This article is based on a case study of two ethnically diverse urban primary schools in England. Both schools have been recognised locally and nationally for their engagement in projects which exemplify innovative practice. The article traces the impact of school effectiveness and improvement theory on primary schools in England, identifying an ethical approach to leadership as a critical factor. It seeks to explore evidence of the values which underpinned the practice within the two case study schools. The commitment of the headteachers to their individual schools, their respect for the pupils and their families and their attention to providing a breadth of learning experience are identified as being key factors. Further research into the critical role which positive values play in pedagogical reform is suggested.

Remodelling the roles, responsibilities and working practices of all school staff has been central to the government's modernisation agenda for English state schools. This is typified by a determination to review and change the distribution of tasks undertaken by teachers and teaching assistants (TAs). Whilst there has been a substantial increase in the numbers of TAs employed in schools there is still a lack of clarity about their roles and about the impact of remodelling on the working lives of both teachers and assistants. Evidence from the Transforming the School Workforce: Pathfinder Project, conducted immediately prior to the launch of the National Agreement in 2003, indicates that initial concerns about the ways in which TAs were being deployed are still very apparent. Here the authors focus on management and professional development issues arising from TAs adopting more pedagogical roles in schools.

This paper describes the experience of change management observed as part of an evaluation of the Transforming School Workforce Pathfinder Project commissioned by the UK Government for the English education system. The 32 Pilot Schools made interventions in organisational practice in ways that required them to think differently about work. Changes in the number, type and deployment of the school workforce combined with thinking about the nature of work have challenged existing practices. In particular, a focus on change management teams drawn from the whole school workforce, supported by an external school workforce advisor, has required schools to examine the nature of decision-making and participation. We intend to draw on evidence from eight case study schools and through this examine the implications for how change is understood and practiced. We critically engage with the government’s preference for a particular model of change to bring about organisational improvement, and we reveal a pluralistic and dynamic field both within practice and theorising.

Although standards and accountability continue to be at the centre of education policy in England, there has been a shift in emphasis encouraging practitioners to take ownership of and deliver a broader curriculum. This article explores specific projects in one primary school that highlight the way in which staff are embracing, extending and appropriating policy within their own setting. While standards and accountability are still firmly controlled by government policy-makers, the case study demonstrates that practitioners can use their agency to make innovative input into the curriculum and its delivery at grass-roots level.

Government policy assumes that modernization and remodelling will be effective as external intervention mechanisms to improve job satisfaction. Based on data collected as part of the evaluation of the 'Transforming the School Workforce Pathfinder Project', an argument is presented here which suggests that internal management models may be more effective in improving teacher job satisfaction. By comparing the responses of teachers within primary and special schools with those from secondary schools, internal factors are identified which may be more relevant than externally imposed measures.

This article analyses the views of secondary school teachers involved in the Transforming the School Workforce: Pathfinder Project—a project designed to address issues of teacher workload and job satisfaction. The initiative was launched in 2002 by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) to enable 32 pilot schools to explore ways in which they might restructure their working practices and reduce teacher workload. Funding was provided for schools to benefit from consultancy support, the training of headteachers, the employment of additional teaching assistants, the provision of ICT hardware and software, the training of bursars/school managers and for capital build projects. Here we concentrate on the evaluation of the Pathfinder Project with particular reference to possible changes in workload and job satisfaction of secondary teachers in the 12 secondary schools involved in the project. The reported weekly and holiday hours worked by secondary teachers are analysed across the duration of the project, as are patterns of evening and weekend work. Teachers’ views on job satisfaction are also analysed in conjunction with their perspectives on workload, culminating in a discussion of their solutions to the problems of excessive workload. The relationship between teacher workload, job satisfaction and work-life balance is explored within the context of the future modernization of the entire school workforce.

Teacher's work and workload have been major factors in the recruitment, retention and revitalization of the profession. In January 2003 the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) launched a major reform known as remodelling, by which the work-life balance would be improved by freeing teachers up to teach, and using other members of the workforce (teaching and learning support assistants, administrators and bursars, technicians and welfare and counselling staff) to take on work that teachers need no longer do. This reform is in progress, and while there is anecdotal evidence of both the benefits and concerns of remodelling, there is no formal research evidence. However, prior to this initiative the DfES trialled these changes in 32 pilot schools, and a team from the University of Birmingham evaluated it. In this paper we examine this data with regard to the possibilities and opportunities afforded by remodelling and we consider how the pilot data generates important questions and illuminates contradictions in the modernization project.