Woodlea Primary School
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Rolleston Primary School, Leicester, has implemented the integrated performance management software SchooliP and is now seeing the extensive benefits. Dwayne Toon, the Headteacher, was keen to learn how they could seamlessly integrate Performance Management, School Improvement, Self-Evaluation and Continual Professional Development (CPD) for staff in one, easy to use system.
We asked Dwayne what had attracted him to the SchooliP software in the first instance:
Within SchooliP, staff are an integral part of school improvement.
“Initially we liked the fact we could ensure more accountability for teachers who have subjects, tying in with the school improvement plan and with budgets. This allowed us to work together as part of a full and continual process.”
Within SchooliP, staff are an integral part of school improvement as their objectives directly link to the school’s improvement plan. This allows school leaders to see progress towards achieving not only individual staff objectives, but also wider school improvement at any point during the academic year.
Dwayne continued:
“After a scheduled training day, staff were able to see actions that were assigned to them, which not only secured accountability, but also made staff feel part of the school improvement plan. Plus with handy email reminders ensured staff are always aware of any actions assigned to them”
We asked Dwayne what he felt was a real benefit for teaching staff with using SchooliP:
“Teachers can see they are part of the school moving forward and how they fit in with the whole school process, not only as a class teacher." - Dwayne Toon, Headteacher
Dwayne mentioned the reaction when he first introduced his staff to SchooliP:
“What I found really interesting was when we first showed staff the software; they gasped at how many actions there were and how many things go into the school improvement plan - they were delighted at the fact that they were already doing so many of these already and that the system would now bring it all together centrally. Teachers can now really see their impact to the school”
SchooliP champions transparency and is geared in a way that allows staff to see their objectives and areas of development at any point throughout the academic year, and enables them to manage their progress towards achieving their objectives. Staff can also see how their actions directly impact areas for school improvement. Staff have the ability to upload evidence to support their objectives which in turn allows them to contribute to wider school improvement.
Dwayne felt SchooliP had a real impact on the appraisal process within Rolleston Primary School:
SchooliP allowed us to focus the time spent on appraisals discussing what we are going to do instead of doing paperwork.
“The appraisal process has become sharper, appraisals now fit in with the school improvement plan and with a click of a button outcomes and success criteria are already there. This has allowed us to focus the time spent on appraisals discussing what we are going to do instead of doing paperwork.”
Dwayne was very pleased to add:
“Paperwork is no longer left on my desk to get lost under a pile; it’s all done automatically online”
SchooliP has an intuitive reporting system which allows you to select any criteria you wish to report on and with a click of a button this information is available in a range of formats. Ideal for justifying budget spending against outcomes for key stakeholders such as governors, or evidencing improvement plans for inspection bodies.
Dwayne commented how his school has utilised the SchooliP reporting tools as part of their Financial Value Standard assessment form:
SchooliP allowed us to clearly outline where our budget was being used and evidence the impact for school improvement.
"We have utilised the various reporting functions in SchooliP to help support our Schools Financial Value Standard (SFVS) assessment form. SchooliP allowed us to clearly outline where our budget was being used and evidence the impact for school improvement. This information allowed us to provide assurance to the LA that we have secure financial management in place and any expenditure was justified."
We asked Dwayne what he liked about the responsive nature of SchooliP and how it can be utilised across a number of devices:
“We love the fact that we can use tablets within the classroom as part of observations, which are then uploaded straight into SchooliP so no follow up paperwork is required”
Dwayne comments on the use of the improvement plan within the software:
“As the School Improvement Plan is already embedded into the system, the software drives this for me and allows me to focus on next year’s improvement plan”
Dwayne continued:
"We have included more stakeholders into our school improvement processes, and we have used SchooliP to facilitate useful dialogue, secure wider accountability as well as a tool to help different members of staff buy into the bigger picture"
We asked Dwayne his thoughts on SchooliP training:
“We found the online webinar training really useful and the school training day was great as all staff were able to see the system and how easy it was to use. It is really important for headteachers to initially invest time in the software and in the staff to ensure everyone is onboard”.
Dwayne thought the main benefits of SchooliP were as follows for his school:
The activities tab within SchooliP has proven to be invaluable, we have been able to use it as a basis for planning out the whole years' CPD.
“The software makes everything transparent and teachers can really see their impact to the school and can see what the school is trying to achieve. Another benefit is that if a member of staff is on long term sick for example, people can still access it so important documents are not locked away in a draw and can be accessed when they are needed. The activities tab within SchooliP has proven to be invaluable, we have been able to use it as a basis for planning out the whole years' CPD and staff inset days, ensuring meetings we have are far more robust, relevant and not so ad hoc."
We’re so pleased that we have been able to help Dwayne and Rolleston Primary School with their School Improvement and staff performance management and we look forward to continuing to build on our relationship in the many years to come.
