It is good that Nicky Morgan has listened to the profession. And it is eminently sensible to drop the requirement for all schools to be academies. Now the government needs to listen even more carefully.

Before the election, the Association of School and College Leaders published the blueprint for a self-improving system, which describes our vision from the point of view of 2020. It is of a system that has moved away from central direction by the government to one in which school and colleges have greater autonomy and work collectively to drive system-wide improvement and “unleash greatness”.

Now, together, we must make this vision real. This involves solving some stubborn problems. We need the collective expertise of our profession, government and policy-makers to respond to these challenges and take action.

Here are the top five priorities that need our coordinated and urgent attention.

 1.    Enough teachers and school leaders

School leaders are extremely concerned about teacher supply. There are shortages across an increasing range of subjects and severe recruitment problems in some parts of the country. Without the right number of high-quality teachers and leaders, the system will fail.

There are some sound proposals in the White Paper to get more teachers and leaders into the system, but these plans do not go far enough or fast enough. We must persuade graduates that teaching is a great profession. Of course, those of us who are teachers and leaders know that it is. There is nothing more rewarding than making a real difference to children’s lives.

So how might we work together to ensure that we have the teachers and school leaders we need?

2.    A broad and deep curriculum

Every child deserves to leave education with the knowledge and skills that give them the best possible opportunities in life. We need a curriculum that provides a firm foundation for all students, whatever their backgrounds, enabling them to succeed not just in modern Britain but in the modern world. This curriculum needs to be broad, balanced and motivational.

I completely support the principle that core academic subjects are crucial to a young person’s future, and I believe in the equality of opportunity this offers. However, this is not the same as the narrow range of subjects in the government’s English Baccalaureate. The proposed set of subjects are important but not all are appropriate or relevant for all students. There are other equally beneficial subjects that young people could study.

So how might we work together to create a compelling curriculum that is broad, deep and motivational?

3.    Assessment that serves children

In the past few weeks we have heard much discussion about national tests. Let’s go back to first principles: all forms of assessment are first and foremost about helping children to understand their own learning and make progress.  

Assessment is all too frequently inappropriately used to make judgements about school effectiveness. We need assessment that serves children first.

So how might we shift to a deeper understanding of the key functions that assessment has in the process of learning - and how we can influence it?

4.    Sufficient and sustainable funding

It is absolutely right that no child should be disadvantaged because their school receives less funding than a school with similar costs and pupils. The ASCL has campaigned for a national fair funding formula for many years. However, this alone will not address the severe financial situation faced by schools and colleges as a result of rising costs and frozen budgets. Significantly more investment is needed.

Having said that; it isn’t all about funding. The world is changing rapidly. Our young people will compete for jobs globally, not nationally. We need to grasp the opportunity to rethink the curriculum and the way we deliver it. Politicians and school and college leaders need to understand that we can’t just keep doing what we’ve always done in the same way.

So how might we design from the bottom up to align the curriculum vision and how it is delivered with funding?

5.    Strong and sustainable partnerships

Groups of schools have the potential to solve problems that schools standing alone will find more difficult. Partnerships help teachers to learn together. Schools working together are more likely to be able to lead the training and development of teachers. And schools in groups can create different pathways for teachers to gain leadership experience.

Schools working together ultimately can decide that they will share responsibility for pupil outcomes. In this way, no child or school is left behind. We are bound together by a deep moral purpose - to make a difference to children, to help them learn to know, learn how to put that knowledge into practice, learn to be themselves and learn to live together.

So how might we build partnerships that cultivate the expertise of everyone so that we are focused on a collective purpose?

Leora Cruddas is the ASCL’s director of policy

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