Improvement through collaboration and competition - can the government have it both ways?

This paper briefly explores the experience of three schools working together as part of a Leading Edge Partnership with a sharp focus on the factors that appeared to help and hinder their collaborative working. The paper draws on an evaluation of the first year of the partnership undertaken by colleagues at the University of Leicester, in which interviews were conducted with a number of key participants in each school. The research highlighted some significant benefits and difficulties for all the partner schools and spotlights the extent to which policies based on both collaboration and competition can cohabit.