Last week, leaders, teachers, and site teams from across our Trust came together with Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, Equans and Transform Schools (Rotherham) for a Joint Collaboration Day focused on how our Trust’s PFI school buildings are run day to day.
The half-day session at the Cranworth Road Centre was facilitated by Jenny Seymour of the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) and had three aims:
- To build understanding of the pressures each role faces
- To bridge the gap between a contract signed around 20 years ago and the reality of school life today
- To create a shared sense of ownership focused on student safety, clean spaces and education
Through practical team exercises, attendees experienced first-hand what it was like to work within constraints that others cannot see. One activity asked teams to plan a full school day for three site staff, juggling a surprise assembly, exam desks for 120 students, an emergency ambulance access and hall turnarounds. It showed how a request that sounds small can affect a whole day’s schedule.
Site teams then sat down together to plan events up to Christmas using a shared master calendar, including mock exams and parents’ evenings. They also discussed practical improvements, such as clearer routes for reporting urgent jobs and more advance notice for room set-ups.
While much of a site team’s work happens behind the scenes, their daily effort directly shapes the school experience for our children. Streamlining how our buildings are run ensures that classrooms, halls, and shared spaces remain safe, welcoming, and fully equipped to support our students.
Helen O’Brien, CEO of Wickersley Partnership Trust, said: “The test I apply in every one of our schools is simple: would I want my own child in that classroom, that dining room or that hall? Our caretakers, cleaners and site teams are some of the most important people in any school, and yesterday was about making sure everyone on site feels they are part of one team. A child at Clifton deserves the same quality of building as a child at Thrybergh or Wickersley, and by working together more openly we can deliver that.”
Jenny Seymour, of the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority, said: “A contract allocates risk, but it is people who make a partnership work. It was encouraging to see everyone in the room – from the Council to Headteachers and site staff – focused on the same thing: safe, clean spaces where children can learn. The real measure of success will be how teams work together on site in the weeks and months ahead.”
The session marked an important step in aligning daily building management with the practical realities of school life. As our site teams put their agreed reporting routes and room setup protocols into practice, progress will be reviewed regularly at upcoming site operations meetings to keep building strong, effective working relationships.
