The future of school business management

The introduction of the Certificate of School Business Management (CSBM) and the Diploma of School Business Management (DSBM) have helped to create a national benchmark for competencies and skills. Following on from their success, we have submitted advice to the secretary of state proposing further qualifications aimed at senior level business administration – the Advanced Diploma of School Business Management (ADSBM) and School Business Director (SBD) qualifications. Read NCSL´s advice on the future of school business management (within Primary Leadership strategy) and the Secretary of State´s response.

• Certificate of School Business Management – aimed at those who have worked in school administration or have recently been appointed school business managers. It is also suitable for new entrants to the education profession and those who aspire to join it.
• Diploma of School Business Management – primarily for the experienced school business manager. DSBM has been developed to enable SBMs to play a full part in their school’s senior management team.
• Advanced Diploma of School Business Management – designed for those working across small groups of schools such as federations of two or three small schools or a single large school. Partcipants are likely to have skills relating to strategic leadership of human resources, finance and facilities management.
• School Business Director – intended for those working in larger, more complex groups of schools like federations, trusts and other formal partnerships including cross-phase and multi-agency settings. SBDs would provide strategic business leadership and be a catalyst for new forms of leadership and governance.

The skills and competencies that distinguish these roles can be viewed on page 32 (slide 18/21) of the Training and Development Agency for Schools’ (TDA’s) guide Discover the benefits of school business managers (1Mb, 21 pages).

In order to test the concept of the two new qualifications, we have organised a number of demonstration projects.

Our overall aim is to produce an effective and progressive structure for professional development and a broader plan for recruiting, inducting, deploying, developing and accrediting SBMs. The primary objective of the programme is to provide SBMs with the skills and competencies that will enable them to:

• contribute valuably to the remodelling of the school workforce
• attract new and use existing resources productively
• contribute to the Every Child Matters agenda at a school/local level
• extend the range of their professional skills and enhance the capacity of school leadership teams
• lead the school business management discipline within their school which will enable other leaders and teachers to focus on curriculum development by freeing them from administrative tasks

The Bursar Development Programme supports the development of an effective market for business management in schools. By providing suitable training, both supply and demand for qualified SBMs will be increased. More specifically, the College has addressed the role and function of the SBM with the aim of offering a level of training that will develop professional capability. More information on the background to this work.