Schools as Organisations 3

All schools have a strategic alignment that shows each staff member’s place and role in the hierarchy. The School Governors ensure the effective running of the institution, but the day-to-day management is the responsibility of the Head Teacher along with the Senior Management Team. The Deputy Head Teacher and the SENCO report directly to the Head Teacher, while the general teaching staff belongs under the SMT’s supervision. Class Teachers are responsible for their Teaching Assistants and the everyday quality education in the classroom. Now let us see the responsibilities of each in detail.

The Strategic Purpose of the Governing Body

The governing body of a public school is responsible for the standards of education, the recruitment of staff and the management of the premises. School governors are volunteers, who work in co-operation with the school and with all the staff to set aims and objectives, develop policies and review progress regularly, implementing the recommendations of inspections. The governing body of the school sets high standards in planning, keeping in mind that the level of challenge has to be appropriate in regards of development. They provide support and advice in realising these plans, taking into consideration the requirements of parents and the wider community. Setting a long term strategic direction for the school includes policies regarding uniform, discipline, sports and homework; spending the budget; reaching performance targets; dealing with complaints; decisions on academic matters and in some cases admissions; managing staff and the maintenance of the school property. (Teaching Assistant 2002) It is usually a team of 10-12 people and can form different sub-committees responsible for e.g. the aims and objectives; the adoption of new policies; setting targets etc.

The Strategic Purpose of the Senior Management Team

The senior management team usually consists of the Head Teacher, the Deputy Head Teacher(s) and the Assistant Head Teacher(s) (in secondary schools). While the Head Teacher has overall responsibility of the school, including staff, pupils and educational issues, other members of the SMT usually have their area to manage within the school environment, being directly accountable to the Head. Common responsibilities of members of the SMT are day-to-day management of the school, meeting learners’ needs (in the curriculum and also with extra-curricular activities) and keeping discipline amongst the pupils. They make sure that there is a good relationship between the members of staff and they also get support to further their professional development. The strategic management includes the development, implementation and regular review of the Whole School Development Plan, regarding not only the management of teaching and learning but also the financial management and external relations with the community outside of school. The SMT develops a policy on issues regarding the whole school and shares a collective responsibility for school management. (Teaching Assistant 2002)

The Strategic Purpose of the SENCO

The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator is one of the statutory roles in schools. They are managing the day-to-day operation of the school’s SEN policy by providing guidance and in-service training to colleagues and liaising with professional outside of school to find further support if needed. They are not only responsible for a high quality teaching for SEN pupils but also take care of their records and keep in touch with their parents. (Teaching Assistant 2002)

The Strategic Purpose of Teachers

Classroom Teachers plan, prepare and deliver lessons to balance the requirements of the National Curriculum and the needs of their pupils. They have to record pupil development with the help of marked assignments, monitor each child’s individual progress and recognise problems, e.g., a student with special educational needs. (Teaching Assistant 2012) They communicate and consult with the parents, persons or bodies outside the school, the SMT and the SENCO in any issues regarding the children’s needs and development.

The Strategic Purpose of Support Staff

School support staff includes the Teaching Assistants who work directly under the Teacher’s direction, supporting their day-to-day work in the classroom. They help the teacher with everyday planning and preparation, support learning activities, report any problems or queries, and give feedback to the teacher. Under the teacher’s guidance they may also run teaching sessions and assess children’s work. Pupil support staff is attending children while they are outside of the classroom, in the playground. School administrators give a secretarial support to the whole school, while the technical staff makes sure that the IT equipment and other teaching resources are in adequate condition for use in education. The site staff consists of the maintenance staff who takes care of the building and premises of the school and the kitchen staff who gets meals ready for lunchtime. (“Becoming support staff” 2014)

The Strategic Purpose of External Professionals

There are a number of external professionals who may help the work of the general school staff with children who have some kind of special needs. Speech and Language Therapists deal with pupils with speech impairment or pronunciation difficulties. There are specialist teachers available for specific cases, like behaviour issues, autism, or for pupils who speak English as an additional language. The Education Welfare Officer’s role is to monitor attendance and absenteeism amongst school pupils. The Educational Psychologist supports the SENCO, makes observations and assessments about the development of SEN children.

The successful work of the school depends on the cooperation of all of these individuals. The final aim to provide quality education and promote children’s welfare while they at the school’s premises in the staff’s care. Each individual has to give their best in the everyday work as well as to respect the contribution of others to the common goal.

Reference list

“Becoming school support staff: Support staff roles.” Department for Education. Accessed 02/02/2014 <http://education.gov.uk/schools/careers/traininganddevelopment/staff/b00202532/school-support-staff/roles>

Teaching Assistant. Providing Support to Teaching and Learning in Schools. February 2012, edn. 2010/05. UK Open Learning Ltd.