Leading a Thriving Drama Department

Service Description

This CPD course is for drama teachers with leadership responsibility who are passionate about building strong, coherent, and successful drama departments in a challenging educational landscape. It is designed for Heads of Drama, subject leads, sole drama teachers, and experienced practitioners with responsibility for curriculum, assessment, and departmental direction. Feeling the pressure of leading drama in a system where exam results, curriculum time, and the arts are increasingly under scrutiny? This course is designed to support you to lead with clarity, confidence, and purpose. You will: • Understand the Current Landscape: Gain a clear understanding of the national and school-level pressures facing drama education, including falling entries, accountability demands, and where drama fits as schools move towards 2026. • Build a Thriving Department: Develop a strong sense of what makes a successful drama department beyond individual lessons, with a focus on consistency, shared vision, and sustainable practice across KS3–KS5. • Strengthen Curriculum Foundations: Explore how to design purposeful KS3 provision that builds skills, supports progression, and underpins success at GCSE and A level, without overload or unnecessary complexity. • Align Curriculum and Co-curricular Drama: Learn how to make confident, defensible decisions around practitioners and co-curricular provision so that enrichment supports academic success, student recruitment, and staff wellbeing. • Lead with Confidence and Clarity: Examine different leadership approaches, including effective delegation and staff support, and leave with practical frameworks and resources to support your department and reduce leadership load. You will leave feeling confident in the decisions you are making, equipped with clear structures and resources, and ready to lead a drama department that is coherent, visible, and thriving.