I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone working in early years, schools, colleges and other education provisions for all the hard work and commitment you have shown since September. I know how hard recent months have been for everyone and I hope you have all had chance to rest and recharge your batteries over this half term break. I’ve continued to be immensely impressed with how education leaders across the city have managed the changes needed in response to Covid 19 alongside providing high quality care and education for the children and young people of our city. Thank you.
I hope that children and young people across Brighton & Hove can enjoy Halloween safely and have some socially distanced fun. Here are some tips from Brighton & Hove City Council on how to enjoy Halloween safely along with some ideas for Halloween activities and recipes for all the family:-
Book Trust’s Time to Read Campaign is Back!
It’s that time of year again when schools will be receiving their delivery of a free book pack for every Reception child. Time to Read aims to get primary school starters reading more often with their families and has developed a bank of resources available to schools and families to support this. During October there have been daily reading sessions, book recommendations and top tips for getting the most out of packs.
The chosen title for 2020 is The Runaway Pea by Kjartan Poskitt and Alex Willmore, published by Simon & Schuster. It's a brilliant story, jam-packed with adventure and laugh-out-loud moments - a book that will get the whole family hooked on reading for pleasure. I look forward to hearing more about how our primary school starters are getting on.
CPD for Heads and Governors
The wellbeing of our heads and governors is a top priority for us. As such, I am excited to announce that Andy Cope from Art of Brilliance will be holding a short conference for heads of schools and colleges on ‘Leading in the new normal’ on 10 November 2020. Andy will be hosting the session via Zoom but please sign up to the event on BEEM to ensure you get the invite.
I’m also really pleased to confirm that Viv Grant from Integrity Coaching will be running a virtual Governance Conference on headteacher wellbeing, focusing on relationships and how governors can engage with Head Teachers in the current time. The session will take place on Thursday 3 December from 4.30 – 6.00pm. For more information on how to book a place, please contact Governor.Support@brighton-hove.gov.uk.
Talking and Learning Programme for Families with English as an Additional Language
As part of the virtual REAL (Raising Early Achievement in Literacy) programme offer EMAS will now be running the project for families with 3 and rising year olds speaking Albanian, Amharic, Arabic, Bengali, Cantonese, Czech, Dari, Farsi, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Mandarin, Oromiffa, Pashto, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Slovakian, Thai and Turkish.
Families will receive a free pack with a copy of The Very Hungry Caterpillar and resources to support their early reading and writing. They will be invited to join individual Zoom sessions to discuss ideas and support. EMAS can help parents access Zoom and will try to arrange sessions to suit the family.
Please let EMAS know if you have any families who would be interested in joining the project by contacting Christine.Booth@brighton-hove.gov.uk or 07563 420140. Information can be sent to families in their own language.
Virtual School Update
Following on from an excellent webinar on ‘Transitions’ delivered by Daniel Sobel at the end of last term, the Virtual School for children in care and previously in care have continued their programme of training events this term.
Michael Bettencourt, an education leader specialising in inclusion, brought his research and practice experience together to deliver two webinars on: ‘What works for care experienced students? (CiC and PiC) Considering the evidence base’ and ‘Getting the best out of Pupil Premium Plus’.
The VS also offer a programme of Workshops and Clinics for parents and carers of children previously in care and training events for Social Workers and Foster Carers. Have a look at the Training and Activities Offer for 2020-2021 here. An updated Transitions resource has also been sent out to all schools to encourage an ongoing focus on transitions for children in care and previously in care, as we all adapt to our changing world.
I am extremely proud to congratulate the second cohort of Post Graduate Apprentice Teachers (PGTA) who have completed their end point assessment with a grade of outstanding! This is the second year running that our Teacher Apprentices have achieved such a high grade and goes to show that the Post Graduate Teacher Apprenticeship is an excellent route to grow your own talent.
Congratulations go to the following apprentices and their schools; Racheal Gumbrill, Elizabeth Kroon, Paloma Phillimore and Lewis Stanley from Downs View and Tom Price from Hangleton Primary School.
Some of the newly qualified Post Graduate Apprentice Teachers
Lis Bundock, Lead Lecturer for Teaching, University of Brighton said “I am extremely proud of the achievements of these fantastic teacher apprentices. Working with them to develop and hone their practice over the 12 month apprenticeship was a real privilege.”
Vanessa Hickey, Executive Headteacher at Downs View said “Downs View had four apprentice teachers last year. They were an asset to the school as they were enthusiastic and keen to get involved in all aspects of school life.”
If you are interested in employing a PGTA next year or would like to find out more on available grants from the DfE, please contact Gavin Graham on 01273 293320 or gavin.graham@brighton-hove.gov.uk
Youth Employability Service
These are difficult times and for young people who are not in education, employment or training, it can be a very worrying period. The city’s Youth Employability Service (YES) is here and ready to offer support. Please watch the following video to find out more about the support on offer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L35lbc6j6U8 If you, or someone you know would like support please say YES to YES!
Contact YES via the YES Mainline 01273 294247 or the following links:-
Back
in April, at the beginning of lockdown, we were approached by a representative
of Martlets to support a writing project to help build community between
the generations and make life better for people living in care homes.
We were delighted that we were able to facilitate this and around 10 local schools and 20 care homes began working together on the You Are Never Alone project and the children have created some beautiful work. Martlets are now looking to expand the project and invite more schools to join them. If you would like an informal discussion, or to sign your school up to the project, please email youareneveralone@martlets.org.uk
I look forward to hearing how our children in schools across the city are helping to minimise social isolation and loneliness for care home residents in our community.
Family Learning Moves Online
Wellbeing and mental health are key topics for families at the moment and the mindfulness, anxiety and resilience courses have been particularly popular. Research has found that learning new skills can have a considerable positive impact on our mental health. One learner commented that “although the technology was a lot to get my head round at first, I’m glad I persevered. It’s been so good for me to be part of a group and I feel less alone now.”
Thank you to the schools and other services who have helped to promote the online provision. Online courses will continue after half term and the full list is available here:
https://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/families-children-and-learning/family-learning-online-classroom
Anti-Racist Strategy
Ofsted inspections are suspended, however Ofsted are still making some visits to school to gather information. No judgements will be made about the school during this time, no lesson observations or work scrutiny will take place, but there will be a letter to the school confirming the discussion issued approximately 3 weeks after the meeting. So far two of our schools have received visits: St Joseph’s Catholic Primary and Moulsecoomb Primary School.
Welcomes and Goodbyes
I am pleased to be able to confirm that we have recruited a new team manager, Michelle Hunt, for the Home to School Transport Service. Michelle started with us earlier this month and I am sure everyone will give Michelle a warm welcome. Sadly, this does mean we will be losing Rob Glaister back to the Housing Team in mid-November. Rob has done a great job as interim manager and I would like to thank him for the huge contribution he has made to helping get the service back on its feet and to re-establishing trust and confidence following a very challenging period.
We also say goodbye to Andy Moore after 17 years at Brighton & Hove City Council. We would like to wish him all the best for the future and I am sure he will be very much missed by everyone here.
Best wishes,
Jo
Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons
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