December 2015

Happy Christmas

Best wishes to you all for the festive season

Photo by Nicky Donaldson-Alldis

I’d like to wish everyone a Happy Christmas and New Year. I hope you all enjoy the festive period, with time for yourself, friends and family. Thank you for your contribution to children, young people, education and skills this year. I look forward to continued partnership work with you all in the new year.

Early Help: How well are we doing and how do we move forward together?

I attended this month’s conference organised in partnership with the Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB), the Safeguarding Adults Board and Safe in the City, Brighton & Hove’s Community safety partnership was a real success. It was opened by Graham Bartlett, Independent Chair of the LSCB. There were excellent scene setting presentations highlighting our local priorities and challenges from Councillor Tom Bewick and Pinaki Ghoshal. These speakers highlighted the successes over time, from the launch of our Early Help strategy over two years ago to the setting up of the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) and the Early Help Hub. However there was a clear message that further integration and collective purpose is needed to meet the needs of our children and families and particularly during a time of scarce resources.

We were engaged and challenged by our key note speakers Emma Scowcroft from the national troubled families team, Donna Molloy from the Early Intervention foundation and Professor Robin Banerjee from the University of Sussex. As a psychologist, I was particularly interested in Donna's presentation outlining the importance of evidence based intervention and the work around the impact in later life of adverse childhood experiences. Also engaging was Robin’s focus on behaviours, identity and relationships and the need to explore this further to improve our approach to early help.

It was good to see representatives from the full range of agencies including a significant number of headteachers and leaders from our city’s schools.

Peer review

Diamond 9: What makes good teaching and learning?

An excellent peer review workshop was held on 4 December. This was attended by about 20 primary headteachers.

Clive Dunn, former headteacher who is now an Ofsted inspector and Head Reviewer for Challenge Partners, worked with us to see how headteachers might design and undertake peer reviews.

It began with a discussion of values, asking the question: ‘What do you think makes good teaching and learning?

The picture to the right shows the results of a ‘Diamond 9’ activity undertaken by headteachers which started the day.

Would you arrange the statements in the same way?

School to school challenge and support is one of our priorities and we will be offering this opportunity again in May. If you would like to know more please contact Hilary Ferries or Mary Ellinger.

Partnership and school to school support

Hilary and I had a productive meeting with the headteachers who chair the cluster partnerships. Each chair shared their partnership’s current issues and priorities. It was good to hear the enthusiasm for the different ways that partnerships are working together to provide school to school support: it promoted discussion and made us review our practice. We also talked about the importance of good communication and how we improve this in Brighton & Hove. This group is going to work with us, reviewing the way we provide headteacher care, support and guidance in the city. At the next meeting we are going to begin to look at how each partnership provides school improvement challenge.

Mental Health Pilots in Schools

I’m delighted that Brighton & Hove is to receive government funding to help children and teenagers improve their mental health and emotional wellbeing. We are one of 22 areas across the UK to receive up to £85,000 for this. The project is being piloted by three secondary and eight primary schools who are working with the Clinical Commissioning Group (CGG) and Brighton & Hove City Council. Education Secretary Nicky Morgan said, “The development of character, resilience and good mental health is vital alongside academic success in equipping young people with the skills needed to fulfil their potential”. Alongside our other initiatives to improve support for children with Social, Emotional and/or Mental Health issues, this work will make a real difference and improve outcomes.

Ofsted’s Annual Report 2015

The Ofsted Annual Report was published at the beginning of December. This year’s state of the nation picture of educational performance welcomes the ongoing improvement in the standard of education offered in our primary and secondary schools. However it notes a gap between the performance of secondary schools in the North and Midlands and secondary schools in the rest of the country. It also recognises the difficulty some schools and areas have in recruiting good staff and the importance of increasing the number of good leaders and teachers in schools. The regional report positively highlights Brighton & Hove, with 89% of primary school pupils and 81% of secondary school pupils attending a school that is judged to be good or better. At post-16 the quality of provision remains in line with the national level. Access key points or the full report here.

Adoption Support

The Adoption Support Services Steering Group met again this month. I am continually impressed by how this group continues to develop services and raise awareness to support adopted children and young people. Postcards have now been sent out to schools to promote the Adoption Support Passport which explains this support. For further details click here.

The Virtual School promoted its revised offer. This now includes providing workshops for adopters, advice for schools on setting up networks for adopters, an advice line for parents and professionals and attachment training for schools. A personal education plan for these children has also been developed and we are encouraging all schools to use it. A self-evaluation for schools covering best practice working with adopted children is being piloted to be rolled out in the Spring term. For further details on any of these initiatives please email Mark Storey, headteacher of the Virtual School at virtualschool@brighton-hove.gov.uk or to visit us on the Brighton & Hove website click here.

The Schools Christmas Concert

The Schools Christmas Concert at the Brighton Centre

                                                                                                            
I was fortunate enough to attend the wonderful spectacle of the annual Brighton & Hove Schools Christmas Concert last week at the Brighton Centre.  Over 1200 children from 41 primary and special schools filled the Brighton Centre with wonderful voice, Makaton signing and high energy.  The Brighton & Hove Youth Big Band wowed the sell-out crowd with funk favourites. The Brighton Youth Orchestra String Ensemble played superbly and were joined by local composer and guitarist Richard Durrant. There were specially written works by Downs Park, Downs View, Hillside, Middle Street and Peter Gladwin schools in collaboration with composer James Redwood along with Traditional carols and festive favourites. The evening ended with performers and audience linking arms to sing  a rousing version of Auld Lang Syne.  A wonderful evening, which certainly put me in the Christmas spirit. Many thanks to all involved.

Post 16 update

There has been a second meeting of this month's Sussex Area Review of post 16 provision. As a result the Review team is meeting college principals and headteachers of schools with 6th forms. The aim is to gather data and information and to clarify any questions about the scope of the review. The discussions with colleges will involve thinking about what provision and courses are needed now and in the future.

Apprenticeships continue to be a priority for the city. There will be a number of events next year promoting existing apprenticeships and identifying new opportunities. The city’s employers will be encouraged to offer apprenticeships at all levels, including degree level. The Employer Skills Taskforce is working towards its pledge which is set to have apprenticeships at its heart.

Record numbers at Brighton & Hove primary schools’ cross country

Primary Schools Cross Country Event

It was great to see so many young people taking part and enjoying the recent Primary Schools Cross Country event. 989 year five and six pupils took part. The top ten finishers were then invited to the School Games Sussex Final on 13 February in Hickstead. Thank you to sports leaders who from Blatchington Mill, Varndean College, Dorothy Stringer, PACA and Cardinal Newman Secondary schools who volunteered their assistance. Thank you also to Phoenix Athletics Club for providing the venue.

A sporting chance for primary schools

Thanks to everyone who has already completed the Brighton & Hove Primary School PE and Sport Survey. The survey is being undertaken to better understand how schools are using PE and Sport Premium funding and to help ensure our schools are effectively supported to provide a strong and effective PE curriculum. The deadline for completion has been extended to the 15 January to help capture the views from further schools. Your feedback and participation in the survey is highly valued. If you do have an opportunity please click here to view and complete the survey.

Sad news

With great sadness we learnt that James Dougan passed away on 14 December.  As many of you will know James had been ill for a long period of time and had fought his illness very hard during this time.  He will be sorely missed by all who knew him.

James started with Brighton & Hove as the Children’s Commissioning Manager which was a joint post with the NHS. He also set up the Children’s Commissioning Team in this authority. James then moved onto working within areas of Early Years, Schools and Community, Youth and Social Work as one of our Assistant Director. Our thoughts are with James’ loved ones, family and friends.

Welcome and Goodbye

Congratulations to Will Baldwin who has been appointed as Principal at Brighton Hove Sussex Sixth Form College (BHASVIC). He is currently Assistant Principal at Godalming College and will start next September. The current Principal, Chris Thomson, will be retiring from his post at the end this academic year after 18 years as Principal at BHASVIC. We look forward to opportunities to say thank you and goodbye to Chris next year. 

Welcome to Mark Helstrip who will be starting as Headteacher of Homewood College in January. Thank you and goodbye to the current Headteacher, David Hulbert who is leaving us this month.

Thank you to an amazing team!

Left to right: Kathrin Brown, Andrea Weller, Sharon Murrell, Claire King, Tess Gill and Emma Jones

I’d like to take the opportunity to say a huge thank you to our amazing administration team from me and the council’s Education and Inclusion Senior Leadership Team. They have supported all areas of improvement in the branch during 2015. The team have worked to review our systems which has led to greater efficiency, improved communication and a positive contribution to improved outcomes. They are continually positive and cheerful, almost 'swan like' in their approach. Thank you for the big difference you all make.

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons

November 2015

Consultation and change

Over the last few weeks there has been much publicity about the work we are doing to redesign our SEN and disability provision and also our Learning Support Services. Regan Delf (Assistant Director of Children's Services) and I have spent a great deal of time with groups of parents across the city and meetings with local and national SEN groups and teachers, reassuring them. Parents have been fearful that we will no longer provide them with services. This is not the case. However we do need to change how we do things. We want even better services, less complicated, more upfront, more personalized and more joined up. We know we need more support for some groups, for example for those with Social Emotional and Mental Health and Autistic Spectrum Conditions. I would like to thank those parents and school staff that have been helpful and supportive in getting the correct messages out there. We want to listen to everyone during this important consultation period. 

The voice of our children and young people 

  

Benfield pupils who gave the presentation

This group of year 5 and 6 pupils from Benfield Primary School in Portslade have been involved in a project to give their views on the use of digital media in their learning. The children attended a conference of prestigious organisations where they spoke to a large number of unknown adults. The feedback was very positive, noting how articulate, thoughtful and engaging these children were. Their viewpoint was successfully brought across to organisations present, including the London Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Science Museum, the V&A and Brighton Museum. These children have set a fine example of pupil voice. Well done.

I am delighted that Ofsted has judged St Mark's Primary to be good. I know what a journey this has been for everyone at the school and want to extend congratulations to Jane Fendley and her team.
  
We also had our first 'short inspection' at St John the Baptist's Primary and the report has just been published. Congratulations to Carmel Hughes and her team for maintaining their judgement of good from their previous inspection. Jane and Carmel both shared their experiences at the Primary Headteachers’ meeting last week which was well received by heads and the LA team.

This brings the percentage of schools in the city that are good or outstanding to 85%, which is the highest it has ever been!

Jamie Oliver’s kitchen garden

Breakfast Clubs info booklet

The Sugar Smart event was well attended by primary schools at Jamie Oliver’s restaurant. Vic Borrill from Brighton and Hove Food Partnership, celebrated healthy breakfast clubs within the city. The Jamie Oliver Foundation Kitchen Garden Project gave details of resources available and how city schools can sign up for free. Eden, the school meals provider for Primary and Special schools, talked about their project to reduce sugar and increase fibre in desserts served across the city. They introduced “The Bright’s”, the characters which will appear on our new menu leaflet and will assist with food education. Tasty healthy nibbles were provided by Jamie’s with low sugar desserts by Eden! 

School Organisation 

   
I was very reassured that our independent report on pupil forecasting and pupil place planning confirmed that our primary pupil forecasting is accurate and our secondary pupil modelling confirms the need for more places at secondary level going forward. This month’s Cross Party School Organisation Working Group welcomed the report and praised the LA team for its work in this area.

It was good to join members of the Portslade Partnership of Schools with Richard Barker, our new Head of School Organisation, to work in collaboration with them on future projections of there being surplus places in their schools. We had a constructive dialogue and the group are working on short and longer term suggestions as a way forward.

We have also had two meetings of the Secondary Admission Review Steering Group this month, chaired by Councillor Dan Chapman. The group are debating all the options for possible changes to secondary catchment arrangement going forward and will be ready to consult in the Spring. 

The council has launched its annual consultation on admission arrangements for September 2017. Responses are welcome. Click here for the bulletin from this consultation.

I am pleased to confirm that after a robust application process Saul Johnson has been appointed School Admissions Manager. Saul brings to the post a wealth of experience of school admissions in Brighton and Hove and will be a positive addition to Richard Barker’s School Organisation management team. I am sure you will support Saul following his appointment. If you have any admissions issues or queries you can contact him directly by email saul.johnston@brighton-hove.gov.uk or by direct number 01273 293653. 
 

Anti-Bullying Week ran this month from 16 to 20 November. I was very pleased to hear how schools across Brighton & Hove got involved. I enjoyed reading all your tweets. Many used locally and nationally developed materials to ‘Make a Noise about Bullying’. Anti Bullying Week also saw the launch of the Anti-Bullying Toolkit on Pier2Peer which provides case studies of good practice from across Brighton & Hove City Council schools. Thanks to the schools and colleges who contributed. We look forward to adding to this with case studies from other schools to share our good practice and commitment to preventing bullying.

Congratulations - School Chef of The Year

Goldstone Primary School’s Kitchen Manager, Marion Jane, won the regional finals for School Chef Of the Year (SCOTY) South East Region. Well done Marion!
 

Goldstone pupils, Chris Pearson (Headteacher) and award winning Chef Marion Jane enjoy the dessert

Post 16 update

The Sussex Area Review of post 16 provision is under way. Alongside this there is a local review as requested by the Children, Young People and Skills Committee which is aligned to the Sussex Area Review. I was pleased to join the Heads, Principals and Chairs of Governors of all those schools with 6th forms and our academies, FE and 6th form colleges, hosted by Hove Park Upper School. These reviews will focus on possible options to maintain a sustainable solution in local post 16 provision and to meet the needs of all learners in the city. Further discussions will take place over the next 2-3 months to ensure all institutions are considered and consulted, including looking at future needs, continued choice of provision and to explore opportunities for collaboration.

The Employer Skills Taskforce which is made up of a range of key employers in the city, as well as representatives from educational institutions, has also met again this month, and is busy working towards a citywide pledge, supporting an increase in the numbers of good quality apprenticeships.


Children in Care Awards

I thoroughly enjoyed joining children and young people, their parents and carers at the annual awards for our children in care. I was proud to hear about their resilience and great achievements. Over 45 awards were presented. The afternoon included a powerful speech and insight from Councillor Tom Bewick, Chair of the Children, Young People and Skills Committee. He also remarked on the impressive resilience of our young people and thanked foster carers for their hard work. The afternoon continued with performances and a disco. The star guests ‘Purple Haze’ our children in care band were a particular favourite and brought great excitement to the room. Thank you to the children and young people and the Fostering and Virtual School teams for all their hard work to make this event such fun and a real success!

Children in Care Awards

School governance

Cllr Tom Bewick addresses the event

I was pleased to open our Governance, Strategy and Partnership meeting at City College this month, which brought together a large number of governors and clerks from across the city. Councillor Tom Bewick outlined his administration’s priorities for the city and congratulated schools on the results this year at both primary and secondary level. Delegates also had the opportunity to share their experiences about how they are strengthening governance by developing partnership working. There was some interesting debate about how we continue to improve pupil attendance in schools following a presentation from our Attendance Lead Gill Manton. Our guest speaker Martin Kaliszewski presented governors with some analysis of pupil performance and trends across the city. Governors will be able to explore this further with us at the ‘Closing the Gap’ governors’ conference on 30 January 2016.

School visits

It was a pleasure to visit Whitehawk City Academy and hear about the positive work they have been doing to reduce exclusions and improve attendance. It was also good to see how they have developed the school environment and learning spaces with lots of opportunities for creative and imaginative play for all children.

Saltdean Primary School

Suzanne Morgan and her team welcomed me to Saltdean Primary where I was pleased to see how well the building work to expand the school is progressing. Its success is a huge credit to Suzanne and her team who have remained strong and positive through a challenging time. They have also continued their relentless focus on positive teaching and learning, moving the school from strength to strength.

I look forward to seeing the completed project.

Hilary and I had a productive session with Julie Aldous, the Headteacher of Middle Street and Chair of the Brighton City Partnership for Education, to discuss the role of the partnership in school improvement. This partnership has developed well over time and has a clear plan of collaborative work to support its schools with ongoing improvement. They have recently been successful in their application for charitable status, which will now give them further opportunities to bid for funding for the Partnership. Another good example of effective school to school support working in our city.

Horrific terrorist attacks

We have all been affected by the horror of terrorist acts including those this month in Paris and Beirut. It is important that schools aim to provide safe learning environments and opportunities for children and young people to discuss the feelings, anxieties and questions they have as a result of international and national events and the media coverage following them. We also need to be vigilant in ensuring that we identify, challenge and record any prejudiced based incidents or bullying that may occur in and around our communities. If you need any further advice and support please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons.

October Blog - Top Quartile GCSE Results!

It’s hard to believe that we are at the end of October and at the half term break already. It’s been an exhausting term for many of you I know but also a productive start to the academic year. We have a great deal to celebrate in the city and have made a good start on tackling those priority areas we all know need improvement. Like many of you I'm taking some time off at half term with the family travelling up North, and am looking forward to the usual Halloween fun!

GCSE results

I am delighted that following the GCSE and IB statistical release this month Brighton & Hove (B&H) are above the national state funded schools average, south east average, and our statistical neighbour average, and West Sussex and East Sussex in 5+ A*-C including English and maths GCSE. B&H is 3.4 percentage points above national, this is the highest position relative to the national results on record. In 2012/13 when B&H was above national it was by 1.4 percentage points.

I’d like to congratulate and thank secondary schools for their significant contributions they have made and the Secondary School Partnership for the work done to provide that important school to school support and challenge. Also my Local Authority (LA) team who have provided ongoing support and challenge at individual school level and across the city.

The collaborative approach we have in B&H with a family of schools and the LA working in partnership is making a real difference. I am looking forward to being involved in continued partnership work going forward to close the gap in achievement for our vulnerable groups, one of our top priorities for the city this year.

School Games Mark for 2014/15

The School Games Mark was established as a way to acknowledge schools work and commitment to sport and PE.  Schools can gain bronze, silver or gold marks for their efforts. This month we were able to celebrate the fact that during the 2014-15 academic year, 38 schools in B&H achieved a bronze, silver or gold mark, which is a significant increase from the 29 schools in the previous year! I’d like to congratulate the 6 Gold Mark Schools; Balfour Primary, Carden Primary, Coldean Primary, Elm Grove Primary, Middle Street Primary & Westdene Primary. A more formal celebration for all of the schools who achieved the mark is being planned for December 2015. More information about the School Games Mark can be found on its website.

PACA receiving their award last year

The Argus Community Stars Awards – Susie Haworth on the shortlist

Susie Haworth

I am so pleased to announce that Susie Haworth, B&H City Council’s Schools Meals Manager, has been nominated for an Argus Community Star Award!  Susie has been nominated in the Employee of the Year category for her work on Free School Meals. Further details about the awards can be seen on the Brighton Argus website. Good luck Susie, we hope you win!

Holocaust Education Project

A heads up that next month a B&H Holocaust Education Project will be launched which a number of schools in the area that will be involved in. The project will encourage schools and children to collect Lego pieces until the 11 December 2015. Lego will be significant as each dot on the bricks will represent a person and the different sized brick will represent families. The collected Lego will then form part of an exhibition at the Jubilee Library and there will be a Holocaust Memorial Day event in the New Year. Many thanks to Paul Harrington from Carden Primary School who is leading this innovative project. We look forward to hearing more.

Ofsted have been in the city this month inspecting St Mark's CofE Primary School and St John the Baptist Catholic School and I look forward to receiving the reports and final judgement.

School Visits

I am working hard to get round to visit all new headteachers at their schools. I had an extremely positive visit to Hove Park this month to meet with Rob Niedermaier-Reed and his Chair of Governors, Mike Nicholls. It was good to hear his vision for the school and his clear focus on important priorities. We were able to discuss positive approaches to close the gap in achievement for vulnerable groups, improve progress for all, and effective use of the pupil premium. It was also refreshing to hear how quickly Rob has developed links with his secondary colleagues and is working collaboratively with primary schools in the area. I know Hove Park will go from strength to strength under his leadership.

It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to visit St Paul's Primary school in central Brighton this week. I observed Linda Dupret the Headteacher leading a fun and enjoyable school assembly. Some of the youngest children in the school performed a couple of fabulous Halloween pieces in front of the whole school singing and dancing with joy. It was a delight to watch and see how confident the children were and how much pleasure they got from being able to perform in front of all the children, staff and parents. I was also impressed with the behaviour and engagement of those children watching and the pride on their faces seeing their friends and class mates succeed. Thank you St Paul's.

Sound City Board

This month I attended the Sound City Board, which oversees the work of our Music Education Hub. The meeting focus on 2 keys area's the future governance arrangement for the Music & Arts service exploring the service moving to becoming part of the Brighton Dome and Festival and developing further the range of provision that is needs led and supports all the cities young people to develop their creative talents. I was pleased to read the positive evaluation report on the Breaking the Bubble Conference that took place before the summer, which focused on developing music provision for young people with SEND bringing together teachers and music leaders from across Brighton & Hove, Surrey and Kent. The team are now planning another conference for next summer and will be launching new music ensemble provision after Christmas - watch this space for more news!

Children’s Services Roadshow

It’s the time of year when staff in the council comes together for the roadshows. Much of this week I have been with Pinaki and my colleagues presenting at these events and discussing a wide range of children's services issues: budget, child friendly city, community collaboration and partnership amongst other things. It’s also been an opportunity to hear from colleagues the best practice that is going on across the city to improve outcomes for our children and young people. I was particularly impressed with staff energy and commitment at a time when we are all facing service challenges and budget pressures.

 

Pinaki Ghoshal presents to staff

Area review post 16

On 24th September 2015 DfE and Department for Business, Information & Skills (BIS) announced an area review for the Sussex Coast area including the LA areas of East Sussex, parts of West Sussex and Brighton and Hove. This review will look at the shape of all post-16 education and training across the area and how well this fits with local economic and educational need. The government has said the reviews were “designed to achieve a transition towards fewer, larger, more resilient and efficient providers, and more effective collaboration across institution types”. The review will last approximately 4 months and will be focused on 11 6th form and FE colleges across the region, including City College, BHASVIC and Varndean College, in B&H.

The Children, Young People and Skills Committee met on the 12 October and discussed and welcomed the review. They also agreed that in B&H they felt strongly that our School sixth forms should also be considered as part of the review.

Rachel Carter (Post 16 learning and partnership adviser) and I are attending a briefing on the review later this week and will be able to update colleagues as the review develops.

Headteachers and Senior Leaders Conference; Inspirational Leadership

It was good to see so many of you at the school and college leaders conference on 2 October. I have had such positive feedback the conference and about Tim Brighouse’s and David Cameron’s presentations. I feel that they included many of the challenges and the joys of leadership. I have said that we will look together at what some of the ‘unbreakable plates’ might be. In my team we have also been thinking also about the ‘butterflies’: those small actions which can have huge impact.

The Succession Planning Group is already thinking about a conference for next year and would welcome thoughts, ideas and themes! Please contact me or HilaryFerries with ideas.

 

David Cameron at the conference

School Organisation

This month has seen further steps being taken in our work on school organisation. The Children, Young People and Skills Committee received the report from the independent review of our school place forecasting and recognised the good work undertaken by the LA team in accurately forecasting pupil numbers and accepted that there was clearly a need for additional secondary school places in the city.

Richard Barker (Head of School Organisation) and I also joined the Secondary Admissions Review Steering Group this week to further consider potential options for admissions in September 2018 which we hope to go to consultation in the spring.

We also met with the Portslade Partnership of Schools and Councillors, hosted at Benfield Primary School, to discuss their local situation and to explore proposals for the future. It was a productive meeting that reflected the work the schools in the partnership had already undertaken and future meetings are planned.

Work is beginning on the next iteration of the Council’s School Organisation Plan and a framework approach is being considered. Watch this space for more information.

Feeling Good, Feeling Safe

This term sees the launch of the Feeling Good, Feeling Safe resource for primary schools which has been developed through a partnership with the Council, Safety Net and some B&H primary schools. The aim of the resource is to support all children to learn the skills they need to stay safe and to get help when they need it.  This programme is highly recommended to support schools in their safeguarding responsibilities and has had positive feedback from pilot schools. The resource has been or will be sent to all primary headteachers and is available on the pier2pier website. To request training in delivering the lessons please email pshe@brighton-hove.gov.uk and for whole school approach to protective behaviours training email Terri Fletcher.

Secondary Governance

Hilary Ferries (Head of Standards and Achievement) and I joined our secondary and special schools chairs of governors this week to have a strategic debate about governors role in school improvement. The event was hosted at the Newman Sixth Form College and chaired by Dominca De Rosa (Chair of Governors at Cardinal Newman). Throughout the evening we had the opportunity to discuss 14/15 secondary results and data across the city with a particular focus on disadvantaged groups.The group also shared and discussed feedback from other partnerships they participate in and the implications for governors. Peter Freeman (Chair of BHASVIC) led a interesting discussion on the post 16 area review.

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons, I'd urge you all to set up accounts for your schools if you don't already have one.

September 2015

The Start of the New Academic Year

As always in the world of education September is an extremely busy month but also a positive time for many children and young people starting new phases of education. Well done to all who have successfully made the transition and settled back into learning whether it be nursery, primary or secondary school, college or university.

Headteacher Induction

I was delighted to join our new headteachers and deputies for a welcome lunch and induction session. Each year the LA supports all new heads through a supportive induction programme. There are three scheduled meetings throughout the year and I’m pleased to say that the first of these was very well received.

This year we welcomed 14 Colleagues from different backgrounds and experience from Acting Heads, Heads of School, Interim heads those brand new to headship and experienced heads who have changed roles or moved to Brighton & Hove.

This was a positive first session promoting strong partnership links between schools and the LA, it also enabled colleagues to develop supportive networks within the City.

Michael Nix's Retirement

Michael during his leaving speech

The Brunswick Tavern was the venue for Michael’s big send off last week.  Headteachers, LA staff, friends and family came together to celebrate Michael’s successful career and wish him the very best for his retirement. I will personally miss him very much, as we have worked so closely together over the past 2 years on some complex school organisational work. I’ve always welcomed his sensitivity, intellect and attention for detail. 

Welcome to Richard Barker

Richard Barker

Welcome to Richard Barker who started with us this week in his role of Head of School Organisation. Richard joins us from West Sussex County Council where he held the post of Senior Manager (Pupil Entitlement). Richard comes with a wealth of experience with a career that has included classroom teaching, various school governor roles and youth work. He is looking forward to working with colleagues on the future school organisational challenges and developments and meeting you all.

Post 16 education, learning and skills

Our new Post 16 learning and partnership adviser, Rachel Carter has now been in post 3 weeks. I was delighted to meet with Rachel as part of her induction to discuss our vision for post 16 education and skills and plan out our work with partners to address the challenges we face. She has visited most of the secondary schools and colleges already and has seen some really exciting initiatives taking place around skills development, to help young people emerge from education with a greater understanding of the opportunities and what the world of work can offer them, as well as what it expects from them.

Post 16 provision is changing constantly, to reflect demands from students and the employers, and there is an increasing commitment to deliver apprenticeships to match these needs, and a range of offerings at different levels. Employer engagement is happening all over the City, and one of our key aims is to capitalise on this. Rachel and the wider team will be available to support schools and colleges to engage with employers and make the connections which help build networks for young people to access.

Employment and skills was also the focus of our Learning Skills and Employment Partnership held at the University of Sussex this month. It was energising to be together with a wide range of city partners to map out our vision and approach as part of our developing new employment and skills plan. Watch this space!

PREVENT

                                                                                                                                                  

In Brighton & Hove we acknowledge that one way to keep children safe from radicalisation is to ensure they feel a positive sense of belonging within their school and wider community and it is great to see so many of our schools working to improve race and other types of equality and to review their school and curriculum to ensure that all children and young people see themselves reflected.

During September it was ‘Prevent Awareness Week’, an opportunity to ensure Schools are more aware of the new statutory ‘Prevent Duty’ on schools, local authorities and other partners. The DfE has issued specific advice to schools and Childcare providers with regard to Prevent Duty. Many schools are now encouraging staff to complete the 25 minutes e-learning course to understand how the ‘Channel’ approach helps protect vulnerable people from being drawn into terrorist related activities. I took some time out myself to do this and found it very informative so please do take a look.

Every School Day Matters!

As part of our continued effort to improve attendance and reduce persistent absenteeism, we have earlier this month launched an innovative campaign called ‘Every School Day Matters’. The powerful message is on a number of buses travelling throughout the City for the next three weeks. All schools across the City have welcomed the positive approach towards tackling attendance and persistent absence and I look forward to seeing the positive impact on outcomes for our children and young people.

Refugee Situation

We currently face such a challenging time internationally and many of you will have been extremely concerned by the refugee crisis across Europe. Many schools and families have been engaging in the debate across the city and are looking for opportunities to support those who find themselves in such a terrible situation. The council has set up an email address to capture pledges of support and practical help from local residents and businesses: refugeehelp@brighton-hove.gov.uk 

Schools will have used the materials developed locally and nationally also to support discussions about the current refugee situation. With colleagues from the Sanctuary on Sea project we are planning to develop a Schools of Sanctuary project. Materials to support teaching and learning about refugees can also be found at Pier2Pier under / learning / equality / equality and health events / refugee awareness week. If you would like to know more I know Sam Beal, from our team would be happy to advise.

Improving Primary Writing

Improving standards in writing is a top priority for us so it’s very positive that nine of our Primary Schools are more than half way through a Primary Writing Project. This month we welcomed Pie Corbett and John Stannard to provide professional development for school staff and leadership teams through a series of whole school training, focus leadership days and interim school partnership support. We were delighted to use this event to re-launch a local Primary Literacy Leads Network to promote professional dialogue, support and sharing of good practice evident in our local schools.

It’s good to see how the primary writing project is having an impact on our outcomes. The end of year Primary School writing results (2014-15) show improvement:

L4+ writing is 88.9%, last year it was 86%, and last year national was 85% - so attainment has risen 3 percentage points.

L5+ writing is 37.5%, last year it was 33%, last year national was 33% - so attainment has risen 5 percentage points.

My team are very enthusiastic about this successful intervention and have attended some of the training sessions. Not only is this high quality CPD resulting in good outcomes across the City, it has also enabled schools to work together in a supportive, collaborative way for the benefit of all pupils.

The Rugby World Cup

What a month it’s been for Rugby and Brighton & Hove hosting some of the big games. Last Sunday’s sunny afternoon also saw a massed choir perform on New Road as part of the Pitch Perfect festival to welcome the Ruby World Cup to Brighton.

2 Secondary schools and 9 Primary Schools were involved in the creation of a new work celebrating the strength and resilience of our Rugby Superheroes. Lyrics, melodies and actions created by young composers from local schools were arranged by James Redwood into “Shining Brighter” which also included body percussion inspired by the world of Rugby. The two performances on the Brighton & Hove Music & Arts stage involved over 250 young singers, accompanied by the Brighton & Hove Youth Big Band. They wowed the massive crowd with their energy, musical excellence and enthusiasm!

Brighton & Hove Youth Big Band on stage 

#SugarSmartCity

Look out for the launch of the a city-wide #SugarSmartCity campaign in October which aims to spark discussion and share ideas on how to reduce sugar consumption, especially among young people.  

I was shocked to discover that sugar intake is highest among 11-18 year olds at three times the recommended daily allowance of 7 teaspoons.  With 8 teaspoons in a Volvic “Touch of Fruit” juice drink and 27 and a half in a large strawberry MacDonald’s milkshake, it’s easy to consume more than you should! 

Young people will have the opportunity to get their questions answered and take part in the conversation by attending a free event at Jamie’s Italian from 5-7pm on 13th October.  Teaching resources have also been developed to educate pupils on free sugars and run a class debate to find out what pupils think. Visit the SugarSmart website for more information.

If you would like to share action already taken to reduce sugar consumption in your school, join the debate on social media using the hashtag #SugarSmartCity or get in touch with the PH Schools Programme at PH.SchoolsProgramme@brighton-hove.gov.uk 

The Aldridge Cricket Academy

I was delighted to be invited to the presentation at BACA this week about the vision and work taking place to develop cricket in the city. It was a celebration of the building of the cricket centre at BACA which is due to open in the spring of 2016. To celebrate the construction of the cricket centre a time capsule was buried in the foundations. The time capsule was filled with items which held memories from local members of the community. The cricket academy will offer its facilities and expertise to primary schools and the committee.  A really fabulous initiative leading the way in providing sport opportunities in Brighton & Hove. 

Presentation by Dylan Davies, Headteacher at BACA

Secondary and Continuing Education Partnership

A successful first session of the academic year brought together colleagues from secondary schools, universities and colleges with members of the LA team. A good debate was had about this year’s initial results the across phases, the closing of the gap strategy going forward, and the skills agenda. We heard best practice examples from Blatchington Mill on closing the gap, BACA with their Digital Media and Team Academy, Patcham with their Skills Lab research work and Sussex University with their Character Education programme. We are looking forward to seeing how these initiatives continue to improve outcomes over the coming year and to continue this dialogue with heads and partners.
 

SEN Inspection Framework

We had the pleasure to welcome André Imich, SEN and Disability Professional Adviser, Department for Education to the city this week to share with a group of headteachers, LA staff and partners across Sussex, his perspective on the new SEN Inspection Framework and help us to prepare for a future inspection in Brighton & Hove. It was an opportunity for us to work collaboratively to self-evaluate where we think we are in preparation for our future inspection and agree priority actions we still need to take.

Andre Imich

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons, I'd urge you all to set up accounts for your schools if you don't already have one.