Audrey Buchanan has recently been appointed as the new Northern Alliance Lead Officer for the Primary BGE Curriculum. Now hoping to make a real difference to colleagues across the eight local authorities which make up our regional improvement collaborative, Audrey has come from a previous dual head teacher role for two schools on the Black Isle in the Highlands.

She explained: “I have worked in some of the smallest and largest schools in the Highlands, from some of the most deprived to the most affluent. Through collaborative working I have led moderation across our associated school group (ASG), updated and refreshed our school curriculum in line with the Refreshed Narrative, developed literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing – which is vital at this time.

“These are challenging times and we need each other more than ever. I have been greatly impressed by the lengths Local Authorities and school communities have gone to create virtual schools, online learning and continue a sense of community, safety and belonging for their families. I know you are incredibly busy but would love to connect and hear what your priorities are, where we could collaborate and bring people together so we can support and save us all some time, and improve outcomes for all of our children and young people.”

If you are keen to collaborate with Audrey and others through a positive and like-minded network, please start by accessing a new Teams site dedicated to Primary colleagues: Primary School Planning Support Group

To set this up you will need to:
1. Select how to access the Team
a. This can be done via the online web app or desktop app. Both are appropriate.
2. Login using your Glow email
a. You will need to ensure that the @glow.sch.uk suffix is attached at the end
3. Once you access the page, you should send a request to join, where it can then be approved by Audrey.

It is hoped that by working together across the Northern Alliance we can make a difference. Please join in and get started now. If you have any barriers to accessing the group online or would like to ask Audrey any questions first, please email Audrey.Buchanan@highland.gov.uk