There is a great deal to celebrate across England’s education system. Schools and trusts continue to deliver strong outcomes for pupils, often in the face of significant and growing pressures. But alongside that success, something else has become increasingly clear: how well organisations operate is becoming just as important as what they deliver. We are entering a new phase for the sector, one defined not just by educational excellence, but by operational excellence. Over the past decade, the focus has rightly been on curriculum, teaching and leadership. These remain fundamental. But as the system matures, grows and becomes more complex, the challenge is no longer just about improving performance. It is about sustaining and scaling it. Schools and trusts are navigating a demanding landscape: financial pressures, workforce challenges, shifting pupil demographics and rising expectations. Many are doing so successfully. But the reality is that approaches to key operational areas such as procurement, workforce deployment, data use and financial planning can vary significantly, even between otherwise similar organisations. This variability matters. Strong teaching and leadership can only go so far if they are not supported by equally strong systems, processes and operational decision-making. Operational excellence enables educational excellence. Unlocking capacity This is not about creating additional layers of bureaucracy or introducing new burdens. Quite the opposite. It is about unlocking capacity and ensuring that time, resource and effort are used in the most effective way possible, so leaders and teachers can focus on what matters most: delivering for pupils. In practice, this means moving from strong but often variable practice to something more consistent, structured and scalable across the system. It also means recognising that operational effectiveness is not a secondary consideration. It is a core part of organisational success, directly linked to outcomes, sustainability and long-term impact. The next phase of system development will depend on this shift. That is why we are evolving the Institute of School Business Leadership (ISBL) into the Centre for Education Operational Excellence (CEOE). This is not a departure from our core mission, but a natural progression of it, building on ISBL’s more than three decades of work to support school business leadership and strengthen operational practice. The ambition is simple: to bring greater coherence to what can often be a fragmented landscape, and to support schools and trusts to operate more effectively, sustainably and at scale. This means moving beyond supporting individual roles alone, to also supporting whole organisations and aligning operational practice with educational priorities, financial sustainability and system growth. Bridging the gap between diagnosis and delivery It also means bridging a long-standing gap in the sector: between diagnosis and delivery. Many leaders understand where challenges lie, but have limited access to structured frameworks, evidence-informed approaches and targeted support to address them. A more joined-up approach is needed. One that connects insight, capability, delivery and evidence, and supports sustained improvement over time. In response, we are expanding our work through four interconnected hubs, each playing a distinct role in strengthening operational practice across the system: ISBL as our professional excellence hub, continuing to set professional standards and deliver high-quality, cutting-edge development for members A solutions hub. This will provide practical, high-impact support, including our operational excellence framework and an operational health check to identify strengths, prioritise improvement and access tailored support, alongside our network of trusted specialist partners A research hub, generating robust, evidence-based insight to inform best practice, shape policy and drive innovation in education operations An international hub, extending our global reach, enabling knowledge exchange and collaboration to raise operational standards across education systems. Crucially, this is not about prescribing a single model. Schools and trusts are diverse, and their contexts matter. But there is an opportunity to define what good operational practice looks like more clearly, and to support organisations to achieve it in a way that works for them. Focus and attention needed If we get this right, the impact will be significant. Stronger operations enable stronger organisations. They allow good practice to scale more effectively, reduce inefficiencies and create the conditions in which teaching and leadership can thrive. In short, they make excellence more consistent, more sustainable and more achievable across the system. As we look ahead, the question is not whether operational excellence matters. It is whether we are ready to give it the focus and attention it now requires. Because the future success of our education system depends on it.