HEADTEACHERS VOICE THEIR CONCERNS In our recent survey we invited headteachers to suggest topics of the greatest concern to them. One of these was health. As a result of this input, the Headteachers Executive has forwarded those comments on to the Clinical Commissioning Group for discussion at a meeting on 16 November at the Hilton Docklands Riverside Hotel. Please note that the results from the survey have been distributed in hard copy format and by email. In addition, the survey revealed that many services provided by the Headteachers Executive are valued and that Heads would like the opportunity to meet together and discuss matters candidly. Furthermore, headteachers wholeheartedly supported having a communications hub through which they could talk with other schools, the Local Authority and other stakeholders.
A Headteachers Executive survey reveals just what schools are concerned about
Fight food waste
The Headteachers Executive is investigating the most robust manner by which to ensure the above services and provisions can be maintained and sustained.
ABOUT HEADS EXECUTIVE
The Headteachers Executive has members from each of the phases; Chairs from SAPH and SASH, an Early Years representative and a Special Schools representative. With the Chair and Vice Chair the maximum size of the Executive is 14. Meetings take place at least once a term. The Deputy Director of Education or a representative usually attends these meetings. There is the opportunity for heads to raise issues for the attention of the Deputy Director and vice versa, keeping a two-way dialogue open between Children’s Services and headteachers. Issues raised are discussed during meetings between the Children’s and Adults’ Board (CAB) and the Headteachers’ Executive, which usually follow within two weeks of Headteachers’ Executive meetings
A third of food in the UK never gets eaten, yet 13 million people in this country are struggling to afford to eat. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is kicking up a storm in his new BBC series in which his mission is to find out why we waste so much food. In Southwark, at least, there is the innovative and effective FareShare scheme by which food that would otherwise be discarded by supermarkets is supplied to schools and other organisations. FareShare works to ensure no good food goes to waste and its focus is on providing surplus food to the vulnerable and disadvantaged. Therefore there are criteria a recipient organisation must meet. Among these are schools that provide breakfast/afterschool/holiday clubs and that are not run for profit, include a food provision that is not provided by an external, commercial catering organisation Schools with a high number of pupils eligible for free school meals will be given priority Registered charity or community groups can also qualify.
FREE gardening training
Unique and failsafe recruitment method
Educational recruitment specialist Uteach has a unique way to assist schools in identifying the best quality candidates for vacancies in schools. The company organises one day events to which schools and candidates are invited - nothing unique about that, but where Uteach differs is that it “marries” numbers of suitable candidates with any given school prior to the event. Typically Uteach will bring about 35 high quality fully screened teachers in Mathematics-Chemistry-Physics & Computer Science available for interview at an event. Uteach sends schools candidate CVs and can arrange SKYPE interviews as soon as possible so that schools have the opportunity to assess the teachers.
There is a morning of fantastic free gardening training available exclusively to schools that School Food Matters works with in Southwark. The session takes place on Tuesday 24 November 2015 from 10am to 12 noon at John Ruskin Primary School, SE5 0PQ and is being run by Paul Sadler from Food Growing Schools London. The session will cover how to develop composting in schools and planning for the new growing season
Schools that wish to can place any teacher before the interview day - and in such cases Uteach assists those schools/candidates. The teachers can visit schools after they have been interviewed the previous day. To recruit teachers schools are encouraged to offer an induction week (or even two weeks) so that the teacher can find accommodation and prepare themselves better for starting work. The events are by invitation only and are not open to schools that have not dealt with Uteach previously because the company wants to ensure that schools that have posted vacancies with Uteach are given priority treatment. An event is being planned for Southwark for the first quarter of 2016.
Each school can bring up to two adults this is available to anyone involved in gardening or wanting to get involved in gardening at school, so it could be teachers or parent volunteers. For schools applying for a Food For Life award or thinking of doing so, one of the criteria is that pupils have the opportunity to grow and harvest food and make compost, hence this is an ideal session to learn and pass knowledge on to pupils. Schools interested in this training, should confirm the names of the attendees as soon as possible to Lizzie Reynolds, Schools Liaison Officer (Lizzie works part time, Monday to Wednesday)T: 020 8878 8333.
FREE SAFEGUARDING SEMINAR The Metropolitan Police Partnership Team from SOECA (Sexual offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse command) will be holding a free Safeguarding Seminar for Southwark Secondary School and PRU Designated Safeguarding Officers/Child Protection Leads on Tuesday 24th November 2015. There will also be attendees from Childrens Social Care and Education and from
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Understand barriers to sharing of information
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Understand perceptions of CSE/FGM and Extremism on Southwark Borough
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Increase understanding of peer on peer CSE/FGM and extremism by identifying warning signs – particularly in relation to girls roles.
the local BOCU Safer Schools Team, Partnership and CSE / FGM Spoc’s. The focus will be on Child Protection, Safeguarding and Sharing Information. The aims of the seminar will be to: •
Enhance the sharing of information between agencies
Please note that only one representative can be accommodated from each school due to size of the venue.
For all your information needs visit www.southwarkheads.org.uk
Glass artist offers schools workshops
BE DRINK AWARE Drinkaware has launched Drinkaware for Education - a set of free, curriculum linked, alcohol education resources suitable for PSHE classes. Developed for 9 - 14 year olds, the resources are flexible allowing teachers to mix and match activities to suit their needs. Covering subjects such as an Introduction to Alcohol; Risks and Harms; Emotional Health and Peer Pressure, the resources consist of: • • • •
Renowned glass artist Susan Purser Hope can deliver cross curricular glass workshops/projects for children where she uses SEM (scanned electron microscope) images to explore the insides of human bodies. The workshops enable children to gain an understanding of what happens within their bodies, the importance of caring for and respecting themselves and also engages them in a new creative skill of working with glass. The workshop programme is a fantastic opportunity to explore the links between art and science. For more information, contact Susan Purser Hope, Studio at the Belfry Arts Centre, 23 Cromer Road, Overstrand, Norfolk NR27 0NT. Telephone: 07970 419125 Web: www.purserhope.co.uk.
Lesson plans Videos Presentations Homework activities
The resources are developed with help from teacher reviewers, one of whom, Rebecca White, Head of Department, Princes Risborough School, said: “I really like the resources and the lesson plans - I feel they are particularly useful for nonspecialist teachers as they are factual and full of activities.” To support the resources, Drinkaware has also produced an infographic about young people and alcohol. For more information, contact Louise Stephens at louise.stephens@edcoms.co.uk, telephone: 020 7401 4019.
Breathe life into your lessons with Oral History
Teachers can learn new ways to explore stories and use drama techniques in the classroom. A free three part course will focus on collecting oral histories and interpreting oral historieswhile implementing practical activities. The course is run by Rib Davis of the Oral History Society, Jonathan Petherbridge and Ruth Dewa both from London Bubble and Caroline Dorset from the Wallace Collection. The workshop is suitable for teachers, teaching assistants, teacher trainees and drama teachers. Contact Ruth Dewa on 0207 237 4434 or mail her at ruth@ londonbubble.org.uk to book a free place.More information available on www.londonbubble.org.uk This workshop is offered as part of After Hiroshima, London Bubble Theatre’s latest intergenerational oral history and performance project which explores the reaction (in UK) to the dropping of the first ever atomic bomb (on Hiroshima) in 1945.
For all your information needs visit www.southwarkheads.org.uk
PRICKLY SCIENCE There is a new information packed newsletter published by CLEAPSS to support Science and Design Technology in primary schools. In September 2014 children in years 1, 3, 4 & 5 began following the new National Curriculum. Since September 2015 all primary aged children in maintained schools have been required to follow the Science programme of study: key stages 1 & 2 (September 2013). While it is tempting to dive straight in to the year-byyear subject content teachers are urged to spend an incredibly useful five minutes reading pages 3 and 4 of the CLEAPS newsletter, which explains the aims of the science National Curriculum. The Programme of study (PoS) is set out with Working Scientifically (WS) at the beginning of KS1, lower KS2 and upper KS2 followed by yearly subject content. This is both symbolic and practically significant because it is the intention of the National Curriculum that children should develop their understanding and learn about biology, chemistry and physics by ‘working scientifically’. In other words children should carryout scientific enquiries during which they ask and then try to answer questions about the subject content. Children will need to collect, analyse and present data which helps them understand the subject knowledge they are learning about. For copies of the newsletter, visit http://southwarkheads.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/PST-63-final-web.pdf.
EHCP help
Helen Blackburn (a former Southwark consultant) has been employed by Townsend Primary school. Helen writes all of the school’s EHCP plans, transferring them from Statements to the new plans. Townsend Primary is making Helen available to assist other schools in the borough with their plans. To contact Helen, simply email her at senco@townsend.southwark.sch.uk
Alfred Salter clocks up 20 years in style Alfred Salter school celebrated its 20th anniversary in style, with a Mayoral visit and the unveiling of huge and stunning new mosaic in its main hall. The event was attended by current and former staff, pupils and parents. Speeches were given by the Mayor, Pauline Adenwalla, Robert Hulse, Shaun Dellenty and Stuart Hayter. Shaun Dellenty (Deputy Head) presented Stuart Hayter with a gift on behalf on the whole school community to thank him for 20 years service to the school and local community. A plaque was unveiled to commemorate the unveiling of the new specially commissioned 20th anniversary mosaic mural that had been revealed by Sir Simon Hughes earlier in the day.
Pictured above L-R Headteacher Stuart Hayter, Mayor of Southwark, Councillor Bill Williams, Pauline Adenwalla Alfred Salter vice -chair govenors, Robert Hulse Brunel Museum, Shaun Dellenty Alfred Salter Primary, Sir Simon Hughes.
SEND US YOUR NEWS!
HEADS UP is published monthly during term time by Southwark Headteachers Executive. We would love to hear from you, so tell us your news:
Yolanda Houston T: 01797 364366 M: 07770 347616 E: yolanda@headexec.com
For all your information needs visit www.southwarkheads.org.uk