Innovate2Educate Partnership

Introduction

Innovate2Educate Partnership is a Multi-Academy Trust consisting of one high school, three middle schools, and five first schools. The trust collaborated with Capita Entrust to provide a comprehensive package of writing support.
The primary goal was to improve writing skills across the trust by developing a cohesive assessment framework, training staff, and raising the standards of writing.

Challenges

Ensuring continuity in writing skills development across the tier structure (first to middle to high school) was a significant challenge due to each school's unique identity. Uniting staff to establish consistent expectations for high-quality writing was essential.

In addition to this, teachers needed support in assessing pupils at greater depth, which was crucial for more pupils to achieve higher levels in their writing.

The solution

Capita Entrust school improvement team designed and implemented a tailored package of training in writing across all phases, including book scrutinise, moderation workshops, and pupil interviews.

A working party for writing was established within the trusts staff to produce writing assessment grids and an assessment process for Y1-11 under Capita Entrust guidance and moderation sessions were conducted to ensure consistency in assessing standards across the phases.

The skills and expertise of the Capita Entrust team, supported the growth, development, and confidence of the teaching team, helping to raise expectations and improve understanding of writing standards at each stage of learning.

Key activities and impact

In the first year of the partnership:

We conducted three training sessions with the High School English department to support weaker readers and writers. This led to improved writing stamina and accuracy among year 10 students, with fewer basic errors and neater presentation.
We moderated training for year 2 and year 6 teachers across the trust, enhancing cross-school moderation robustness.
We delivered training in reading and writing across key stages, helping to increase teacher confidence in adapting teaching for advanced readers and writers.
We developed assessment frameworks for years 4, 8 and 10, providing a cohesive and progressive approach to assessment across schools.

In the second year of the partnership we:

Produced frameworks, delivering a consistent tool for assessing writing across the trust.
Implemented a consistent assessment process for writing, reducing the use of scaffolds, particularly in the Summer Term.
Delivered consultant-led workshops for year 6 which teaching staff replicated successful approaches, and students shared their learning.
Supported a writing across the curriculum programme in middle schools to identify good practices and next steps.

Outcomes and benefits

Greater consistency in the teaching and assessment of writing has been achieved across the trust.
Teachers feel more confident in assessing their pupils and nurturing greater-depth writers.
Reports show rising standards in writing, with basic errors being identified and addressed earlier.

Conclusion

The Innovate2Educate Partnership, with the support of Capita Entrust, has made significant strides in improving writing skills across the trust. The bespoke training and consistent assessment frameworks have led to greater teacher confidence and improved writing standards. Moving forward, the trust aims to continue this progress by focusing on writing across the curriculum and enhancing reading skills. The trust also plan to explore effective approaches to spelling and implement a similar process for reading to build upon the success achieved with writing.