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Professional Development at Uxbridge High School

Great teaching, by design 

At Uxbridge High School we believe that every teacher can keep getting better — not because they are not good enough, but because they can be even better. That belief, expressed by Dylan Wiliam, supports our whole professional development strategy at Uxbridge High School. 

What makes professional development here different is that it is not a series of disconnected events, but a curriculum. We have codified what great teaching looks like in our context, built our own coaching platform around it, and given every teacher an expert coach to help get even better.  

 

The UHS Playbook — what great teaching looks like here 

The Playbook is our codified teaching approach at Uxbridge High School. It is not a generic list of good ideas: it was written for our school, our students and our curriculum, and it names the specific pedagogy we expect to see in every classroom. Alignment leads to professional equity, because you take the element of chance away from bein an expert teacher. Alignment gives everyone an equal chance of securing success in the classroom and allows teachers to have more agency with how they deliver the subject and enhance the curriculum. It also provides greater opportunity to do the right thing for each individual student, because the routines are already taken care of, more teaching time can be given to adaptive practices which support every student to be successful.  

It is organised around the practices that make the most difference for our students: 

  • Calm, predictable classrooms — the routines that lower cognitive load so every student can concentrate on learning. Meeting and greeting at the door, the Do Now on the board before students enter, STAR during teacher input, lateness handled discreetly, End and Send at the close of the lesson. 

  • Clear, unambiguous instruction — small steps monitored from the front, explicit teaching of tier 2 and tier 3 vocabulary, examples and non-examples, and misconceptions planned for rather than repaired later. 

  • Checking for understanding — planned circulation routes, cold calling with no opt-out, mini whiteboards, live marking, the visualiser, and exit tickets that inform what gets retaught. 

Codifying practice this way does two things. It makes expectations clear — nobody has to guess what good looks like here. And it makes improvement precise: a teacher and their coach can work on one named technique rather than on something as vague as "questioning". 

The Playbook is also how our Inclusion by Design strategy reaches every lesson through the Universal Offer. Powerful Routines, 100% Participation and Adaptive Expertise are not an additional programme for some students; they are the Playbook applied consistently, which is exactly what the EEF's Guide to Inclusive Teaching (2026) identifies as the strongest foundation for students with additional needs. 

 

StepLab — the Playbook, in practice 

StepLab is our professional development platform, and we have built our own version of it around the Playbook. Every action step on the platform links explicitly to a Playbook page. 

That alignment matters. It means the technique you rehearse with your coach, the feedback you receive after a drop-in, the expectations set out in the Playbook and the school's improvement priorities are all describing the same thing. There is no gap between "what the school wants" and "what my coaching is focusing on". Each piece of feedback you receive is accompanied by CPD modules which build to a complete record of your development. 

 

Coaching with the Lead Practitioner Team 

Every teacher at Uxbridge High School has a coach. This is the centre of our professional development offer, and it is universal — coaching here is an entitlement, not a response to a concern. 

Finding your focus. Using drop-in evidence, you choose a professional development aim aligned to one of our StepLab goals.  

Your coach. You are then assigned to a small coaching group led by a Lead Practitioner who is an expert in that area — and who works with colleagues from across the school sharing the same aim, so the professional dialogue is rich and genuinely specific. 

Fortnightly drop-ins. Your coach visits your lessons roughly once a fortnight, names what is working, and agrees the next step with you. Curriculum Leaders and SLT line managers drop in too, through the same platform and against the same Playbook. 

Half-termly group sessions — and the same six steps, every time. Each half term you meet your coach and your group for a session that always follows the same shape, so you always know what is coming: 

  1. Recap — what you tried last time, what happened, what got in the way. 

  1. Study — a short module on the technique: what it is, why it works, what good looks like. 

  1. Watch — the technique in action, often in a UHS classroom. 

  1. Success criteria — breaking down exactly what the expert did. 

  1. Script — writing the actual words, cues and follow-ups you will use. 

  1. Rehearse — saying it out loud to a colleague until it feels natural. 

Step 6 is the one that changes what happens in your classroom, and it is why our sessions involve practice rather than presentation. 

Reflection. At the end of each cycle you review how your practice has developed and the difference it has made to student learning, then set your next aim. 

The Lead Practitioner Team also works within curriculum areas, supporting Curriculum Leaders with the monitoring of teaching and learning and delivering CPD tailored to departmental need. 

 

Beyond your coaching cycle 

Training and development afternoons. Thursday afternoons are protected time for whole-school bespoke training, departmental development and student progress reviews. 

Further study and external courses. We are proud to support colleagues pursuing NPQs and Masters-level qualifications, and we fund attendance at external subject and exam board training. Colleagues are encouraged to be proactive in identifying the development they want. 

 

Support for colleagues joining Uxbridge High School - Onboarding 

Starting a new school is challenging for all staff regardless of their position. At Uxbridge High School, we go that extra mile to ensure all staff experience a comprehensive induction and are intensively supported during their first term. We provide all staff with a full induction covering our playbook, key policies and procedures relevant for Uxbridge High School and ensure that all required support is in place. New staff will receive: 

  • A ‘Playbook Flying Start’ session designed to ensure alignment to our codified practices.  

  • Buddy system – where colleagues are matched to others in a similar role to support your start to the school. 

  • Principal Feedback Meeting – a meeting with the Principal to gain feedback on how things are going and what more we can do to be golden. 

 

Initial teacher training and Early Career Teachers 

Uxbridge High School has developed an extensive and comprehensive programme of Initial Teacher Training and we have a very successful history of working with PGCE students, Teach First participants and Early Career Teachers. The induction support programme is an individualised programme of support, monitoring and guidance which aims to develop participants into outstanding practitioners. We work incredibly hard to ensure that the statutory requirements are not only met, but exceeded, to ensure a positive and rewarding experience for all involved. This is built upon effective CPD, experienced subject and professional mentors and a drive to ensure that we make success happen. 

 

Initial Teacher Training (ITT) 

Uxbridge High School supports a number of student teachers studying for their Post Graduate Certificate in Education through their school experience. Currently we have partnerships with Brunel University, The Institute of Education and Kingston University taking students in a variety of subjects. Many of these institutions have recently been graded as outstanding by Ofsted and therefore we can be sure that we are working with the very best training providers. Student teachers are provided with a full support network to develop their professional practice. They take part in weekly CPD sessions which are specific to their training needs, have regular meetings with both a subject and professional mentor and regular developmental observation. 

 

The Early Career Framework at Uxbridge High School 

At Uxbridge High School, we are proud to partner with Teach West London in support of the Early Career Framework (ECF). The Early Career Framework provides a two-year package of high quality professional training for early career teachers and their mentors. This however is just the start, UHS goes beyond our statutory requirements in supporting ECTs as we believe that getting the two year induction right is pivotal to ensuring every teacher can develop into the very best teacher they can be. Having been through extensive external auditing with exceptional feedback we are incredibly proud of the start ECTs are able to make to their careers at UHS. 

We have a full ECT programme which aims to support early career teachers in their development as professionals. This consists of weekly CPD sessions, strong mentor partnerships and ongoing observations. The training programme is under continued evaluation in order to ensure that it has the desired impact for all participants. Uxbridge High School works closely with the local authority to ensure effective provision and support for all ECTs in them completing their two induction years. 

Our package of support aims to give all ECTs opportunities to: 

  • gain experience of working with young people in the classroom and general school situation; 

  • develop a range of teaching strategies; 

  • gain experience in planning, teaching and evaluating lessons and schemes of learning; 

  • develop skills and understanding in classroom management techniques; 

  • gain the confidence and skills to establish a purposeful learning environment; 

  • gain experience of school, department and pastoral organisation; and 

  • develop the ability to work positively with young people, colleagues and parents. 

As such, every ECT joining the Uxbridge High School team will benefit from: 

  • Two years of expert support, training and resources delivered by Teach West London; 

  • A blended, flexible package of both online and face-to-face training; 

  • Access to high quality resources developed by education experts; 

  • Careers coaching; 

  • A dedicated mentor trained by Teach West London with excellent subject knowledge; 

  • Free membership to the Chartered College of Teaching (CCT); 

  • A menu of school-specific training sessions to opt into; 

  • A place in a StepLab coaching group with a Lead Practitioner coach, from your first term; 

  • Termly progress review meetings to discuss strengths and training opportunities; 

  • 1:1 careers meetings with members of the Senior Leadership Team to discuss career pathways, interests and next steps; 

  • Pedagogical support from our team of Lead Practitioners. 

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