A Q&A with Louise Pink, former primary school Headteacher
How can school leaders effectively engage parents and governors with school data?
Engaging governors effectively requires three key elements:
- A clear understanding of the school’s improvement goals and the rationale behind them.
- Insight into the strategies being implemented to achieve those goals.
- Regular updates on progress, including tangible evidence of impact.
For example, if a school has a 91% attendance rate while the national average is 95%, governors need to understand why this gap matters – lower attendance typically correlates with poorer academic outcomes. Once they grasp the ‘why’, they can better support the strategies being implemented to improve attendance. Over time, reviewing the data allows governors to ask critical questions, such as whether particular pupil groups require additional focus.
Parental engagement is equally vital. Parents need clear, accessible data that demonstrates their child’s progress. Rather than presenting abstract statistics, schools can use tangible examples – such as comparing their child’s writing samples from the start and end of a term.
Additionally, maintaining open communication is essential. If a child’s attendance is slipping, a headteacher might engage the parent by first discussing their child’s achievements and participation in school life. This builds trust and opens the door for conversations about challenges the family might be facing, such as increased work commitments preventing parents from helping with homework. Schools that proactively address such issues can offer targeted support to prevent further decline.
What trends do you anticipate will shape the use of data in school leadership by 2025?
Insights-driven analytics will be more important than ever. Schools collect vast amounts of data, but without meaningful analysis, the numbers themselves hold little value. The future lies in utilising predictive analytics and AI to support decision-making while also acknowledging that education remains a human endeavour.
However, AI and automation must be applied thoughtfully. While predictive tools can highlight patterns – such as students at risk of falling behind – teachers and leaders must interpret this data with professional judgement. Schools must strike a balance between leveraging technology and maintaining the human element in education.
Ultimately, the schools that will be most successful in 2025 and beyond are those that utilise data not just as a compliance tool but as a powerful mechanism for enhancing teaching, learning, and pupil well-being.
What advice do you have for current and aspiring school leaders on effectively leveraging data for strategic purposes?
First, prioritise data quality – having lots of data is useless if it’s inaccurate or incomplete. Second, invest time in understanding what your data is telling you rather than just collecting it for the sake of it. Third, utilise your MIS effectively; ensure that staff are trained and understand how to use the system to its full potential. Lastly, don’t underestimate the importance of compliance – ensuring data security and GDPR compliance is as critical as making strategic use of the data.
I would encourage leaders to think: ‘How can I really leverage data? How can we steam ahead and take all those stakeholders on the journey with us?’ At the end of the day, we want to ensure that our children leave our care having made the absolute most of their time with us and really exceeded their potential from their given starting points. I believe that school leaders recognise they all have their part to play; that, from any given starting point, a child, while in our care, will absolutely thrive and reach their full potential.