Virtual and cross-regional peer review

We know that whole school communities have had to learn new skills and adapt to a challenging environment at unprecedented speed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Our focus on enquiry, non-judgmental evidence collection and coaching conversations have played a key part in response and recovery for the schools we work with, even where school-to-school visits and face-to-face meetings are not possible.

SPP Rapid Response is an additional resource developed for schools who are part of the SPP Community, past and present, and all materials are available in the member resource area of this website. Co-created in consultation with school, local authority, TSA and MAT leaders and tested with some of our more experienced partnerships, it supports peer review cycle either fully or partially online, in a shorter timescale. It also provides examples of how peer review can be used to focus on responding quickly to the immediate and emerging challenges that continue to be posed by Covid-19 – see our SPP Enquiry Frameworks.

 

SPP Rapid Response augments the core Schools Partnership Programme, it does not replace it. It is based on the same principles and provides practical advice on how to:

+ mobilise and focus peer review quickly, to respond to pressing issues

+ engage in effective, supportive pre-review meetings and feedback discussions in a virual environment

+ conduct peer review virtually, with suggested tools and strategies to gather evidence and data

+ facilitate effective improvement workshops online to develop evidence-based improvement strategies for your school.

 

Click here to read our case study with Shakespeare Primary School, Plymouth, where they describe their experience of using school-to-school peer review in a fully virtual environment to enable action planning for improvement.

Listen as Lynn Paylor Sutton, Headteacher of Langdon Primary School in Kent, discusses how SPP virtual peer review enabled her team to meet the challenges imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic and discover the long-term benefits of holding reviews online.

 

Broadening opportunities for new collaborative partnerships: cross-regional peer review

One of the emerging benefits that virtual peer review presents is the opportunity for schools experienced in SPP peer review to widen their circle and come together with new colleagues around the country to share practice, collaborate and improve. We are delighted that a group of experienced school leaders – from Plymouth, Greater Manchester and Essex – have trialled our first cross-regional peer review. We will be sharing their findings shortly.

If you are a school that has been involved in the SPP model of peer review for 2 years or more and you would like our support to engage with new schools outside your local area, please get in touch or fill out our 'Interested in broadening my peer review' form - we'll introduce you to other schools across the country and provide all the tools you'll need to get started.

Watch Carly-Ann Rose, Early Years Leader at Mayflower Community Academy, describe how conducting an improvement workshop virtually enabled open and honest conversation while also providing opportunity for her own professional development.

To discuss how your school can benefit from virtual collaboration, or to share your own experiences, contact us – we'd love to hear from you.