The school planning and reporting approach gives NSW public schools greater authority to meet the needs of their communities and improve the outcomes for all students.

It is highly strategic, focusing on key areas for improvement determined by the school in consultation with its community. This is to ensure a profound difference to the ongoing growth and development of the school.

The School Planning and Reporting Online (SPaRO) software platform is an online tool for schools to plan, self-assess and report, and is available from the staff portal.

School Excellence cycle

See Resources for information on SPaRO, the Strategic Improvement Plan (SIP) and the 4 year School Excellence cycle.

Principals are responsible for publishing their Strategic Improvement Plan (SIP) on the school's website by the end of Term 1 at the commencement of a planning cycle. During the cycle, any updates to the plan will be published annually by the end of Term 1 each year.

Every school uses SPaRO to undertake and complete school planning, self-assessment, annual reflecting and reporting, and external validation. The SPaRO software provides an online integrated process for schools to efficiently plan, self-assess and report.