BISS is proud to announce that not only has the school achieved COBIS Patron’s Accredited Member status but done so with flying colours. We are delighted that the hard work, dedication and professionalism of the BISS team have been recognised, as have our students, described by COBIS as happy, respectful, eloquent and collaborative.
The Journey
The Patron’s Accreditation process began last year with being assessed against the first 5 of a total of 9 standards. In November we welcomed a team of COBIS partners for an extensive week of assessment against the remaining 4 Patron’s Accreditation standards. The team spoke to staff, students and parents as they looked at teaching and learning, leadership, communications and our wider provision such as afterschool and enrichment activities.
Highlights of the COBIS Summary Report
There is much in the report to celebrate, not least:
Of COBIS’ many partner organisations and member schools, only a handful of them have Patron’s Accreditation Member status. We can now count ourselves one of those select few.
BISS received commendations in an impressive 8 of the 9 standards. One third of those were in the teaching and learning strand. To quote the report:
“The number of commendations awarded – 23 across a wide range of areas – demonstrates the current strength of the school, especially in Standard 7: Teaching and Learning. The school can only go from strength to strength.”
The school has recently undertaken extensive Vision and Values work in collaboration with our school community, the results of which will be launched later in the year. This work has been particularly highlighted in the conclusion of the report.
A Milestone
We would like to congratulate our entire community on reaching this important milestone as we embark on the next stage of our BISS journey as a COBIS Patron’s Accredited Member School. To quote the report again:
“The potential to achieve extraordinary things at BISS is clear and tantalising”
We can’t wait!
Read the full COBIS Summary Report here.
A Quick Guide to Reading the COBIS Summary Report
The COBIS Summary Report is divided into two sections; the first five Compliance standards 1-5 and the Patron’s Accreditation standards 7-10. Standard 6 is not listed as this only applies to boarding schools.
On page 2 of the report you will find a guide to the colour coding system, ranging from red to blue. It cannot be emphasised enough how high the COBIS standards are. To reach “green” where “evidence supports the standard” is a great achievement. To achieve “blue” in a standard indicates a commendation. This is not easy. The first five standards are simply marked with a colour to show the level at which the evidence supported the standard. In standards 7 to 10, it instead lists the commendations, however they would be coloured blue in all four cases.
