Ready, set, September! Start strong with a head start from us
Feel ready for September with our resource hub, featuring handpicked support and training to shorten your team’s to-do lists and tackle your new-term tasks with confidence.
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Get up to speed on the latest sector changes
Make sure you and your team are clear on what’s new for 2024/25.
Changes in education 2024/25
Get up to speed on the key changes to government guidance that are likely to affect your school this academic year, and find resources to help you take action.
Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE): September 2024 changes
An updated version of KCSIE is now in force. Understand the changes for the 2024/25 academic year and what your next steps should be.
Ofsted: latest updates
Stay up to date with all things Ofsted.
What does a Labour government mean for the education sector?
Find out what changes to education might be on the horizon under the new government, and which policies have been announced.
DfE announces pay award and removes performance-related pay requirement
School teachers and leaders will receive a fully funded 5.5% pay award.
Navigate your September responsibilities to staff and pupils
Be ready to respond to any start-of-year staffing queries, and refresh your team’s knowledge of safeguarding essentials to help keep your pupils safe.
Staff induction: your step-by-step guide
Use our tips and checklist to plan effective staff induction so that all new colleagues buy into your school's culture and settle into their role well.
Early career teacher (ECT) induction: summary
Read about your requirements and responsibilities for the 2-year induction period for early career teachers (ECT)s. The induction period is statutory in maintained schools.
Staff code of conduct: model and examples
Download and adapt our model staff code of conduct, developed with NAHT and approved by a law firm. See examples of codes of conduct from primary, secondary and special schools, and across academy trusts.
Safeguarding around the holidays: signs to spot and issues to be aware of
Consider the safeguarding risks that can occur over the summer holidays and learn the signs to look out for as pupils and staff return to school.
Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE): summary
Read the key points in KCSIE 2024 and know where to look for information on specific areas of safeguarding in the statutory guidance.
Single central record: requirements and template
Save time and stay compliant by using our single central record (SCR) template. Find a summary of what must be recorded and which staff the document must cover, in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance.
Filtering and monitoring: toolkit and resources
Get a rundown on how to make sure filtering and monitoring in your school is top notch. Download our templates and resources to support you to review what you have now, and to make sure any new providers are up to scratch.
Check your policies and documents are compliant
Review and update your policies and documents in line with the latest guidance. Some of our most popular policies are listed below to help you get started, or look at our full statutory policy list.
Statutory policies and documents for schools and trusts
Download our list of the policies and documents you must have, so you're clear on any changes and can make sure you’re compliant.
Attendance policy: model and examples
Download and adapt our model attendance policy, or if you prefer to write or review your own, use our checklist setting out requirements and good practice. Share your policy highlights with parents and carers using our handy summary letter.
Behaviour policy: model and examples
Download and adapt our model behaviour policy, or if you prefer to write or review your own, use our checklist to make sure you're following requirements and good practice.
Child protection policy: model
Make sure your child protection policy reflects Keeping Children Safe in Education 2024. If you previously adapted our model, use our summary of what's changed and why to help you decide what changes to make. If you have your own policy, use our checklist to make sure it covers everything it needs to.
Health and safety policy: model and examples
All schools must have a health and safety policy. Use our model policy for your school or trust, which includes an accident report form, to stay compliant.
Online safety policy: model and examples
Download and adapt our model online safety policy, which includes acceptable use agreements for pupils, parents/carers and staff. See examples of policies from primary, secondary and special schools.
School improvement plan: template, checklist and monitoring guidance
Download one of our school improvement plan (SIP) templates and use our checklist to help you evaluate your SIP. Learn how you can monitor implementation of your SIP.
Self-evaluation form (SEF): checklists, guidance and template
Get help writing your school's self-evaluation form (SEF). Assess your school using our general or EYFS checklists. Download our template SEF, plan activities to monitor progress and take a look at examples of SEFs from other schools.
Deliver essential updates and training to your team
Whether you’re rounding off your INSET day or planning your staff meetings for autumn, make sure your team is up to date with the essential training needed for their role.
Ofsted inspection staff briefing
Download our briefing presentation and handout to prepare your staff for an Ofsted inspection. Help them feel confident and know what to expect when the call comes, on the day and afterwards.
The Equality Act 2010: staff briefing
Use our 30-minute briefing to get your staff up to speed on their responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010. Make sure they know their protected characteristics from their reasonable adjustments, and use our scenarios to help staff embed their learning.
Supporting pupils with medical needs: staff briefing
Use this 30-minute briefing to help your staff understand how to support pupils with medical needs, and to think about the wider context and challenges faced by pupils with physical medical conditions.
- Cyber security in schools - statutory eLearning
- Health and safety for teachers and TAs – statutory eLearning
- Control of substances hazardous to health (COSHH) essentials for school staff – statutory eLearning
- Fire safety awareness for school staff – statutory eLearning
- UK GDPR for school staff – statutory eLearning
Stay organised for the autumn term and beyond
Plan ahead for the upcoming year, using our checklists, calendars and courses.
Termly tasks for headteachers: autumn 2024
Keep on top of your regular and unique tasks for this autumn term with our downloadable checklist.
School business manager: task checklists
Use our checklists to make sure you're staying on top of your SBM tasks for the 2024/25 academic year. Find checklists and deadlines for yearly, termly and monthly tasks.
Termly tasks for primary subject leaders: checklist
Download our checklist to help you plan ahead and keep on top of your termly tasks. It covers curriculum planning, subject monitoring and setting your subject vision.
Termly tasks for secondary heads of department/subject: checklist
Download our checklist to help you keep on top of your termly tasks. It includes tasks to help with preparing for exams, managing staff, and monitoring your subject.
SENCO's year planner
Get organised with our annual planner for special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCOs). You'll find strategic aims for the autumn, spring and summer terms to help you plan your diary, and a list of operational tasks to schedule in throughout the year.
School year planner for 2024/25: template
Use our editable, printable 2024/25 planners to keep up with important dates and deadlines for your primary, secondary or all-through school. They include statutory deadlines, religious holidays, and national and international initiatives.
Assembly planner for the year ahead (2024/25)
Get your assembly topics sorted with our downloadable planner. Adapt our weekly schedule and share it with staff to remind them what’s coming up.
Interactive online calendar
Keep up with significant dates and events with our online calendar for school leaders. Learn how to subscribe to the calendar through Outlook, Google Calendar and some mobile devices.
Share resources with your governors
Use your Whole School or Leaders+ GovernorHub membership to support your clerk, chair and governors or trustees.
Schedule your leaders’ autumn term CPD
Sign up for our new, live, practical leadership courses. Exclusively available to Whole School members.
- Assistant headship: your first years – new to SLT series
- Deputy headship: finding your feet – new to SLT series
- People management: the knotty edges – new to SLT series
- People management: build buy-in as you step up – new to headship series
- Getting parents on board – new to headship series
- Managing up to get governors on track – new to headship series
Train your staff, to help meet your statutory requirements
Share our essential on-demand training with every member of staff who needs it, to help you meet your statutory requirements. Exclusively available to Whole School members.
- Fire safety awareness for school staff
- Health and safety for teachers and TAs
- UK GDPR for school staff
- Control of substances hazardous to health (COSHH) essentials for school staff
- Legionella management in schools
- Data protection for new DPOs
- Risk assessment for schools
- Cyber security in schools
- Working at height for school staff (coming soon)
- Manual handling for school staff (coming soon)
Start your headship with confidence
Whether you’re completely new to headship or have just started at a new school, use our resources and join our brand new practical leadership courses to get the support, guidance and training you need.
New headteacher resource hub
Hit the ground running with our resources and advice to help you in your new role as a headteacher.
Termly tasks for headteachers: autumn 2024
Keep on top of your regular and unique tasks for this autumn term with our downloadable checklist.
Guidance for headteachers: poster
Whether you’re new to the job, or just want to know you’re up to date with requirements, download our poster to find the information you need to follow the latest guidance and best practice for headteachers.
Access support for your trust and schools
Whether you’re growing your trust or tackling your budget, feel confident that you have the resources to support your trust and schools this autumn.
Academy Trust Handbook 2024 published
The new handbook requires you to include appointment information in your register of interests. It also gives trusts freedom to enter into leases for certain assets without ESFA approval, and introduces tighter requirements for internal scrutiny in trusts with higher incomes.
Procurement Act summary
Get an overview of how the new Procurement Act 2023 will change the way you buy some high-value goods and services. Download and share this QuickRead with colleagues so they know what to expect.
Risk management policy: model and examples
Use our template policy to make sure risk management is part of your trust's business planning and decision-making processes. You can also see examples of risk management policies from trusts of different sizes.
Complaints procedure: model and examples
Adapt our model complaints procedure to your school's context, and use our checklists to make sure you stay compliant.
Website requirements: academies and academy trusts
Find out what individual academies need to publish online, and if you’re in a multi-academy trust, what your trust website needs to include. Use our checklists to help you comply.
Budget management: annual to-do list and guidance
Download and use our budget checklist to track tasks by month across the financial year, and get advice on the main things you need to consider.
Catch up on all the news from the summer
Read the top stories and headlines from across the school sector over the summer period.
The Key has taken great care in publishing this article. However, some of the article's content and information may come from or link to third party sources whose quality, relevance, accuracy, completeness, currency and reliability we do not guarantee. Accordingly, we will not be held liable for any use of or reliance placed on this article's content or the links or downloads it provides. This article may contain information sourced from public sector bodies and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.