Tuesday, 29 September 2015

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.