Please note that course information can be found at the end of the text below.

The new professionalism incorporates the remodelled workforce as a result of the National Agreement and associated initiatives. Consequently, teachers and headteachers working with qualified support staff maximise the core and contributory roles of teaching and learning.

The integral development of more effective arrangements for performance management is also contributing to the development of the ‘new professionalism’. developing a culture where teachers and headteachers feel confident and empowered to participate fully in performance management. This includes:

• the acknowledgment of teachers’ and headteachers’ professional responsibility to be engaged in effective, sustained and relevant professional development throughout their careers and to contribute to the professional development of others, and 
• the creation of a contractual entitlement for teachers to effective, sustained and relevant professional development as part of a wider review of teachers’ professional duties.

This has marked the latest stage of a broader cultural change agenda that has been transforming the school workforce since Raising standards and tackling workload: a national agreement was signed in 2003.

The first of these reforms — the national agreement — focused on reducing teachers’ workload, building schools’ capacity to help them focus on teaching, and enhancing their professional status.

In 2004, The Agreement on Rewards and Incentives for Post-threshold Teachers and members of the Leadership Group continued the focus on professionalism by acknowledging the need for stronger links between performance and pay, school improvement and professional development.

The result of all these reforms for teachers was to:

• refocus their responsibilities on the core role of teaching and helping to raise pupil achievement
• highlight the need for a consistent, high quality performance management system by which to aid their career and pay progression.
• identify Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as an entitlement and intergral to effective performance management of teacher.

By focusing on their practice and developing their expertise, teachers are better able to help pupils achieve their potential, as well as gaining personal job satisfaction and progressing in their careers. This is at the heart of the new professionalism and its relation to performance management.

Consequently, the policy, strategy and plan for Wakefield’s Children’s Plan for Development and Modernisation is called:
Leading the New Professionalism which focuses upon three main areas in line with national policy.

These are:

1. securing the supply of the school workforce;
2. supporting the development of the whole school workforce, and
3. supporting the ongoing modernisation of the whole school workforce.

The verification of presentations and accreditation is being developed in schools by the development of the Teacher Learning Academy (TLA) initiative.

A range of NCSL Leadership programmes, local programmes, briefings and professional learning opportunities are available. These include:

• The Graduate and Overseas Teacher programmes for the award of Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
• The Statutory Induction arrangements for monitoring, support and training including assessment.
• Early Careers Teachers including the  Early Professional Development Programme
• Aspiring Middle Leaders
• Skills for Middle Leaders
• Advanced Skills Teachers’ Initiative
• Established Leaders (primary and secondary)
• Headteacher Induction (primary and secondary)
• Leaders of Professional Learning
• Leadership Succession

National Leadership Programmes’ briefings-

• NCSL Leading from the Middle
• NCSL Leadership Pathways
• NCSL Team programmes for Senior Leadership Teams
• NCSL Early Headship and New Visions
• NCSL Head for The Future
• NCSL Consultant Leader

The Wakefield Learning Academy in partnership with the General Teaching Council (GTC) has completed Phase 1 of the Pilot for TLA Leadership enabling  a significant number of schools to have in place a trained TLA Leader. Ossett, Kings and Outwood Grange are TLA Verification Centres.

• Performance Management and Development

• Support and Associate Staff programmes and training

• Higher Level Teaching Assistants (HLTAs)

For further information please contact:

Sandra Horridge (School Improvement Adviser: Leading the New Professionalism) shorridge@wakefield.gov.uk;

Sarah  Evans (Project Co-ordinator – Leading the New Professionalism) sevans@wakefield.gov.uk   01226 392434;

Pat Milner (ECPD Project Co-ordinator for GTP / OTTP, NQTs and EPD)
pmilner@wakefield.gov.uk  01226 382439 and;

Jeanette Wainwright (General Enquiries) jewainwright@wakefield.gov.uk
01226 392437