We are constantly seeking to improve things at Harlaw Academy. School improvement is not something I do alone. Over recent years we have found new ways to involve all staff in this activity as well as parents and pupils.
With that in mind I attach a very simple grid for you to give me any ideas you have to improve the school – see document at Improvement plans 2019 call for ideas. I have grouped these under the 3 headings we use to focus out work (People, Learning and Community) and also given you a 4th box for anything that does not fit neatly into the other 3. I am happy to hear either things we need to be doing better or things we are doing well that we need to keep doing.
Towards the end of May I plan to share 4 documents with you. They are;
- Standards and Quality report 2018-2019 (draft)
- School improvement plan 2019-2020 (draft)
- Financial plan 2019-2020 (draft)
- School calendar 2019-2020 (draft)
The purpose of sharing them in draft form is to allow you to come back to me with any changes before the documents are launched in their final form at the start of the new school session in August.
At the same time as sharing the documents in this public space there are also formal consultations with our parent council, pupil representatives and staff. All of which should ensure that the reports, plans, spending and calendar reflect a shared view of how well we are doing and what we need to be doing next.
None of us can get everything we want and my role is to listen to the variety of views expressed and try find a way forward. This is not always about going with the majority view, sometimes a lone voice can identify an issue which would improve things for us all. Two years ago the pupils asked for a sign and last year they asked me to replace the water fountains – both things happened and the have made a positive difference.
Parents and pupils are now looking to improve the playgrounds over the summer period. These are just some examples where together we can identify what matters to to people and do something to improve it.