Schools will not be able to continue to improve unless they move away from an over-concentration on the short-term and focus on the strategic nature of planning and development. The more targets, the less the effects - what we need is strategy and sustainability. This book links school improvement planning and strategic development for leadership enhancement as well as for management accountability.

Short-term planning, in the form of target-setting plans aimed at improving standards, has gained increasing importance. While the book agrees that this is necessary, it puts forward the view that short-term planning is not sufficient for the longer-term development of the school. Sustainability and strategic development are of critical importance and for these the authors believe that a more holistic approach to planning is necessary. To that end, this book links short and longer-term planning in a framework, which supports the strategic development of the school.

The authors are national experts in the field and in preparing this text have worked extensively with headteachers, deputy headteachers, governors and those participating in NPQH and masters programmes in educational leadership and management.

Brent Davies is Professor at the University of Hull. Linda Ellison is Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Research and School Development, University of Nottingham.

1. Introduction 2. Building a Futures Perspective 3. Strategy - Strategic Intent and Strategic Planning 4. Strategic analysis - Gathering and Interpreting the Information 5. Short-term action planning - Establishing a Framework 6. Primary Case study 7. Secondary Case study 8. LEA, Case study, Appendix: Proforma