Training and CPD
Continuing professional development for teachers, leaders and support staff in the schools of the Harrogate and Rural Teaching School Alliance.
Our approach to professional development
The Alliance treats training as a working part of school improvement rather than a set of one-off events. Programmes are planned with headteachers and subject leads so that what staff learn in a session can be tried in their own classrooms the following week. Each programme sets out what it is for, who it serves and how its impact will be checked.
Courses shaped by classroom need
Before a course is offered, the Alliance looks at what schools in the area have told us they need. Some sessions focus on subject knowledge, some on assessment, and others on managing behaviour or supporting pupils with additional needs. Sessions are kept small enough for useful discussion and are often led by practising teachers who have tested the approach in their own schools.
Finding the right programme
Training is grouped by career stage and role. Early career teachers, middle leaders and senior leaders each have pathways that build on one another. The pages below set out the main routes into professional learning.
Learning in practice
Much of the most useful professional learning happens when staff observe one another, share resources and review pupil work together. The images below show the kinds of collaborative activity that the Alliance encourages across its partner schools.
Common questions about CPD
Training is open to staff in partner schools, including teachers, teaching assistants, middle leaders and senior leaders. Some sessions are designed for specific roles, and the course description will say so.
Participants are asked to set a classroom focus before a programme begins and to report back on how they applied it. Schools can then review changes in teaching and pupil outcomes alongside their own improvement plans.
Contact the Alliance office through the contact page with your school name, your role and the area of development you are considering. Staff will reply with the available dates and any next steps.