How it works
One person, then a team, then a neighbourhood
The Partnership is a journey over several years. Each stage builds on the last, and every cluster moves at its own pace.
Before Catalyst
Getting started
It usually begins with one head who catches the idea. Their first job is to find the leaders who serve the same children, and to make sure there’s time and energy to take the work on.
What you do
- Talk to the leaders of nearby schools and settings
- Share the idea with colleagues and governors
- Meet as a group at least once
What we do
- Calls to help you think it through
- Materials you can share with colleagues
- Taster sessions and conversations with other leaders
- Introductions to clusters already in the Partnership
What you’ll have
- A group of leaders who know each other
- A shared sense of what’s possible for your children
- A cluster ready to start Catalyst
Year one
Catalyst
Your cluster learns from neighbourhoods further along, maps the child’s journey in your place, and decides where you can make the biggest difference first.
What you do
- Conference days with clusters from across the country
- Work between days with the opportunity maps and audit tools
- Agree your priorities and the windows of opportunity in your place
What we do
- Run the conference days and adapt them as we learn
- Extra calls with your cluster where they’ll help
- Support you to choose the right Partnership modules
What you’ll have
- A cluster artefact: your findings, theory of change and priorities
- A plan for how your teams will take the work on
Year two onwards
Partnership
Cluster leaders keep learning together as a team, while colleagues across your schools and settings take on focused modules matched to your priorities.
What you do
- Leadership workshops for cluster leaders, including a residential
- Modules for colleagues, chosen from your Catalyst priorities
- Discovery days with Accelerator partners and Reach schools
What we do
- Help leaders hand the work on to their teams
- Run modules themed around moments in a child’s journey
- Bring the whole Partnership together each year
What you’ll have
- A leadership team that works across your neighbourhood
- A backbone function: the coordination, shared plans and routines that keep the work going
- Clear priorities at any point in time, and plans to deliver them
In your first Partnership year, every cluster does three things: post-Catalyst leadership, the key stage 2 to 3 transition module and strengthening relationships with families. After that, the Partnership continues for as long as it’s useful to you. See the modules
For some clusters
Accelerator
A small number of clusters go on to the Accelerator, a deeper partnership for neighbourhoods ready to build their cradle-to-career model further and faster, and to share what they learn with others.
The shape of the year
What a year looks like
The rhythm of each year, so you can plan around it. We confirm dates and venues with each cohort.
Your Catalyst year
From the first conversations to the move into Partnership.
Before you start
Spring and summer
- Conversations with us and taster sessions
- Building your cluster
- Registering for Catalyst
Autumn term
October to December
- Your first conference days
- Getting to know the opportunity maps and audit tools
- Work in your cluster between days
Spring term
January to Easter
- A further conference day
- Agreeing your priorities
- Choosing your Partnership modules
Summer term
Easter to July
- Completing your cluster artefact
- A leadership gathering to mark the move into Partnership
A Partnership year
The pattern from year two onwards.
Autumn term
September to December
- Leadership workshops for cluster leaders begin
- Modules start for colleagues
Spring term
January to Easter
- Leadership workshops continue
- Modules continue term by term
- Discovery days with Accelerator partners
Summer term
Easter to July
- A residential for cluster leaders
- A national gathering for the whole Partnership
- Planning for the year ahead
Most modules run online, with in-person time kept for the moments when being together matters most.
Ready to talk about your neighbourhood?
Whether you’re at the very start or already have a group in mind, a short call is the best first step.
Leonie Ratty leads the Cradle-to-Career Partnership. A first call is a conversation about your neighbourhood, not a sales pitch.