Contextualising trust in school-to-school collaboration: reflections from Wales

Inter-school collaboration is widely promoted as a catalyst for system improvement. However, the collaborative turn is rarely accompanied by detailed consideration of the contextual conditions that support or inhibit joint work of mutual benefit. The purpose of this research is to enhance understanding of the dynamics of inter-school collaboration. An ecological approach to professional agency is used to explore the relational dynamics of collaboration within a mandated school network. The analysis draws on in-depth interviews with 23 school leaders who participated in the introduction of a cluster-based model of school improvement in Wales. The findings draw attention to the iterative nature of trust building as school leaders manage endemic tensions between institutional self-interest and collective responsibility. The study signals a need for further research on multi-relational accountabilities if moves towards collaborative governance are to be sustained.