Strategic Planning 2024/2025

For over 136 years, The Friends’ School has adapted and innovated to our young people’s changing needs and created opportunities to provide the best learning environment possible.  

Between October 2024 to May 2025, we are embarking on an engagement and planning process to develop a new Strategic Plan for the School. The objective of this Strategic Plan is to establish clear and shared goals that are understood and embraced by all members of our School community. Our plan will be developed through a collaborative process of Appreciative Inquiry that allows us to reflect on the School’s past and current strengths and build upon them to benefit our students, staff and families.  Together, we will explore the opportunities and aspirations that we collectively identify. 

With Quaker values at the heart of what we do, our process will involve reflection, discernment and collaboration. We will be seeking participation and engagement from everyone in our school community.  Your unique insights and knowledge will ensure Friends’ continues to be a leading values-driven school that empowers young people to develop the best in themselves and each other.

What is 'Appreciative Inquiry'?

Appreciative Inquiry is a perspective and focus on an organisation that invites us to see the entity through an appreciative or valuing eye. The process is a collaborative, strengths-based approach to effectiveness, improvement and innovation in organisations. Appreciative Inquiry is a way to engage groups of people in self-determined change. It focuses on strengths and what’s working and enables people to co-design their future.

The SOAR Framework and Process

The School is using the SOAR framework to support the strategic planning process.  This planning and engagement supports the Appreciative Enquiry principles and helps us understand our strengths, opportunities, aspirations and results. It combines data about Friends’ current position with people’s ideas and dreams about its future, so we can build renewed goals to work toward.

Process Timeline

October 2024 – Looking at the past and the present

  • Gather input from staff, students, alumni, parents and community members
  • Discussion and input provided through eight in-person or online workshops

November 2024 – Exploring and Identifying

  • Sharing back key themes for feedback and refinement
  • Share development and feedback with the Board of Governors

January 2025 – Look at the future

  • Conduct Staff Day provocations and share external insights
  • Identifying opportunities
  • Generating aspirations

May 2025 – Shaping our Plan

  • Sharing back the key themes, opportunities and aspirations for refinement
  • Developing an Operational Plan to support implementation and accountability

Our Strengths, Opportunities and Aspirations

From the discussion at workshops and subsequent feedback from community members, below are some key themes that were provided:

Strengths

What makes The Friends’ School unique?

  • Quaker values and philosophy
  • Reflection and silence
  • Strong sense of community and service 
  • Values-based learning and education 
  • Global perspective and inquiry
  • Leading academic institution and global perspectives

What does our School need to protect and nurture?

  • Emphasis on Quaker values and Purpose and Concerns
  • Alignment of practises with beliefs and values
  • Sense of community and belonging 
  • Supportive and responsive culture
  • Respect for individual growth
  • Dedication and effort of staff

Most important achievements in the past few years?

  • International Baccalaureate Programme – impact of students and alignment with the School’s values
  • Learning continuity through COVID
  • Building and infrastructure initiatives 
  • Financial stability
  • Academic achievements
  • Middle and Senior School transition

What do we provide that is highly valued by our learners and school community?

  • Strong support systems 
  • Learning opportunities and a supportive learning environment 
  • A close-knit community and positive relationships
  • Internationally recognised education
  • Emphasis on student wellbeing
  • Fostering a sense of hope and community

Opportunities

Community members were also asked to discuss and share insights on the following questions:

What opportunities (or challenges reframed) are presented by current external forces and trends?

  • Challenges such as social media, AI, economic stress and teacher workloads were noted. Broader societal issues like toxic masculinity and the psychological needs of youth were also discussed.

Reflecting on our strengths and opportunities, what is most important to us and where should we focus our energy in the future?

  • Emphasis on fostering social action, hope for the future and student empowerment is central. Ensuring alignment with the Purpose and Concerns philosophy and maintaining a values-driven approach are seen as critical.

Next Steps

As outlined in the planning timeline above the next phase includes introducing some provocations and insights from external people at the January Staff Day.  This will include insights and trends on:

  • Wellbeing and organisational structure;
  • Sustainability and regenerative futures; and
  • Education capabilities and future measures of success

We look forward to learning and looking at some key and important external influences that will assist our planning process.

Want to know more about the Strategic Planning process? Please contact Director of Community Engagement Bill Avery if you have a question or would like to know more about the School’s Strategic Planning 2024/2025.