AI, internal AP and belonging.
When you’re just starting out it, it can be tricky to know how you’re doing. Especially, when there aren’t many case studies available.
This week’s highlights from the We Are In Beta Community will help you reflect on your own practice in three areas that your fellow members have been discussing more than any others this year: AI, internal AP and belonging.
We - schools - Are In Beta - always learning (when we have case studies to guide us)
This week
🤖 AI stats to help you benchmark your progress.
👨🏫 Internal AP, belonging and more - case studies to guide you.
💼 Jobs with members of the We Are In Beta Community.
🤖 AI stats to help you benchmark your progress
At the end of January the DfE released its policy paper: ‘Generative artificial intelligence (AI) in education’, which had its pros and its cons.
Pros: it painted an optimistic picture of the future, outlined the biggest risks and pointed readers towards key statutory guidance around data protection, intellectual property and safeguarding.
Cons: it didn’t provide any examples of tools, uses cases or how schools are mitigating the risks.
This gap was echoed by the questions members wanted to ask about others’ AI practice in the survey we’ve been running.
That’s why I invited you share your experiences here.
Since then we been analysing responses to make learning how other schools are approaching AI as easy as possible.
Here are the stats we pulled form the initial analysis of the modest sample of responses:
Use cases and tools
31 different use cases - many you’d expect as well as plenty you wouldn’t (but when you think about them, they make complete sense and offer massive scope for impact).
25 different tools - the usual suspects are in there alongside some lesser known ones I had not heard of. Members provided quick evaluations about their impact to help you decide which you should use.
AI tools and use restrictions
The headline here is that schools are approaching AI cautiously. More so for students than they are for staff.
53% of schools have some form of restrictions on AI tools
12% moderate their restrictions at IT/Network level (they block access to start with and give access when it’s requested)
6% have a blanket ban on staff AI tool use.
18% have a blanket ban on student AI use.
AI training
Schools are just getting going here. They are yet to start rolling out comprehensive programmes for all staff. More dabbling with small groups on specific use cases and running small pilots.
29% have not given any staff any training yet
45% have given teachers some form of training - teachers have been the group schools have prioritised, followed by leaders and admin staff
15% have begun teaching / training students in AI use
AI risk mitigation
Schools are currently more equipped to share strategies around safeguarding and data protection than they are for checking accuracy of AI and following intellectual property guidelines.
65% shared the strategies they are currently using to safeguard students when using AI tools
65% shared the strategies they are currently using to ensure staff follow data protection guidelines
47% shared strategies they are currently using to ensure staff check the accuracy of generative AI output
24% shared the strategies they are currently using to ensure staff follow intellectual property guidelines
If you’re interested to learn more about how other school are approaching AI (and access a private group sharing ideas), the full data set is well worth a read.
If you’ve not taken part yet, contribute to it here to get access to others’ strategies and resources.
If you have taken part you’ve been sent a copy of the results (along with the password to access them) - huge thanks for being so generous.
📆 Internal AP, belonging and more - Pastoral Champions Week 2025 - line up revealed
The two areas of pastoral leadership your fellow members have been discussing more than any others this year are
setting up internal APs and
creating a sense of belonging among students.
So we’ve arranged for some excellent folks to share how they’ve done it in their contexts at Pastoral Champions Week 2025.
We also have colleagues sharing their leadership of
Attendance
Behaviour
Parent engagement
Pastoral systems
Relational practice
Safeguarding
SEND
If you’ve not registered yet, time’s running out for you learn from their wisdom.
It’s free to join, if you register before 23rd March.
After that it will only be available to paying members and speakers.
Keep an eye out for the full interactive programme coming soon: objectives, resources, speaker social media details etc.
💼 Jobs with We Are In Beta community members.
If you want to get your vacancies seen by the 23k school leaders and teachers who receive We Are In Beta newsletters across curriculum, pastoral and more, let us know here and we’ll send more info.
System Leadership
CEO - Ethos Academy Trust (Kirklees) - apply here.
COO - Ethos Academy Trust (Kirklees) - apply here.
Head of Finance - Sherborne Are Schools’ Trust (Dorset) - apply here.
Finance Director -Harris Federation (London) - apply here.
Head of Data and Analytics - Ethos Academy Trust (Kirklees) - apply here.
SCITT Programme Lead TKAT (Kent)- apply here.
Primary Pedagogy Lead - Astrea Academy Trust - (South Yorks, Cambridgeshire) - apply here.
Trust Director of English -Hope Sentamu Learning Trust (North Yorkshire) - apply here.
Trust Lead Spanish - Future Academies (Westminster) - apply here.
Languages Consultant - Harris Federation (London) - apply here.
Senior Leadership
Principal - Mossbourne Port Side Academy (Mossbourne Federation) (Thurrock) - apply here.
Assistant Principal - Colchester Academy (Penrose Academy Trust) (Essex) - apply here.
Assistant Headteacher - Prince Albert High School (Prince Albert Community Trust) (Birmingham) - apply here.
Deputy SENDCo - Gloucester Academy (Greenshaw Learning Trust) (Gloucestershire) - apply here.
Middle Leadership
Second in Humanities - The Brakenhale School (Greenshaw Learning Trust)(Bracknell Forest) - apply here.
Lead Practitioner of Maths - Gloucester Academy (Greenshaw Learning Trust) (Gloucestershire) - apply here.
Key Stage 4 Mathematics Coordinator - Greenshaw High School (Greenshaw Learning Trust) (Sutton) - apply here.
Subject Team Leader Media Studies - Harris Academy Ockendon (Harris Federation (Thurrock) - apply here.
Lead Practitioner of Music - Harris Academy Ockendon (Harris Federation (Thurrock) - apply here.
Head of PE - The Brakenhale School (Greenshaw Learning Trust) (Bracknell Forest) - apply here.
Key Stage 3 Religious Studies - Coordinator Greenshaw High School (Greenshaw Learning Trust) (Sutton) - apply here.
Lead Practitioner Science - The Brakenhale School (Greenshaw Learning Trust) (Bracknell Forest) - apply here.
Key Stage 3 Science Coordinator - Greenshaw High School (Greenshaw Learning Trust) (Sutton) - apply here.
Director of Social and Health Science - Stoke Damerel Community College (Greenshaw Learning Trust) (Plymouth) - apply here.
Head of Technology (Food & D&T) - Norton College -Arete Learning Trust (North Yorkshire) - apply here.
Alternative Provision Manager - Rayner Stephens High School (Stamford Park Trust) (Tameside) - apply here.
Head of House- Rayner Stephens High School (Stamford Park Trust) (Tameside) - apply here.
Teaching
Art - Uxbridge High School (Hillingdon) - apply here.
Business & Economics - Uxbridge High School (Hillingdon) - apply here.
DT (Food & DT)- Norton College (Arete Learning Trust) (North Yorkshire) - apply here.
History - Colchester Academy (Penrose Academy Trust) (Essex) - apply here.
Science - Uxbridge High School (Hillingdon) - apply here.
Support roles
Talent Acquisition Specialist - Futura Learning Partnership (Bath and North East Somerset)- apply here.
HR Admin - Challney High School for Girls (Chiltern Learning Trust) Luton - apply here.
Data Officer -Consortium Academy Trust (East Riding of Yorkshire) - apply here.
Data Manager - Meridian Trust (Cambridgeshire) - apply here.
On a personal note
When I first started building We Are In Beta I was apprehensive to share anything publicly.
What if nobody engaged with us? What if my friends and colleagues laughed at me? What it failed? What if someone stole my idea?
These were just some of doubts that ran through my mind.
But what I have learned is:
if you don’t tell anyone, no one will know about it and you will never get any feedback.
when you do tell people about what maters to you, it attracts people who care about it - those who don’t care are too busy thinking about their own problems to pay attention to what you are doing anyway.
the more you give away, the more you get back in return .
ideas are cheap and execution and implementation are not.
That’s why I am feeling grateful and proud sending this today.
Grateful to everyone who’s shared their approaches in the AI survey so far and everyone who’s contributed sessions to Pastoral Champions Week.
Proud that we are able to help those of you are different stages of your journeys see how others getting to make your life easier when you get to their stage.
Thanks for reading.
@NiallAlcock and the We Are In Beta team
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