inability to spot extremism warning signs

Lack of parental cooperation

No major issues

OtherLack of IT tools to control websites

Q: How do you feel about your ability to discharge your new legal duty to ‘prevent people from being drawn into terrorism’ which came into force this year?




Leaders’ thoughts

““Whilst we share a commitment to having a world class education for our children and an education system that provides the rigour required so that our young people can compete in a global market, we have concerns that some policy decisions over the past 12 months, and even post election seem to eroding academy freedoms in their curriculum and may disproportionately affect lower achievers.”

Denise ShepherdChief Executive OfficerThe Thinking Schools Academy Trust

““Finances are a real issue and strategic leadership will have to think long and hard about how they are to achieve more with less. It is not impossible to do this but it will not be possible with the same strategy. Never before has working in partnership been as critical as it is today.”

Sir Andrew CarterHead TeacherSouth Farnham School

““I am immensely optimistic about the educational prospects of children in our schools as their teachers and school leaders have demonstrated how much can be achieved if you focus on children and teachers rather than external factors.”

Hugh GreenwayChief Executive OfficerThe Elliot Foundation

““It has become increasingly clear that the trust needs to engage in succession planning and the preparation of the next cadre of leadership at all levels... The size of the trust enables us to generate an increasing pool of potential future leaders and to meet their developing needs in a variety of ways.”

Ian ClelandChief ExecutiveAcademy Transformation Trust

Browne Jacobson

Telephone 0370 270 6000

Email [email protected]

Twitter @bjeducationlaw

Online www.brownejacobson.com/education

ASCL

Telephone 0116 299 1122

Email [email protected]

Twitter @ASCL_UK

Online www.ascl.org.uk

The legal bit The information and opinions expressed in this report are no substitute for legal advice. It is guidance only, if in doubt please telephone 0370 270 6000.

© Browne Jacobson LLP and ASCL 2015The information contained within this report is and shall remain the property of Browne Jacobson and ASCL. This document may not be reproduced without the prior consent of Browne Jacobson and ASCL.

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