Thousands of Catholic school staff have completed CES-led National Professional Qualifications (NPQ) training recently rated as ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted.
Based on an inspection taking place during May, 2024, the report states ‘participants benefit greatly from the exceptional training’ which is delivered by ‘highly skilled and expert trainers, facilitators and coaches.’
The CES and Church of England Foundation for Educational Leadership (CEFEL) were named by the Department for Education as lead providers of a revised suite of NPQs. Curriculum design was shaped around leadership development to fit the needs of Catholic and Church of England school contexts.
So far 40% of the approximately 7,000 attendees have been from Catholic schools, equating to around 2,800 staff members being trained in high quality leadership.
The report states: “School leaders overwhelmingly state that participants apply their knowledge with conviction and confidence as a result of the training they have received during their NPQ programme. This, in turn, consistently benefits their school communities.”
The CES has developed the curriculum design around the NPQs, providing a vision-driven additionality option unique to the CEFEL/CES offer. The Catholic NPQ+ offers three modules, Form, Nourish and Sustain, based on formation, the Catholic character of a school and sustaining leadership roles in Catholic education.
Catherine Bryan, Assistant Director of the CES, said: “We’re delighted with this ‘outstanding’ rating from Ofsted, which demonstrates the excellent joint working with colleagues across the Catholic sector and with the Church of England.
“The Formatio partnership continues to assist the dioceses with strategies for school leadership development, and we hope many more staff will continue to be supported to attend this training.”
NPQs are provided by 28 delivery partners across the country including teaching school hubs and multi-academy trusts. There is also the opportunity for dioceses to act as delivery partners for the additional support, either individually or as part of the four Formatio regional hubs.
The Formatio partnership of dioceses, Catholic multi-academy trusts (CMATs) and the four Catholic universities in England supports the CES and diocesan schools commissions in implementing strategies for school leadership and governance, as commissioned by the Bishops in 2017.