Over 800 Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire school staff attend inset day event aimed at enhancing workplace expertise

Guest speaker Eddie the Eagle Edwards closed the day speaking about the importance of resilience.

Thirty-one Flying High Partnership schools from across Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire were invited to attend an inset day event aimed at promoting leadership, enhancing workplace skills, and recognising the work of school staff in making a positive difference to children’s lives.

Held at Trent Vineyard in Nottingham, over 800 school staff attended from teaching, pastoral, site and office teams, along with members of the Flying High Partnership’s central team. The event offered 12 workshops and welcomed 3 keynote speakers: Oliver Caviglioli, author and creator of WalkThrus, Amy Storer, head teacher of Zaytouna Primary School, and closing the event, Eddie ‘the Eagle’ Edwards, British ski-jumper and Olympian.

The event also marked 10 years of The Flying High Partnership, founded in Cotgrave, and now in the top five performing multi-academy trusts (MATS) nationally for reading, maths and disadvantage, in MATS with more than 10 schools.

The partnership is also credited with a 100% record in improved or maintained Ofsted outcomes, providing access to a wide range of career development opportunities for its staff, and advancing the high standards of education it brings to the 8000 children within its academies.

Founder and CEO of The Flying High Partnership, Chris Wheatley, said the event was a great way to mark 10 years since the foundation of multi-academy trust. “This year’s event saw staff from every role within schools, come together to share best practice, and to access further training in their disciplines. The event was a great success and so heavily attended that finding venues large enough will be a challenge in future!”

Chris said that by enabling staff from across two counties to come together, to meet and learn from others occupying similar roles, has great benefits for schools, and most importantly, for children. “Our aim has been to bring together teams of site staff, teaching assistants, teachers, office teams, head teachers and leaders, to enhance the way our schools deliver the best experience for children. We have a short time to positively change the lives of each and every child who attends our schools, and this event is crucial to ensure that staff can develop their craft and support each other to be the best. Our aim is, -and always will be, to make every day count for our children and we are united in this aim, stronger together, delivering excellence every day.”

Workshops on the day demonstrated the techniques teaching staff could employ to deliver high quality and effective education for all learners, how to achieve good attendance through positive relationships, and improving children’s engagement with learning through evidence-based lesson structures, feedback and monitoring of impact. Alongside education workshops, staff also heard from experts in communications, site management and the strengths to be found in the teamwork between Site and Business Leads within schools.

Julie Fidler, Head Teacher of Porchester Junior School in Carlton said, “I want to say a huge thank you on behalf of Porchester Junior School for such an inspiring event. It was absolutely amazing and perfectly organised with so much good practice and expertise to share amongst our staff teams. Flying High did an amazing job and we all felt excited to be part of it, getting so much to take back to our schools.”

At the close of the event, Eddie ‘the Eagle’ Edwards spoke to the assembled audience about the importance of tenacity and resilience. He said, “I wanted to talk about my life and some of the things that have happened to me. Some of those are amusing stories, but they also have the underlying theme of resilience and tenacity.”

In the 1988 Winter Olympics, Eddie represented Great Britain in Olympic ski jumping at Calgary. Though Eddie came last place, he quickly shot to fame as a symbol of hope, resilience and courage for his fans worldwide.

“I wanted to share some of the hardships I endured to achieve the goals I set myself in life, and the goals I have made great efforts to achieve,” he said. “I know how important it is to recognise and embrace opportunities when they come your way, by always being prepared to give them a try. As I can show first-hand, some opportunities will lead to successes, but not all of them! By hearing about my journey, the ups and downs, I hope to show that it is always worth your best efforts.”

Paul Goodman is Deputy CEO of the Flying High Partnership and he said, “What a fantastic event! Through our exceptional keynote speakers and workshop leaders, staff continue to develop their expertise and forge ties across our partnership of thirty-one schools. We know that by investing in our staff to improve their practice, we can better support the children who attend our schools to fulfil their potential.”