School Improvement

We take School Improvement seriously and are always looking to work with external partner agencies to help us self evaluate and drive improvement. We work closely with:

LA School Improvement Partner and QA - Janice Allen 

I have been a Senior Leader in Education since 2006 and was Headteacher of a large, inclusive, diverse school in Rochdale since 2015. I made the decision to step away from Headship in 2023 to focus on supporting schools in building links with community partners in order to find solutions to the ‘wicked’ problems of poverty, youth violence, substance misuse, mental health, racism and gender based violence. This has been formed through my experiences and partnerships over time finding local solutions where there were previously none. I am also providing educational leadership support and school improvement support as I build the education community partnerships.

I have had a positive impact on the school community as a leader aswell as the wider locality. As a Headteacher, I framed the wider curriculum around the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and was innovative in working with family and third sector partners with a strong belief that what happens in school has an impact in the community and what happens in the community matters in school. Through working in tandem with place-based community partners I have made sustainable change. This was also reflected in external Quality Assurance with Ofsted highlighting in February 2023 that, “Leaders have created a culture where pupils are tolerant and accepting of the differences between people….Pupils’ understanding of human rights is developed through the wider curriculum where they explore a range of local, national and international issues.”

I have worked voluntarily participating in and leading multi-disciplinary work across Safeguarding Boards, Greater Manchester Violence Reduction Boards, #Beewell, Greater Manchester Race Equality Panel, Greater Manchester Gender Based Violence Board and Northern Powerhouse Partnership and am a trustee of Your Trust (Rochdale's cultural and health charity) and Early Break (substance misuse charity). A key success recently has been in the initiation and facilitation of a joint philanthropic and council funded project on Inclusion with Right to Succeed which will have a significantly positive outcome on all children and families in Rochdale.

I believe in the importance of education and community coming together and possess the experience and the skills to make this happen in a wider context. Hard to make the decision to leave education as a Headteacher but looking forward to the future.