SIB supports schools inside and outside the Trust on bespoke projects identified by the school leadership teams.  SIB has experience on delivering on variety of projects from coaching high-potential ECF teachers, running a deep dive in a department to help it identify the next steps for improvement, providing supervision for a new senior leader, and providing whole school CPDL.  SIB will always work collaboratively with schools, listening carefully to what leaders want to achieve and planning projects that achieve those goals. 

Key to this is the SIB Liaison, a single adviser who will work closely with schools to identify their needs, plan appropriate improvement work, and co-ordinate any other advisers who will be involved in completing that work.   The use of liaisons means that schools have a single point of communication, which makes it easier for them to work with SIB; it also means there is somebody on SIB who has oversight of all of the work taking place in a school, and who can make sure it fits together in a coherent fashion.  

Typically, the work we do with schools can be divided into one of three categories: 

Governance 

SIB can offer schools support with governance, supporting them with SEFs, SIPs and departmental equivalents, and challenging and supporting both senior and middle leaders on their areas of strategic responsibility.   SIB also offer health checks in a range of strategic leadership areas: these offer leaders an opportunity to review all aspects of a key strand of their school, suggest appropriate actions, and provide clear guidance on how robust and manageable self-evaluation can be conducted in the long term.   

Diagnostic work 

Diagnostic work is most suitable when schools have unanswered how or why questions.  They may not know why there is a gender gap in progress in one subject, or how to improve provision in a department.  

Diagnostic work typically consists of observations, reviews of pupils’ work, and collection of staff and pupil voice.  Advisers will typically spend at least a day within a department or working with key groups to complete these activities, triangulating their evidence with that already collected by school leaders. 

Upon completing diagnostic work, advisers will write a report including a description of what they have seen throughout the day, the conclusions they have drawn from this evidence, and recommendations for next steps. 

CPDL, coaching and supervision 

Where schools are clear about focussed areas of improvement, SIB advisers are able to provide input, whether that is CPDL for groups of staff on a key area, focussed coaching for those who would benefit from additional support, or supervision of inexperienced leaders.   

Coaching and supervision will begin with an introductory meeting to agree a focus and a schedule.  This may include some initial diagnostic work.  Wherever possible, coaching and supervision will take place across a period of time so that staff have a chance to implement what they have learned, receive feedback, respond to that feedback, and receive further feedback.   

Throughout coaching and supervision, advisers will report back on the activities that are being undertaken, and the extent to which staff are following the advice they are given.