Collaboration is at the heart of the approach to improving literacy across the schools in the MAT.

Much of the embedded collaboration occurs between primary colleagues and their peers, and the same at secondary level to ensure that work is age and phase appropriate. However, a variety of cross phase work is developing.

Teachers collaborate to ensure that students have sufficient content knowledge to enable them to become proficient within their subject areas. We aim to ensure that this knowledge base is secure and built over time focusing on committing content to long term memory. Throughout, teachers work to ensure that students develop the necessary academic and vocational skills to enable them to put this growing knowledge into practice.

All subject curriculums are planned collaboratively through the system leadership of the wider trust department. This ensures that subject specialists have developed a high quality curriculum which meets and exceeds the national curriculum. Staff work collaboratively to ensure that the curriculum remains clearly sequenced and builds on the prior development of subject knowledge and skills. This level of collaborative planning and development reduces staff workload and provides staff time to personalise the curriculum to meet the needs of the specific students and the context of the school they are working within.

There is a clear professional development plan which ensures the development of curriculum subject knowledge, skills and pedagogy. These are led by specialist subject teaching and learning staff and are clearly timetabled within the calendar. The vast majority of our staff are subject specialists and are supported in further developing and updating their knowledge to ensure it is relevant and up to date. Non-subject specialists and early career teachers are well supported through this professional development cycle.

Classroom pedagogy is developed through a calendared trust wide professional development plan and is focused on the 6 pillars of learning. Staff are able to work in supportive groupings to develop skills, knowledge and understanding. The professional development program links with the Workforce development policy.