Skip to content ↓

School Improvement

School Improvement Priorities 2026 - 2027

Every school has a School Improvement Plan. Our plan reflects priorities highlighted by parents, staff, governors and children.

The purpose of our School Development Plan is to:

  • provide a strategy for the implementation of the school's aims;
  • enable the school to plan for the improvement of the quality of teaching and learning;
  • enable the school to focus on raising standards;
  • provide a means of managing change in a planned and systematic manner;
  • link the aims of the school and financial planning to the future needs of the school;
  • establish how the school will measure its own efficiency and effectiveness;
  • illustrate how successfully the school achieves value for money;
  • provide a sound, but flexible and adaptable planning cycle, spanning at least 3 years;
  • have an accountable framework that enables the school to provide information to others and explain and justify its decisions in the context of the school's particular circumstances and needs;
  • show a comprehensive and co-ordinated approach to all aspects of planning, implementing, monitoring and evaluating developments

Priority 1

To strengthen the leadership team’s capacity and support staff development.

At Highfield, we believe that strong and effective leadership is central to continuous school improvement. We are committed to developing confident and knowledgeable leaders at all levels who are able to evaluate the quality of provision, identify areas for development and lead positive change. During 2026–2027, we will continue to strengthen the capacity of our senior and middle leadership teams through coaching, professional development and opportunities to work collaboratively with colleagues both within Highfield and across the ASPIRE Trust. Leaders will take part in peer reviews, learning walks and professional networks, enabling them to share expertise, learn from strong practice elsewhere and develop increasingly confident and accurate approaches to monitoring and evaluation.

Developing our staff is an important part of this priority. We want colleagues to have meaningful opportunities to grow professionally, develop specialist expertise and take increasing responsibility for shaping the quality of education across the school. Staff will be supported through leadership qualifications, coaching, collaborative professional development and subject improvement groups. We will also continue to strengthen the way leaders use assessment, monitoring and evidence to understand how well pupils are learning, particularly children with SEND and those who may be vulnerable or disadvantaged. By investing in our people and building leadership capacity throughout the school, we aim to create a culture of openness, shared responsibility and continuous improvement in which every member of staff can contribute to better outcomes for our children.

Priority 2

To enhance adaptations that improve outcomes for all children in the foundation curriculum.

At Highfield, we are committed to ensuring that every child can access, enjoy and succeed within our broad and ambitious curriculum. During 2026–2027, we will further develop the way learning is adapted within our foundation subjects so that children with different starting points and individual needs can participate meaningfully and experience success. Our aim is not to reduce ambition, but to remove unnecessary barriers to learning. Through thoughtful scaffolding, carefully chosen resources, vocabulary support, practical and multisensory approaches and appropriate adjustments to tasks, we want all children to be able to engage with the important knowledge and skills within each subject.

To support this, we will develop a clearer whole-school framework for curriculum adaptations and provide staff with practical guidance and professional development. Teachers and support staff will continue to develop their understanding of approaches such as modelling, chunking learning into manageable steps, repetition and reducing cognitive load where appropriate. We will also carefully monitor the impact of these adaptations so that decisions are based on how effectively they improve children’s engagement, independence and progress. In doing so, we aim to create calm, inclusive and ambitious classrooms where pupils feel valued and supported, have the courage to take on challenges and experience the respect that comes from having their individual needs understood and responded to.

Priority 3

To become a Total Communication school.

Communication lies at the heart of learning, relationships and belonging. At Highfield, we want every child to know that their voice matters and to have the means to express their thoughts, feelings, needs and ideas. During 2026–2027, we will work towards becoming a Total Communication school, where a range of communication approaches are used consistently and naturally throughout everyday school life. Total Communication recognises that children communicate in different ways and brings together spoken language, signing, symbols, visual supports and communication aids to help ensure that communication is accessible to everyone.

This approach will become increasingly embedded across classrooms, shared spaces, routines and curriculum learning. Staff will receive training and support so that they feel confident in using visual timetables, symbols, signing and aided communication effectively. We will also develop more communication-friendly environments and work closely with families so that, where appropriate, children experience greater consistency between home and school. Most importantly, Total Communication is about valuing every child’s contribution. By reducing communication barriers, we aim to decrease frustration, support emotional regulation, increase independence and give pupils the confidence to participate fully in learning and school life. This reflects our values of peace, courage and respect: creating calm and accessible interactions, enabling children to communicate with confidence and recognising the dignity and individuality of every member of our community.

Priority 4

To further develop a creative, engaging and inspiring curriculum.

 

At Highfield, we want children to experience a curriculum that excites their curiosity, develops their knowledge and gives them memorable opportunities to explore the world around them. During 2026–2027, we will continue to develop the creativity and variety of learning within our foundation subjects. This does not mean removing writing or worksheets entirely; instead, it means thinking carefully about the most purposeful way for children to learn, practise and demonstrate their understanding. We want learning activities to reflect the nature of each subject and to help children remember and use what they have learned, rather than simply record that a lesson has taken place.

Teachers will therefore be encouraged to make greater use of practical, visual, oral and investigative approaches alongside purposeful written work. Depending on the subject and learning intention, children might demonstrate their understanding through mapping, modelling, sketching, sorting, debating, investigating, annotating, creating timelines, explaining ideas orally or producing concise written responses. Subject leaders will play an important role in helping staff identify approaches that are appropriate to their disciplines – for example, using maps and fieldwork in geography, historical sources in history, sketchbook development in art and designing, testing and evaluating in DT. By broadening the ways in which children experience and demonstrate learning, we aim to create a curriculum that is ambitious, inclusive and memorable, while respecting children’s different strengths and encouraging the creativity, curiosity and confidence that help them to flourish.

Cookie Policy