Quality Marks - Geographical Association
Source: https://geography.org.uk/events-cpd/quality-marks
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:33
Quality Marks - Geographical Association
Quality Marks
Home
Events & CPD
Quality Marks
The GA’s Geography Quality Marks reward and promote high quality geography in primary and secondary schools.
What is a Geography Quality Mark?
The Geography Quality Marks are prestigious awards that recognise and promote quality and progress in geography leadership, curriculum development and learning and teaching in schools.
The Secondary Geography Quality Mark
The Primary Geography Quality Mark
Register for the Geography Quality Mark
Become a member
GA membership provides specialist support and expert advice for geography teaching
View Membership →
GA Shop
We have a wide range of products available for primary and secondary geography teachers. Members get exclusive discounts on products.
Browse products →
New eBook available
In the Know: Global Trade is a clear, teacher‑friendly eBook that explains global trade simply, boosts subject knowledge, and supports confident, engaging geography teaching.
View in shop →
Why should your school apply for the Geography Quality Mark?
The primary and secondary Quality Mark Frameworks incorporate the key messages of Ofsted’s 2019 Inspection Framework, supporting schools to develop a curriculum with high quality intent, implementation and impact.
It is highly valued by school leaders nationally and internationally, allowing the dissemination and celebration of standards and geographical learning.
It is a process of powerful self-evaluation and reflection asking: ‘What is geography like in our school?’, ‘How do we know?’ and ‘What can we do to improve standards?’
It raises the profile of geography across the whole school community, with parents, teachers, governors and students.
It provides opportunities to engage in collaborative critical reflection of teaching, learning and subject leadership.
It is impactful and rigorous CPD which meets the 2016 standard for teachers’ professional development and has been quality assured as part of the
Wellcome Trust and Education Endowment Fund commissioned CPD QA pilot
.
It has a proven track record with over 1500 successful Geography Quality Mark schools forming an international network supported by the GA.
'Previously we may not have looked at everything in such granular detail, but engagement with this process makes you really consider all of the really great things we are doing as a department, and it is exciting.'
Fiona Sheriff
Kingsthorpe College
'By taking part in the PGQM application it has made all the staff more reflective teachers. It has also generated lots of fantastic talk about geography within the school and about our next steps'
Great Bookham School
'The SGQM has supported us by giving us the focus to create a positive ethos across the department and developing further our teacher-student relationships and ensuring geography is enjoyed and valued.'
Emma Peel
Moor End Academy
'The PGQM has had a phenomenal impact on Leasowes. Since we achieved Bronze, we have focused on further improving our curriculum and developing children's sense of place.'
Leasowes Primary School
'The SGQM status raises awareness to pupils, staff and parents of the importance of geography within the school and wider community. The award demonstrates that the geography department is thorough and rigorous in its approach to learning'
Rachel Parkinson,
Corpus Christi High School
'The PGQM process has helped us as a school to embed good geography practice across all areas of the curriculum. It has certainly helped to boost the subjects profile within the school and this has had a positive impact on our children's geography learning.'
Robins Lane Community Primary School
'The SGQM process encourages reflective practice, which has been essential in identifying and addressing challenges.'
Mike Simpson
St Joseph's Catholic Academy
How does the Geography Quality Mark process work?
The self-assessment frameworks developed by the GA can be used as tools for reviewing geography within your school or department. This collaborative and professional process enables teachers to assess whether they have reached a recognised standard in the leadership of geography and to identify areas where this can be improved.
Schools gather together evidence of their successes and submit a portfolio alongside a development plan. This is assessed and moderated by the GA’s team of experts who provide an external perspective on the school’s strengths and advise on areas for development.
Find out more
Secondary Geography Quality Mark
Primary Geography Quality Mark
Introducing the Geography Quality Mark to your secondary school
(PPT)
Introducing the Geography Quality Mark to your primary school
(PPT)
Geography Quality Mark FAQ
(PDF)
Geography Quality Mark and the new Welsh Curriculum brief overview
(PDF)
The GA recommends
Spring clean your fieldwork!
View this blog here
Browse a wide range of geographical resources in our Shop
Visit the GA Shop
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Quality Marks
Home
Events & CPD
Quality Marks
The GA’s Geography Quality Marks reward and promote high quality geography in primary and secondary schools.
What is a Geography Quality Mark?
The Geography Quality Marks are prestigious awards that recognise and promote quality and progress in geography leadership, curriculum development and learning and teaching in schools.
The Secondary Geography Quality Mark
The Primary Geography Quality Mark
Register for the Geography Quality Mark
Become a member
GA membership provides specialist support and expert advice for geography teaching
View Membership →
GA Shop
We have a wide range of products available for primary and secondary geography teachers. Members get exclusive discounts on products.
Browse products →
New eBook available
In the Know: Global Trade is a clear, teacher‑friendly eBook that explains global trade simply, boosts subject knowledge, and supports confident, engaging geography teaching.
View in shop →
Why should your school apply for the Geography Quality Mark?
The primary and secondary Quality Mark Frameworks incorporate the key messages of Ofsted’s 2019 Inspection Framework, supporting schools to develop a curriculum with high quality intent, implementation and impact.
It is highly valued by school leaders nationally and internationally, allowing the dissemination and celebration of standards and geographical learning.
It is a process of powerful self-evaluation and reflection asking: ‘What is geography like in our school?’, ‘How do we know?’ and ‘What can we do to improve standards?’
It raises the profile of geography across the whole school community, with parents, teachers, governors and students.
It provides opportunities to engage in collaborative critical reflection of teaching, learning and subject leadership.
It is impactful and rigorous CPD which meets the 2016 standard for teachers’ professional development and has been quality assured as part of the
Wellcome Trust and Education Endowment Fund commissioned CPD QA pilot
.
It has a proven track record with over 1500 successful Geography Quality Mark schools forming an international network supported by the GA.
'Previously we may not have looked at everything in such granular detail, but engagement with this process makes you really consider all of the really great things we are doing as a department, and it is exciting.'
Fiona Sheriff
Kingsthorpe College
'By taking part in the PGQM application it has made all the staff more reflective teachers. It has also generated lots of fantastic talk about geography within the school and about our next steps'
Great Bookham School
'The SGQM has supported us by giving us the focus to create a positive ethos across the department and developing further our teacher-student relationships and ensuring geography is enjoyed and valued.'
Emma Peel
Moor End Academy
'The PGQM has had a phenomenal impact on Leasowes. Since we achieved Bronze, we have focused on further improving our curriculum and developing children's sense of place.'
Leasowes Primary School
'The SGQM status raises awareness to pupils, staff and parents of the importance of geography within the school and wider community. The award demonstrates that the geography department is thorough and rigorous in its approach to learning'
Rachel Parkinson,
Corpus Christi High School
'The PGQM process has helped us as a school to embed good geography practice across all areas of the curriculum. It has certainly helped to boost the subjects profile within the school and this has had a positive impact on our children's geography learning.'
Robins Lane Community Primary School
'The SGQM process encourages reflective practice, which has been essential in identifying and addressing challenges.'
Mike Simpson
St Joseph's Catholic Academy
How does the Geography Quality Mark process work?
The self-assessment frameworks developed by the GA can be used as tools for reviewing geography within your school or department. This collaborative and professional process enables teachers to assess whether they have reached a recognised standard in the leadership of geography and to identify areas where this can be improved.
Schools gather together evidence of their successes and submit a portfolio alongside a development plan. This is assessed and moderated by the GA’s team of experts who provide an external perspective on the school’s strengths and advise on areas for development.
Find out more
Secondary Geography Quality Mark
Primary Geography Quality Mark
Introducing the Geography Quality Mark to your secondary school
(PPT)
Introducing the Geography Quality Mark to your primary school
(PPT)
Geography Quality Mark FAQ
(PDF)
Geography Quality Mark and the new Welsh Curriculum brief overview
(PDF)
The GA recommends
Spring clean your fieldwork!
View this blog here
Browse a wide range of geographical resources in our Shop
Visit the GA Shop
Manage Cookie Consent
We use cookies to improve your website experience with us. Without cookies enabled, certain features and functions may not work properly.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Manage options
Manage services
Manage {vendor_count} vendors
Read more about these purposes
View preferences
{title}
{title}
{title}
Thank you!
We have received your form submission. Please click the button to download the WorldWise Quiz ZIP folder.
Download Quiz resources