City of Wolverhampton Education Providers' Bulletin: 13 September 2022

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Education Providers' Bulletin 

Tuesday 13 September 2022

City of Wolverhampton
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If you would like your Chair of Governors, SENDCo, DSL or Digital Leads to receive this bulletin, please email Georgia.Smith@wolverhampton.gov.uk with their email address who will add them to the distribution list.

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Bulletin Summary


  1. Message from Emma Bennett - Executive Director of Families
  2. Early Years
  3. Health and Safety
  4. Information  
  5. Training and Consultation
  6. DfE Update 

Message from Emma Bennett - Executive Director of Families


Dear Colleague,

I hope that you had a really good summer holiday and the new term has started well? 

You will all have important roles to play in supporting our children following the sad news about the passing of Her Majesty The Queen last Thursday.  Please contact us or follow guidance on GOV.UK for any advice regarding paying respects.

You have all been incredible leaders over the last couple of years through the pandemic and I am really pleased to see the outcomes that children and young people in our city have achieved. In particular, the provisional data for end of key stage 2 is extremely positive with 60% achieving the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Mathematics. This is above the national average and places Wolverhampton in the top third of all local authorities. Results at GCSE and post 16 also look positive at individual establishments although we don’t have an overall average score yet. These outcomes show clear evidence of the commitment and passion you and your staff have to ensure children can fully achieve.

Despite these excellent outcomes we know that we still have challenges as a partnership in Wolverhampton to support all children achieve their potential. We are now fully staffed in the Inclusion and Empowerment service which will support our timeliness and quality of Education Health and Care Plan assessments and reviews, and also support improving attendance and inclusion. This is a big priority for us going forward and I look forward to seeing you at the Inclusion Summit on 17 October - please see the attached for details and how to register.

As a council we are committed to building stronger families and are in the process of developing re-visioned Family Hubs. We are also looking at how we can develop the Social Worker in schools programme and will share more details at the Director’s briefing on 29 September.

I hope that you have a really good year and I look forward to being able to come and visit many of you in your setting or school during this academic year which I am committed to prioritising!

Best wishes,

Emma

Emma Bennett
Executive Director of Families


Early Years


Free Early Years SENCO training

The DfE have appointed Best Practice Network to deliver Level 3 EY SENCO's training over the next two years. Best Practice Network will target specific areas based on levels of disadvantage. The first cohort will begin in October 2022, with additional cohorts added up until August 2024. The training will be available to early years staff working in settings and childminders.

Minister for School Standards said “This is a crucial programme within our EY recovery package, addressing the impact of the pandemic on the youngest and most disadvantaged children. The sector has worked incredibly hard to support families over the past few years and we want to continue working with them to support all early years children”.

Please visit the Best Practice Network website for more information and to enrol on the training.

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Claire Hardiman 
Early Years & Childcare Development Officer  Claire.hardiman@wolverhampton.gov.uk   


National Professional Qualification for Early Years Leadership

We are pleased to let you know that Manor Teaching School Hub, in conjunction with Ambition Institute, are running the National Professional Qualification for Early Years Leadership. There are two cohorts, one commencing in Autumn 2022 and one in Feb 2023.

The main target audiences for the NPQEYL are participants qualified to at least Level 3 with a full and relevant qualification who are, or are aspiring to be: 

  • Managers of Private, Voluntary and Independent nurseries
  • Headteachers of school-based or maintained nurseries
  • Childminders with leadership responsibilities

If this is a suitable qualification for yourself or someone in your setting then  - register your interest here.

If you would like to join the autumn 2022 cohort then the registration deadline is 13 September.

For further information please click here.

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Stacey Henderson
Senior Early Years Advisor Stacey.Henderson@Wolverhampton.gov.uk


Health and Safety


HSE Asbestos Inspections within Schools - September 2022

The HSE will be carrying out a programme of inspections within selected primary and secondary schools from September 2022 onwards, (see link to the ebulletin) HSE inspectors to assess the management of asbestos in schools (govdelivery.com)

The HSE have advised that schools will be contacted to arrange site visits, therefore if your school is contacted please speak with Gavin Baker (Senior Compliance Officer) at your earliest convenience, who will visit your school and prepare you for the HSE inspection.

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Neal Shore
Building Compliance safety Manager neal.shore@wolverhampton.gov.uk


Information


Persistently high incidence of scarlet fever and invasive group A streptococcus above seasonally expected levels

Colleagues in educational settings are asked to be aware of an unusually high incidence of scarlet fever and invasive group A streptococcus (IGAS) nationally. The UK Health Security Agency has reported that activity did not decrease over the summer as expected and sustained high levels continued into June-July. Early indications suggest a possible decline in cases in children in August, although these may rise with start of the school term. It is likely that the unusual seasonal pattern will continue in the coming months as schools reopen.  Guidance for health protection in education and childcare settings is available here.

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Riva Eardley
Principal Public Health Specialist 
Riva.eardley2@wolverhampton.gov.uk


Management of Attendance – Updated Policy and Managers Guide

Please see the attached documents.

ECT Policy July 2022 

Teachers Appraisal Policy July 2020

The ECT Policy and Teachers Appraisal Policy have recently been updated and ratified. Please ensure that you are using this new updated version when dealing with any HR issues and queries.

If you need any further assistance, please contact the Schools HR team or your current HR provider.

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Claire Norman
HR Advisor
Claire.norman@wolverhampton.gov.uk.


National mourning education guidance and key contact information

As the arrangements for the funeral of Her Majesty the Queen have been confirmed, including 19 September 2022 now declared a Bank Holiday, the following document provides information and guidance for schools and settings.

https://dfecomms.blob.core.windows.net/documents/NationalMourningAdvisoryEducationGuidanceSept22.pdf

In addition, re Social care for children, adults and mental health:

  • Any immediate risks of life should be directed to 999.
  • Between 5pm on the evening of Friday 16 September 2022 and 8.30am on the morning of Tuesday 20 September 2022, social care emergency support for adults and children will be provided by the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub 24 (MASH 24) and requests for Mental Health Act assessments will be considered by our Approved Mental Health Professional Hub (AMHP Hub). These teams can be contacted by calling 01902 552999.
  • The hospital social work team for adults will continue to operate business as usual.
  • For more details visit Health and Social Care: Health and Social Care | City Of Wolverhampton Council

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Bill Hague
Head of School Business and Support
Bill.Hague@wolverhampton.gov.uk


Religious Education – Support for teachers

Please find below details of RE support for RE leads and teachers in the 2022-2023 academic year.

The Locally Agreed Syllabus continues to be available on the Wolverhampton SACRE webpage (link below).

Scheme of work and curriculum resources

The revised scheme of work that accompanies the Locally Agreed Syllabus and new curriculum resources will be made available to teachers via the RE teacher mailing list as these resources are not publicly available. If you are not subscribed to the mailing list you can do so here: https://forms.office.com/r/he6Mnc85LU. We will use the mailing list to communicate updates, resources and details of training and CPD.

New to RE support

To support new or recently appointed RE leads we have created a programme of support. This will include:

  • A free place at RE networks for 2022-2023
  • Access to termly ‘new to RE online drop ins’
  • A new to RE pack

If you would like to join the ‘new to RE’ cohort for 2022-2023 please sign up here: https://forms.office.com/r/YNGeSx9ZPH

Westhill Project: Multi-faith approaches to diversity and racial equality

After a very successful conference with Wolverhampton secondary schools we are now planning a second, larger conference for 2022-2023. If you are a primary school and you would like to express an interest in the second phase of this project please contact Georgia Smith – Georgia.smith@wolverhampton.gov.uk

Dates for your diary

Subject Leader Network – Please see WVES for further details and booking

Lead person to contact in the LA

Laura Jude
School Improvement Advisor for Equalities
Laura.Jude@wolverhampton.gov.uk


New to RE drop in sessions

  • 16 November, 15:30-16:30 on MS Teams
  • 9 February, 15:30-16:30 on MS Teams
  • 6 July, 15:30 – 16:30 on MS Teams

Meeting links will be sent by email if you are signed up via the ‘new to RE’ form above.

Lead person to contact in the LA

Laura Jude
School Improvement Advisor for Equalities
Laura.Jude@wolverhampton.gov.uk


Wolverhampton special schools RE community of practice meetings

15 November, 13:30-16:30 on MS Teams

The dates, times and venues for the Spring and Summer meetings in the 2022-2023 academic year will be agreed by the group at the first meeting.

Please email Laura Jude for the link to the first meeting.

Lead person to contact in the LA

Laura Jude
School Improvement Advisor for Equalities
Laura.Jude@wolverhampton.gov.uk


14-20 November: Road Safety Week 2022

Road Safety Week is the UK's biggest road safety campaign. Every year, thousands of schools, organisations and communities get involved to share important road safety messages, remember people affected by road death and injury, and raise funds to help Brake care for more road victims and campaign for safe roads for everyone.

The theme of Road Safety Week 2022 is SAFE ROADS FOR ALL.

Learn more and sign up here, it's free: https://www.brake.org.uk/road-safety-week

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Paul Lever
Professional Lead Road Safety Training and Promotion
paul.lever@wolverhampton.gov.uk


SEND Data – Primary Area of Need

Attached are two documents which were sent out to SENCOs, Special Schools and PRUs in July 2022.  An amended version was sent again in August 2022.

  • Interactive Charts: Compare your school’s data for primary area of need with local and national
  • Presentation: Impact of SEND priorities by Education Excellence over the last two years

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Kathryn Bailey
School Improvement SEND Advisor
Kathryn.Bailey@wolverhampton.gov.uk


Free Reach Next Generation Summit for 11–15-year-old girls is coming to Birmingham on Saturday 8 October 2022

The Reach Next Generation Summit for 11–15-year-old girls is coming to Birmingham and will be taking place at Villa Park, home of Aston Villa Football Club on Saturday 8 October 2022.

All the details are shown on the invitation attached, and we would very much like girls from Wolverhampton to be part of this fabulous Summit.

The Summit is FREE to attend and we provide lunch and afternoon snacks.

Paul Jeffries
Co Founder
Paul@wearereach.net


Information sharing for prospective Educational Psychologists on 27 September 2022

The Educational Psychology Service is holding an online open afternoon for anyone interested in Educational Psychology as a career. Everyone is welcome wherever they are at in their career or study. For further information please click here.

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Ruth Hewett
Senior Educational Psychologist ruth.hewett@wolverhampton.gov.uk


Safeguarding SLA Service


Dear Colleagues

I would like to introduce myself as the new Education Safeguarding Officer for City of Wolverhampton Council. I am really looking forward to working with settings and supporting colleagues this academic year. Those settings who have already signed up to the service should have received communication to begin planning for the upcoming academic year. Any setting who would like more information about the services I can offer, please contact me on the details below:

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Kelly Jones
Education Safeguarding Officer
Kelly.Jones@wolverhampton.gov.uk


Training and Consultation


School Improvement Workshop for Head Teachers and Educational leaders 29 September 2022

The next School Improvement Workshop for Head Teachers and Educational Leaders is being held on 29 September 2022.  

Please note that both the Directors briefing, and the SIA day will be delivered face to face at the GTG training Centre, WV11 3SZ

These events have always been delivered as face to face events to allow School Leaders in work collaboratively, share good practice/concerns from across the city and allow leaders to network. Leaders have told us that they greatly valued the face to face nature of these meetings as it allowed them to speak to SIAs and other Heads and ask those nagging questions that they would never ask in a remote meeting. During the July SIA day a number of School Leaders suggested alternative options for delivering the Directors briefing and the SIA days. We would really like to hear more views on how we deliver these days in the future and so we intend to consult with school leaders at the SIA day on how to move forward to meet the needs of all School Leaders while allowing the collaborative opportunities that the SIA days bring.

The agenda for the SIA day will include:

  • Updates from Ann Pritchard HMI regarding Ofsted
  • Jameel Mullan regarding exclusions
  • A range of other workshops including: Pupil Premium SEND and Early Years.

The draft agenda can be found here.

These sessions will be relevant to all Head Teachers/Principals from all schools including Primary, Secondary, Maintained schools, Academies, Nursery Schools and Special Schools

The SIA day will be delivered through teams and participants can book on through WVES.

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Louise Mututa
School Improvement Advisor 
Louise.Mututa@wolverhampton.gov.uk
07970476527


SENCo/SEND Network Meeting – Thursday September 15 2022

Reminder for the next SENCO/SEND Network
Thursday 15  September 2022, 1.00pm – 3.30pm MS Team - Free! 

You must sign up beforehand to receive login details and any materials you may need.

If you would like to attend, please register on - www.wves.wolverhampton.gov.uk if you have any difficulties or queries with booking through the system please contact Hardip Jassal on 01902 55 (5930) or Hardip.Jassal3@wolverhampton.gov.uk. The session will be recorded. If you cannot attend, please book on, in order to receive the recording. Click here for access the agenda

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Kathryn Bailey
School Improvement SEND Advisor Kathryn.bailey@wolverhampton.gov.uk


Face to Face Early Years Update Session

On Wednesday 28 September 9.30-11.30am we will be hosting the early years update session face to face at a central location.

During this session an Early Education Quality and Practice Lead from Ofsted will be in attendance to discuss the following,

  • Ofsted’s Strategy 2022 – 2027.​
  • What has changed?​
  • Education recovery.​
  • EY Curriculum Roadshows, with a focus on communication and language
  • Q&A.

Please book on through WVES where the full agenda can be found. 

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Stacey Henderson
Senior Early Years Advisor
Stacey.Henderson@Wolverhampton.gov.uk


Mathematics Autumn CPD sessions 

Below are details of upcoming mathematics CPD sessions suitable for primary teachers. The mathematics subject leader session is suitable for primary maths subject leaders

Developing the teaching of number and place value in KS1 and 2 (Online session)
Wednesday 14th September 2022 - 1.30pm – 3.45pm

Developing the teaching of addition and subtraction in KS1 and 2 (Online session)
Thursday 6th October 2022 - 1.30pm – 3.45pm

Autumn Maths Subject Leader Network Meeting  (face-to-face session at the GTG centre)
Tuesday 15th November 2022 - 1.00pm – 3.30pm

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Sandeep Vashisht
Mathematics Advisory Teacher
Sandeep.Vashisht2@wolverhampton.gov.uk
07812495069


LA Projects (Maths SEND Project and Writing Project) 

There are two projects we are running this year. One to support writing in all year groups and one with a particular focus on SEND and Maths in year 4 and/or 5 (but results of the pilot show it impacts practice and learning outcomes for all). If you are interested, we have a 45 minute virtual session on Thursday 22 September at 2pm which we will also record.

To show a potential expression of interest, please fill in the following online form (which literally takes 30 seconds to complete). Please note that the date for the virtual session has been changed from Monday 19 September (now a bank holiday) to Thursday 22 September. A link to the online session will be sent out in due course to the email addresses provided in the form below.

LA Projects Expression of Interest

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Sandeep Vashisht
Mathematics Advisory Teacher
Sandeep.Vashisht2@wolverhampton.gov.uk
07812495069


Participants Needed for Study Exploring the Experiences of Mixed White Black Caribbean Secondary School Pupils with Social Emotional and Mental Health Needs

My name is Stephanie, a Trainee Educational Psychologist at the University of Birmingham. I am conducting research exploring the school experiences of Mixed White and Black Caribbean secondary-aged pupils who have Social Emotional Mental Health needs. Please see the attached flyer and information sheet for further details. If you are interested in pupils in your school being involved in this research, or would like further information please contact me via email stephanie.holden@wolverhampton.gov.uk

Lead person to contact in the LA:

Stephanie Holden
Trainee Educational Psychologist
stephanie.holden@wolverhampton.gov.uk



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