Background & Experience
I have a background of successful senior leadership and school improvement in highly deprived, inner-city secondary schools. This includes Rockwood Academy, formerly Park View School, which was at the heart of the 'Trojan Horse' scandal and judged 'inadequate' when I joined the senior team. My impact on teaching and learning, curriculum and outcomes led to the school being judged 'good', and being ranked 82nd in the country for progress.
I also contributed significantly to nationally recognised student outcomes as a senior leader at Heartlands Academy with a Progress 8 figure of 1.47 that led to the school being named the TES secondary and overall school of the year 2020.
Following this, I worked as a national adviser for E-ACT, one of the country’s largest multi-academy trusts, with a focus on supporting and empowering teachers and leaders. Working to build leadership capacity, I have a proven track record of school improvement leading to positive Ofsted inspection gradings of 'good' or better in every case.
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My work as a school improvement consultant includes overall school improvement work against the Ofsted framework and areas for improvement. Most recently, I have been responsible for devising and leading the approach to inclusion for a school with high EAL, reading & SEN/D needs, from full mapping of additional needs through to the development of a new inclusion department.
I came into teaching in order to make a difference for young people and improve their life chances through education. Now, I do this by supporting their teachers, leaders and schools, so that their students get the best provision possible.
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I have Level 7 post-graduate qualifications in Educational Leadership and Innovation as well as Counselling Skills, so my approach is solution-focused but empathetic.
To find out more about the services on offer to teachers, leaders and schools, have a look through my website for the full range.
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I have an Enhanced DBS (with update service subscription), so all services can be provided in person or remotely if that suits your needs better.
You can use the enquiry form to find out more about any services you're interested in, or if there’s anything else I can help you with.
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Becca Maxted
My Aim
Teachers, leaders and schools are under more pressure than they have ever been before
Staff are stretched to capacity, there are system-wide recruitment and retention issues, and the social and emotional needs of young people are ever-increasing.
So many schools struggle to find the leadership time and capacity to offer support.
My aim is to do that for them.
Why ongoing support for teachers and leaders is so important
73% of teachers and leaders find that their job doesn't leave them with enough time for their personal life
(DfE, 2024)
52% of teachers believe that their professional development is a priority for their school
(DfE, 2023)
The proportion of senior leaders experiencing consistent feelings of "burnout" has doubled in the last five years
(TES, 2023)
38% of teachers and leaders agree that their professional development improves their practice
(EEF, 2018)
Services
1
Support with NPQs
I am an experienced assessor for five of the DfE’s accredited NPQ providers, so I've marked literally thousands of submissions.
I’m also a moderator, giving me a detailed understanding of examples of “what a good one looks like”.
Many people need advice and guidance with the final summative assessment, which is the culmination of 12 to 18 months of your hard work.
1 in 20 people have to retake, and with only one chance to do so, make it count.​
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Support for Teachers
Having taught English (and for one year only, GCSE Maths) for many years, I've had plenty of practice at curriculum and lesson planning. My understanding of how children learn means I can review curriculums across all subjects.
I have extensive experience of developing teachers at every stage of their career through instructional coaching.
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Or there could be a specific, high-stakes event coming up: a job application, interview, performance management, or Ofsted.
3
Support for Leaders
I have years of senior leadership & school improvement experience in very challenging contexts, supporting many schools to achieve 'good' or better in Ofsted inspections.
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I also have extensive experience of departmental and whole-school self-evaluation & action planning, with a particular focus on teaching & learning, curriculum and inclusion.
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The coaching I offer direct to teachers can also be provided as a package for schools.
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Support with NPQs
Get the help you need to make the most of your National Professional Qualifications programme
Coaching
Need a bit more one-to-one mentoring as you progress through the course?
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Benefit from additional coaching that understands and complements the NPQ provision.
Learn more about specific framework sections or modules that haven’t quite clicked.
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Focus on how you can apply your learning to your own school and context so that it really makes a difference to you and your students every day.
Featured Service
Summative assessment retake support
Did your final summative assessment not quite meet the criteria for a pass?
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You only have one chance to retake, so give yourself the best opportunity to pass this time.
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Share your previous responses to get straightforward feedback on where you went wrong. You can also have any feedback you received translated into plain English and actionable steps.
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Feel empowered and gain the confidence to approach your retake knowing that this time you will pass.
Summative assessment support
Want to know more before you take your final summative assessment about how to get the best marks?
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Learn how to approach the case study in order to analyse it quickly and thoroughly.
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Understand the framework of your response, and examples of how you might structure it.
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Get an insight into the common mistakes that other participants have made, and how to avoid them.
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Learn the features of successful responses to each section, so that you know exactly how to apply your knowledge when it comes to your own case study.
Support for Teachers
Get the help you need to take charge of your own development
Coaching
Want some extra help with particular issues, classes or how to prioritise your workload?
Instructional coaching can help you to identify small, manageable, meaningful action steps to improve in any aspect of your work.
This type of coaching has one of the strongest evidence bases for teacher improvement and impact on student outcomes.
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Get one-to-one mentoring that focuses on and responds to your precise needs.
Curriculum intent - planning and review
Been tasked with planning part of your department’s secondary curriculum and struggling to know where to start?
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Get practical advice and guidance with sequencing to map out a detailed overall structure so you can begin with confidence.
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Written a curriculum plan (long, medium or short-term) and wondering if it’s good enough?
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Get it reviewed for sequencing or even National Curriculum compliance. You’ll receive detailed insights and step-by-step suggestions for improvement.
Specific lesson planning and review
Need to set yourself up to teach an ‘Outstanding’ lesson for an interview, performance management, Ofsted, or just a class you’re finding tricky?
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Talk through your ideas, shape them into a coherent lesson structure and use the best evidence-led research to think about the delivery.
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Have a follow-up review to check aspects such as cognitive load, working memory and student engagement.
Job applications
Featured Service
Looking to move up with an internal or external promotion, or need a change of scenery?
Take the time to discuss your skills and experience before shaping these into a definite structure for your application letter.
Have your application letter reviewed to ensure it meets the needs of the job description and person specification.
Book in a mock interview and discover which common questions leave your mind blank! Receive detailed feedback about your strengths, areas for development and knowledge gaps so you can work on them before the interview itself.
Featured Service
Support for Leaders
Get support that increases your leadership capacity
Mastering Difficult Conversations training
Featured Service
Improvement plans, self-evaluations and Pupil Premium plans
Many middle and senior leaders find it difficult to address issues and hold members of their teams to account. However, this is a crucial skill for consistency, and empowers staff.
As a leader, this didn’t come naturally to me and I had to very consciously learn the process. This means I’m very aware of what works and what doesn’t.
This 2-3 hour training session includes step-by-step advice and guidance for every stage of difficult conversations, so leaders can approach issues with confidence and get the desired outcome.
If you're just getting started, discover how to explore the evidence, choose what to implement and prepare your improvement plan, following the EEF’s implementation guidance.
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If you've written a school or department improvement plan or Pupil Premium plan, get it reviewed. This process ensures that the issues are evidence-based, addressed thoroughly, and you have the best possible chance of implementing it effectively.
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Alternatively, book a time to talk through your improvement plan needs in detail, and have it written for you, meaning you only have to review the content.
Website review - compliance
The DfE guidance is long and confusing, and website compliance is checked as part of Ofsted inspections, so have your website carefully evaluated against every criteria.
You will receive a detailed spreadsheet with a red/amber/green rating, notes, and clear recommendations, for every criteria.
The spreadsheet forms an action plan that can then be led by a member of your admin team, saving you valuable time and effort.
Coaching
Invest in a coaching package of weekly observations and, most importantly, thorough feedback sessions for staff.
Undertaken by an objective observer, with time in school totally dedicated to observations and feedback, this is a powerful tool for teacher improvement.
Instructional coaching principles are followed, leading to the greatest impact on teacher improvement and student outcomes.
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Receive robust weekly reports, detailing strengths and areas for development, so you can track teacher progress.
Subject review
Quality assure individual departments in a supportive and constructive way with a subject review.
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This process can be tailored to your precise needs and concerns, but typically includes aspects such as:
Curriculum intent
Quality of implementation
Assessment
Student progress
Leadership
Service Prices
£60/session
One-off session, 50-55 mins
£54/session
For session 3 onwards, get 10% off
£51/session
For session 6 onwards, get 15% off
£350/half day
For leadership services
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£500/full day
For leadership services
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