The TDA have five Training School Consultants whose role is to support Training Schools in planning, developing and evaluating their work. Training School Consultants induct new Training Schools and support existing Training Schools through a cycle of visits. The consultants also play a key role in facilitating the sharing of practice across the country, through network meetings, conferences and informing Training Schools of opportunities such as school based research projects and Exchange Practice Visits.
For more information about the consultancy service and other areas of TDA support and development for Training Schools please contract Richard Sangster richard.sangster@tda.gov.uk (or 020 7023 8049)
New Training Schools
Twenty eight high performing specialist schools chose Training School as their additional leading option in the 2006 High Performing Specialist Schools round.These schools will begin their Training School activities in April 2007. There will be a conference for these schools in Manchester on 6 June 2007.
Primary Training Schools
In 2005 we brought together the Training School programme with the secondary Specialist Schools programme, and the TDA agreed to consider the case for maintaining a remodelled primary programme, which would link more effectively with their remit. However, having consulted with existing primary Training Schools they concluded that their work closely matched existing and planned projects within the TDA schools workforce programmes, and took the decision not to continue the programme.
The Department and the TDA recognise the high quality of work carried out by primary Training Schools and the TDA are developing an associate Training School programme that will provide existing primary Training Schools with an opportunity to maintain links with TDA. This could mean inclusion in network meetings, events and conferences at no cost to the school; existing levels of involvement in exchange practice visits; the school-based research initiative could continue to be funded; and the field consultants could maintain contact with the schools and provide advice and information updates. This would allow the TDA to continue to work with primary schools to support and develop excellence in school-initiated training.
The TDA wrote to all Primary Training Schools in March notifying them of this opportunity.
Transitional Arrangements
From July 2005 participation in the Training Schools Programme was dependant on a school being (or becoming) a Specialist School and meeting the high performance criteria set at the point of the school's re-designation. It was intended that Training Schools would be assessed against the High Performing Specialist School (HPSS) criteria at their specialist school re-designation point. However, in order to give parity to schools and some certainty on the way forward, the Department decided to carry out an initial assessment of all Training Schools against the 2006 HPSS criteria at the same time, and introduce transitional arrangements for schools which do not meet the criteria.
All Training Schools have therefore been assessed against the 2006 HPSS criteria and those not meeting it but attaining minimum threshold GCSE levels have entered into transitional arrangements. Separate arrangements apply to those schools who are in consortium arrangements.
Training Schools entering into transitional arrangements also have to meet a series of Key Performance Indicators to continue with their Training School status beyond their current contract.
