Letter to Governors September 2022

/in , /by

Dear Governors and Governance Professionals,

Please find attached a letter from Gareth Drawmer welcoming in the new academic year. The letter includes updates on Governor Hub, The Key, NGA memberships and Governor Training through BESST as well as the role of governors in supporting side by side school improvement and dates for your diary.

Letter to Governors 08.09.22

Also attached for your information are a copy of the Side By Side offer (school improvement) and a copy of a letter sent to headteachers earlier this week.

Side by Side Offer 2022-2023

Letter to headteachers Sept 22

Many thanks,

BESST

NSPCC IMPORTANT – Planning your PSHE/Safeguarding Curriculum? Sign upfor the NSPCC’s free Speak Out. Stay Safe. Online Assemblies today

/in , /by

It would be great if all Buckinghamshire Schools could receive the OFSTED recognised Safeguarding certificate by signing up for our Free assemblies and Free face to face workshops with the NSPCC. Many schools in the area have already signed up to deliver in September/October 2022.

 

Online Assemblies

I am getting in touch regarding our FREE safeguarding Speak out. Stay safe. Online assemblies. We have 2 online assemblies for you, KS1 have a 13-minute video assembly with pause points and (if relevant to your school) KS2 have a 22-minute video assembly with pause points, we talk with the children about their rights, trusted adults, and ChildLine amongst other safeguarding themes.

 

 

 

Year 5 and 6 Workshops

I may also be able to offer you a free face to face safeguarding workshop for years 5 and 6 (subject to volunteer availability) where we follow up on the key themes of the assemblies in more detail and the children receive a Buddy Kit as part of the workshop delivery.

 

 

Speak Out. Stay Safe SEND

A 6-session programme created with Image in Action where The NSPCC provides all the materials and resources with the flexibility to adapt frequency, length, and content of sessions to meet the needs of pupils.

 

 

Additional Free Resources.

We are also able to provide you with free videos and online seminars for parents and carers to discuss the apps and games children use and internet safety. We have lots of free additional resources you can use in your school such as PANTS and lessons plans for diversity and inclusion.

 

 

 

 

What next?

If you would like to access the Speak out. Stay safe. online programme and workshop, or any of our other free resources or to book in a guidance call to go through all the options and to sign a schools agreement, contact

Laura Franklin (she/her)

Schools Coordinator (Buckinghamshire & MK)

NSPCC Schools Service

Laura.Franklin@NSPCC.org.uk

 

You can also find out more by signing up here or for the SEND resources here.

I run a NSPCC schools service drop-in session on Microsoft Team’s at 3.30pm on the last Thursday of every month. Please feel free to join if you have any questions or would like a chat. Click here to join the meeting

 

Keeping children safe in Buckinghamshire 2020-21 factsheet (2)[150585].pdf

Keeping children safe in Buckinghamshire 2020-21 poster (1)[150586].pdf

Speak-out-stay-safe-online-programme-summary-document – FINAL[150584].pdf

 

Ofsted Handbook Update September 2022

/in , /by
Ofsted has updated its school inspection handbook, with the changes taking effect from 1st September 2022. You can read more about the changes in this Ofsted news story and a summary of changes document, but the key changes are as follows:
  • Section 5 inspections are being renamed ‘graded’ inspections.
  • Section 8 inspections are being renamed ‘ungraded’ inspections.
  • The handbooks for graded and ungraded inspections are being merged into a single handbook.
  • The new handbook has been re-ordered so that it better follows and reflects the flow of an inspection from start to finish.
  • The paragraphs regarding temporary COVID-19 measures have now been incorporated into the main sections of each of the handbooks, to make it clear that inspectors will continue to take account of issues that providers may be facing.
  • The transitional arrangements have now been removed from the updated handbooks. In their place, a new grade descriptor has been added to the quality of education judgement, acknowledging that settings are no longer facing emergency measures and are taking longer-term approaches to return pupils and learners to the curriculum they always intended.
  • FE & Skills inspections will include a new narrative sub-judgement on how well colleges are contributing to skills needs. You can see the relevant change to the EIF in this updated version.
Other documents that have been updated include:
Understandably, changes to the inspection handbook tend to prompt a flurry of anxiety and activity in the system. However, Ofsted has reassured us that most of the changes to the handbook are administrative and will not affect the process of inspection on the ground. That said, the removal of the transition statements is a change worth noting, although on this Ofsted has reassured us that the new criterion for ‘good’ (see above) will better support schools and inspectors to recognise that the curriculum is never truly a finished article and is always subject to review and renewal. Ofsted’s National Director for Education, Chris Russell, says in his accompanying blog, “We recognise that you are likely to always be revising elements of your curriculum.”
 
Ofsted’s concern was that the transition statements inadvertently risked creating the opposite expectation: that a curriculum must be finalised in some way to be effective. We agree with Ofsted’s recognition that a curriculum can – indeed, should – be subject to review and renewal, including in light of the pandemic, and we will be watching closely to see that the impact of this change on inspection practice is as Ofsted intends. 

DfE’s Governance Update July 2022

/in , /by
Dear Governors/LGB Members/Local Advisory Committee Members
 
Please note that the July 2022 edition of the DfE’s school governance update has been published.
 
Here you will find key announcements and information to support you in your governance role.
 
 
Articles include.
• Schools White Paper: Opportunity for all: strong schools with great teachers for your child
• Local Authority-established multi-academy trusts (MAT)
• SEND Review: Right support, right place, right time
• Recovery Guidance
• Keeping Children Safe in Education Guidance
• Webinars for schools on attendance best practice
• Flexible working training for school leaders
• External Reviews of Governance Guidance
• View My Financial Insights (VMFI) governor training webinars
• Early Years Foundation Stage Profile assessment
• Improving your computer science teaching: computing hubs are here for you
• Recruitment of National Leaders of Governance (NLGs)

BESST Governor Training

/in , , /by

BESST Governor Training

Summer term 2021/23 and Academic Year 2022/23

Governor training is a vital element in every governing board’s effectiveness. Recognising that Governors need flexibility, we offer a comprehensive ‘pay as you go’ training programme for all governors throughout the academic year.  Delivered by expert Buckinghamshire Council teams and selected partners, the training is tailored to governors within the county.

We are planning for all training in the academic year 2022/23 to be virtually hosted on MS Teams and delivered in the evening. Each session will be delivered by a local expert and will be interactive live courses. The one-hour sessions will be focused on the needs of Buckinghamshire’s governors and will allow plenty of time for ‘what if?’ scenario discussions to ensure the training meets your needs and answers pressing questions.

You can pay for governor training sessions on a pay as you go basis or you can sign up for a package of training to receive a discounted rate. Bronze, Silver and Gold Packages will be offered for the Autumn and Spring terms initially and can be purchased on the shop

Graphic line divider

Developing Relationships with the Senior Leadership Team

This session will give practical tips and guidance on forming effective relationships with the Senior Leadership of your school.

Online
 28.06.2022

More Information
Book Now

Graphic line divider

Building an Effective Governing Board – A Guide for Development Governors

This training session, delivered by the BASG, will provide an update on what boards need to do to support the upskilling of governors.

Online
 23.06.2022

More Information
Book Now

Graphic line divider

Internet Safety – Keeping Children Safe in Education

This training session will support governors in understanding how schools can keep children and young people safe online.

Online
 07.07.22

More Information
Book Now

Graphic line divider

 

Graphic line divider

Embedding Equality and Diversity in your school

This training session will provide Equality Governors with the most recent guidance for schools.

Online
 16.06.2022

More Information
Book Now

Graphic line divider

Health and Safety for Governors

Join us to understand the role of the Governing Board in Health and Safety. We recommend governors refresh their Health and Safety awareness training every 3 years.

Online
 29.06.2022

More Information
Book Now

Graphic line divider

New Governors End of Year Review

An opportunity for new governors to reflect on their first academic year in post.
Online
 12.07.22

More Information
Book Now

Graphic line divider

 

BESST Governor Support & Training

/in , , , /by

Governor Support & Training

We believe that effective governance is essential to delivering school improvements. By supporting a committed network of governors, we can help to drive systematic change in schools across Buckinghamshire.

The BESST team are building a service to provide advice, information and training opportunities to schools and governing boards to enable them to work effectively and efficiently to promote high standards, fulfil their statutory responsibilities and raise achievement in schools.

Governor Training Packages for the Autumn and Spring terms

The following governor training packages are available to purchase for the Autumn and Spring terms of academic year 2022/23. These packages have been introduced with the aim of enabling governing bodies to cost-effectively plan for training needs.

Bronze Package
Access to 8 (one hour) Governor Training places over to the Autumn and Spring terms. £150 (saving of £50)

Silver Package
Access to 16 (one hour) Governor Training places over the Autumn and Spring terms. £300 (saving of £100)

Gold Package
Access to unlimited (one hour) Governor Training places over the Autumn and Spring terms. £600

Visit our shop to purchase one of these packages

Governor Training

Governor training is a vital element in every governing board’s effectiveness.  Recognising that governors need flexibility, we offer a comprehensive ‘pay as you go’ training programme for all governors throughout the academic year.  Delivered by expert Buckinghamshire Council teams and selected partners, the training is tailored to governors within the county.

Read more about this offer

NGA Membership

We are pleased to be able to offer Buckinghamshire schools a discount on membership to the National Governance Association. In 2022/2 maintained schools will receive a 50% discount on NGA standard membership.

Read More about this offer

New Governor Welcome Package

We are committed to ensuring newly appointed governors are up to speed and effective in their roles as quickly as possible. We, therefore, provide welcome support to all new governors, with two cohorts during the academic year 2022/23 – one starting in autumn term 2022, and the other starting in spring term 2023.

Read More about this offer

Bespoke HR Training for Governing Boards

The Buckinghamshire HR team can provide expert sessions for governing boards in a range of topics including safer recruitment, headteacher recruitment, capability, grievance and disciplinary action.

Please contact us for more information on these bespoke sessions.

Buckinghamshire Challenge Newsletter 2

/in , /by

Dear Colleagues,

Thank you for continuing to engage with the Buckinghamshire Challenge Programme.  Your participation in this project is greatly appreciated and we understand the challenges that have been faced by schools over the last few months.

We are pleased to attach the second newsletter from Marc Rowland which contains more resources you will find useful.  We look forward to seeing you at the next conference on Friday 20th May, more information will follow shortly.

Newsletter2MR

Kind regards,

The Buckinghamshire Challenge Board

Support for Schools to Welcome Ukrainian Children and Young People – 5th May

/in , /by

Dear Colleagues,

We would like to invite all schools, including staff and governors, to a special TEAMs meeting on the Thursday 5th of May at 4.00pm to 5.30pm.

This session has been devised to support schools who are welcoming Ukrainian children and will feature short presentations from a number of Buckinghamshire Council departments regarding the support offered by their team, resources, links and contacts plus any issues that they feel may arise for the Ukrainian families, with plenty of time for questions and queries.  It will also be a great opportunity for schools who have already welcomed Ukrainian children to share their experiences.

The agenda is as follows:

Times Item Speaker
4.00 – 4.10 Welcome and Introductions Gareth Drawmer, Head of Achievement & Learning
4.10 – 4-20 Admissions Debbie Munday,  Admissions and Transport Manage
4.20 – 4.30 Finance Cheryl Stead,  Schools Financial Management Advisor
4.30 – 4.40 HR Anna Falek, HR Administration Officer
4.40 – 4.50 Wellbeing & SEN Tim Jones, Principal Educational Psychologist
4.50 – 5.00 PSHE, RE & EAL Carol Stottor,  Public Health PSHE Lead 
5.00 – 5.10 Trauma Informed Support Vicky Carrick-Lynch,  Assistant Head Teacher (Children with a Social Worker),The Virtual School
5.10 -5.20 Questions and Close Gareth Drawmer

 

Please do attend if appropriate and share the invite with relevant members of staff.  To book a place use this link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/319364326297

 

We have set up a new SchoolsWeb page to support schools welcoming Ukrainian refugee children into their school.  It contains links to lots of sources of information and support, both from within Buckinghamshire Council and external information.  It can be accessed from the homepage of SchoolsWeb or through this link https://schoolsweb.buckscc.gov.uk/support-available-for-ukrainian-families-in-buckinghamshire/  .  Please do let us know if you find any valuable resources and support and we can add these onto the page.

 

We hope you will be able to join us on the 5th May, if not the session will be recorded.

 

Kind regards

 

The School Improvement Team

SEND – Information

/in , , /by

Recently a series of 7 sessions were recently completed in conjunction with Whole School SEND to further promote an inclusive SEND culture within Buckinghamshire’s schools.  Please see the  links below.

WSS Session 3 – OneDrive (sharepoint.com)

Buckinghamshire LA EGAGOS – 17.2.22

Preparing for Ofsted 10 + 1 SEND Questions 2