Education Noticeboard - 1 February 2024
Welcome to the Education Noticeboard. A round-up of news, guidance and key updates for education settings. Included in this update:
- Director Update
- National Apprenticeship Week 2024 celebrates ‘Skills for Life’
- Reviewed and updated CME/CNRE (CWAFE) Policy
- Family Hub in Oakengates now open
- Summary of changes to the Ofsted inspection handbook from January 2024
- Keeping children safe parent workshop Telford and Wrekin
- Safeguarding Partnership News and Updates – January 2024
- Supporting The Home Learning Environment Conference
- Coming Soon: National Early Years and Childcare Recruitment Campaign
- Community of Practice Conversation - Communication and Language
- Fully funded professional development for early years staff
- Chinese New Year
- UK Youth Parliament Elections taking place in February 2024
- Short Breaks Newsletter
- Important Information for Music Leads
- Kinship Care Research Project
- CPD courses to the end of February 2024
- Let’s Get Communicating and Reading in the Outdoors – Thursday 14 March 2024
Director Update
Dear colleagues,
As always a varied read for you this week in the Education Noticeboard!
Some good news items including, the launch of the third Family Hub at the Wakes in Oakengates. The hub will contribute to strengthening the offer of early help and support available to families navigating their way through parenting. There is also some information on the changes to the Ofsted inspection handbook. As always, there are some great opportunities for additional training through our CPD team and there is also some information about fully funded professional development training for early years staff.
In addition, there are some useful resource packs from our Multicultural team to support you with celebrating the Chinese New Year, information about the UK Youth Parliament elections that will be taking place in February and some information about the Skills Show in March.
Finally, as I have mentioned at various networks I have attended over recent weeks, there are impending changes to the management team in the Local Authority Education and Skills team. I can now let you know that both Liz Smith and Sue Marston have decided to retire at the end of this term. Whilst there is plenty of time for goodbyes, I do at this point want to acknowledge the many years of dedication both Sue and Liz have given to Telford and Wrekin. I know you will all join me in wishing them well in their new exciting endeavours. In addition Natalie Bevan will be relinquishing her role as Service Delivery Manager for SEND and we are currently out to recruitment for that position. I will continue to update you over the coming weeks regarding our future management structure. We also have other colleagues who will be leaving us over the coming weeks following our voluntary redundancy process in the council and again we will let you know more detail as we head towards Easter. For now it is business as normal!
Enjoy the weekend when you get there.
Best wishes
Simon
Simon Wellman
Director: Education & Skills
National Apprenticeship Week 2024 celebrates ‘Skills for Life’
Telford & Wrekin Council’s Job Box service is backing National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) 2024 and promoting the ‘skills for life’ which apprenticeships provide.
A range of apprenticeships are available to people of all ages across the borough and Job Box will celebrate the value they bring to employers and individuals next week, (February 5 to 11), as well as highlighting an exciting range of council apprenticeships.
This year’s theme is ‘Skills For Life’ which reflects on how apprenticeships can help individuals develop the skills and knowledge needed for a rewarding career and help businesses to develop a talented workforce equipped with skills for the future.
Apprenticeships give people the opportunity to earn while they learn, achieve nationally recognised qualifications ranging from Level 2 to degree level, and gain valuable workplace experience.
Across Telford & Wrekin Council (including the local authority’s maintained schools) over 500 apprentices have started with the council since 2017.
Some of the most popular apprenticeships have been delivered in areas such as business administration, teaching assistants, housing and property management and customer service.
During NAW, Job Box will signpost people towards the Telford Skills Show at Telford International Centre,Telford on Thursday 14 March 2024 (11.30am-7pm).
It’s the largest, free event of its kind this side of the NEC in Birmingham and is open to people of all ages giving them the chance to find out more about local apprenticeship, employment and training opportunities.
Telford & Wrekin Council is working with other main event sponsors - The Careers & Enterprise Company, Integrated Care System (NHS Shropshire Telford and Wrekin), Telford College and Harper Adams University - to host the event.
On the day, visitors can take part in hands-on activities delivered by employers and training providers to gain a better understanding of apprenticeships and roles available and speak to employers that may be in a business sector they are interested in.
Employers will be able to offer support and advice and help people make that all important decision about their first career move or even a change of career path.
Sign-up for the Telford Skills Show.
The council’s Job Box team will be on hand during National Apprenticeship Week to offer advice about apprenticeships and latest vacancies.
Councillor Eileen Callear (Lab), Telford & Wrekin Council’s Cabinet Member for Education, Employment and Vistor Economy said: “We’re excited to be celebrating National Apprenticeship Week 2024.
“National Apprenticeship Week is a week-long celebration that brings together businesses and apprentices across our borough and shines a light on the positive impact apprenticeships make to individuals, businesses and the wider economy.
“We offer a wide range of apprenticeships at Telford & Wrekin Council and they are an excellent way to gain essential experience, earn while you learn and gain nationally recognised qualifications which really do provide ‘skills for life.’
“For some, the apprenticeship route may not be an obvious choice but it’s the perfect way to gain new skills and start on an exciting career pathway.”
Find out more about National Apprenticeship Week 2024.
Or call Job Box on 01952 382888 for more information about apprenticeships which are available locally or with Telford & Wrekin Council.
Reviewed and updated CME/CNRE (CWAFE) Policy
Please note, the term CWAFE is now also used in this policies context to describe Children Who are Absent from Education. Please find the new policy attached and it can be used with immediate effect.
For further information please contact attendancesupportteam@telford.gov.uk or call 01952 385220.
View the reviewed and updated CME/CNRE (CWAFE) Policy.
Family Hub in Oakengates now open
Telford & Wrekin Council has opened its third Family Hub in the borough which offers free help and support to residents who are navigating their way through parenting.
The latest Family Hub to open is The Oak which is located at The Wakes in Oakengates. The council also has two other hubs open in the borough: Silver Birch Family Hub in Sutton Hill and Walnut Family Hub in Woodside. Each centre is open Monday to Friday 9am until 5pm. The hubs offer a single location for families to visit to get information, guidance, and support on a range of services, including infant feeding, mental health, healthy lifestyles and parenting classes. In addition to the physical Family hub, information and support is also available on the council’s website at www.telford.gov.uk/familyhubs.
Summary of changes to the Ofsted inspection handbook from January 2024
Ofsted have made a number of changes in the school inspection handbook, which came into effect on the 19th January 2024.
These changes include:
- Clarification regarding the expectations for inspectors’ conduct during inspections.
- Clarifications on involving leaders and governors/trustees in inspections, incorporating who may attend meetings including end of day meetings, how they can contribute and how inspectors will ensure leaders are kept informed on how the inspection is progressing.
- Clarifications regarding the preparatory telephone call(s) between the lead inspector and headteacher.
- Updates to reflect the information inspectors will request and discuss during the planning and educationally focussed conversations and who may attend these conversations.
- Clarification regarding meetings with staff, pupils and parents to reflect who may be present and how inspectors should engage with leaders and respond if they see or suspect that a staff member is upset or distressed.
- Clarification on when draft inspection reports are sent to schools and who they may be shared with.
A full list of all the changes, along with where these can be located in the handbook, can be found on Summary of changes - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
The revised handbook can be accessed via School inspection handbook - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Keeping children safe parent workshop Telford and Wrekin
With more access than ever before to phones and other technology, it can be difficult to understand how to keep your child safe in an increasingly digital world.
The workshop is fully funded and will cover:
- What online harm is and online gang recruitment.
- Ways you can effectively help and support your children.
- Understand why and how children can become victims.
- How your response can support your child.
- An award-winning approach to support young people at risk of exploitation.
- Delivery by lived experienced professionals.
To access the workshop (delivered via Teams – Teams app not necessary for participation), please click on the link below just before the training begins.
Thursday 25 January 2024 5-6pm
View the presentation for the meeting.
Click here to join the meeting
Safeguarding Partnership News and Updates – January 2024
View the January 2024 newsletter.
Supporting the Home Learning Environment Conference
Monday 11 March 2024
‘Parents [and carers] play a key role in children's learning. They are experts on their own children, and they are a child's first and enduring educators, (National Children’s Bureau - NCB, 2010).
As a strand of the Family Hub programme, we have been utilising interventions and approaches that are evidenced based to support children’s Speech, Language, Communication and Literacy at home. This is your opportunity to learn more about these tools and the importance of the Home learning environment from a range of national speakers.
Speakers from National Organisations include:
- Speech and Language UK – Louisa Reeves Director of Policy and Evidence, Talk Boost and more.
- National Children’s Bureau – Making it REAL (Raising Early Achievement in Literacy) .
- NASEN – Alex Grady, Supporting children with SEND.
- NSPCC – ‘Look, Say, Sing and Play’ and ‘Talk Pants’.
Who should attend- professionals working with Early Years Children 0 – 5, parents/carers, Voluntary Organisations who support families, Strengthening Families teams works, Social Workers, Health professionals, including SALT, Health visitors and community nursery nurses, schools, and EY settings.
Venue: Mercure Telford, Forge Gate, Telford, TF3 4NA.
Times: Arrival for 9:30am - Start 10am, Close 3.30pm.
Cost – Funded, a buffet lunch will be provided.
Booking via talkingchildcare@telford.gov.uk
View flyer for the Supporting the Home Learning Environment Conference.
Coming Soon: National Early Years and Childcare Recruitment Campaign
There’s not long to go until the launch of the Department for Education’s early years recruitment campaign. The aim of the campaign is to promote early years and childcare careers by highlighting the huge difference early years professionals make to young children and how rewarding working in the sector can be.
The campaign, with its own dedicated website, will direct potential applicants to use DWP’s Find a Job vacancy platform to search for early years, childcare and wraparound roles in their area.
We would encourage as many early years providers as possible to list their vacancies on Find a Job ahead of the campaign launch.
Please see the attached instructions to help you create an account and post any current or upcoming jobs in their setting.
Providers should use the term ‘early years’ in the title of their job adverts and select ‘Education jobs’ for the job category.
This service is free to use and will ensure vacancies are seen by a large pool of potential candidates.
View the Find a job Instructions.
Community of Practice Conversation - Communication and Language
27 February 2024 at 4pm
Join a 45 minutes conversation with fellow EY practitioners and share knowledge, intervention ideas, strategies and problem solving around children's communication and language development.
Threaded through the conversation we will also discusshow we can enhance the impact of Wellcomm and Early Talk Boost.
Open to all EY practitioners, especially those responsible for C&L, communication leads and those who deliver Wellcomm and ETB.
Fully funded professional development for early years staff
Access professional development for early years staff
New EEF trials.
Today, we’ve launched three new trials that will test the impact of three promising professional development programmes for early years educators:
- Emotion Coaching.
- Talking Time.
- NELI Preschool.
Early years settings across England - including Private, Voluntary and Independent (PVI) settings, maintained nursery schools and nursery classes in schools - are invited to take part.
Search opportunities available to you.
Deliver evidence-informed programmes at a heavily reduced cost
Sign up now.
We’re inviting schools and early years settings to sign up to deliver subsidised programmes with a proven record of improving children’s maths and literacy outcomes. The programmes are:
- Maths Mastery.
- Embedding Formative Assessment.
- Maths Champions.
Early years settings, primary, and secondary schools across England can sign up to access these programmes for free, or at a heavily reduced cost.
Search opportunities available to you.
Chinese New Year
2024 is a year of the Wood Dragon, starting from Saturday February 10th, 2024 (Chinese New Year), and ending on Wednesday 29 January 2025 (Chinese New Year's Eve). The dragon, one of the luckiest and most powerful animals in the Chinese zodiac, eagerly awaits its yearly celebration, the Year of the Dragon. In Chinese Astrology, each year is associated with an element and an animal sign.
If you have any photos of events in you schools to celebrate Chinese New Year, please send them into the education Noticeboard, we would love to see them!
The Chinese Arts and Culture Centre in Telford will deliver workshops, specifically for Primary and Secondary schools, to celebrate Chinese New Year and Chinese Culture in schools, at a bespoke cost. Workshops are available to book directly with Grace.
Email: yuhuatong@aol.com
E4, Stafford Park 15, Telford TF3 3B
01952 200032
MDT have produced additional resources for schools to help celebrate this festival in the resource packs provided
UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) Elections taking place in February 2024
The UKYP is a national organisation that provides opportunities for 11-18 year olds to use their elected voice to bring about social change through meaningful representation and campaigning.
Each area of the country is encouraged to elect representatives. Telford and Wrekin elect one Member of the Youth Parliament (MYP) and one Deputy Member. Rae Anyidoho, a student at Madeley Academy, was elected in 2022 and has spent his term progressing issues around mental health including helping to develop a national campaign to extend free school meals. In November 2023, Rae had the honour of closing the UKYP Annual Sitting at the House of Commons, giving his speech at the despatch box.
The Make Your Mark ballot is open to all young people in UKYP authority areas, to highlight and vote upon the biggest issues facing young people. This then feeds into local and national campaigns so that young people can bring about change on those issues. The current national campaign that came from Make Your Mark 2022 is the Food for Learning campaign which aims to extend free school meals to help deal with the impact of the cost of living crisis on young people’s welling. Locally the Young People’s Forum have delivered Young People’s Mental health Summit and Year of Wellbeing in response to mental health being the key issue in Telford and Wrekin in the 2022 ballot.
The two votes will take place at the same time and students will be asked to complete both ballots together.
Telford and Wrekin had an amazing number of young people taking part in the ballots in 2022; over 5000 got involved which was the second highest in the West Midlands and within the top 20 nationally.
Ballots and boxes will be distributed to schools w/b 22 January, and the voting will take place between 29 January and 9 February.
Results will be announced at the count night which takes place on 27 February 2024.
For further information contact sarah.underhill@telford.gov.uk.
Short Breaks News Letter
We have trialled a new layout for the calendar this month, to allow us to show a wider range of the fantastic activities happening in Telford for you and your child to get involved in. If you have any feedback, please let us know.
View February’s edition of the Short Breaks Newsletter.
Important Information for Music Leads
Support
We are here to support you in planning and delivering music in schools. Whether its navigating the requirements of the National Plan for Music and creating your Music Development Plan or making use of the Model Music Curriculum, revising your music offer, supporting a new subject lead, or looking to augment your existing provision. Please feel free to book a free visit or online meeting via the link below. I look forward to meeting with you.
Book time with Newth, Sam: Music Provision Discussion and Support (link expires on 25 April 2024).
I met with many of you in the last 12 months. Please use the same link if you want to look at how things are progressing.
Music CPD
Here’s a reminder of the CPD available at the moment. Links for booking are included in the table. Can I draw your attention to the SEND Music Conference on 12 April. This should be very helpful in ensuring music lessons are as inclusive as possible, in both mainstream and specialist settings.
| Spring Term 2024 | |||||||
| 08/02/2024 | 16:30 | 17:30 | SEND Music Network Meeting | Microsoft Teams | Free | SEND | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 09/02/2024 | 16:00 | 17:00 | Webinar: Kapow Primary | Zoom | Free | Primary | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 19/02/2024 | 13:00 | 16:00 | Blended: Primary Music Leadership Certificate. Session 2: Planning & Assessing Music in your school | Face to face and Zoom. Venue tbc. | £100 for full course | Primary | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 22/02/2024 | 16:45 | 17:45 | Get to know Sparkyard! | Online training via Out of the Ark | Free | Primary | Out of the Ark Music Workshops Events | Eventbrite |
| 18/03/2024 | 13:00 | 16:00 | Blended: Primary Music Leadership Certificate. Session 3: Delivering Music in your school | Face to face and Zoom. Venue tbc. | £100 for full course | Primary | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 19/03/2024 | 16:00 | 17:00 | Soundpots Early Years Music Network Meeting | Soundpots, Microsoft Teams | Free | EYFS | citymusicservice@stoke.gov.uk |
| Summer Term 2024 | |||||||
| 12/04/2024 | 09:00 | 15:30 | SEND Music Conference | Riverway Centre, Stafford, ST16 3TH | Free | SEND | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 25/04/2024 | 16:00 | 17:00 | Webinar: Development & Progression in Primary Music | Zoom | Free | Primary | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 01/05/2024 | 16:15 | 17:15 | Charanga's Model Music Curriculum Scheme | Bridge Centre, Stoke-on-Trent. | Free | All phases | https://stokecms.charanga.com/training_events/4393 |
| 16/05/2024 | 16:00 | 17:00 | Webinar: Teaching Music Inclusively | Zoom | Free | All phases | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 21/05/2024 | 16:30 | 17:30 | SEND Music Network Meeting | Microsoft Teams | Free | SEND | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 12/06/2024 | 16:00 | 17:00 | Soundpots Early Years Music Network Meeting | Microsoft Teams | Free | EYFS | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 13/06/2024 | 16:00 | 17:00 | Webinar: Curriculum Design in Music | Zoom | Free | All phases | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
| 02/07/2024 | 16:00 | 17:00 | Webinar: Assessment in Music | Zoom | Free | All phases | telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
TMP
We are part of ‘The Music Partnership’ our Music Hub. Together with Stoke and Staffordshire we are able to provide support, training, events and resources that we wouldn’t otherwise be able to do. If you see the TMP logo on something, we’re involved! The two are interchangeable. Here’s the latest TMP newsletter Partnership Newsletters - The Music Partnership.
Kapow Primary Webinar
Next Thursday, 1 February at 4pm, you have a chance to find out all about Kapow Primary’s two music schemes of work for primary schools! Dr Liz Stafford will guide you through the schemes so that you can see how they work, and what resources and support are provided. You will also receive details of how to sign up for a 14 day free trial to test the scheme out at your school.
You can register for this free, one-hour webinar here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_c3OGpf1aTLK0XBa1T6OOLQ
Telford Young Musician
The dates for this have been pushed back slightly to allow more time for filming round 1 entries. Please encourage as many of your pupils to enter as possible.
- Deadline to enter is now 29 February 2024.
- Deadline to submit Round 1 (video) entries is 15 March 2024.
- The date for the finals remains unchanged.
The entry form is available from the following link, please feel free to share this in newsletters or via email to parents as you see fit: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=_aUiR_ohqUGALqvdTNHwyBu0neishZpPkEv5dtsbwUNUNFlRVkoyNVg4NDhUTVFFQVpaUkVHRzlKWC4u
Kinship Care Research Project
The Kinship Charity would like to find out about the experiences of Black and Asian kinship carers in the Midlands, through a research project. If you would be interested in taking part in this or would be able to recommend this project to a family at your school, please see the attached flyers for further details or contact priya.tah@education.ox.ac.uk
View the Kinship Participation Information Sheet (PIS).
CPD courses to the end of February 2024
The CPD Booklet for the remainder of the 2023-24 academic year can be viewed via Telford Education Services.
As always, courses can be booked by completing and returning a CPD booking form to cpdschoolimprovement@telford.gov.uk (unless denoted differently).
|
Developing Early Help in Education – Conference for Early Help Strategic Leads |
Tuesday, February 06, 2024 |
9am to 2pm - TBC |
|
Talk Boost KS2 |
Tuesday, February 06, 2024 |
9am to 3pm |
|
Taking the Chair (GO 504) - part 2 |
Wednesday, February 07, 2024 |
4.30pm to 6.30pm |
|
Preparing for Statutory Assessment at the End of KS2 (CPD 504) |
Thursday, February 08, 2024 |
9am to 12.30pm |
|
Raising Awareness of Prevent (SG 101) |
Thursday, February 08, 2024 |
1pm to 2.30pm |
|
Safeguarding Induction Training for Governors (SG 103) - part 1 |
Thursday, February 08, 2024 |
5.30pm to 7.30pm |
|
SEND Music Network Meeting (Free of charge via Teams) Please book via telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
Thursday, February 08, 2024 |
4.30pm to 5.30pm |
|
Webinar: Kapow Primary (Free of charge via Zoom) Please book via telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
Friday, February 09, 2024 |
4pm to 5pm |
|
Primary Music Leadership Certificate Session 2: Planning & Assessing Music in your School Please book via telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
Monday, February 19, 2024 |
1pm to 4pm |
|
Assessing and Monitoring of Progress in EAL (CPD 701) |
Tuesday, February 20, 2024 |
1.15pm to 3.30pm |
|
Taking the Chair (GO 504) - part 3 |
Tuesday, February 20, 2024 |
4.30pm to 6.30pm |
|
Behaviour Support Intervention Refresher Training - non-accredited (BSAT 301) |
Wednesday, February 21, 2024 |
8.45am to 12.30pm |
|
Designated Safeguarding Leads' and Safeguarding Governors' Termly Update (SG 106) |
Wednesday, February 21, 2024 |
4pm to 5.30pm |
|
Preparing for Statutory Assessment at the End of KS1 (CPD 505) |
Thursday, February 22, 2024 |
9am to 12.30pm |
|
Literacy Pathway |
Thursday, February 22, 2024 |
am and pm |
|
Get to Know Sparkyard! Please book via telford.music@telford.gov.uk |
Thursday, February 22, 2024 |
4.45pm to 5.45pm |
|
Youth Mental Health First Aid - Part 1 (PSS 001) |
Monday, February 26, 2024 |
9.15am to 4pm |
|
EAL and SEND? (CPD 601) |
Tuesday, February 27, 2024 |
1.15pm to 4pm |
|
Youth Mental Health First Aid - Part 2 (PSS 001) |
Tuesday, February 27, 2024 |
9.15am to 4pm |
|
Designated Teacher for Children in Care Network Meeting (Post 16 ) – by invitation from the Virtual School Team |
Wednesday, February 28, 2024 |
4pm to 5.30pm |
|
Wednesday, February 28, 2024 |
1.15pm to 4pm |
|
|
Safeguarding Induction Training for Governors - part 2 (SG 103) |
Wednesday, February 28, 2024 |
5.30pm to 7.30pm |
|
Exploring & Creating Resources to Enhance Vocabulary during Story and Song Time in the EYFS (EY 342) |
Thursday, February 29, 2024 |
9.15am to 12noon |
|
Thursday, February 29, 2024 |
9.30am to 11am |
Let’s Get Communicating and Reading in the Outdoors – Thursday 14 March 2024
Forest School and outdoor learning is a great way to motivate, engage and spark children’s learning, curiosity and imagination in the outdoors and nature. This innovative training, taking place in Apley Woods, will provide delegates with fresh ideas and activities to use with children and young people.
Please see the flyer for more details.
To book your place, please send a completed CPD booking form to cpdschoolimprovement@telford.gov.uk.