On Friday 10th March staff from across The Two Counties Trust gathered to partake in their largest Professional Development Day to date. Staff had over 100 sessions to choose from as well as 60 speakers to listen and network with. This ambitious day had high quality professional development at its heart because we always aim to ensure our staff are as ambitious for themselves as they are for our 11,000 students.
The day was originally set to bring everyone together in person but sadly the snow did not make that possible. An incredible effort was made by staff to ensure that both attendees and speakers awoke to a fully realised event. This was no simple task as this year’s Professional Development Day was the largest ever event that the Trust had planned. This was a monumental task, that was only made possible because of the implementation group’s exceptional tenacity and teamwork.
The day started with a wonderful address recognising Trust staff’s work through the inaugural Star Awards. Staff members were nominated by their peers and students for work in a range of areas. Keynote speaker Jazz Ampaw-Farr addressed all of our attendees, reminding us all that no matter your role, you have the power to change someone’s day, week, or even life because we’re all “Everyday Heroes”.
The rest of the day saw staff members attend online sessions run by both Trust members such as Trust Curriculum Leads while the other sessions were run by invited guests including Tracy Goodyear, Christopher Such, Shaun Brown, Jesse Corburn and many more. Feedback from staff members has been fantastic despite the move online.
“Really good selection of sessions so that I felt I could tailor it to suit my personal CPD needs.”
“Some really good sessions and the day gave me the opportunity to take a step back and take some time for reflection and to think about my practice and where we are as a school. An incredibly valuable day for this reason. I also thought the range of speakers was brilliant and shows a real investment in staff development so a big thank you from me.”
“It was very well organised and re-arranged at the last minute. Easy to access sessions. Jaz was such an inspiration, I admit, I cried!”
Thank you to all staff who both supported and attended the Professional Development Day, as well as our fantastic external guests who gave our staff some valuable insights and takeaways to enhance our students’ life choices.
