Bishop of Hereford’s Bluecoat School
Training School
Applying for
Threshold
Teachers’ Standards
P
1 - 10
Contents:
Background
The Process
Roles and Responsibilities
Timeline
Application Process
Evidence
UPS Progression
Post Threshold Standards
Request for Threshold Assessment Form
Actions and Forms for Headteacher
Please consult Training School weblink for CPD support materials
and other useful booklets www.bhbs.hereford.sch.uk
Threshold
(Round 10 - 2009/10)
From 1st September 2009 (Round 10), schools have used the outcomes of their last two performance
reviews to assess whether a teacher meets the post threshold standards. At this point, teachers will no
longer need to provide separate evidence in support of a threshold application. Despite the evidence
being collected and analysed by the reviewee and reviewer and recorded on the performance
management “planning & review statement”, it will remain the Headteacher who will assess the
individual’s threshold application.
It is extremely important that those teachers wishing to apply for threshold ensure that the
outcomes of their performance management reviews, in the 2 years preceding their application,
provide evidence to show how they meet the post threshold standards. (See Appendix 1)
The Process
Process 08/09
 Elective process
 Teacher completes application form
(M6)
 Teacher provides evidence detailed on
application form
 Headteacher assesses evidence
 Headteacher notifies governing body of
outcomes of the threshold applications
Process 09/10
 Elective process
 Teacher indicates a wish to be
assessed (from M4 onwards)
 Teacher applies for threshold
assessment (M6)
 Evidence from last 2 PM reviews is
used as the basis for assessment
 Headteacher assesses evidence
 Headteacher notifies governing body of
outcomes of the threshold applications
Roles and Responsibilities’
Reviewee
 Indicate their intention to be assessed for threshold (from M4 onwards)
 Be proactive in generating objectives that will show evidence of meeting all of the post threshold
standards
Reviewer
 Discuss with the reviewee their intention to apply for threshold assessment
 Support reviewee in developing objectives that enable the generation of relevant evidence that
demonstrates how they meet the post threshold standards
Headteacher or equivalent
 Under the PM regulations, the headteacher may moderate PM statements, this provides an
opportunity to support reviewers to ensure they are appropriate & will provide relevant evidence
against the post threshold standards
 Must be satisfied that the teacher is meeting core standards
 Must assess the threshold application (in the form of 2 PM review statements) to ensure that the
teacher has demonstrated how they meet all of the post threshold standards
 Notify Governors of decision and notify the teacher within 20 working days
Governing Body
 Receive notification from the headteacher on outcome of application/s
 Implement pay changes
 Undertake appeals process if applicable
Timeline
Find your current pay point in the first column (1 September 2009), read from left to right for action to be
taken each subsequent year.
1 September 2009
1 September 2010
1 September 2011
1 September 2012
M4
M5
M6
UPS1
PM statement must
reflect evidence needed
to inform threshold
PM statement must
reflect evidence needed
to support application to
cross the threshold
Eligible to apply for
threshold to take effect
on 01.09.2012. The
school will use two
performance
management reviews to
inform decision
If their application was
successful teacher
crosses threshold and
moves to UPS1
M5
M6
UPS1
UPS1
PM statement must
reflect evidence needed
to support application to
cross the threshold
Eligible to apply for
threshold to take effect
on 01.09.2011. The
school will use two
performance
management reviews to
inform decision
If their application was
successful teacher
crosses threshold and
moves to UPS1
No movement (2 years
must elapse before
eligible to progress)
however PM statement
should reflect the need
for pay progression
recommendation to
UPS2 in 2013
M6
UPS1
UPS1
UPS2
Eligible to apply for
threshold to take effect
on 01.09.2010. The
school will use two
performance
management reviews to
inform decision
If their application was
successful teacher
crosses threshold and
moves to UPS1
No movement (2 years
must elapse before
eligible to progress)
however PM statement
should reflect the need
for pay progression
recommendation to
UPS2 in 2012
If teacher has two
successful performance
management reviews
over past two years
should progress to
UPS2
UPS1
UPS1
UPS2
UPS2
If their application was
successful teacher
crosses threshold and
moves to UPS1
No movement (2 years
must elapse before
eligible to progress)
however PM statement
should reflect the need
for pay progression
recommendation to
UPS2 in 2011
If teacher has two
successful performance
management reviews
over past two years
should progress to
UPS2
No movement (2 years
must elapse before
eligible to progress)
however PM should
reflect need for pay
progression
recommendation UPS3
2013
From September 2009 onwards there will be a 14 month threshold application window in line with the
PM cycle (e.g. 1st September 2009 – 31st October 2010). Successful Applicants will be paid from
September 2010.
Application Process
 Teachers are eligible to apply on or after the September of their M6 year
 Teachers can apply within a 14 month application period (e.g. 1st Sept 2009 – 31st Oct 2010)
using either their M4 & M5 or M5 & M6 performance management review statements as evidence.
 Threshold application remains an elective process
 Applications must be in writing to the headteacher (further information will be found in the
Threshold Assessment Guidance)
Evidence
 PM planning & review statements must enable the generation of appropriate evidence in order to
demonstrate how the reviewee has met all of the post threshold standards
 Assessment against the post threshold standards will be based solely on the outcomes of the
last 2 PM reviews (exceptions apply i.e. maternity etc)
 It is not anticipated that schools will need to change the focus of objectives (e.g. to have an
objective which requires the teacher to meet all of the post threshold standards), but that the
performance criteria for each one will provide evidence to demonstrate how the teacher meets 1
or more of the standards through the achievement of that agreed objective.
Examples of objectives & performance criteria that enable the generation of relevant evidence to demonstrate how
the teacher meets the post threshold standards are currently being developed and will be shared with schools
shortly.
Upper Pay Scale (UPS) Progression
 Teachers who have passed through threshold are expected to continue to meet the core and
post threshold standards and to broaden and deepen their professional attributes, knowledge,
understanding and skills in that context
 To achieve progression on the upper pay scale, the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions
Document (STPCD) requires that the achievements of post threshold teachers and their
contribution to school(s) should have been substantial and sustained.
 Teachers who have 2 successful and successive PM reviews, and meet the criteria above, will
automatically move up the upper pay scale.
The Bishop of Hereford’s Bluecoat School
Request for Threshold Assessment
2009/10 – Round 10
This form should be handled in confidence at all times
NB. This format should ONLY be used by teachers in England who have been subject to the 2006
Performance Management (PM) Regulations for the 2 year period preceding the date of their
request for assessment.

Please read the ‘Threshold Assessment 2009/10, Round 10: Guidance’ before completing this
form. See the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) website at
www.teachernet.gov.uk/threshold
Eligibility criteria

In order to be assessed you will need to:
–
–
–
hold Qualified Teacher Status on the date of your request; and
be employed as a teacher by the LA or the governing body of a LA Maintained School; and
be on the top point of the classroom pay scale – M6 – at the time of your request.

Post-threshold assessment applies in schools and in all other settings where teachers are
statutorily employed under the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD). In
this document the term ’school’ should be taken as including all such settings. Teachers not
working in schools should substitute ‘service manager’ or ‘line manager wherever ‘headteacher’
is used.

All those wishing to become post threshold teachers will need to meet the standards specified in
Annex 1.

Please enclose copies of the PM Review statements that relate to the 2 years immediately prior
to the date on which you submit your request. You may NOT include any other evidence.

Pass the request form to your headteacher between 1September 2009 but no later than
31 October 2010
The Bishop of Hereford’s Bluecoat School
Threshold Application
Part 1: Teacher Details
To be completed by the teacher
Personal details
Surname
First name(s)
Previous surname (if applicable)
DCSF or Welsh Office teacher reference number
(this must be seven digits including zeros)
/
Please give details if you are submitting a PM statement from another school
Name and address of school/LA
Date(s) of
employment
Name of headteacher/
service manager
Declaration by teacher
I confirm that at the date of this request I meet the eligibility criteria and I submit performance
management reviews covering the two year period prior to this request for assessment against the
post threshold standards in Round _____.
Signed
Date
Part 2: Actions for the Headteacher

Check that the teacher is eligible to be assessed.

Before assessing whether the teacher meets the post-threshold standards you must first be
satisfied, on the basis of the evidence contained in the performance reviews, that the teacher
meets the core standards. If the core standards are not met, you must not proceed with the postthreshold assessment, and must write to the teacher setting out the rationale for the judgement.
(Please refer to the ‘Threshold Assessment, Guidance’)

If the core standards are met you then go on to assess whether the teacher meets the postthreshold standards.

Make an overall judgement on whether the post-threshold standards are met/not yet met

Complete the headteacher’s statement (see page 4).

Sign, date and copy the form.

Promptly inform the governing body of this decision, or the LA in the case of an unattached
teacher, and refer to the ‘Threshold Assessment, Guidance’ for information about informing the
teacher, and notifying the appropriate body that deals with payroll matters for the school.

Inform the teacher of the outcome within 20 working days of informing the governing body/LA
service of this decision.

Notify the teacher in writing of the outcome of the post-threshold assessment where the standards
have not yet been met and a copy of page 4 supplied for their information.

Where the standards have been met, provide the teacher with oral feedback.
The Bishop of Hereford’s Bluecoat School
Notification of Standards Not Met
Please read the ‘Threshold Assessment Guidance: Guidance’ before assessing and completing the
headteacher sections of this form. This may be downloaded from the following site:
www.teachernet.gov.uk/threshold
To be completed by headteacher where either the core standard or the post-threshold
standards are not met
Name of teacher
School/LA service
Please record your overall judgements below. [please delete as appropriate]
Core standards: met/not met:
To be successful, the teacher must meet the core standards as well as each of the post-threshold
standards. Assessment against post threshold standards may not proceed where the teacher does
not meet core standards. You should provide a detailed explanation below why the standards have
not been met.
Post-threshold Standards: met/not yet met
Please provide a detailed explanation why, in your judgement, the core standards have not been
met or all the post threshold standards have not yet been met throughout the relevant period.
Please indicate any further areas of professional development for the teacher.
Signature
Please paste in electronic/scanned signature above if
submitting the application form electronically.
Print name
School name
Date
NB This page should be passed back to the teacher where either core or post-threshold standards
have not yet been met.
Post-Threshold Standards
(Appendix 1)
Professional Attributes
Frameworks
P1
Contribute significantly, where appropriate, to implementing workplace policies and practice
and to promoting collective responsibility for their implementation.
Professional Knowledge and Understanding
Teaching and learning
P2
Have an extensive knowledge and understanding of how to use and adapt a range of
teaching, learning and behaviour management strategies, including how to personalise
learning to provide opportunities for all learners to achieve their potential.
Assessment and monitoring
P3
Have an extensive knowledge and well-informed understanding of the assessment
requirements and arrangements for the subjects/curriculum areas they teach, including those
related to public examinations and qualifications.
P4
Have up-to-date knowledge and understanding of the different types of qualifications and
specifications and their suitability for meeting learners’ needs.
Subjects and Curriculum
P5
Have a more developed knowledge and understanding of their subjects/curriculum areas and
related pedagogy including how learning progresses within them.
Health and well-being
P6
Have sufficient depth of knowledge and experience to be able to give advice on the
development and well-being of children and young people.
Professional Skills
Planning
P7
Be flexible, creative and adept at designing learning sequences within lessons and across
lessons that are effective and consistently well-matched to learning objectives and the needs
of learners and which integrate recent developments, including those relating to
subject/curriculum knowledge.
Teaching
P8
Have teaching skills which lead to learners achieving well relative to their prior attainment,
making progress as good as, or better than, similar learners nationally.
Team working and collaboration
P9
Promote collaboration and work effectively as a team member.
P10 Contribute to the professional development of colleagues through coaching and mentoring,
demonstrating effective practice, and providing advice and feedback.
The Bishop of Hereford’s Bluecoat School
Acknowledgement of Request for Post-Threshold
Assessment Round ____
Date
Dear
I acknowledge receipt of your request for assessment against the post-threshold standards and
confirm that I have received all the associated documents to enable the process to be
completed.
You will be informed about the outcome of the assessment and where required provided with
written feedback.
Signed
Headteacher