Primary, Secondary and Special Schools
The CPLD Quality Mark is proven to be effective in primary, secondary and special schools whether single status, federated or trust schools. Teaching schools have found it valuable to guide their agenda and form effective improvement partnerships and entire alliances have successfully gained accreditation.
The QM incorporates the current school improvement agenda and best practice in CPD ensuring that schools have the best possible model against which to audit and develop their practice, and the constant positive feedback gained from assessments demonstrates this is the case.
Teaching Schools have found it very useful not only to demonstrate the effectiveness of their own CPLD, but in providing a Framework for quality assuring their role and measuring the impact of collaborative activity.
How does it work in practice and what do you get?
Stage 1: Audit and Development work
First, you purchase the Toolkit, in electronic form, to support the development of your setting. This Toolkit contains:
- Guidance Notes on how the QM works and what to do to successfully improve your practice and provision.
- The full QM Framework for Bronze, Silver and Gold levels – this is the road map for improvement.
- The Audit and Development Tool – this helps you to audit how good your current practice is and guides development to achieve your target level.
- A guide to assessment and accreditation.
- Free feedback on your Audit and Development Tool at any time.
- Free telephone and email support for 2 years or to your assessment.
It is important to realise that you can do the audit and development work at your own pace with our support as necessary, though once started school leaders have told us that it is better to keep the momentum going. Our Toolkit scaffolds your development work and treats you as experienced, independently minded professionals – it does not dictate what you must do.
Stage 2: Assessment, Accreditation and Certification
Second, you apply to us for assessment. You will be guided on how to prepare for a successful assessment and you will be told in advance what will be assessed so that you can be well prepared. Your assessor will provide as much support as you need for this over the telephone and via email.
It is important to realise that assessment is very different to inspection and managers and staff have told us that it is a much more positive and development experience, though rigorous. Settings have told us that as a result of their experience value of the development work and the experience of assessment that they want to work towards the higher levels.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE?
This varies tremendously. A school with well-developed CPLD practice in place can be ready for Bronze assessment within 8-12 weeks whilst Silver tends to take an average of 8-12 months. Gold assessments tend to be a follow-on from Silver and requires a similar time-frame. CPLD leaders in schools have repeatedly told us that they like this measured, staged approach.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
There are two payments – one for the Toolkit to get you started and one for assessment when you are ready, thus allowing you to spread the costs.
Stage 1 – The Toolkit
Stage 2 – Assessment
The purchase price for each Stage is linked to school size and the number of schools purchasing at the same time if part of a federation, alliance or trust, and substantial discounts are in place for multiple purchases. Please call or email for a quotation so that we can get this right for you.
Assessment
The dedicated assessment guide within the Toolkit explains this process in detail but it essentially involves:
Step 1. Submitting your Audit and Development Tool, at your chosen level, for scrutiny – this tells us whether you are ready or not and we provide you with feedback and any additional guidance if necessary.
Step 2. You receive an ‘Assessment Plan’ telling you how to prepare for a successful assessment – this will involve a mixture of document scrutiny and staff interviews triangulated to your Audit and Development Tool.
Step 3. The assessment visit with feedback
Step 4: A report, accreditation letter and certificate.