What are Training Schools?

The expansion of the Training Schools programme is an important part of the next phase of the Government's plans to improve standards in education, which are described in the White Paper A New Specialist System: Transforming Secondary Education.

Training Schools demonstrate excellent practice across the range of teacher training activities, especially in initial teacher training and the continuing training of the whole school workforce. They are ambitious, imaginative and influential in these areas. They work collaboratively with others for the benefit of staff and pupils beyond their own boundaries. The Government hopes that, over time, Training Schools will be accredited in all parts of England.

Background to the programme

The establishment of Training Schools was proposed in the 1998 Green Paper 'Teachers- meeting the challenge of change' . The proposal was for a network of high quality Training Schools to develop and disseminate good practice in initial teacher training, train mentors/school-based tutors and undertake research.

The aim of Training Schools is to build up and share good and developing ITT practice with other schools and their training providers, both within their existing partnership networks and beyond. Successful schools will already have shown good practice in teacher training and, with their new status as Training Schools, they will receive extra funding, through the Standards Fund, to carry out their training activities.