Schools team up to offer support and expertise to each other

A TOP achieving school has teamed up with a struggling school to offer support and to share expertise.

Queensmead School, in Queens Walk, South Ruislip, and Northwood School, in Potter Street, Northwood Hills, have agreed to work more closely together by forming a federation.

This is a new way for schools to work together, which has been championed by the government.

Chris Spencer, director of Children's Services at Hillingdon Council, said: "Federations are a fairly recent development in education where schools can link together to share expertise and support each other.

"There are increasing numbers of such initiatives around the country and we are pleased to support this development in Hillingdon".

Partnership work within a federation allows schools to share resources and for students to benefit from the expertise they both contain.

Queensmead School is an academically successful school with an acknowledged specialism in leadership and is offering some leadership support to Northwood.

Students from both schools have already benefited from teaching expertise in their partner school.

Year 10 Queensmead students who study construction have joined their counterparts at Northwood for some lessons, while groups of Northwood Sixth Form students have enjoyed some A level lessons at Queensmead.

Scott Seaman-Digby, a Northwood councillor and a governor for the federation, said: "This is an excellent example of local schools working together for the benefit of their students and their local communities".

The federation aims to have consistently high expectations of children's learning at both schools and to offer all of the children within the federation wider ranging curriculum experiences and high quality teaching.

Allan Walker, chair of governors for the federation, said: "This will enhance the educational opportunities for students in the local community. Schools working together is the way forward".