The Research Schools Network is a network of schools that support the use of evidence to improve teaching practice.

The Aspirer Research School is based at Ash Grove Academy, an outstanding primary school on the edge of the Peak District, serving an area of high social and economic challenges.

Central to the ethos of Ash Grove Academy is the desire to grow with and support others. The school was one of the first schools to become a multi-academy trust, after a request from the government in 2013, and The Aspire Educational Trust was established.

Designated as a National Teaching School in 2014 and the founding partner of the Aspirer Teaching Alliance, Ash Grove Academy maintains a drive and determination to improve the outcomes for all learners, reflecting a culture in which ​“it is no longer risky to take risks or quirky to try something new”. With evidence-based practice central to the school’s transformational improvement journey, it has sustained a deep engagement with research and research evidence for many years.

In 2015, the Aspire Educational Trust was designated one of the first 5 Research Schools in the country. This was a very high accolade and was testament to the quality of school improvement undertaken at Ash Grove Academy and the other schools in the Trust. Since being designated, we have worked with hundreds of schools to embed research informed practice to improve the life chances of thousands of children across the region and nationally. In particular, we have been heavily involved in research projects involving working with disadvantaged children to improve their life chances, working with schools around developing oracy strategies.  We are now in our tenth year of designation and still working hard to embed the principles of research informed practice.

As part of our work with the Education Endowment Foundation over the past ten years, we have contributed to many of the EEF guidance reports, including those related to improving the education of disadvantaged children, behaviour reports and Early Literacy guidance.  We use these guidance reports to disseminate good practice when undertaking school to school support through the National Leader Programme, SIP work and across the Trust, and the LA.

As part of our commitment, we have overseen the work of numerous Specialist Leads in Education, Evidence Leads in Education and Local Leads in Education. This has further enhanced our school to school support offer and ensured that hundreds of additional children have benefited from the expertise within the Teaching School, Research School, and across the trust. These deployments have all fed back to the Trust Executive Team who all ensure quality assurance of the work carried out.

The Aspirer Research School brings together the Aspire Educational Trust and the Aspirer Teaching Alliance as a resource for schools bridging education research and everyday classroom practice.

Find out more about our Research School and the Research Schools Network here.