Support for Ukraine

All our thoughts will be with the people of Ukraine at the moment and we hope a peaceful resolution is found quickly.  I know that many of you will be anxious about the escalating situation and some of you will be desperately worried about families and friends there.

Many people, including children and young people in our communities, are likely to be experiencing a range of emotions including fear, worry and concern as a result.  The following link offers lots of relevant wellbeing activities: Supporting wellbeing | BEEM and there is further support on the Council website here.

A page on www.BEEM.org.uk has been set up to hold information and resources for schools to support you in supporting pupils, students and families: PSHE - serious incidents | BEEM. Please do send any feedback or any resources you have developed to pshe@brighton-hove.gov.uk.

Over the coming weeks, the Council will be working closely with key national, regional and local agencies to closely review matters and ensure we respond as swiftly as possible to any implications arising for the city of Brighton and Hove.  As a City of Sanctuary we stand ready to offer our support to those fleeing persecution from the crisis in Ukraine.

We will be looking with colleagues across the Brighton & Hove Education Partnership at how we can reach out and offer our support to the people of Ukraine during this extremely challenging time.

Young Carers Action Day

Wednesday 16 March is Young Carers Action Day and I have been excited to hear more about the evening event that the Council and the Young Carers Project are hosting at The Ironworks Studio to celebrate the amazing work that young carers do.  ‘Young Carers Rock’ will feature performances as well as awards for our city’s young carers, which are voted for by the young carers themselves.  If you would like to attend the event, please contact youngcarers@brighton-hove.gov.uk to secure a place.

School Games Update

                         Brighton and Hove School Games Indoor Athletics Competition

                                                 The School Games Badminton Competition

Well done to over 370 year 5 and 6 students from 17 different primary schools across the city who have recently taken part in the Brighton and Hove School Games Indoor Athletics competitions at BACA.   45 leaders from Blatchington Mill, BACA and Varndean College supported the events and congratulations go to Goldstone, Downs and Hertford who were the winning schools over the three weeks.   It was great to hear that 45 KS3 and KS4 students took part in the School Games Badminton Competitions with Kings and Longhill progressing through to the Sussex finals which will take place in March.  Good luck to both schools!

Congratulations also go to 24 students from PACA and Patcham High who have recently completed a Primary Netball Leaders umpiring workshop which enables them to umpire the Brighton and Hove Primary School tournaments taking place in March.

Youth Council Prepares for Make Your Mark Campaign

                                                       Youth Council members

The Youth Council members have been busy planning how best to canvass schools and encourage young people to vote in the Make Your Mark Campaign, the UK’s biggest youth vote.   Make Your Mark is an opportunity for 11–18-year-olds across the UK to have their say by voting on the policies they want to introduce or change. 

Youth Council members have held meetings in their schools, discussing effective methods of enabling young people to vote.  Follow the Youth Council's new Instagram page to get involved!  http://ow.ly/FtF450HU8gM   #youthvoice #MakeYourMark  

A video explaining the Make Your Mark campaign has been sent out to all schools.  A link to the video is here.  For further information please contact Tracie James on tracie.james@brighton-hove.gov.uk

The FA #Let Girls Play Day

The FA #Let Girls Play day takes place on Wednesday 9 March.  I look forward to hearing more about the different ways that schools across the city are celebrating and encouraging girls to get involved with football.  For more information, please see Girls’ Football in Schools.  

Don’t forget to also make sure your school is signed up to the UEFA Women’s Euro free school resources ahead of the tournament later this year.  Resources and more information can be found at this link UEFA Women's EURO 2022 Schools Programme | Show Your Heart 

Maths Improvement Project

I was very pleased to hear that over the last year, several primary schools in Brighton & Hove have engaged in the Maths Improvement Project.  This was a partnership project between the local authority and South Coast Schools Alliance with the aim of improving outcomes for pupils in KS2, particularly those with a disadvantaged background.  

This month, teachers met for the final time to share the progress, outcomes and next steps for their schools.  The key words from the afternoon were: fluency; stem sentences and generalisations; retrieval and impact.  Thank you to our subject leaders for facilitating these high quality sessions and to all the teachers and schools involved for their hard work and commitment.

Virtual School 

The Virtual School’s annual Foster Carer Conference takes place online on 17 March.  This year will see presentations on Emotion Coaching, Emotional Literacy and Sensory Attachment.  In addition, the Virtual School will offer an introduction to an exciting platform called Reach for Care which will be made available to foster carers and there will be a presentation from Camille Kumar who is the B&H Anti Racist Education Strategy lead.  For more information please contact hadia.saeh@brighton-hove.gov.uk 

Congratulations to Hannah and Jade, two Brighton & Hove care leavers who have successfully been appointed to the role of Participation Assistants, employed by the NHS.  These are 6-month Kickstart positions, and they will be working with the NHS designated nurse team across Sussex to help shape and develop health services for children in care and care leavers.

Hannah said: “I am so happy… I feel like this job is a stepping-stone to continuing participation work in the long term”.  Jade added: “Being a young mum takes away a lot even though it’s magical. I’m really looking forward to doing something different after spending the last 10 years caring for my dad”.

I am also delighted to hear that the Youth Participation Board is taking exciting steps to ensure care experienced young people are meaningfully involved in Corporate Parenting Board meetings.  As part of this process a co-chair role will now be filled by members of the Care Leavers Forum.  For any young people interested in finding out more about the opportunities for Children in Care and Care Leavers, please contact debbie.garrett@brighton-hove.gov.uk

Congratulations to Hove Park School for retaining their Good grading at their last Ofsted inspection. The Inspector said “Pupils are proud ambassadors of the school.  Pupils of all abilities and backgrounds are valued” and “Leaders have a clear vision for the curriculum... They ensure that the curriculum caters for pupils’ academic and personal development.”

Blatchington Mill School had its Ofsted inspection last week and we look forward to being able to report the results.  Brackenbury Primary School’s Ofsted inspection takes place tomorrow - we wish them very good luck for the next couple of days.

Goodbye 

We say goodbye and thank you this month to Bob Speight who has stepped down as Principal of BACA.  Over the last four years, Bob has led BACA to great success with academic outcomes improving year on year.  Bob will be missed by colleagues across the Brighton & Hove Partnership but I would like to wish him all the best for the future.  Stephanie Newman will take over as Interim Executive Principal until a new Principal is appointed.

                                                     Bob Speight

Best wishes,

Jo

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons

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Happy Chinese New Year!

 

I would like to wish a very happy new year to everyone celebrating the Chinese new year across Brighton and Hove!  Tuesday 1st February marks the start of the year of the Tiger, the third of twelve signs in the Chinese zodiac.  I'm looking forward to seeing and hearing about all the fabulous ways in which our schools and education providers are celebrating this year.

The Power of Reading 

 

It is wonderful to hear that the Citywide Power of Reading project that started in 2019, and was disrupted by the pandemic, has continued to grow in strength. After finally completing the CLPE training online, Cohort 1 Schools have this year focused on embedding the approach in their schools. This has been facilitated through Network meetings supported by lead teachers from Associate Power of Reading School, Rudyard Kipling Primary School and Primary Teaching and Learning Consultants.  They are looking forward to sharing how this has impacted on pupils’ writing and love of reading at their Celebration Event which takes place on Tuesday 1st March, 2.00pm-4.00pm.  I hope that you will be able to join them! For more details, please contact joyti.azad@brighton-hove.gov.uk. 

National Apprenticeship Week 2022 

National Apprenticeship Week 22 takes place from 7th to 13th February this year.  This is the 15th annual week-long celebration of apprenticeships taking place across England and will showcase the positive effects apprenticeships can have on communities, local businesses and regional economies and how they all benefit from the impact of apprenticeships.  A series of events will be taking place across the week for apprentices and also staff who are interested in finding out more.  These include briefing sessions, training events and meeting your director events.  To find out more about apprenticeships and NAW22 please contact apprenticeships@brighton-hove.gov.uk 

Youth Employment Hub

                                                                                            Elena Watkiss

The Youth Employment Hub has been very busy supporting the Kickstart scheme in helping to bring employers and young people together in six month, paid placements since opening in June last year.  The team have recently had the opportunity to offer their own Kickstart placement.  Elena Watkiss started working alongside the Coordinator at the Hub last month to ensure services run smoothly.  She will be a welcoming face on the Hub’s reception desk for the next six months.  Welcome Elena!

STEM Youth Competition

I was delighted to hear that schools across the city have been invited to work with the British International Education Association on their annual STEM Youth Competition focusing on Greening Cities, Sustaining Life.   Students will be considering ways humans of the future can live in harmony with the planet.  To register your interest or to find out more visit the BIEA’s website here.

Staff Wellbeing Innovation Fund

I was pleased to hear that the Public Health Schools Programme has secured funding as a direct response from the School Staff Survey conducted in January 2021.  This provides an opportunity for schools to try out small initiatives that aim to improve physical and mental wellbeing for staff and hopes to provide a small morale boost for staff after such a difficult year. The amount you can apply for ranges from £200 to £500, dependent of the number of pupils enrolled at your school. 

So far, over £16,200 of a variety of small initiatives have been funded revamping the staff room, yoga/physical activity session, one off events at the end of term, even part funding for a new therapy dog. I strongly encourage schools to apply as there is enough funding for all schools.  Please email ph.schools@brighton-hove.gov.uk to request the short application form.

Virtual School Holiday Art Club

 

The Virtual School continues to offer a free holiday art club for children in care and children previously in care aged 5-13. The February art club will coincide with Valentine’s Day this year with the theme being ‘all things lovely’. There are two courses on offer- one will take place every morning of half term (14th – 18th February) at the St Nicholas Parish Centre, and an equivalent course run each afternoon online. Each child that attends has the opportunity to be enrolled in the Arts Award which enables them to work towards the Bronze level award (Y6-Y8), equivalent to a GCSE grade 1-3.  If you’d like to sign up an eligible child, please contact the Virtual School by Tuesday 1st February. 

Self-Harm Learning Network

The Self-Harm Learning Network, facilitated by West Sussex Mind, YMCA Downslink Group and supported by Allsorts Youth Project will be taking place over the spring and summer terms. This will provide parents and carers across Brighton & Hove with an opportunity to network and get updates on the latest initiatives, research, resources and policies.  If you are interested in attending the 1.5-hour long session, make sure you book your place in advance.  Please refer to the Public Health Schools team for the full lists of dates and times at ph.schools@brighton-hove.gov.uk. 

The inspection reports for Aldrington CE Primary School, St Bernadette’s Catholic Primary School, the Bilingual Primary School and Portslade Aldridge Community Academy have all been published in January. Congratulations to all the schools for retaining their good grading in their latest Ofsted inspections.

The inspector stated that at Aldrington CE Primary School “Pupils respond positively to the high expectations of behaviour and learning set by leaders”.

The St Bernadette’s Catholic Primary inspection report says: “Expectations are high and pupils rise to these. They take pride in their work and wider achievements”.

At the Bilingual School the inspector highlighted that: “Pupils at this school feel safe, happy and well cared for”.

PACA’s Ofsted report noted that “High aspirations for every pupil are at the heart of the school’s ambitious curriculum… The school’s personal development offer is a particular strength of the school”.

Hove Park Secondary School and Homewood College have also received Ofsted inspections in December and we are awaiting the published reports.  We are aware that a couple of schools have had to defer their inspections due to COVID numbers at school and are expecting more Ofsted inspections to take place soon.

Welcome and Thank You

I am very pleased to welcome Russell Brentnall as Acting Headteacher at West Blatchington Primary School.  Russell is stepping up from his Assistant Headteacher role until the recruitment for a permanent headteacher is made.  We look forward to working with Russell in his new position.

                                                            Russell Brentnall

I am also delighted to welcome Susan Thompson into her new role as Head at Brunswick Primary School.  We look forward to working with Susan closely over the coming months. 

                                                             Susan Thompson

Welcome also to Brendan Murphy, the new communications manager for FCL.  Brendan has previously worked with a number of large local authorities, as well as the NSPCC and Shelter and is a former national and local newspaper journalist, ex-primary school teacher and a governor at a Hove secondary school.  We look forward to welcoming Brendan and working with him in his new role.

                                                           Brendan Murphy

Finally, we say goodbye and thank you this month to Peter Freeman who is stepping down as Chair of the Schools Forum.  Peter has held the role of Chair for almost 20 years and has led the Forum through some complex and challenging issues during this time.  Peter has always had the highest respect from colleagues across the city and will be much missed as Chair of the Forum.  I would like to thank Peter for all of his hard work and dedication and his expert leadership.  I am very pleased that he will continue to be involved in our city’s schools in his role as Chair of Governors at Coombe Road Primary School and look forward to continuing to work with him in this capacity.  

                                                             Peter Freeman

Best wishes,

Jo

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons

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Happy Christmas

 

As we approach the end of the year, I would like to thank everyone for the commitment and dedication you have shown towards the children, young people and communities of Brighton & Hove.  2021 has been an incredibly challenging year for everyone but I am very grateful for the contributions you have made in responding to the uncertainties, anxieties and challenges that have arisen throughout this difficult time.

I would also like to thank the Education & Skills team who have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic to ensure our services run as smoothly as possible and that we maintain the consistent levels of support we offer across the city.

I would like to wish you and your families a very happy and restful Christmas and a healthy and happy new year.  I look forward to continuing our work together in 2022. 

Brighton and Hove Primary Schools Cross Country

I was very interested to hear more about the Brighton and Hove Primary Schools Cross Country which took place on Wednesday 17 November at Waterhall.  Over 1,210 children took part from 41 primary/junior schools from across the city.  It was great to see so many children taking part and enjoying the event.   A big thank you to Blatchington Mill, Patcham High, Dorothy Stringer and Varndean College Sports Leaders – who all did such a great job helping steward out on the course, hare the races and help with the finish funnel. 

A record breaking 80 children from across the city will now represent Brighton and Hove at the Sussex School Games finals on Thursday 3 March 2022 at Waterhall.  Good luck to these students! 

The Big Sing

On Wednesday 15 December, thousands of children took part in the Big Sing 2021, a singing celebration for schools to connect voices across the region.  Together with Glyndebourne, Brighton & Hove Music and Arts/East Sussex Music have been working with 115 schools this term on this digital event that connects more singers and young musicians across our region than ever before.  

To see how local schools are taking part, follow activities on the Brighton & Hove Music and Arts social media this week or, for more information, contact maevents@brightondome.org 

HAF Programme Update

The Winter Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme will be running during the Christmas holidays, providing free enriching activities and a healthy meal for children aged four (in full-time education) to 16 who are on benefits-related free school meals. 

To find out more and book your place, visit this link.

Inspections have taken place this month at Hove Park School and 6th Form, the Bilingual Primary School and Homewood College.  We are expecting reports to be published after Christmas.

Thank You, Welcome and Goodbye

I would like to thank Alison Colbran who has been Acting Headteacher at Brunswick Primary School for the last year.  Alison will be stepping back into her permanent position as Deputy Headteacher at the school from January.  Alison has been a strong leader during this difficult year and we look forward to continuing to work with her in her Deputy Headteacher role.

                                                                        Alison Colbran

Thank you also to Helen Cowling who has been acting as Interim Head of Early Years since October.  We are very grateful to Helen for all of her help and hard work during this time.  Helen remains with the Education & Skills team and will be stepping back into her role as Service Manager – Children’s Centres from this week.

                                                              Helen Cowling

I would like to welcome Pam Ridgwell who was appointed as Interim Executive Head based at Homewood College last month.  We look forward to working in partnership with her in her new role.

                                                                 Pam Ridgwell

I am delighted to confirm that Kate Claydon will be continuing in her role as Headteacher at Blatchington Mill School, having recently been appointed to the position in a permanent capacity.  Congratulations to Kate and we look forward to working with her in the new year.

                                                                      Kate Claydon

We are very pleased to welcome Jo Templeman to the Education & Skills Team this month.  Jo comes to us from East Sussex County Council and will be taking over the role of Head of Early Years and Early Help Strategy this week.  I am sure everyone will welcome Jo and we look forward to working closely with her over the coming months.

                                                                 Jo Templeman

We say goodbye and thank you this month to Rachel Simmonds, Headteacher at West Blatchington Primary School.  Rachel has been an inspiring and dedicated leader during her time at the school and she will be missed by all of her colleagues across Brighton and Hove.  We look forward to keeping in touch with Rachel.

                                                              Rachel Simmonds

We also say goodbye to Louise Cook as Executive Head at the Central Hub. I would like to thank Louise for her dedication to the young people who face the most challenges within the city and wish her the best for the future.

Best wishes,

Jo

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons

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Anti-Bullying Week 2021

 

It has been great to see some examples of the activities taking place throughout the city’s schools to mark this year’s National Anti-Bullying Week, which took place from 15th-19th November.  I look forward to hearing more about the wonderful work that has taken place this month across Brighton and Hove.

At St Luke's Primary School, children have been participating in activities with the theme of 'One Kind Word'.  These activities have included: growing skills in identifying when mean behaviour becomes bullying behaviour and knowing safe strategies to safely challenge bullying behaviour and where to get help. Children have learnt about the science of kindness and the ripple effect of one kind word or action. They have also practised using kind words and made kindness cards, class kindness jars and shown how kindness is a chain reaction in kindness paper chains.  

                                      Kindness cards in Year 3 at St Luke’s Primary

                                     Kindness chain reactions at St Luke’s Primary

New Brighton & Hove City Council Reading Recovery Centre

I am really pleased to let you know that the new Brighton & Hove City Council Reading Recovery Centre is now based at West Blatchington Primary and Nursery School.  Thank you very much to Moulsecoomb Primary School who have hosted the centre for the last ten years.  

The centre will be used for professional development of our expert Reading Recovery Teachers, school staff in Every Child a Reader interventions and wider training run by B&H Primary Teaching and Learning Consultants.   We look forward to inviting you into the Centre in the near future. 

Staff Wellbeing Innovation Fund

The Public Health Schools Programme has secured funding as a direct response from the School Staff Survey conducted in January 2021.  It provides an opportunity for schools to try out small initiatives that aim to improve physical and mental wellbeing for staff and we hope may provide a small morale boost for staff after such a difficult year. The amount you can apply for ranges from £200-£500, this is dependent of the number of pupils enrolled at your school. 

So far, we have funded just over £11,000 of a wide variety of small initiatives. Some of these include outside furniture for staff areas, revamping the staff room, yoga/physical activity session, lifeguard hire, one off events at the end of term, equipment and instructor costs, staff training, even part funding for a new therapy dog.   I strongly encourage all schools to apply as there is enough funding for all schools.  Please email ph.schools@brighton-hove.gov.uk to request the short application form. 

Ofsted have been busy in the city this month with three schools receiving inspections: St Bernadette’s Catholic Primary, Portslade Aldridge Community Academy and Aldrington CE Primary School. The inspections were all two day section 8 inspections. We look forward to seeing the reports.

The report for Carden Primary School’s inspection, which took place in September, has been published this month. The inspection report noted that “pupils’ wider development is a particular strength of the school’s curriculum. The school’s commitment to equality and diversity lies at the heart of all it does and underpins pupils’ learning.” 

St Nicolas CE Primary School Inspection report was published on 26 November. The school have retained their “Good” grading and the inspector said: “Leaders have high expectations of all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)” and “provision for pupils’ broader development is of high quality”.

Congratulations to all those who have had inspections recently. 

Best wishes,

Jo

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons

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Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) Programme

 

Thanks to funding from the DfE 557 children and young people from low-income families in Brighton and Hove benefitted from the Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme this summer.  HAF is a national programme for children aged 4 to 16 who are in full-time education and receive benefits-related free school meals. Activity providers delivered enriching activities throughout the summer school holiday at 33 venues across the city. 

In addition to the fantastic array of activities on offer, including skateboarding, drama, cooking, gymnastics and forest school, each child received a nutritious meal each day.  The Black Minority Ethnic Young People’s Project (BMEYPP) also used their World Kitchen theme to engage and support young people of colour. Vannessa Crawford, Project Development Manager explained “Young people were introduced to some foods they had not tried before, but also when the food was familiar to them, it made the young people (and their culture) feel more included and represented".

The next programme will take place during the school Christmas holidays. To see what’s on offer, visit www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/HAF-events or email HAF@brighton-hove.gov.uk for more information.

YouthWise Meeting

This month young people in Brighton and Hove have given their views on climate change direct to councillors and other decision makers in the city at a meeting hosted by young people from the Hangleton & Knoll Project.  23 young people attended a pre meeting to discuss the issues of climate change and prepare questions and proposals for councillors at the event, which was jointly organised by Brighton & Hove City Council’s Youth Participation Team and the city’s key youth-led policy group YouthWise.

YouthWise was set up to enable young people in the city to have a voice. It brings together 11 key youth groups across the city with events organised on a quarterly basis.  The chair of the Council’s Children, Young People and Skills Committee, Councillor Hannah Clare attended and commented: “We know that our young people want to have more influence in local decision making, and we want to help make this happen. Young people continually raise the climate crisis as an issue; they want not only to discuss this but also see action being taken”. 

If you would like to know more about YouthWise please contact Tracie James, tracie.james@brighton-hove.gov.uk 

Youth Employment Hub Visit

                                                  Mims Davies MP and Elle Dyson

We were delighted to welcome Mims Davies, Minister for Employment to our Youth Employment Hub in October to meet the staff behind the project and hear about the exciting initiatives and projects we have been championing. 

The Minister heard from DWP and Council colleagues about the collaborative work which has been undertaken to make the Youth Employment Hub a success, and also had the opportunity to speak with Future Creators to hear about the work of the Youth Employment Hub from an employer’s perspective. 

She said: “It was fantastic to meet the team at the Youth Employment Hub and hear about the invaluable support they are providing to local young people and the valuable local partnership they have with DWP.  From Youth Hubs and the Kickstart scheme to apprenticeships and dedicated Work Coaches, our Plan for Jobs is supporting young people in Brighton and beyond to get into work, progress, and maximise their potential.” 

Brighton & Hove Youth Council Induction

                                         Youth Councillors taking part in activities

It has been lovely to hear about the induction day for Brighton & Hove Youth Council which was held at Brighton Town Hall earlier this month.  Sixteen young people attended, representing ten different schools and colleges.  The Youth Councillors learnt how decisions are made in the Council and how they can have an impact on ensuring young people’s voices are heard.  The young people took part in team building and collaborative exercises to get to know each other and become aware of the skills they will develop as a Youth Councillor.  

There are a total of 23 Youth Councillors who are very keen to represent young people’s voices in the city.  Attendees also took part in a workshop led by Transport Planning which enabled them to feed their views into the Local Transport Plan and Local Cycling and Walking infrastructure plan for the city.  All young people thoroughly enjoyed the day and one Youth Councillor said: “I liked meeting new people and talking about issues that need to be tackled”. 

If you want to know more about the Youth Council, or to check your school is represented, please contact Tracie James at tracie.james@brighton-hove.gov.uk

School Streets 

A six-week online consultation has been launched to gather views for road restrictions outside six of the city’s primary schools - Westdene Primary School, Downs Infant School; Downs Junior School; St Mary’s RC Primary School; Hove Junior School (Portland Road site); Queen’s Park Primary School.

Working in partnership with the schools, School Streets will create more space for safer journeys to and from school by reallocating road space during drop off and pick up times. This will allow a safer space for walking, cycling and scooting while also reducing the number of cars parked or idling outside school gates which will improve air quality.   For more information, please follow this link.  The deadline for responses is 29 November. 

Opening of BHASVIC’s New Elms Building

                                   Students opening BHASVIC’s new Elms Building

I was delighted to attend the official opening of the new Elms Building at BHASVIC this month and was so pleased to be able to see some fantastic performances from the students.  Well done to everyone who took part in this special celebration.

Congratulations to Jenny Barnard-Langston

                                                      Jenny Barnard-Langston

Congratulations to Jenny Barnard-Langston who works with our Governance Development Team on her re-appointment as a National Leader of Governance.  The NLG programme has been reformed this year and is now being managed by the National Governance Association, so Jenny had to undergo a rigorous application process, including an interview and two day induction.  She is one of 60 NLGs across the country who have been newly designated by the Department for Education to support schools with governance challenges, including external reviews of governance.  

As well her commissioned NLG work, Jenny delivers training to local governors with the council’s Governance Development Team.  This includes the Chairs’ Development Programme, which consists of five sessions for new and aspiring chairs to work together to develop themselves as leaders.  A strong new cohort has just started and I look forward to hearing how they get on.  Thank you to all governors and clerks for their continued commitment and hard work in the city’s schools.

Ofsted are very much back to regular business and we have had two inspections recently – one at Carden Primary School and one at St Nicolas CE Primary School.  We look forward to reading their reports once released.

Welcomes and Goodbyes

We say goodbye and thank you to Ashley Harrold who will be stepping down as Headteacher at Blatchington Mill School after the half term break.  He moves on after six years in this role, during which time the school has reached consistently high standards in ensuring its young people achieve the best they can.  Ashley has always been committed to partnership working and will be very missed across the Brighton and Hove Education Partnership.  We wish him all the best for his new role.

                                                                        Ashley Harrold

I am very pleased to welcome Kate Claydon, who will be taking over from Ashley as Acting Headteacher.  Kate will be stepping up from her Deputy Headteacher role until the recruitment for a permanent headteacher is made.  We look forward to working more closely with Kate in her new position.

                                                                        Kate Claydon

I would also like to welcome Camille Kumar who has recently joined our Education, Standards and Achievement team as the Education Adviser for Anti-Racism.  Camille will be working with partners across Brighton and Hove to continue development and implementation of the comprehensive anti-racist education strategy. Camille will be reaching out to colleagues in schools as the work progresses both to utilise expertise and to offer whatever support she can to deepen anti-racist practice.  Camille can be emailed on camille.kumar@brighton-hove.gov.uk

                                                               Camille Kumar

Best wishes,

Jo

Keep in touch and follow me on Twitter @JoMLyons

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