S is for Strategy (Not Just Activity)

If staff can’t articulate it, it isn’t working

A lot can be happening in a school without it adding up to strategy.

Meetings are full. Training is scheduled. Initiatives are underway. Updates are shared. From the outside, it can look busy and purposeful. But the real test of strategy isn’t how much activity is taking place — it’s whether the people doing the work understand what it’s all for.

If staff can’t explain the priorities, the direction, or the purpose behind decisions in simple terms, then what you have is activity, not strategy.

Under the new EIF, that distinction really does matter. Inspectors are listening closely to staff at all levels. Not for rehearsed answers, but for shared understanding. They want to hear whether the story leaders tell is the same story staff live day to day.

What strategy sounds like when it’s actually landing

When strategy is working, staff don’t need scripts. They can describe what matters right now, what they’re focusing on in their role, and how that connects to wider school priorities.

You hear it in ordinary conversations.Why something has been introduced.Why something else has been paused.Why time is being spent where it is.

That clarity doesn’t come from more communication. It comes from fewer, clearer priorities that are revisited, reinforced, and reflected on over time.

Where strategy is weak, staff often feel busy but uncertain. They know what they’re being asked to do, but not why. And when that happens, inspection conversations become harder than they need to be.

Five questions to check whether activity is serving strategy

Could most staff explain your current priorities without prompts?

If explanations vary widely, alignment may be slipping.

Do staff know why certain things matter more right now than others?

Strategy shows up in sequencing and focus, not just plans.

Can people link their role to the bigger picture?

When staff see where they fit, decisions feel more purposeful.

Are the same messages showing up in different spaces?

Classrooms, briefings, training, and line management should reinforce the same priorities.

Do reflections and conversations point back to the strategy?

If learning and feedback don’t connect to priorities, activity may be drifting.

These aren’t accountability checks. They’re coherence checks. And they tell you whether what’s happening is actually moving in the same direction.

Where targeted development supports strategy

Shared understanding doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built through consistent messages, relevant support, and opportunities for staff to connect learning back to real priorities.

This is where tailored approaches to professional development help strategy land. When CPD is aligned to what you’re focusing on — and selected to meet the needs of different roles — it becomes a way of reinforcing strategy rather than adding noise.

Flexible models like SkillsBridge CPD Select allow you to choose training that directly supports your current priorities, instead of working around a fixed programme that only partially fits. Used well, that kind of flexibility helps staff make sense of the bigger picture, not just complete training.

If you want a simple way to sense-check how clearly your strategy is coming through to staff, the Smart Steps Guide to the New EIF  can help structure that thinking.

And if it’s easier to talk it through, our Training Partnership Managers are always happy to explore how development can better support clarity and alignment in your setting.

Speak with a Training Partnership Manager