Chestnut Grove Academy plays a leading role in the Wandle Teaching School Alliance. Our Senior Deputy Head is Director of the Alliance and represents the London South West Teaching Schools on the Pan London Committee. We work closely with over 50 primary, secondary and special schools, a variety of HE partners and Wandsworth LA.

Teaching schools are part of the government’s drive to give schools more freedom and to enable schools to take increasing responsibility for managing the education system. The vision for teaching schools will drive significant improvement in the quality of professional practice, improving the attainment of every child.

Teaching schools will play a fundamental role in developing a self-sustaining system where:

• trainee teachers learn from the best teachers, supported by a culture of coaching and mentoring
• professional development is school-based and classroom focused – teachers, support staff and leaders improve through exposure to excellent practice within and beyond their immediate school, through observation, mentoring, coaching, practice, reflection and sharing with peers
• talent development and distributed leadership are the norm – staff demonstrating potential are encouraged to lead and are  given structured and stretching opportunities to grow and develop
• leaders have local knowledge and can identify where key resources and expertise lie

The Wandle TSA is particularly focused on 5 areas:

• Routes into Teaching
• Continuous Professional Learning
• School to School Support
• Leadership Development
• Research and Development

The Alliance’s vision is to create a collaborative learning community for all its staff.

You can find full details of the WTSA’s on their website

These are the schools that will blaze a trail towards a school-led system. They are the ones who will make school direct a success, transform CPD, create robust systems of school to school support and grow the best leaders. It is in these schools and their leaders that I have faith to change fundamentally, forever. Teaching schools are about what is possible.

Charlie Taylor - Chief Executive, National College for Teaching and Leadership