DET Dispatch - November 2024

Dear Colleague,

I am thrilled to introduce the newest members of our central services team who joined us in September. Their energy, passion, and dedication have been truly inspiring. Over the past few weeks, they have immersed themselves in understanding our schools, supporting new leaders, and driving initiatives that will shape the future of our trust. From enhancing inclusion and assessment frameworks to empowering our trainee teachers and emerging leaders, their efforts are already making a tangible impact. I am excited to see how their contributions will continue to elevate our collective mission of delivering excellence in education across all our schools.

With best wishes,

Josephine Valentine, CEO
Danes Educational Trust

Making the difference together

Aaron Wanford
Director of Primary Education

My first half-term at DET has given me a great opportunity to get to know as many schools, staff and learners across the primary settings. I have begun to understand their areas of strengths that we can then use to support other schools with, as well as learning how we can support them to be even greater. Part of my role is to mentor new Headteachers, and I have spent time working alongside the new headteacher of Lanchester Primary, Matt Morey, supporting him in his new role. I have really enjoyed alongside Sarah King, delivering our DET Success in Year Six Development Programme. This has enabled me to really get stuck into supporting them with school improvement, focussing on improving our trust outcomes by the end of key stage two. Over this term, I have already been working on an assessment framework project for the primary phase, so that we have a more purposeful, aligned assessment approach for all schools to use. Looking forward, I am excited to begin work on developing a DET primary curriculum for our schools so that we can continue to deliver a world-class education to our learners.

Louisa Leonard
Head of ITT and ECT Development

During my first half-term, I have focused on getting acquainted with the new Initial Teacher Training (ITT) provision offered by Ambition Institute.

I’m impressed by the strong support trainees receive from their mentors and the dedicated staff leading this program across all DET schools. It’s inspiring to see the collaborative effort among DET schools to support this new cohort of trainee teachers from various ITE providers. I’m especially grateful to those taking on new roles in professional mentoring and lead mentoring, guiding us through the changes introduced this academic year. DET schools are also embracing the benefits of the Graduate Training Programme, allowing skilled and motivated teaching apprentices to gain hands-on classroom experience from day one.

I’m working to introduce flexibility for new teachers and adapt the training provision to align with DET schools’ recruitment needs and early career teachers’ professional goals. My aim is to ensure we are training exceptional new teachers who will make a real impact in our schools, advancing our shared vision of making a difference together.

Sara Crute-Mussell
Director of Inclusion

12 Heads, 12 SENCOs, 12 distinctly unique schools all with one common goal; to ensure all children despite any barriers they face can achieve. After eight weeks as a director of inclusion I am filled with confidence that I not only made the right decision to join Danes Educational Trust, but the road ahead will be fulfilling and in collaboration with the other directors of education and schools, achieving the goal is very achievable.

What’s stood out most? The people. As the educational landscape evolves, I’m inspired by the leaders who embrace challenges, foster inclusivity, and are passionate about supporting learners with SEN. Schools are transforming spaces into safe, specialist environments, investing in staff development, and adapting curriculum and ways of working to ensure all learners are supported and can thrive. I am most inspired by the SENCOs who are playing a pivotal role in shaping an inclusive educational environment so all learners have the opportunity to be the best version of themselves.

I look forward to the next half term and phase of collaborative work to develop inclusion throughout the Trust.

Steve Thompson
Director of Secondary Education

Having worked at St Clement Danes from 2000-2017 and since then, as a headteacher within the Trust, I would like to think that I came to the post already understanding the Trust’s dynamics. However, viewing the Trust through a different frame of reference has nevertheless been intriguing. I have particularly enjoyed exploring the differences between our secondary schools. This is important because, to appreciate a school’s provision and performance, one does need to fully understand its context. This work serves to remind us that we are fortunate to have very different schools within the secondary phase and, in my opinion, the Trust is richer for it.

A significant element of my work at the beginning of this academic year has focussed on maintaining the momentum of improvement within one of our schools through collaboration with that school’s leaders as well as colleagues in the central education team. That project serves to remind me of the excellent work all our school leaders undertake to drive strategic improvement, whilst also managing challenging operational matters. Over the coming months I will be exploring assessment design within the secondary phase.

Sarah King
Director of Primary Education

My first half-term with the DET central services team has been a rewarding experience, providing a fresh perspective on our primary schools and the chance to work closely with headteachers and staff across the Trust. I've enjoyed discovering each school’s unique strengths, which we can leverage to support one another and continue raising standards.

A highlight has been collaborating with senior leaders across our schools and already seeing the positive impact of small changes. Working alongside Aaron, my fellow director, has been especially joyful, particularly as we support and develop our inspiring future leaders within the trust. Together, we are focused on empowering these emerging leaders to drive meaningful improvements and foster a strong, supportive leadership culture.

I’ve particularly enjoyed stepping into this role from a broader perspective, transitioning responsibilities at De Havilland to Dave Bostock, who has seamlessly taken over as headteacher and continued the school’s improvement journey.

Aaron WanfordDirector of Primary Education

Louisa LeonardHead of ITT and ECT Development

Sara Crute-MussellDirector of Inclusion

Steve ThompsonDirector of Secondary Education

Sarah KingDirector of Primary Education

Aaron Wanford
Director of Primary Education

Louisa Leonard
Head of ITT and ECT Development

Sara Crute-Mussell
Director of Inclusion

Steve Thompson
Director of Secondary Education

Sarah King
Director of Primary Education