Traded services

• Name
• Stewart Bradley, Head of School Improvement Service
• Address
• Heath Training and Development Centre
  Free School Lane
  Halifax HX1 2PT
• E-mail
• stewart.bradley@calderdale.gov.uk
• Telephone
• 01422 394100
• Fax
• 01422 394083

• Name
• Lawrence Killian, Principal School Link Officer / Mary Jackson, Principal School Link Officer
• Address
• Heath Training and Development Centre
  Free School Lane
  Halifax HX1 2PT
• E-mail
• lawrence.killian@calderdale.gov.uk / mary.jackson@calderdale.gov.uk
• Telephone
• 01422 394103 / 01422 394104
• Fax
• 01422 394083

1. set standards;
2. be open and provide full information;
3. consult and involve;
4. encourage access and the promotion of choice;
5. treat all fairly;
6. put things right when they go wrong;
7. use resources effectively;
8. innovate and improve;
9. work with other providers;
10. provide user satisfaction.

1. Quality awards
   The Directorate has the Investors in People award and we are committed to the Council's key priorities, principles and vision. The School Improvement Service is accredited by the Basic Skills Agency to assess and award the Quality Mark and by the Healthy Schools Award to assess and accredit the HSA. In recent inspections the service has been graded as good overall with many examples of very good practice being identified.
2. Education Expertise
   Eight members of the current team have been headteachers (across primary schools) and most other staff have held management posts in schools either at senior management team, head of department or head of faculty level. Some have experience of working in other local authorities.
   The service has key staff who are nationally trained to lead on government strategies for raising standards and their work has been highly praised by DCSF and OfSTED. Some staff have worked at a national level on education developments, sometimes partly seconded from their substantive posts at the request of the DCSF. Some officers have also managed schools in special measures as associate headteacher.
3. Qualified staff
   Most professional staff in the service are qualified teachers and have taught across the full range of schools and in the different age ranges. Several members of staff are OfSTED trained inspectors and nearly all school link officers are accredited as school improvement partners. In addition, most of the school link officers are trained to assess the BSA Quality Mark. Many staff in the service have been trained in customer care and in 'Investment in Excellence'. All staff are involved in regular performance review and training. Staff involved in the Government's national strategies are observed by regional advisers nominated by the DCSF and feedback is given.
   Many of the professional staff have an additional qualification which complements their teaching certificate and degree. Several have also undertaken the NPQH qualification and the LPSH programme. All staff in the service have access to accredited training courses for example, Ofsted training, and administrative staff have qualified for accountancy and management via the NVQ route.
4. Secure identification, CRB checks
   All staff visiting schools were subject to police checks at the point of recruitment and all new staff are undergoing the CRB checks before their appointment is confirmed. Every staff member has an identification card issued by the Council. All officers have a planned diary sheet and visits to schools, almost without exception, are planned so that the staff know who to expect, when and for how long.
5. Responsiveness
   The service will respond to all contact as quickly as possible but in order to do so needs the basic information to respond. We always need a contact name and telephone number.
   • We are working to comply with the response times in the Council's Customer Care policy.
   • In complex cases we will send a holding message indicating how long we anticipate the response will take.
6. Courtesy
   You can expect us to be courteous and helpful at all times. When you write to us, telephone us, or visit our offices, the person you are in contact with will tell you his or her name and, where appropriate, telephone number.
7. Properly equipped
   You can expect us to be well prepared and properly equipped to offer high quality advice and support. Staff regularly attend appropriate conferences and training sessions to enhance their own knowledge and develop good practice models for schools.
8. Meets all statutory requirements
   There are statutory functions for which the service is responsible. We take these very seriously, and we operate according to the statutory regulations. Where there are no statutory regulations we will endeavour to advise schools via guidance documents and courses or briefings.
9. Fully insured
   The service has public liability insurance.

1. Many of the Council targets for pupil attainment show considerable improvement and progress over recent years, with most results being at or above the national average.  Our examination results compare extremely favourably with neighbouring local authorities.
2. As at May 2008, there are three schools subject to special measures and one has been given a notice to improve which is below national averages.
3. OfSTED has complimented the Local Authority on its work on the identification of and intervention in under-performing schools.
4. National and Regional Strategy Directors/Advisers have highly praised the work of the service in supporting schools in the national strategies.
5. In-service training courses for teachers and support staff evaluate at satisfactory or better for over 95 per cent of the courses run with the vast majority of these being good or better..

1. lead training sessions as in the course brochures;
2. lead training sessions in individual schools as negotiated;
3. work with individual teachers or teams of staff;
4. develop written guidance/planning/reports with staff teams;
5. provide in-depth support for School Improvement Planning (SIP) and self-evaluation processes;
6. organise the learning environment in partnership with staff;
7. lead staff meetings or INSET days as requested;
8. support staff who are experiencing a new situation for example, new age group or new subject area;
9. analyse data and information which is additional to that analysed by the Service and make recommendations;
10. observe teachers and/or pupils and present an analysis with points for action;
11. discuss and debate management strategy or structure and give advice;
12. train parents or governors;
13. audit curriculum provision and make recommendations.

1. Give officers a very clear brief for the specific work required by the school.
2. Make staff, parents and governors (and pupils where appropriate) aware of what they have asked officers to do in the school and what outcome they expect.

• Name
• Lawrence Killian, Principal School Link Officer / Mary Jackson, Principal School Link Officer
• Address
• Heath Training and Development Centre
  Free School Lane
  Halifax HX1 2PT
• E-mail
• lawrence.killian@calderdale.gov.uk / mary.jackson@calderdale.gov.uk
• Telephone
• 01422 394103 / 01422 394104
• Fax
• 01422 394083

If the issue is still not resolved you should contact:

• Name
• Stewart Bradley, Head of School Improvement Service 
• Address
• Heath Training and Development Centre
  Free School Lane
  Halifax HX1 2PT
• E-mail
• stewart.bradley@calderdale.gov.uk
• Telephone
• 01422 394100
• Fax
• 01422 394083

If the issue cannot be resolved, you may wish to invoke the Council's Complaints procedure