Parents across the country are telling us that all school’s sound the same. Put your school to the test - if you removed the name from your website or prospectus, would you be offering the same, unexciting product as every other school? Good teachers, happy students, wide curriculum...In the current competitive climate, this is no longer enough.

Many school’s also make the mistake of confusing vision with values. Your vision is your future intended direction. It’s what your staff, parents, students and governors are buying into and it is the job of your marketing campaigns to tell this story.

 So here’s a reminder of what a Vision Statement should achieve:

• Create an ultimate goal which every significant decision and action you do going forward will ultimately be contributing towards.
• Provide a memorable and inspirational summary that describes your unique proposition and stands you apart from the crowd - one that will help motivate existing employees and families and attract new ones.
• Offer a succinct statement about what your organisation is trying to achieve. One that helps your audience better understand you and that goes beyond offering a good education.
• A focal point and direction for all stakeholders to look forward and drive towards.

With this in mind, we have a few simple rules that all good vision statements (for any type of organisation) should follow:

1. Be short and snappy - two sentences maximum. You can always expand on your vision through your communications and campaigns but you need a version that’s memorable and inspiring.
2. Generic vision statements that could apply to any school won’t cut it.
3. Be unique to your organisation and describe a specific outcome that only you can provide. GeKeep it simple enough for people both inside and outside your organisation to understand.
4. Be ambitious enough to be exciting but not so ambitious it seems unachievable. We recommend considering a timeframe of 3-5 years - where will your organisation be then?
5. Align with the values you want your stakeholders to exhibit.

Following these rules should give you a pretty good starting point for creating your own vision statement. The challenge then is to communicate this in everything you do and are so that it becomes your compelling offer.