Supporting Colleagues to Improve Practice

A proactive, supportive approach to staff development is a hallmark of a provider with a strong culture of improvement. Addressing areas where a colleague's practice may need development is not a negative process - it is a vital leadership function that protects the quality of experience for learners and apprentices.

Moving away from a purely performance-management mindset towards one of professional support ensures that staff feel valued and invested in. This guide outlines a structured, supportive approach to helping colleagues improve their practice.

Identifying the Need for Support

Recognising that a colleague requires additional support should be a evidence-led process, drawing on multiple sources rather than a single event. The goal is to spot emerging issues before they significantly impact learners. Look for patterns in:

• Learner and apprentice outcomes: Are achievement rates for a specific cohort consistently lower than expected? Is progress from starting points slower than for comparable groups?
• First-hand evidence: What does joint activity, professional conversation, or sampling of learners' work reveal about the quality of curriculum delivery and assessment?
• Learner and apprentice voice: Is feedback, either formal or informal, highlighting issues with the clarity of instruction, the timeliness of feedback, or the level of support in a particular area?
• Colleague engagement: Does the staff member participate in team meetings and professional learning activities? Do they seem isolated or disengaged from wider provider initiatives?

Structuring the Initial Conversation

How you begin the conversation sets the tone for the entire process. The aim is support, not accusation. A well-planned conversation can build trust and lead to a collaborative solution.

• Prepare: Gather specific, objective examples of the issue and its impact. Avoid generalisations or relying on hearsay. Be ready to describe what you have observed and the effect it has on learners or the provision.
• Choose the right setting: The conversation must be private, confidential, and in a neutral space where you will not be interrupted.
• Be direct but supportive: Start by acknowledging the colleague's contributions. State the purpose of the meeting clearly and calmly, for example, "I'd like to talk about how we can best support the BTEC Level 3 group to improve their practical skills."
• Focus on impact: Use non-judgemental, observational language. For example, instead of "Your feedback is too slow," try "I've noticed learners' work from last month hasn't been marked yet. This means they are starting the next assignment without knowing how to improve."
• Listen: The most critical step is to listen to your colleague's perspective. There may be underlying reasons you are unaware of - from workload pressures and a lack of resources to personal circumstances or a need for specific training.

Co-creating a Development Plan

A plan for improvement that is imposed on a colleague is unlikely to succeed. The most effective development plans are co-created, giving the staff member ownership and agency in their own professional learning.

• Agree on the focus: Jointly define the one or two key areas that will have the biggest impact on learner experience.
• Define success: What will 'good' look like? Be specific. Will it be learners achieving higher grades, submitting better quality work, or providing more positive feedback? Agree on the measures.
• Identify the support needed: This is a negotiation. What will help the colleague achieve the goal? This could include:
  • A mentor or coach (other than the line manager).
  • Peer observation of a colleague with strong practice in that area.
  • Access to specific internal or external professional development.
  • Collaborative planning sessions with a subject expert.
• Set timelines: Agree on realistic timescales for action and schedule a date for a follow-up review. This creates momentum and shows a commitment to the process.

Documenting for Support, Not Sanction

Keeping a record of this process is important for clarity and accountability, but its primary purpose is to support development. The documentation should be a shared record of a professional conversation, not the first step in a disciplinary process.

• Keep it simple: The record should summarise the agreed area for development, the support measures to be put in place, the success criteria, and the date of the next review.
• Share the record: Both you and your colleague should have a copy of the agreed plan. It is a tool for you both to refer to and track progress against.
• Maintain confidentiality: This information is confidential to you, the colleague, and anyone directly involved in providing support (such as an assigned mentor).
• Be clear on next steps: While the focus is supportive, it should also be clear that professional improvement is a shared responsibility. The record provides a basis for further action if, over time, there is a lack of engagement or progress.

Where this fits in QualityHero

Effectively managing staff development and support is a core component of strong leadership and governance. This entire process, from identifying a need to reviewing progress, aligns with a continuous improvement cycle. Within QualityHero, confidential and specific actions can be logged against an individual's profile in a restricted area of the QIP module, ensuring the support plan is documented, tracked, and reviewed appropriately. Anonymised trend data from these activities can also inform strategic decisions about professional learning priorities in the Leadership Reports module.