EDBE Annual Report Academic year 2015-2016 John Searson DDE

THE HEADLINES National education policy has accelerated organisational change for all schools. Our smallest schools are the most vulnerable. Once in a generation opportunity to increase the influence of the Church of England in education and grow the church family of schools. Partnership activity should add capacity - especially with neighbouring diocese. This is the time for confidence, clarity, creativity and commitment – and a little more investment.

Our vital statistics: 133 schools – 37 academies, 47 voluntary aided, 49 voluntary controlled; Plus 2 non-church academies as part of St Christopher’s MAT; 5 secondary schools the rest primary or infant/junior The expansion of the influence of the Church of England in education is gathering pace in Devon

Getting our house in order EDBE actively self-evaluating – best practice guidance School Organisation and Governance Group Approvals for Foundation Directors, Governors Due diligence academy transformation Standards and Ethos Group Monitoring of school and academy performance Academic standards and Christian Distinctiveness School improvement strategy – support and challenge Work in Progress Monthly meeting - Education and Property Services Capital works, land and assets

Inspection Standards SIAMS to April 2016 Outstanding Good Satisfactory 57 61 11 44.1% 47.2% 8.5% OFSTED GRADINGS TO DECEMBER 2015 Inspection coverage Inadequate Requires improvement Good Outstanding Diocese 1% 10% 73% 15% National 13% 68% 18%

Number of schools

Standards – pupil outcomes

Educational Challenges Ahead Locus of control moving away from individual schools – ‘the era of the stand alone school is drawing to a close’ (Sir David Carter National Schools Commissioner) Structural solutions and MAT developments -all schools will join MATs by early 2020s Age profile of Heads and Principals – recruitment hard Shrinking finances – schools face real terms cuts (12%) Isolationism – (HMCI, RSC, DfE) especially academies ‘Stuck schools’ – community aspirations, deprivation Increased business focus - mergers, acquisitions Escalating floor standards – only 53% of Y6 pupils met new higher national expectation in 2016

The Diocesan MAT Vision A range of Church school-friendly academy Trusts and federations in the Diocese collaborating in the best interests of learners. Supporting the development of a local Diocesan academy Trust (through St Christopher’s MAT) but encouraging many alternatives to suit a range of circumstances and preferences. Strong church academies and federations with structural and operational models that will protect the church foundation in perpetuity.

National Developments The State is not seeking to alter the distinctive nature of Church Schools through the Academy process (extracts from Memo of Understanding between DfE and National Society dated April 2016) “…the Secretary of State remains committed to securing the religious character of every church school and to preserving diocesan families of schools” “..church schools that wish to convert will do so as part of a MAT with governance arrangements that reflect, at member and director level, no dilution of the level of church governance and involvement as it was immediately prior to conversion.”

CoE Vision for Education Our vision is deeply Christian, with the promise by Jesus of ‘life in all its fullness’ (John 10:10) at its heart. At the same time, it is accessible to those of all faiths and none. ‘Life in all its fullness’ embraces the spiritual, physical, intellectual, emotional, moral and social development of children and young people. We offer a vision of human flourishing for all, one that embraces excellence and academic rigour, but sets them in a wider framework. This framework is rooted in four basic elements: • Educating for wisdom, knowledge and skills: enabling discipline, confidence and delight in seeking wisdom and knowledge, and developing talents in all areas of life. • Educating for hope and aspiration: enabling healing, repair and renewal, coping wisely with things and people going wrong, opening horizons and guiding people into ways of fulfilling them. • Educating for community and life together: a core focus on relationships, participation in communities and the qualities of character that enable people to flourish together. • Educating for respect and dignity: the basic principle of respect for the value and preciousness of each person, treating each person as a unique individual of inherent worth.

CoE Foundation for Educational Leadership Aims: to build a national movement of inspirational leaders equipped to transform education, that fosters wisdom, hope, community and dignity, to enable children to flourish and experience life in all its fullness, regardless of their background or starting point. This will be achieved by: building networks to challenge and inspire each other; rigorous leadership development programmes to equip those leaders to realise our vision; robust research to provide an evidence base on the outcomes for children’s spiritual, physical, intellectual, emotional and social development.

Understanding Christianity Understanding Christianity is an exciting and powerful new RE resource for EYFS, KS1, 2 and 3. Developed by the Church of England and RE Today, with the aim of helping pupils to become knowledgeable about the Bible, Christian belief and practice. It works through well-planned, distinct steps, encouraging pupils to ‘make connections’ whilst ‘making sense of the text’, learning how to ‘think theologically’. It will be the benchmark by which RE is inspected in future SIAMS inspections.

Reasons to be thankful…. The EDBE is skilled, ambitious, hard working and passionate about our shared work in education We have a family of schools that can work together for the common good with the support of the MOU We will continue to build and maintain good working relationships with DCC, PCC and TBC and community schools and other strategic partners. Strong and compelling Vision for Education, Leadership Foundation, Understanding Christianity, Character Education – we have so much to offer the educational system.

Last words…. ‘a willingness to seize the initiative rather than sitting back and waiting for something to happen, or someone else to propose a solution. A failure or reluctance to do this, a longing for the status quo, will leave us with a system that was good for yesterday’s world, but is not fit for the purposes of education in the modern world; doing nothing is not an option’. (The Future of Rural Church of England Schools 2014)