The Side by Side Offer to Buckinghamshire Schools 2022/23 

Offer to Maintained Schools

Buckinghamshire Council School Improvement Team and the Side by Side Board have agreed a strong offer to maintained schools for academic year 2022/23, which is consistent with previous years: 

• A comprehensive Headline Visit (HLV) programme of support for Enhancement schools;
• 3 Headline Visits and up to 9 days of funded SSPC/ABLE support for Prevention schools;
• 5 Headline Visits, up to 18 days of funded SSPC/ABLE support and up to 18 days of funded SSLC support for Intervention schools (inclusive of HLVs).

Recognising the challenges for new Headteachers and the importance of enhanced support during a Headteacher’s first year in post, a New to Headship Headline Visit will also be offered to all maintained schools with either: 

• A ‘new to post Headteacher’ for academic year 2022/23 (including those headteachers moving from an interim position to a permanent post);
• A ‘new to Buckinghamshire Headteacher’ for academic year 2022/23.

The New to Headship Headline Visit is a meeting with a School Improvement Advisor to identify strengths of the school and areas for development. 

In addition, Buckinghamshire Council, working in collaboration with the Buckinghamshire Academy of School Leaders, will be delivering a new ‘Early Career Headship’ programme for the 2022/23 cohort of new Headteachers. 

In order to support schools during a challenging period, Team Around the School support is offered to all maintained schools facing a significant need. Team Around the School meetings are convened by the School Improvement Team, who build a strong team from within the local authority to support a school undergoing a particularly difficult set of circumstances. Formal meetings are held at regular intervals (monthly or half termly) and all are held to account for the quality and pace of the improvements by the Chair, who will normally be a senior member of the Education Team. 

Rapid Improvement Group meetings can be convened by the School Improvement Team with the purpose to regularly monitor impact of intervention support with the supported school’s Headteacher, Chair of Governors, the SSLC. This will be chaired by the School Improvement Advisor. 

All maintained schools will also benefit from support during Ofsted inspections, and attendance from a member of the School Improvement Team at Ofsted inspection feedback sessions. The School Improvement Advisor will support the process through a pre-inspection discussion with the Headteacher, availability for telephone support throughout the inspection period and a discussion with the Lead Inspector on day two, regarding supported development work. 

Finally, as part of our statutory duty, School Improvement Advisors will support the recruitment process for a new Headteacher in maintained schools by attending the final interviews and representing the local authority as part of the interview panel. Please contact the team on sis@buckinghamshire.gov.uk to discuss any future headteacher recruitment needs, giving as much advance notice of interviews and support needed as possible. 

Additional support, such as a wide range of school improvement reviews, Headteacher Performance Management, school improvement and development support and 1:1 coaching for Headteachers can be purchased through BESST, the traded school improvement and governor services team of Buckinghamshire Council. 

Offer to Academy Schools

Despite strong opposition from Buckinghamshire Council, other LAs, the unions and key stakeholders, the Department for Education announced in 2021 that the School Improvement Monitoring and Brokerage Grant, which has funded the Side by Side programme in Buckinghamshire since academic year 2017/18, is being reduced by 50% during financial year 2022/23 and stopped from the beginning of financial year 2023/24, resulting in no future grant funding for local authorities to undertake school improvement functions. In addition, the DfE clarified that the remaining grant monies should be focused on maintained schools. 

Buckinghamshire Council have therefore reluctantly made the decision to start charging academies for Side by Side support. Whilst we strongly believe that school improvement support should be provided for all schools, regardless of status, this will no longer be possible without a consistent funding stream. 

In line with the Department for Educations funding withdrawal, all Side by Side support for academies will be funded at 50% of cost for financial year 2022/23 only, following which all Side by Side funding for academies will be withdrawn. Academies engaging with Side by Side and receiving support up until 1st April 2023 are now being invoiced for 50% of the costs associated with delivered champion support. These charges are to cover the direct support costs only; no brokerage charges will apply. 

Rapid Improvement Group meetings can be convened by the School Improvement Team with the purpose to regularly monitor impact of intervention support with the supported school’s Headteacher, Chair of Governors, the SSLC. This will be chaired by the School Improvement Advisor. Rapid Improvement Group meetings at an academy school would incur costs, which would be agreed in discussion with the school leadership. 

The School Improvement Team will continue to provide, free of charge, the following Side by Side support for academy schools for academic year 2022/23: 

• Recognising the challenges for new Headteachers and the importance of enhanced support during a Headteachers first year in post, a New to Headship Headline Visit will be offered to all academy schools with either:

• A ‘new to post Headteacher’ for ACYR 2022/23 (including those Headteachers moving from an interim position to a permanent post) 
• A ‘new to Buckinghamshire Headteacher’ for ACYR 2022/23 

The New to Headship Headline Visit is a meeting with a School Improvement Advisor to identify strengths of the school and areas for development. 

• In addition, Buckinghamshire Council, working in collaboration with the Buckinghamshire Academy of School Leaders, will be delivering a new ‘Early Career Headship’ programme for the 2022/23 cohort of new Headteachers.

• The School Improvement Team will continue to offer all academy schools support during Ofsted inspections, and attendance.

feedback sessions. The School Improvement Advisor will support the process through a pre-inspection discussion with the Headteacher, availability for telephone support throughout the inspection period and a discussion with the Lead Inspector on day two. 

• Unlimited access to three Side by Side Improvement Conferences throughout academic year 2022/23 for School Leaders and their senior team.

We hope that we will continue to have a strong, collaborative and mutually beneficial relationship with all academies and MATs in Buckinghamshire, and hope that we can continue to work together to raise the attainment of pupils across the county. Side by Side support will continue to be available to academy leaders, which we aim to provide at very competitive rates, delivering support from the best leaders and practitioners from across the county. 

Additional support, such as a wide range of school improvement reviews, Headteacher Performance Management, school improvement and development support and 1:1 coaching for Headteachers can be purchased through BESST, the traded school improvement and governor services team of Buckinghamshire Council.