The Secondary Strategic Goal sets out an ambition for 65% of secondary schools to have engaged with teaching for mastery programmes by 2025 in order to improve outcomes for all young people. The Secondary Mastery Specialists are key agents in supporting development and sustained change in schools. This programme gives teachers an opportunity to develop a range of effective classroom practices as well as developing their skills in leading and managing change.

This provision forms part of an overall Teaching for Mastery Programme designed to develop secondary maths departments that are well-led, high-performing, and provide high quality professional development through collaborative working.

This is a (minimum) three-year programme involving a mixture of central online and face-to-face sessions, hub support, and in-school development activities.

• In Year One the emphasis is on developing specialists’ own understanding of teaching for mastery and their own classroom practice.

• In Year Two, the programme will support specialists to work within their own department to develop teaching for mastery practices, including beginning to develop department-wide systems and structures. As an integral part of their development, Secondary Mastery Specialists will be enrolled on the NCETM PD Lead Programme to support them in leading their departmental work, as well as preparing them to work effectively with other schools.



• In Year Three and beyond, specialists will work with teachers from other schools as a Work Group Lead. The emphasis is on supporting and enabling key teachers in each school to lead the developments within their own departments.

Year 1

Participating schools will nominate a lead teacher to train as a Mastery Specialist and follow a two- year development programme beginning in the autumn term of 2025. During the first year, the emphasis will be on the lead teacher developing their knowledge, understanding and skills of teaching for mastery, and the work will amount to 7.5 days’ worth of release time which will be funded per day. It will include the following activities and tasks: • 5.5 days attending central events (dates and locations to be confirmed, some will be faceto-face and some online). This also includes time to prepare for the central events by, for example, reading a set article or watching a shared classroom video. • 2 days personal development which might include teachers: o working on their own classroom knowledge and practice o developing lessons and resources in collaboration with peers o visiting classrooms (both primary and secondary) to see teaching for mastery in action. Alongside this, Specialists will receive three half-days of bespoke support from their hub’s secondary team. The headteacher, or their representative from the school’s senior leadership team, will also be required to attend for a half-day alongside the lead teacher at the online launch event. Year 2 

Year 2

In the academic year 2026/27, the participants will continue to develop their own classroom practices, but with a significant emphasis on developing the knowledge, skills and understanding of all members of their department. Alongside this they will explore, develop and implement department-wide approaches, structures and systems which support teaching for mastery. They will participate in sessions leading to accreditation as a Professional Development Lead.

This work will amount to 7.5 days funded per day, and will include the following activities and tasks:

• 5.5 days attending central events (dates and locations to be confirmed). This also includes time to prepare for the central events by, for example, reading a set article or watching a shared classroom video.

• 2 days development including: o working within their own department to enhance teachers’ knowledge and classroom practice o developing resources and systems in collaboration with departmental colleagues o visiting classrooms (both primary and secondary) to see teaching for mastery in action o Completing the Professional Development Lead accreditation document. Alongside this, Specialists will receive three half-days of bespoke support from their hub’s secondary team.

Year three and beyond

In the academic year 2027/28, the Mastery Specialist and a school colleague will join a Teaching for Mastery Work Group, in order to continue to develop aspects of teaching for mastery across the department. In future years, where appropriate and convenient for their school, Secondary Mastery Specialists will be supported to lead provision with other schools. At this point, the Mastery Specialist will continue to be funded and supported in their development by the hub through the local leaders of mathematics education community, as well as through the national Secondary Mastery programme.

Maths teachers with QTS in state-funded secondary schools who have substantial teaching experience (at least 2 years) are eligible to apply to become a Secondary Mastery Specialist. Teachers should have a strong desire to develop both their own classroom practice and their skills in leading professional development with others.

All Maths Hubs will have an agreed allocation within this cohort and will select the most appropriate candidate(s) to participate. Participants in this programme will form Cohort 9 of the Secondary Mastery Specialist Programme. Requirements for both the school and the individual are laid out in the information document (on the NCETM website) and include a requirement that the headteacher attends a part of the autumn term launch event alongside the specialist.

Year One of the programme is structured as follows with 15 days comprising 5 days (equivalent) attending central events and 10 days in-school and in-hub development, including:

• developing approaches in own classroom
• developing lessons and resources in collaboration with Cohort 9 peers
• visiting classrooms (primary and secondary) to see teaching for mastery in action
• meeting with the hub’s Secondary Assistant Maths Hub Lead and wider team
• participating in other hub events related to teaching for mastery.