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Summary of School Development Plan 2008 - 10

The School Development Plan (SDP) is written to reflect the school's aims. These have been re-considered by the governors and slightly amended. They are:

• The highest academic standards
• Excellent behaviour, self-reliance and discipline
• Positive attitudes to the environment and healthy lifestyles
• Committed, highly trained staff
• Partnerships with key stakeholders and the wider community

We aim to improve the school further over the period 2008-10.

We aim to build upon our STRENGTHS:
• Excellent teachers/superb facilities.









The THREATS we see are:
• Possible loss of crucial staff
• the new 14-19 curriculum
• the new admission code of practice

The OPPORTUNITIES are:
• Further improvements in our facilities, including new private study facilities in the sixth form and the re-furbishment of our new science department.
• A greater role for our 2nds in House in raising pupil performance across the school.

Teaching and Learning

The most significant development over the next three years will be a focus upon independent learning. This will include an improvement in assessment and research skills.

We will continue our commitment to raising boys' achievement, which will involve having higher expectations of their commitment.

Excellence in teaching is a specific aim of this plan. We will recruit an in-house team of advanced skills teachers (AST's) and challenge each department to identify one in a school elsewhere from which they can learn.

Our provision for Special Educational Needs will continue to be a high priority during what will be a time of transition for the department.

Similarly, our provision for Gifted and Talented students will build upon the excellent foundations laid over the last two years.

Quality

Quality assurance is at the heart of our work. Ensuring that all that we do is done well is the cornerstone of our success.

This includes the expert gathering, analysis and dissemination of data information. Careful monitoring of teaching and learning will continue, alongside a positive performance management system for all staff.

Work scrutinies will continue, as will student surveys and parent consultations. Knowing the school is vital to effective policy making.

Sixth Form

We aim to have the most successful sixth form in the country, with ideal accommodation. We hope to consolidate our numbers at between 300 and 320.

Wellbeing

We want all of our students to be happy and to thrive. To achieve this we aim to give them the best support possible. This support is centred upon our highly effective house system. We value our healthy school status very highly and will place particular emphasis upon healthy eating.

Our new sports facilities will, we hope, mean that even more students will participate in sport in future and that they achieve even higher standards.

The school environment will continue to be a high priority, and social and play facilities will be enhanced further.

Pupil Voice will help us to ensure that all of our policies and practices reflect the needs of the pupils. The House Councils are the prime vehicle for this and there are numerous other opportunities for pupils to express their views and take up responsibilities.

All the work of the school is guided by our commitment to ABC and the 3 Es.

A

Attendance

B

Behaviour

C

What takes place in the Classroom

E

Extra-curricular activities

E

Enjoyment

E

Environment

Environment

Mr Ian Davidson will lead a staff-student-governor group which will reduce our carbon footprint. Considerable progress has already been made.

Staffing

Our excellent teachers are our greatest asset.

We will try to retain them for as long as possible.
We aim to recruit the best by skilful, careful, safe appointment processes.

We hope to keep the school as efficient as possible by using work force reform to transfer as much administration as possible from teachers to administrative staff.

Balcarras in its community

We intend to be excellent neighbours and make a positive contribution to life in the community around Charlton Kings.

Our links with primary schools are excellent and we will seek to improve them further.

The school has a genuine international dimension and we will further develop our links with our partnerships with schools in Sanlucar (Spain) and Kenya.
We will try to launch a new Comenius programme as well.

Training School

We are a technology college and have become a Training School in 2006. We will develop this work by continuing our commitment to the Gloucestershire Teacher Education Project and the Graduate Teacher Programme.

We are a Specialist Schools and Academies Trust (SSAT) Mentor School and work with four schools each year to support them in raising performance at GCSE.

We also work closely with other local schools to raise their performance. We will continue to do this and believe it will mean that our teachers benefit from the experience.

Targets

Our targets for exam performance are highly ambitious but we intend to achieve them.

By 2010, we hope to reach these extremely high levels of performance:

GCSE

90%

5 A* - C

85%

5 A* - C with English and maths

A-level

400 average points score per candidate