Tykes Teaching School Alliance will endeavour to continue to help support and lead a sector led system of school improvement with a view to ensure that the children of Barnsley and beyond receive an outstanding education.
We will achieve this by:
Ensuring that all young people within our schools are awarded with the best possible opportunities and support to achieve their full potential.
Creating a collaborative approach to a self-sustaining school led system based on honesty and trust.
Hosting a pathway for teachers and our school community from pre-qualification to system leadership that will provide personalised continuous professional development (CPD) and learning opportunities.
Offering all school-based professionals CPD with a collaborative learning focus and joint practice development.
Providing opportunities, both individually and collectively, for leadership development within the alliance in order to create a sustainable approach to succession planning.
Enabling all staff to enjoy their chosen careers and to grow and develop in a nurturing, caring environment.
Together, Barnsley schools become part of something more…
Our promise to all our trainees is to deliver progressive school direct teacher training with support, guidance and professional development opportunities.
From the outset, dedicated, experienced mentors and staff within our family of schools welcome you and support you as a member of our school community.
Our team is committed to providing the very best training at the start and throughout your teaching year. They will drive, guide and develop you to prepare you to enter into the teaching profession.
Apply
Entry requirements for the courses are a 2:2 degree, along with GCSE maths, English and science (for primary) at grade C/4 or equivalent.
All teachers are expected to be competent in Fundamental English and mathematics. Initial Teacher Training (ITT) providers are expected to make an assessment of English and maths knowledge of a trainee before QTS is awarded.
The application window for the September 2021/2022 cohort will open via UCAS on Tuesday 13th October 2020.
Please contact our team to find out more about your training options.
Tykes TSA training is fun, innovative and exciting. Training with us will enable you to fulfil your ambition in becoming a future teacher.
From the amazing things you will experience and the day to day things that you will learn, you will certainly have structure and a supportive ‘family’ around you to progress.
School based learning is bespoke to all our individual trainees. You will have an experienced mentor to encourage and guide you throughout your training. You will also have additional support colleagues within your host school as well as tutors from SHU.
Specialist Leaders of Education (SLEs) deliver taught training sessions to ensure trainees are fully equipped to enter the teaching profession. The programme covered is innovative and relevant to the current climate and needs of the local region.
Our family of schools provides many opportunities for sharing excellent practice. Help and support is always at hand whenever you need it.
Nurture
You are safe hands, is our philosophy for all trainees. We foster a nurturing approach to all trainees and provide everything that you need to be the very best that you can be.
Our guiding principle is to support, nurture and grow trainees throughout the alliance.
We champion equality and opportunity for all and we host inclusive working environments for everyone.
At Tykes TSA, we pride ourselves on a holistic support for trainees where the wellbeing of individuals is at the heart of working together. We care.
Grow
Graduating the programme means the award of QTS/PGCE qualifications (60 credits at Masters Level).
Upon graduation, Tykes TSA offers all graduates support to gain employment.
95% of our trainees succeed to secure employment as NQTs before or after graduation.
We are a registered Appropriate Body for Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs), therefore we can continue to support you throughout your first year of teaching and beyond.
We provide an extensive portfolio of career pathways that are available to every teacher starting their journey with Tykes TSA.
We promote a breadth of continuous professional development courses, Newly Qualified and Recently Qualified Teacher programmes, Middle and Senior Leader training and National Qualification programmes.
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Initial Teacher Training trainees have gained Qualified Teacher Status Tykes through Tykes TSA over the last 3 years. We have a 100% pass rate!
461
Early Careers Teachers have successfully passed their Induction with the support of Tykes TSA over the last 3 years. We have a 100% pass rate!
95
Barnsley Schools have connected with Tykes TSA over the last 3 years to access services such as evidenced based CPD and/or bespoke School to School Support.
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Schools across the wider region have utilised the services of Tykes TSA over the last 3 years.
Join our family of schools – together we can be part of something more…
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School to School Support
View our individual system leader pen portraits.
Sue Harrison
Specialist Leader of Education
Sue a retired Deputy Head Teacher at Hoyland Common Primary School, she is an experienced and outstanding Y2 teacher and has supported schools, developing systems to support attainment and progress in KS1, and developing numeracy curriculums at KS1 and KS2.
Gerry Foster Wilson
National Leader of Education
Gerry is the CEO of Every Child Matters Academy Trust. She is an experienced NLE working with schools in a variety of contexts. Gerry has a track record of school improvement including moving schools in special measures to good. Gerry has worked at both national and local level writing national strategy more...and delivering CPD to ensure that this was successfully developed at both national and local level. She has a wide range of experience of leading multi-agency services to meet locally set targets. Gerry represents Headteacher colleagues at the Trust Executive Group and on the Barnsley Alliance Board. This has enabled her to contribute to both educational and wider service policy. She has 3 years’ experience of working as a lead OFSTED inspector. Gerry is currently working alongside the local authority to offer specialist SEND provision to meet the needs of the borough.
Theresa Smith
Specialist Leader of Education
Theresa is an outstanding and driven practitioner, who is Head Teacher at High View Primary Learning Centre. Her specialisms are literacy and SEN. Fully updated of the current SEN changes, Theresa is strategically managing the transitional period across schools. With an enthusiasm for literacy, more...Theresa has implemented changes through schools that have raised standards and improved progress. Theresa designed and delivers Tykes TSA's Subject Leader programme.
Nicola Shipman
National Leader of Education
Nicola is an National Leader of Education and CEO of Steel City Schools Partnership (SCSP). Along with her staff from SCSP, she has worked with staff from over 50 settings. Nicola has a wealth of experience providing school to school support as a National Support School. Along with becoming an Ofsted more...Inspector in 2014, the impact of her experience has helped to improve the outcome of many of the schools that were supported. Nicola has led on the design and deliver of CPD for Head teachers and Senior Leaders across Barnsley for the last 2 years.
James Haywood – Assistant Headteacher
Specialist Leader of Education
James is an experienced practitioner and Assistant Head Teacher at Sandhill Primary Academy. He has experience of teaching throughout the primary phase; however, specialises in UKS2. His SLE is in teaching and learning, most notably helping leaders of mathematics and science in implementing and more...sustaining change within the curriculum. James has worked closely with Advanced Skills teachers from secondary education to close the ‘gap’ between the skills provided at KS2 and the expectations of KS3. He has a strong understanding of the changes to the primary curriculum in assessing and reporting progress & attainment at both KS1 and KS2 levels. Previously, James was the lead practitioner for PE for a cluster of schools within Barnsley, setting up tournaments / festivals within the trust to promote healthy competition.
Simon Benson
Specialist Leader of Education
Simon is an experienced and outstanding practitioner in Secondary Education, having work for over 10 years in the Barnsley area. As SLE for ITT and NQT Development and Lead for Early Career Teachers at Horizon Community College he annually supports and develops large cohorts of trainees, NQTs and more...RQTs as well as their Mentors and Coaches. Simon is passionate about the application of Instructional Coaching and Deliberate Practice and has developed this as standard practice within the Early Career Teacher provision at Horizon. This has been further enhanced by his role as a Facilitator for the Educational Development Trust's ECF Programme through which he leads Local Groups Sessions to NQTs and their Mentors alike. Although his area of expertise is within Teaching & Learning, Simon spent many years as Subject Leader for History and as a result has also a well-rounded knowledge of Curriculum and Assessment.
Jeannette Stratton
Specialist Leader of Education
Jeannette is the Head Teacher at Lacewood Primary School in the Dearne. With nearly 27 years experience as a teacher, Jeannette's particular areas of expertise as an SLE are reading, special needs and assessment; she has also worked with schools in implementing strategies to improve reading. more...Additionally, Jeannette is a certified Irlen Screener with the ability to assess children for Irlens Syndrome & can advise on Irlen filters & provide Irlen Overlays.
Jonathon Bean – Assistant Head
Specialist Leader of Education
Jonathon the Head of School at Churchfields Primary, after several years as a full time Year 6 teacher, along with Assistant Headteacher, PE & Sports Leader, Maths Leader, Assessment Leader & KS2 Leader. He had consistently outstanding lesson observations from both in-school staff and more...outside agencies, and specialise in a range of areas, mainly assessment (having created assessment systems from scratch), maths and PE (in particular engaging large numbers of pupils/least active and maximising the PE Premium). He has also personally won several awards for PE, including Barnsley Adult of the Year for the last 2 years, as well as the Yorkshire Sport PE Premium Award for how sport premium funding was spent, along with getting the Centre of Excellence status for his school from Yorkshire Sport/Sport England. At university he was in Early Years, and also has a master’s degree in Outdoor & Experiential Learning, which again is something he has a keen interest in, in developing innovative ways to use this in (or out of!) the classroom.
Rob Smith
Local Leader of Education
Rob is the Head Teacher at Summer Lane Primary School. Over the years, he has developed expertise in developing action plans to support teaching and learning and has a strong interest in assisting schools on the analysis of date. He enjoys working collaboratively to achieve the best possible outcomes more...for schools and children.
Jo Upton
Specialist Leader of Education
Jo is an experienced practitioner and Deputy Head Teacher at Gooseacre Primary Academy. She has experience of teaching throughout the full primary phase, in particular demonstrating outstanding practise in Years 2 and 6. She has supported schools with the teaching and development of the maths curriculum more...and supporting newly qualified teachers. Jo is particularly interested in cooperative learning, and strategies to maximise pupil engagement and participation.
