School improvement is both a sprint and a marathon. Struggling schools need rapid action to turn their fortunes around but lasting change comes from sustained effort over time. Success lies in balancing both.

That’s why we were struck by the acknowledgement from Lee Mason-Ellis, one of the first Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence (RISE) advisers, that in the first wave RISE interventions, reviews and support were too slow. It is heartening to hear that RISE teams are now upping their tempo.

From our experience, an early injection of pace is vital. In the London Challenge school improvement programme, leaders were empowered to act quickly, with minimal bureaucracy, and improvement followed, transforming education across the capital within three years.

By contrast, the later priority areas programme was hampered by approval delays and procurement hurdles, leaving just 15 months of delivery in what should have been a three-year scheme, with no central plans to sustain impact beyond the initiative’s end.

Rapid action for school improvement

Why does pace matter so much? Because when schools are struggling, pupils cannot afford to wait. Every month of drift is another cohort potentially missing out.

Speed out of the blocks - with rapid diagnosis and action - builds momentum, especially when quick wins are secured, hurdles overcome. The sprint gets things moving, but it is the marathon of sustained collaboration and regular checkpoints that ensures that progress endures.

From our combined work in London, Knowsley and Liverpool, and through Challenge Partners’ 30 local hubs, three imperatives stand out alongside tempo if RISE is to deliver sustained improvement for all schools:

1. Strong leadership

Great leaders inspire hope, set clear direction and win trust across schools, trusts and local authorities. In the London Challenge, Sir Tim Brighouse provided galvanising, independent leadership that politicians and practitioners could rally behind.

The lesson is clear: leadership must be both visionary and credible, rooted in the profession but with the authority to influence policy and practice alike.

2. Intelligent use of data

In London, data was used not to punish but to illuminate. It shone a light on performance and provided a shared language for improvement - ensuring that no school could hide, but also that support was precisely targeted.

RISE will succeed if it continues to combine rigorous data with a culture of support and collaboration, so that numbers lead to shared solutions rather than fear or isolation.

It must avoid the pitfalls of “naming and shaming” that characterised the National Challenge programme, which was launched in 2008.

3. Continuous collaboration and review

One-off interventions don’t solve entrenched challenges. What does is ongoing collaboration, with schools continuously reviewing, learning and improving together.

In Challenge Partners hubs, annual peer reviews provide honest feedback, while ongoing collaboration develops and spreads good practice across schools, trusts and regions.

This keeps improvement alive long after the initial sprint has passed, providing regular checkpoints and fuelling schools for the marathon ahead.

There is no silver bullet. But we know this much: when school leaders and those supporting them are trusted to move quickly, when data is used intelligently, and when collaboration is continuous, place-based approaches can transform outcomes for children.

It is heartening that RISE has recognised the importance of pace and acted on it.

If it can also get leadership, data and sustained collaboration and peer review right, it has the potential to deliver lasting change - combining the sprint of immediate improvement with the marathon of sustainable impact - winning the race for every pupil.

Dame Sue John is co-founder and executive director at Challenge Partners. She was headteacher of a London secondary school rated “outstanding” by Ofsted

Dr Kate Chhatwal OBE is CEO of Challenge Partners. From 2022-25 she served as independent chair of the Liverpool Priority Area Board

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