Hot on the heels of my blog earlier this week (Schools must publish online… from September 2012) DfE have released an interesting update to their web pages “to help headteachers, principals and governors plan ahead, prepare for and implement changes that will take place during this academic year, including mandatory legal requirements.”
With a key for the phase and type that is both colour coded and identified by acronyms, it offers a chronological list of changes and helpfully includes links to information and sources in some cases.
For the second time this week, I have to say I welcome this, not just because I work in the sector and with schools but also in my role as a school Governor.
Could be even better
As you would expect, I have views on how it is presented, how:
- it could be made more interactive
- helpful if would be if it could be searched or sorted by phase or type
- we could more easily identify statutory/mandatory changes from other ‘changes’
- useful to be able to download it as a wall-chart
- I might like to import the deadlines directly into diaries…
All ways that we can use technology to ease burdens and improve efficiency, but I guess that would just be nitpicking.
Finding it
You can find this latest update (again in the section ‘Cutting burdens and bureaucracy’) here.
A footnote
It is Friday as I post this and as well as my end of week frivolity (referencing the start of a David Bowie song in my title) I have to admit to a faint smile breaking out when I read one of the notes at the foot of the article. It reads “Schools and colleges are free to adopt non-mandatory reforms if they wish” …
