Agenda item

To consider a report of the Strategic Director People.

The Committee considered a report of the Strategic Director People summarising performance across all schools for all phases for 2008 – 09.   The Committee was advised that constant updates were available to officers on performance results and comparisons with statistical neighbours.

The overall picture of school performance had been outlined at a previous meeting and showed either an improvement or the same position as before.  Agreed priorities were:

      Early Years Foundation Stage - Continue to raise the achievement of all children and narrow the gap between the lowest 20% and the rest, improve the achievement of boys, interrogate data at scale point and individual child level especially in the bottom 20% of deprivation to increase rates of progress, support Headteachers and leaders to meet the challenges in the Schools’ White Paper;

      In Primary Schools - reduce the number of schools below the floor target, improve two levels of progress in English and Maths and increase the percentage of pupils achieving L4+ in reading at the end of KS2;

      In Secondary schools – improve numbers of pupils gaining 5 or more GCSEs at grades A* - C including English and Maths to ensure performance is within the Fisher Family Trust B-D range following 2010 KS4 results and improve rates of progress made by individuals, groups of pupils and schools; improve the use of data and tracking systems; improve the attainment of pupils eligible for Free School Meals.

The Committee was advised that as part of its inspection regime Ofsted would take account of safeguarding and any issues could result in the school being put into a category.  There were no such schools in Cheshire East.  Schools must show that they had strategies and mechanisms in place to track individual pupils’ rates of progress.  Schools that were low on attainment would receive proactive/assertive engagement at an early stage and there would also be a focus on early education settings and its uptake in the relevant areas.

RESOLVED:  That the report be received and the priorities needed to further raise standards and reduce underperformance be endorsed.