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If you have information to be included in the next issue of the PEP bulletin, please send your text, image and link by Tuesday at 12pm to pep@portsmouthcc.gov.uk.
Inclusion
Free training event to help organisations and community groups become more accessible |
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 Portsmouth SEND Local Offer alongside KIDS, a charity that champions the voice of young people, are hosting an in-person training event to help organisations and community groups learn about the benefits of co-production. The event will take place at Central Library on Thursday 3 July 2025 from 10am - 1pm.
Co-production is a collaborative approach where communities and service providers work together as equal partners to design, deliver and evaluate services.
Organisations and groups who attend will learn how they can use co-production to make their services accessible for families with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
Please share this information with organisations and community group leaders you work with. Schools and academies are welcome to attend the session too. For more information, visit the Eventbrite page to get your free ticket. Due to limited capacity, two tickets are allowed per organisation only. A waiting list is in operation.
Trauma informed eLearning |
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We’re excited to launch a new free trauma informed eLearning module that's now available.
Using a trauma informed approach means giving a compassionate, informed response to the people who use our services as well as supporting those who provide them. This involves realising, recognising and responding to the effects of trauma, and developing ways that we, our environments and our organisations, work to reduce the likelihood of our services being re-traumatising.
This eLearning module is intended to introduce people to the fundamentals of a trauma informed approach. It is designed to be a foundation learning for everyone, on which further training can build.
The training takes around an hour to complete and will help you to understand:
- What is trauma
- Understanding the impact of trauma and how it presents
- How to detect and respond to it effectively
- How to work in a trauma-informed way
- How to look after yourself when supporting a traumatised individual
The eLearning is available on the Portsmouth City Council learning portal.
Portsmouth Inclusion Conference: Thursday 9 October 2025 |
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We are delighted to announce that booking for our annual Inclusion Conference is now open.
We are very pleased to share that our keynote speaker this year is Ginny Bootman, SENDCO and author of ‘Independent Thinking On Being A SENDCO'
Ginny has been a headteacher, senior manager and class teacher, teaching all ages in the primary age range. She is currently SENDCO of four primary schools in Northamptonshire. She speaks nationally about being a SENDCO and the difference building positive connections makes to children, staff and parents alike.
Early bird tickets are available until the end of term for £75. The first 100 tickets purchased will get a free copy of Ginny's book.
A second ticket purchased at the same time can be bought for £50. The non-early bird cost is £100 per ticket.
Head to the Traded Services website for full details, including workshop descriptions and to make your booking.
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School improvement
ActiveMe 360 support for schools |
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Following the recent release of the Primary PE and Sport Premium Conditions of Grant for the 2024–2025 academic year, schools are once again tasked with ensuring that funding is spent in line with key expectations — delivering sustainable improvements in physical education, sport and physical activity, while also evidencing measurable impact.
In response, Gemma Gwilliam has been speaking to ActiveMe 360, a trusted social enterprise already working with schools across the region. Their offer includes high-quality support that meets the DfE’s priorities, such as teacher mentoring and CPD, mobile swimming solutions (Swim:ED), wraparound care, and innovative active learning programmes like Maths on the Move.
If you'd like to find out more, please see the brochure or email Gemma at GGwilliam@portsmouththedigitalcity.co.uk and she can introduce you to James Shannon, partner success manager at ActiveMe 360.
Become a Reading Champion school with the Destination Reader team |
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For the past three years Hackney schools have transformed their reading culture through the use of the Hackney pupil reading champions programme designed by the Hackney literacy team. Watch their leads and children talk about the approach here.
The approach aims to cultivate a strong reading for pleasure culture within schools through pupil-led initiatives to help raise the profile of reading. It centers on pupils working independently as leaders of reading with support from school leaders.
From this work with Hackney schools a training programme has been developed which can be purchased for your school to support you in delivering the approach through the year.
The complete package is £320 +VAT and includes;
- 1/2 day online training for 2x leads on how to run the champion approach on Thursday 2 October 2025 from 1.30pm - 4.30pm
- School leader guidance booklet and online resources
- Online booklet for reading champion pupils with guidance and challenges
- Examples of good practice from other schools
- Follow up support for pupils to build impact
To book a space on the training, please complete the order form and return to joanna.murray@hackney.gov.uk.
Oracy briefing: Wednesday 2 July 2025 |
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Liphook Infant and Liphook C of E Junior Schools have been embedding oracy across their federation to develop their children's self-confidence, engagement, and understanding of learning for the past two and a half years. They have set up an oracy hub to support, and to work collaboratively, with other schools in this area of work and have provided training for 16 infant, junior and primary schools in Portsmouth over the past year. They are running further network groups next year.
Join their oracy briefing on Wednesday 2 July 2025 from 4pm - 5pm to find out more about oracy and how they are working with schools like yours.
Early years
Rhyme With Me |
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 Following hot on the heels of Read With Me… comes Rhyme With Me! This is a brand new Portsmouth early years project created in collaboration with Portsmouth Music Service. Take a look at this video to find out more about the project.
We have 10 traditional nursery rhymes that you can use in your early years setting with your children and also share with parents. To access these resources, go to Portsmouth Music Hub's website and click the 'Rhyme With Me' drop down on the lefthand side. You'll see a list of each of the 10 nursery rhymes linking to the resources relating to each one.
You can choose to download the performance track or backing track, view a video with Helen from the Music Service acting out each rhyme, view cards with the song words on and cards with 'altogether activities' which give ideas on how singing the rhymes can support musical development, communication, language and literacy and personal, social and emotional development. Click the card to open up a version you can print or download.
Primary Attainment Data Collection Summer 2025 - message from Education Information Services |
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Thank you to the schools that have submitted data to Education Information Services (EIS) so far. We really appreciate it.
Please check that you received the email from Education Information Services (Victoria Sims) that was sent on 14/05/2025 with the subject: Important Information - Primary Assessment Data Collection Summer 2025.
This email contained the key information regarding this summer's primary data collection.
We would like to highlight our concerns about this year's collection so that we can work with you effectively.
Keeping siblings together |
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Foster Portsmouth believe that siblings should be kept together whenever possible. However, we need more foster carers with a large enough home to make this possible.
Foster carer Ruth shared: “There is the usual conflict between siblings, but that is the only real challenge. It’s the most rewarding care I have ever done."
Foster carers will need the additional time, patience and energy, as well as the skills to care for a small family of siblings, each with their own individual needs. By its nature, fostering siblings can be twice the work… but equally, it's twice as rewarding.
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Climate adaptation: Heat in school settings webinar and workshop |
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Thursday 10 July 2025 2pm - 4pm | Online
There is increasing understanding of the impacts of heat in schools. Climate change is increasing the frequency of heatwaves and hot summer days. Teachers have observed that hotter conditions affect pupil concentration and learning and impact teachers too. This online webinar and workshop will:
- explore what we can learn from the national evidence and how it applies to Portsmouth
- provide an opportunity to consider what a heat-ready / well-adapted school environment looks like
- give you the opportunity to shape future actions through this online workshop.
Guest speakers:
- Dr Laura Dawkins: Laura is an Expert Scientist in Climate Risk & Resilience at the Met Office, and an Honorary Senior Research Fellow in the University of Bristol School of Mathematics.
- Professor Dan Bernie: Dan co-manages the UK Climate Resilience team at the Met Office, is Met Office Health Science lead, and Associate Professor in the University of Bristol's Faculty of Health and Life Sciences.
- Dr Paul Hudson: Paul is a Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics at the University of York.
To book your place, please visit the Eventbrite page. If you have any challenges using Eventbrite, please contact Felicity.Harris@portsmouthcc.gov.uk and a Teams invite will be sent to you directly.
Take the bus for free on 19 June for Clean Air Day |
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You can take the bus for free on Thursday 19 June for Clean Air Day 2025 and show your support for cleaner air in the city.
As part of Portsmouth's Bus Service Improvement Plan, designed to improve bus services in the city, Portsmouth City Council has collaborated with local bus companies First Solent and Stagecoach South to offer free travel on the bus on Thursday 19 June when your journey begins in Portsmouth, excluding Park & Ride.
This is a great chance for you to try out the bus. If you are on the school run or commuting to work you can help to make the city's air cleaner and reduce traffic congestion by taking cars off the road.
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