Join our free governor recruitment support sessions in March, April and May

Dear Chairs of Governors and Governance Professionals,

We hope you enjoyed the half term break.

Below is a reminder of the schedule of training courses from BESST in the run up to Easter. Please do consider which sessions may be beneficial for your governors to attend to equip them with the skills and knowledge needed to carry out their important roles.

New governors are especially encouraged to attend the Drop in session (23^rd Feb) and Safeguarding in Schools session (2^nd March).

For more information and to book a place on any BESST course, please visit the BESST website.

 

We look forward to seeing you at a BESST session soon.

Session Title	Date
Trauma Informed and Attachment Aware Schools (FREE)	21.02.23
Drop-in for New Governors (FREE)	23.02.23
Exclusions and Reintegration – A governor’s guide	28.02.23
Safeguarding in Schools – An Introduction for Governors (FREE)	02.03.23
Championing High Quality PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education) – The Role of the PSHE Governor	09.03.23
Preparing for an Ofsted Inspection – A Guide for Governors	21.03.23
Setting the Culture, Values and Ethos for your School	23.03.23

 

The BESST Team

 

Speak out. Stay safe (SOSS) is a safeguarding programme for children aged 5 to 11 years old and is available to all primary schools across Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes.

It helps children, in an age-appropriate way, to understand:

• abuse in all its forms and how to recognise signs of abuse
• that abuse is never a child’s fault and that they have the right to be safe
• where to get help and the sources of help available to them, including our Childline service

Through virtual assemblies and face-to-face workshops, children can learn about the different types of abuse in a child-friendly way, so they can get help if or when they need it. NSPCC staff and volunteers help them identify a trusted adult they can talk to if they’re ever worried about themselves or a friend.

With the help of Childline’s mascot Buddy, SOSS covers topics like bullying, neglect and sexual abuse – without using any scary words or adult language.

Last year, the NSPCC delivered SOSS online programmes to 51,356 children in 216 schools in the East of England and now we are looking for volunteers to train for our face-to-face assemblies.

Over the past year our counsellors at Childline delivered over 15,500 counselling sessions where children had spoken about abuse. 15% of those sessions were with children disclosing abuse for the first time. With the help of our SOSS programme many children may speak out sooner.

Hear more about the journey of a SOSS volunteer here – ‘Children are a source of inspiration, joy, and sometimes sadness’ – Buckinghamshire NSPCC volunteer | InYourArea Community

If you are someone with experience of delivering programmes in an educational or safeguarding setting, who is motivated by targets, with strong planning and organisational abilities, good communication and excellent people skills – we would love to hear from you.

If you’re interested in becoming a Speak Out Stay Safe volunteer please apply here NSPCC Volunteering | Job description email volunteerrecruitment@nspcc.org.uk or contact Schools Coordinator for Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes Laura franklin;

Laura Franklin

Schools Coordinator (Buckinghamshire & MK)

NSPCC Schools Service

Community Trade union Representative

laura.franklin@nspcc.org.uk

 

For other information please visit –

Volunteer Opportunity of the Week: NSPCC’s Speak Out Stay Safe Programme – Community Action: MK (communityactionmk.org)

 

 

Dear Chairs of Governors and Governance Professionals,

For your information, please find attached copies of two emails that were sent to headteachers this morning.

1. Industrial Action by the NEU, plus Industrial Action Information and Guidance attachment
2. Brazel and Government Consultation

Important Update – Brazel and Government Consultation

Industrial Action by the NEU

Industrial Action Information and Guidance final (1)

Yours sincerely,

Natasha

Natasha How

Dear Chairs of Governors and Governance Professionals,

In case you couldn’t join us, attached are the slides from the recent Governor Priorities session and presentation from the NGA for Bucks Chairs of Governors and Governance Professionals. We hope those of you who attended found the session informative and useful.

01.10.23 Governor Priorities for Spring Term (BASG) Jan 23

01.10.23 Governor Priorities for Spring Term (NGA) Jan 23

Here is a reminder of the remaining Spring Term training sessions available to all Bucks governors on a pay as you go basis, through BESST. To book a place on any session, please visit the BESST website. We look forward to seeing you at an event soon!

 All sessions are online starting at 6.30pm and cost £25 per person, pay as you go, unless otherwise stated.

• 24^th January – The role of the Governing Board in overseeing SEND
• 31^st January – Allegations – A guide for Governors
• 2^nd February – Appointing an Executive Leader
• 7^th February – Being Strategic, What good governance looks like
• 21^st February – Trauma Informed & Attachment Aware Schools (FREE)
• 23^rd February – Drop in for new governors (FREE)
• 28^th February – Exclusions & Reintegration
• 2^nd March – Safeguarding in schools – An Introduction for Governors (FREE)
• 9^th March – Championing High Quality PSHE – the role of the PSHE Governor
• 21^st March – Preparing for an Ofsted Inspection
• 23^rd March – Setting the Culture, Values and Ethos of your School

Kind Regards

The BESST Team