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https://www.phf.org.uk/funding/faqs-teacher-development-fund

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Working in partnership - advice from a senior leader

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Working in partnership - advice from a senior leader

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Wednesday

14 January

Noon

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This film explores the Teacher Development Fund from the perspective of headteachers and senior leaders and shows what the programme looks like in action. Featuring headteachers and members of our advisory panel, the film highlights how the fund helps to create more equitable classrooms, support teachers’ professional learning and build effective partnerships between schools and arts organisations.

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Teacher Development Fund | What senior leaders have to say

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This film explores the Teacher Development Fund from the perspective of head teachers and senior leaders and shows what the programme looks like in action.

Featuring head teachers and members of our advisory panel, the film highlights how the fund helps to create more equitable classrooms, support teachers’ professional learning and build effective partnerships between schools and arts organisations.

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from Sarah Waterfield, Headteacher of Arden Grove Infant and Nursery School, in partnership with Norwich Theatre Royal

Our TDF is now woven across our curriculum. It aligns perfectly with our Trust’s strategic aims, supporting Mental Health & Wellbeing; Learning & Achievement; Careers & Life Skills. It is not an addition...it is simply a tool we use to engage our children across all curriculum areas"

Read more in the above post.

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Published: 15 November 2023

Headteacher of Arden Grove Infant and Nursery School, Sarah Waterfield, tells us about the steps she took to ensure that their Teacher Development Fund programme has a long and lasting legacy within her school.

In Round 4 of the Teacher Development Fund, Norwich Theatre Royal partnered with eight schools in the Wensum Trust to collaborate on a programme that harnessed the power of story-sharing to support the development of literacy and executive function skills.
Wise About Words (WAW), three small words that shaped a project between Wensum Trust's infant and primary schools and Norwich Theatre Royal. Two years later, the impact on the teachers' professional development and learning has been immense and so much more than we anticipated.

At our school, it started with a small group of excited teachers, who despite their nerves for the first WAW training day at the theatre, returned newly enthused and ready to set the world alight in their literacy lessons.

Over time, we became aware that children in those classes were not only more engaged, but we were seeing a more positive approach to writing, which was the primary focus of the programme.

Getting involved in the practice

The theatre also offered optional twilight training sessions, which my enthusiastic deputy convinced his rather nervous headteacher to attend with him. I am glad I did. It helped me understand my own and others' possible worries resulting from our early experiences of drama, or indeed the dreaded​'role play'. I learned ways to overcome these worries and grew to love the sessions, enthused by the ways immersive techniques support learning and make learning fun!

Iterative development of the programme

In the second year, we realised WAW was not just about literacy but that it was also about developing children's skills in the broader sense. Why wouldn't a child be irresistibly engaged by freeze-framing religious or historical events? Using emotion chairs to imagine how historical or fictional characters may have felt? Or working together to​'become' bridges as a way to understand construction? We realised we were tapping into children's communication skills, creativity, empathy, confidence, problem-solving, turn-taking and teamwork skills whilst we covered our curriculum. All those skills and probably more accessed in one, 15-minute drama input!

These skills are life skills, vital for our children to become adults in the world. As adults, we need to have the confidence, knowledge and words to articulate children's skills and strengths and maybe, most importantly, like the person they are or the person they are becoming.

We want children to have the emotional language and tools to enable them to form healthy relationships at home and work; be resilient, resourceful, empathetic, kind, and make a positive difference to the world they live in. WAW has enabled us to see our children's capabilities, understand how we can develop the skills to better engage them and reflect on how the techniques can be adapted in many ways.

We have forged wonderful relationships with Norwich Theatre Royal and our artist, Sarah, and our ongoing collaboration supports us now and as we continue to develop as a team. We work together to explore the potential of how WAW is more than wise words but how it helps us develop key Executive Functions of self-control, mental flexibility and working memory in our young children. We know these are prerequisites for any learning and a better predictor of outcomes.

Two years later, WAW is woven across our curriculum provision. It aligns perfectly with our Trust's strategic aims, supporting Mental Health & Wellbeing; Learning & Achievement; Careers & Life Skills. It is not an addition, or something extra. It is simply a tool we use to engage our children across all curriculum areas. All aspects of our development plan sit in harmony with WAW techniques. It has revitalised our curiosity and reflection about how we deliver learning to our infant-aged children. Most importantly, it has provided us with alternative approaches to better include children who learn in different ways - our many neurodivergent learners. We stand by our ethos that we are a​'Learning for All' school.

This year our new focus is to develop the confidence of TAs to use immersive learning and increase their knowledge about how it develops our children. Looking ahead, we will consider the potential impact the work between the theatre and our schools can have on the social, emotional and academic outcomes for all our children. From our current experience, that potential is very exciting!

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Sarah Waterfield Headteacher of Arden Grove Infant and Nursery School

As Travelling Light Theatre Company's Teacher Development Fund programme enters its final months, programme lead Lizzy Stephens reflects on the learning to date and shares the company's plans to embed the work across the participating schools.

Johanne Clifton, Teacher Development Fund Advisory Group Member and Director of Curriculum and Development for the Elliot Foundation Multi-Academy Trust, considers how senior leaders can develop a long-term strategic position around staff development, the arts and their vision for education.

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Headteacher of Arden Grove Infant and Nursery School, Sarah Waterfield, tells us about the steps she took to ensure that their Teacher Development Fund...

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We understand that some organisations may want to use a generative AI service within the application process. Whilst we understand how AI may be helpful in a research phase, we would advise caution about using generated text within the application form.

Strong applications must go beyond generic responses, relating the criteria of the fund to the specific context of a locality and to the strengths and needs of the partner organisations.

Successful applicants must demonstrate their unique suitability for TDF. Articulating this in your own words is likely to create a stronger application to the fund in what will be a competitive field.

For further guidance, please see our statement on the use  of generative AI tools (such as ChatGPT, Gemini or Meta AI) for applications and reporting.

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From the perspective of arts organisations 

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From the perspective of arts organisations 

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Reading time c6 mins

TDF Associate Greg Klerkx shares insights from those involved in the programme and reflects on the impact of the Teacher Development Fund on artists, organisations and the wider sector.

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Teacher Development Fund – a learning journey

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TDF Associate Greg Klerkx shares insights from those involved in the programme and reflects on the impact of the Teacher Development Fund on artists,…

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and partnerships led by arts organisations

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and partnerships led by arts organisations

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Reading time c3mins

Read about a literacy-based programme led by Grimm and Co working in schools within the Astrea MAT

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Published: 16 November 2022

Gem Thornton, Creative Learning Manager from Grimm & Co, reflects on their Teacher Development Fund learning journey alongside ten Astrea Trust primary schools in Rotherham, Doncaster and Sheffield. Their project, Chapter & Verse, aimed to support teachers to develop and embed multi-disciplinary arts approaches to teaching and learning, including immersive drama, music, poetry and storytelling.

In October, I was asked to speak at the Cohort 5 Learning Session to present key findings and the impact of the Chapter & Verse project over the last two years. In all honesty, it was strange to experience an in-person event and a buzz of excitement was in the atmosphere, surrounding participants as they began their TDF journey.

During the presentation, I highlighted Grimm & Co's signature pedagogy, how we champion the writer in every child; the child is the expert, and we aim to build the capacity of those who have influence over children and young people. It is this last statement that drew us, as an arts organisation, to Paul Hamlyn's Teacher Development Fund and our collaboration with Astrea Academy Trust.

I worked closely with Hannah Baker, the Primary Literacy Lead at Astrea Academy Trust (whose blog post can be found here) to create a toolkit that aimed to empower teachers to explore creative courage in the classroom. The toolkit, used by both the teacher and artist together, explored unthinking and reimagining techniques to reinvigorate the learning journey.

The Chapter & Verse project aimed to explore how Grimm & Co's approach enhanced learning and supported teacher experimentation and creativity. From the very beginning, we made it clear to the 15 teachers we worked with that this was a 50/50 project, this was not something that was going to be done to the teachers, but rather an invitation to play alongside the artist and learn from each other using a peer mentoring structure.

Chapter & Verse applied the toolkit to two texts: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, and The Iron Man by Ted Hughes, and we delivered this to Year 4 pupils over six weeks in eight schools over the two years, reaching 499 pupils in total. At this point in the presentation, it was important for participants to experience an activity from the toolkit and just at that moment, who should call and interrupt me but Mr Tumnus himself. It turned out that Aslan had done a runner and there needed to be a new protector of Narnia. Luckily, I was in a room filled with educators and creative practitioners, so I turned to them and a variety of small, plastic animals to help. They became the animal's campaign manager and were required to write a persuasive speech. This is just one example of unthinking that could be applied in the classroom. The way all participants enthusiastically jumped at the task was super inspiring, and I am a firm believer that you should not ask a child to do something you would not attempt yourself.

The impact of Chapter & Verse is evident in the pupils' desire and confidence to write and an excitement and enthusiasm for Literacy, which was missing before. Teachers have expressed how the Grimm & Co approaches have re-inspired their practice and how incorporating creative play in the classroom builds stronger relationships between themselves and the pupils.

Not only that, but artists have also expanded their own knowledge - thanks to the teachers' expertise - and can now apply their artistic work more effectively in a National Curriculum environment.

To conclude, I thoroughly enjoyed meeting representatives from the Cohort 5 organisations, and I hope I was able to highlight what could be achieved in schools with an opportunity such as this. Participants showed passion, enthusiasm and were invested in supporting children and young people. It was inspiring to observe them galvanising and shaping what is to come.

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Gemma Thornton Head of Learning and Impact for Grimm & Co

As the new school year kicks off, Hannah Baker, Primary Literacy Lead for Astrea Academy Trust, highlights the vital role the arts can play in developing creativity in teaching and learning, igniting the imaginations of teachers and pupils and re-connecting school communities in the face of the challenges posed by the pandemic.

As we quickly approach the three year anniversary of Covid's onset, Paul Reeve, CEO of Into Film and TDF Advisory Group Member, reflects on the pandemic's ongoing impact and how its long tail is affecting the arts and education sectors.

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Gem Thornton, Creative Learning Manager from Grimm & Co, reflects on their Teacher Development Fund learning journey alongside ten Astrea Trust primary...

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to MATs, Teaching School Hubs and other constituted partnerships and alliances

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to MATs, Teaching School Hubs and other constituted partnerships and alliances

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Reading time 2'45mins

Bernie Furey, Strategic Director of Teach Heart Alliance, shares the impact of their TDF programme, for participating teachers and considers the longer-term legacy for their network of schools.

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This is Manchester — Embedding learning and sharing practice

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Bernie Furey, Strategic Director of Teach Heart Alliance, shares the impact of their Teacher Development Fund programme for participating teachers and…

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Reading time c10mins

Professor Tanya Ovenden-Hope, Provost and Professor of Education at Plymouth Marjon University and Teacher Development Fund Advisory Board Member, shares some of her research into ‘educationally isolated’ schools and explores the impact of TDF within such settings

For more information, take a look at this recent report - https://www.marjon.ac.uk/educational-isolation/

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The power of arts-based CPDL for ‘educationally isolated’ schools

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Professor Tanya Ovenden-Hope, Provost and Professor of Education at Plymouth Marjon University and Advisory Board Member for our Teacher Development Fund…

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TDF is open to all state-funded primary settings and arts organisations. Read the posts below and take a look at the FAQs

https://www.phf.org.uk/funding/faqs-teacher-development-fund#heading-32711

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Answers to common questions about our Teacher Development Fund.

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length 6.37 mins

from Stuart Greig, class teacher from Invergarven School, South Ayrshire working with Live Music Now Scotland

'It's been life-changing - it's completely changed my teaching practice. I can't envisage ever going back'

Find out more in the above film taken from our annual TDF

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The role of an artist practitioner in TDF

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The role of an artist practitioner in TDF

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Reading time c2mins

Rachel Gartside, Education Associate Practitioner, RSC

I think my role is to offer appropriate inspiration for change. That might be in the form of encouraging colleagues to take risks in the approaches they are working with, or thinking differently about learning outcomes, or modelling different teaching and learning relationships or making connections between this programme and other strategic initiatives

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Explore TDF via the lens of a teacher, senior leaders and an arts practitioner.

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Learn more about the development of the fund

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Learn more about the development of the fund

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Reading time c3mins

Catherine Sutton, Head of Programme – Education for Paul Hamlyn Foundation, reflects on how the Teacher Development Fund has evolved over the last eight years — to shift and adapt to the concerns and needs of the sector.

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Where to begin, Paul Hamlyn Foundation - Hannah Tyreman

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Reading time c6'15mins

This post, written by TDF Advisory Board member Hannah Tyreman following an equity and anti-racism learning event for grantees, reflects on the discussions and provides guidance for organisations/schools in considering their next steps.

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2024 Panel write-up: Where to begin, Paul Hamlyn Foundation - Hannah Tyreman

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November 2023. As a member of Paul Hamlyn Foundation’s Teacher Development Fund advisory group, I chaired a panel on equity and anti-racism in education and recorded some reflections on possible next steps for participants.

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To help in your thinking around inequity, take a look at this short post.

For more information on PHF's definition of inequity, barriers to learning and disadvantage, please read the TDF FAQs

https://www.phf.org.uk/funding/faqs-teacher-development-fund#heading-32731

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Answers to common questions about our Teacher Development Fund.