Education Noticeboard

15 September 2022 Welcome to the Education Noticeboard. A round-up of news, guidance and key updates for education settings.

Included in this update:

Director update

Dear all,

I wanted to take this opportunity to update you all on a few things taking place in Telford this week following the death of Her Majesty the Queen.

In Telford and Wrekin, we will observe the national Moment of Reflection for HM Queen Elizabeth II on Sunday evening at 8pm. The borough’s mayor, Cllr Raj Mehta, will lead a minute’s silence. He will be joined in Southwater by the Vice Lord-Lieutenant of Shropshire, Mrs Jenny Wynn DL, and Council leader Shaun Davies. Members of public are welcome to attend too and we plan to live stream the event on our Facebook page. You are all invited to join the national Moment of Reflection, either at the event in Southwater, or marking it in your own way, with family or friends.

There will be a further two minutes’ silence on Monday 19 September at 11am at the start of the funeral for HM Queen Elizabeth II.

I want to extend my gratitude to colleagues, schools and staff who have been working on enacting the plans following the death of Her Majesty the Queen. I know that you will have all supported conversations with our children and young people and our local communities to support their understanding and it has been lovely to see some of your remembrance activities on social media.

As always, the noticeboard is full of updates including news stories from schools and settings, safeguarding, information around infection control as we enter the autumn season, plus training and CPD opportunities and further resources.

Simon

Simon Wellman
Director: Education & Skills

Guidance on the period of National Mourning

Following the announcement from Buckingham Palace of the death of our sovereign, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, a period of National Mourning has started and will continue until the end of the State Funeral. This is a period of time for reflection in response to the death of the Sovereign.

Guidance providing the public, businesses and institutions with advice on the period of National Mourning following the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has been issued by the Cabinet Office. 

The official date of the State Funeral is 19 September 2022. This day will be a bank holiday and settings that are normally closed on a bank holiday should close on this day as a mark of respect. This will include schools and colleges.

For further information please refer to the DfE Education Advisory Guidance.

National Mourning Period

For early years providers, there is no obligation for settings to observe particular behaviours during the mourning period. Depending on the nature and location of your setting and the tone of planned events, some settings may wish to consider closing or postponing events, especially on the day of the State Funeral, however this is at the discretion of individual settings.

For schools and further education settings normal attendance is expected throughout the National Mourning period, other than the bank holiday.

Whilst normal attendance is expected, education leaders continue to have the power to authorise leaves of absence for pupils in exceptional circumstances. Any requests for leave of absence should be considered on a case-by-case basis, taking into account individual circumstances.

Attendance expectations should be clearly communicated to parents and carers.

State Funeral / Bank holiday

For early years providers, as with other bank holidays, it is at the discretion of individual settings whether they close or stay open. There would be no expectation for early years and childcare settings to remain open on the bank holiday. Schools and further education settings are not expected to remain open on the bank holiday. It should be treated as any normal bank holiday.

If any selective testing is due to take place on the bank holiday, we strongly encourage schools and admission authorities to work together to find an alternative date.

Ofsted

Ofsted inspections will continue as normal through the mourning period. No inspections will be scheduled on the bank holiday. Settings should discuss any concerns with Ofsted, including whether they are facing exceptional circumstances that might warrant deferral of their inspection.

You can also visit the Palace’s website for more information about the mourning period.

Hollinswood Primary School shortlisted for environmental award

Hollinswood Primary School has been shortlisted in the environmental category in the BBC Make a Difference Awards.

The awards are to celebrate people who are going above and beyond, and making a difference to where they live; the environmental category celebrates those who help to make where they live more environmentally friendly.

To view a film about the achievements of the school, visit their school Twitter page.

NSPCC - Speak Out Stay Safe

The Speak Out Stay Safe safeguarding programme, and related resources, are available for primary schools and parents/carers.

The NSPCC have taken the decision to continue to offer Speak Out Stay Safe assemblies as an online resource only, due to their success and the positive feedback received from schools. Primary schools (including SEND schools) are encouraged to book the Speak Out Stay safe online programme for the autumn term.

Speak Out Stay Safe online programme

With the amazing support of Ant and Dec the NSPCC have an online version of the Speak Out Stay Safe programme. This offer, available for children aged 5 to 11, includes access to video assemblies and supporting resources for use in the classroom. A British Sign Language (BSL) version is also available for d/Deaf children, and the specially adapted SEND version of Speak Out Stay Safe remains available as usual.

There is a one-page overview document for schools is available to download.

For more information visit the Speak Out Stay Safe website, where you can register interest and be contacted by a local Schools Coordinator.

Additional resources

Adapted version of our assembly
The NSPCC streamed an adapted version of their assembly for parents/carers to use at home with their children. A recording of the Speak Out Stay Safe assembly can be watched online. Please note that the assembly recording does not replace the full Speak Out Stay Safe online programme, which is only suitable for pupils in class. To complement the adapted assembly, the NSPCC have produced some resources that can be used by parents/carers to enable further discussion whilst doing activities with their children. These are hosted on the NSPCC website.

Please download a further list of resources available on NSPCC webpages to support schools and parents/carers. Alternatively you can go directly to NSPCC Learning.

Online safety hub
The list of resources includes links to the NSPCC online Safety Hub where you will find advice and information on a range of different online safety topics including gaming, social media, sharing nudes, parental controls and more. You will also find online safety information for families of children with additional needs and disabilities. The NSPCC have worked with Ambitious about Autism and parents and carers who have children with additional needs and disabilities to create activities to help talk about online safety (see links in the previously mentioned downloadable resources list).

Update to national minimum standards for boarding and residential special schools

The national minimum standards that boarding schools and residential special schools must meet to safeguard and protect the children in their care have been updated, and are available online:

Boarding schools: National minimum standards

Residential special schools: National minimum standards

Infection control information for schools

With the return to school for the autumn term, and in anticipation of the customary outbreaks of respiratory illness and diarrhoea and vomiting (D&V) when the children all get back together, it is timely to provide information on the infection control measures and resources at your disposal.

As always, feel free to contact the Health Protection Hub via email HealthProtectionHub@telford.gov.uk or calling 019542 381800 if you need any information or advice.

Respiratory hygiene
Covering the nose and mouth during sneezing and coughing can reduce the spread of infections. Spitting should be discouraged.

Anyone with signs and symptoms of a respiratory infection, regardless of the cause, should follow respiratory hygiene and cough etiquette, specifically:

cover nose and mouth with a tissue when coughing and sneezing, and dispose of used tissue in non-healthcare risk waste bin and perform hand hygiene
cough or sneeze into the inner elbow (upper sleeve) if no tissues are available, rather than into the hand
keep contaminated hands away from the mucous membranes of the eyes and nose
carry out hand hygiene after contact with respiratory secretions and contaminated objects and materials

D&V

If you have cases of D&V in your setting, contact us via email on HealthProtectionHub@telford.gov.uk and we’ll send you a guide.

Exclusion
Prompt exclusion of children, young people and staff who are unwell with an infectious disease is essential to preventing the spread of infection in education and childhood settings.

Children with mild, respiratory symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, or slight cough, who are otherwise well, can continue to attend their education or childcare setting.

Children who are unwell and showing the symptoms of an infectious disease or a diagnostic result should be advised to stay away from their education or childcare setting for the minimum period recommended. Chapter 3 of the “Health protection in education…” website and the accompanying table provide further detail on the symptoms of different infections and recommended action. Feel free to contact the Hub on the email below if you need any advice in specific situations.

Some people will still have access to tests for COVID-19; if they do test positive the exclusion periods are 3 days from date of test for children and 5 days for adults (over 18), providing the person is well enough and does not have a raised temperature. They should also avoid contact with people at higher risk of becoming seriously unwell from COVID-19, especially those whose immune system means that they are at higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19, despite vaccination, for 10 days after the day you took their test.

Ventilation
Letting fresh air into indoor spaces can help remove air that contains virus particles and prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory infections.

If there are areas of the setting identified that may have poor ventilation, there are several simple things that can be done to improve ventilation.

These include:

partially opening windows and doors to let fresh air in
opening higher level windows to reduce draughts
opening windows for 10 minutes an hour or longer can help increase ventilation – where possible this can happen when the room is empty in between lessons, for example.

You should always balance the need for increased ventilation while maintaining a comfortable temperature.

Handwashing
Hand washing is one of the most important ways of controlling the spread of infections, especially those that cause diarrhoea and/or vomiting and respiratory infections.

Settings should ensure that staff and students/children have access to liquid soap, warm water and paper towels. Bar soap should not be used.

All staff and pupils should be advised to wash their hands after using the toilet, before eating or handling food, after playtime and after touching animals.

All cuts and abrasions should be covered with a waterproof dressing.

Alcohol hand gel can be used if appropriate hand washing facilities are not available but should not replace washing hands particularly if hands are visibly soiled or where there are cases of gastroenteritis (diarrhoea and vomiting) in the setting. Alcohol hand gel is not effective against norovirus. Further information on choosing hand sanitisers and surface disinfectants to use during the COVID-19 pandemic is also available

Cleaning
Effective cleaning and disinfection are critical in any education or childcare setting, particularly when food preparation is taking place.

In the event of an outbreak of infection at your setting, we would recommend enhanced and more frequent cleaning, to help reduce transmission - for example twice daily cleaning of areas (with particular attention to door handles, toilet flushes and taps) and communal areas where surfaces can easily become contaminated such as handrails, with hot, soapy water and an appropriate disinfectant. Milton is recommended especially when you have outbreaks of D&V, used in accordance with the instructions.

Dedicated cleaning equipment should be colour coded according to area of use.

Dealing with soiled clothing
Staff dealing with soiled clothing should ensure that:

manual sluicing of clothing is not carried out as there is a risk of inhaling fine contaminated aerosol droplets; soiled articles of clothing should be rinsed through in the washing machine pre-wash cycle, prior to washing
gloves and aprons should be worn when handling soiled linen or clothing
hands should be thoroughly washed after removing the gloves and aprons

Clothing may become contaminated with blood or bodily fluids. If this occurs, clothing should be removed as soon as possible and placed in a plastic bag. It should be sent home with the child with advice for the parent on how to launder the contaminated clothing -any contaminated clothing should be washed separately in a washing machine, using a pre-wash cycle, on the hottest temperature that the clothes will tolerate.

Childhood Immunisations
Here are links to guides on what immunisations children should’ve had at various ages, which you may wish to share with parents:

A guide to immunisations for babies born on or after 1 January 2020

A guide to immunisations for migrants

Vaccination of individuals with uncertain or incomplete immunisation status

Monkeypox
There have been no cases of monkeypox in Telford & Wrekin so far, and the cases there have been in the UK are overwhelmingly within a very specific demographic. It’s not therefore cause for concern within the school-age population. If this changes we will update you.

Resources
The Spotty Book gives advice on general control measures and advice of specific diseases:

The Spotty Book

We would advise that it’s read in conjunction with the “Health protection in education and childcare settings”, which has chapters on introduction to infections, infection prevention and control, public health management of specific infectious diseases, action in the event of an outbreak or incident, immunisation, educational visits and an exclusion table:

Health protection in schools and other childcare facilities

If you require any specific advice, or to advise us of an outbreak, please email HealthProtectionHub@telford.gov.uk and we’ll provide advice and assistance.

Infection control information for early years settings

With winter approaching, and in anticipation of the customary outbreaks of respiratory illness and D&V when the children all get back together, we felt it timely to provide you with information on the infection control measures and resources at your disposal.

As always, feel free to contact the Health Protection Hub via email HealthProtectionHub@telford.gov.uk or calling 019542 381800 if you need any information or advice.

Respiratory hygiene
Covering the nose and mouth during sneezing and coughing can reduce the spread of infections. Spitting should be discouraged.

Anyone with signs and symptoms of a respiratory infection, regardless of the cause, should follow respiratory hygiene and cough etiquette, specifically:

cover nose and mouth with a tissue when coughing and sneezing, and dispose of used tissue in non-healthcare risk waste bin and perform hand hygiene
cough or sneeze into the inner elbow (upper sleeve) if no tissues are available, rather than into the hand
keep contaminated hands away from the mucous membranes of the eyes and nose
carry out hand hygiene after contact with respiratory secretions and contaminated objects and materials

D&V

If you have cases of D&V in your setting, contact us via email on HealthProtectionHub@telford.gov.uk and we’ll send you a guide.

Exclusion
Prompt exclusion of children, young people and staff who are unwell with an infectious disease is essential to preventing the spread of infection in education and childhood settings.

Children with mild, respiratory symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, or slight cough, who are otherwise well, can continue to attend their education or childcare setting.

Ventilation
Letting fresh air into indoor spaces can help remove air that contains virus particles and prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory infections.

If there are areas of the setting identified that may have poor ventilation, there are several simple things that can be done to improve ventilation.

These include:

partially opening windows and doors to let fresh air in
opening higher level windows to reduce draughts
opening windows for 10 minutes an hour or longer can help increase ventilation – where possible this can happen when the room is empty in between lessons, for example.

You should always balance the need for increased ventilation while maintaining a comfortable temperature.

Handwashing
Hand washing is one of the most important ways of controlling the spread of infections, especially those that cause diarrhoea and/or vomiting and respiratory infections.

Settings should ensure that staff and students/children have access to liquid soap, warm water and paper towels. Bar soap should not be used.

All staff and pupils should be advised to wash their hands after using the toilet, before eating or handling food, after playtime and after touching animals.

All cuts and abrasions should be covered with a waterproof dressing.

Cleaning
Effective cleaning and disinfection are critical in any education or childcare setting, particularly when food preparation is taking place.

Dedicated cleaning equipment should be colour coded according to area of use.

Laundry, nappy changing, dealing with soiled clothing
There should be a designated area on site if there is a need for laundry facilities. This area should:

be separate from any food preparation areas
have appropriate hand washing facilities
have a washing machine with a sluice or pre-wash cycle.

Staff involved with laundry services or dealing with soiled clothing should ensure that:

manual sluicing of clothing is not carried out as there is a risk of inhaling fine contaminated aerosol droplets; soiled articles of clothing should be rinsed through in the washing machine pre-wash cycle, prior to washing
gloves and aprons should be worn when handling soiled linen or clothing
hands should be thoroughly washed after removing the gloves and aprons.

Children in nappies must have a designated changing area. This should:

be away from play facilities and any area where food and/or drink is prepared or consumed
have appropriate hand washing facilities available.

Staff should wash and dry their hands after every nappy change, before handling another child or leaving the nappy changing room.

Staff involved in managing nappies should:

wrap soiled nappies in a plastic bag before disposal in the general setting waste
clean children’s skin with a disposable wipe (flannels should not be used)
label nappy creams and lotions with the child’s name and do not share with others
wipe changing mats with soapy water or a mild detergent wipe after each use
clean mats thoroughly with hot soapy water if visibly soiled and at the end of each day
check mats weekly for tears and discard if the cover is damaged.

A designated sink for cleaning potties (not a hand wash basin) should be located in the area where potties are used. Disposable gloves should be worn to flush contents down the toilet. The potty should be washed in hot soapy water, dried and stored upside down.

Hands should be washed using soap and warm water and dried after removing disposable gloves.

Childhood Immunisations
Here are links to guides on what immunisations children should’ve had at various ages, which you may wish to share with parents:

A guide to immunisations for babies born on or after 1 January 2020

A guide to immunisations for migrants

Vaccination of individuals with uncertain or incomplete immunisation status

Resources
The Spotty Book gives advice on general control measures and advice of specific diseases:

The Spotty Book

Health protection in schools and other childcare facilities

If you require any specific advice, or to advise us of an outbreak, please email HealthProtectionHub@telford.gov.uk and we’ll provide advice and assistance.

Autumn 2022 School Census guidance notes – 6 October 2022

Guidance notes for the Autumn (October) 2022 School Census for head teachers, school business managers and school administrators are now available to download:

Preparation for Autumn 2022 school census - guidance notes

Any queries can be sent to Eileen Finnigan, Data Officer – School Organisation and Admissions, via email to eileen.finnigan@telford.gov.uk or by calling 01952 388136.

Sharing attendance data and accessing school daily attendance reports

Some local authorities have not yet been able to, or had chance to, log into the attendance reports available for schools in their areas, so this is a reminder of how to access the reports.

Over 14,000 schools are now sharing their daily attendance data with the Department for Education (DfE) – which is great, but all remaining schools are strongly encouraged to also sign up. The DfE are therefore asking Local Authorities to encourage schools to do this.

The information shared gives schools and local authorities access to up-to-date attendance data reports on the View Your Education Data (VYED) system. Full instructions are below.

These reports can be used to help with earlier identification of pupils who need support, save you time building attendance reports and offer trend insights for different groups of pupils, with the ability to filter attendance data by year group and pupil characteristics.

This will help schools and local authorities meet the expectations outlined in new guidance on working together to improve school attendance, including supporting effective termly targeted support meetings. The DfE would therefore welcome local authorities to encourage schools in your area to sign up to share their attendance data to enable this.

From the end of September 2022, we will publish a new fortnightly national data visualisation tool on absence rates, helping schools and local authorities to assess your attendance levels in comparison to other areas and nationally, as well as spot and respond to emerging trends.

The DfE will continue to develop attendance reports to improve them for schools and local authorities. From later in September 2022 this will include the ability to compare attendance data with the previous academic year for a school or an individual. They would like to hear about your experience on using reports, so if you are interested in helping shape the project please sign up to take part in the research.

Accessing your attendance reports

You’ll need an Information Management Services (IDAMS) account. Create one if you do not have one.

Log in to View Your Education Data (VYED) using your IDAMS credentials and select the option for ‘local authority’ or ‘multi-academy trust’.

If you have been contacted about accessing your reports but you cannot see the ‘school daily attendance’ option when you log in to VYED, you will need to log in to your IDAMS account and request access to ‘View Your Education Data – School Attendance Data’ from a Super User at your organisation.

You can also find out online how to request access from a super user or give access to someone else.

Once you have been granted access, log in to VYED and select ‘School daily attendance’ to see your reports.

Full guidance on how to access daily attendance reports, is also available online.

If you’ve forgotten your IDAMS log in
Visit the IDAMS log in page and select ‘I’ve forgotten my password’. Then follow the steps earlier in the guide to access your reports.

If you need help
If you need help signing into VYED using IDAMS, read the sign in guidance or submit an advice ticket directly.

If you have any queries, please contact the Attendance Support Team via email to attendancesupportteam@telford.gov.uk or by calling 01952 85220.

Education Health and Care Plans - Annual Review Listings

Annual review listings are being sent out to all schools, settings and post 16 providers week commencing 12 September 2022, detailing the dates that annual reviews need to be completed and returned to the Local Authority.

Please carefully check through your listing and report any inaccuracies by sending an email to sendandinclusion@telford.gov.uk.

As you know we have some statutory dates by which we need to finalise Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans with a named September placement where a child/young person is moving between phases:

15 February 2023 for any child going into reception, year 3 (where there is movement between an infant school to a separate junior school only) and Year 7 in September 2023.

31 March 2023 for young people entering post 16 provision in September 2023.

Therefore annual reviews for the following year groups are required to be completed during the Autumn Term.

Year Groups:	Please send completed annual reviews to the SEND Team by:
Nursery year (aged 3 since 1 September 2019)	Annual Reviews to be held in Schools from: 21 November 2022 Annual Reviews returned to the LA: 5 December 2022
Year 2 pupils (infant school only)	Annual Reviews to be held in Schools week of: 21 November 2022 Annual Reviews returned to the LA: 5 December 2022
All Year 6 pupils	Annual Reviews to be held in Schools week of: 21 November 2022 Annual Reviews returned to the LA: 5 December 2022
All Year 11 pupils	16 January 2023 Post 16 Preference Form should be returned by 16 January 2023, with the Annual Review.

In some circumstances, a full year may not have passed since the last annual review for children in these year groups but their completion is still required by the specified dates.

The annual reviews of all other year groups should occur within 12 months of their previous annual review.

The SEND Team will be sending consultations to schools week starting: 14 December 2022 for Reception, Year 3 and Year 7.

The Preparing for Adulthood (PfA) Team will be sending consultations to Post 16 providers during the week commencing 23 January 2023.

For more information please contact the SEND Team via email to sendandinclusion@telford.gov.uk or by calling 01952 381045.

Please save the date for the Annual Review workshop that will be held on Thursday 3 November 2022, an invitation to attend will be sent to all SENCo’s.

Phase Transition Reviews - Important Reminder:
Please CC your locality coordinator into the email when you return the Annual Review paperwork for children and young people who will be moving from infant to junior (Yr. 2), primary – secondary (Yr. 6) or secondary to post 16 (Yr.11). If you are unsure who your locality coordinator is please take a look at the locality listing online.

SEND Locality Working

Shout Out for SEND (SOS) Group – Young Persons Forum

Shout Out for SEND (SOS) is a group of 11-25 year olds that meet every month to ensure that they have the chance to have their voice heard and to influence the decisions in Telford and Wrekin SEND and the Information Advice and Support Service (IASS) service.

The next project the group are working on is to provide feedback about activities, events and services young people would like to see developed in the local area. This will feed into the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment for the local area.

A workshop is being held on Tuesday 27 September 2022, 4pm – 5pm at the IASS Family Zone, Hazeldine House.

During the workshop there will be opportunity for young people to discuss ideas and feedback on what they would like to see provided in the local area.

To find out more or to book a place please send an email to info@iass.org.uk. Information will also be shared through the Facebook group, please see the information on how young people can join the group.

Shout Out for SEND Facebook Page:
We understand that not all young people are able to join the group but we would still like to hear their views on services and share ideas, so we, in partnership with IASS, have created a closed Facebook site for the SOS group.

Search for Shout Out for SEND on Facebook and request to ‘Join Group’ (young people will need to be over the age of 13 to access this Facebook Group).

Please can we request that this information is shared with your students, including how they can book a place on the workshop.

The SOS Group is interested in working collaboratively with schools, post 16 settings including, visiting school councils and parliaments. If your school or setting would like to request a visit from the group to find out how they can work with the group please contact us via email to localoffer@telford.gov.uk.

Black History Month

Black History Month (BHM) is in October and many pupils and staff have expressed a desire to learn about key figures and events in history that have an impact on our world today. This cross-curricular topic not only covers many history elements but addresses many fundamental Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural (SMSC) and Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PHSE) aspects of the curriculum as a whole.

Funding from the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) has enabled schools to access the free webinar on how to teach Black History with the Multicultural Development Team (MDT) and Telford African and Afro-Caribbean Resource Centre (TAARC) on:

Tuesday 27 September 2022, 4.30pm – 5.30pm.

Full details on the webinar are available by downloading the event flyer.

As part of the PCC funding, the overarching aim of BHM in schools is to promote awareness of a shared British history, provide staff with the opening for difficult discussions in class around racism and hate crime, as well as to develop pupil’s understanding of wider issues in the media and local context around equality and diversity issues. This supports schools’ development of pupils’ understanding of Fundamental British values and the protected characteristics, as defined in the Equality Act 2010.

The overall theme for Black History Month this year is Time For Change: Actions Not Words. Following on from this, the theme for 2022 workshops is the Commonwealth and Monarchy and will focus on life in the UK today.

The MDT team are also working with TAARC to deliver free workshops to all schools, to celebrate Black History Month, again thanks to funding from the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC). The past two years, workshops were extremely successful and many schools have expressed a desire to participate this year. All workshops are COVID-19 secure with risk assessments checked prior to staff and pupil delivery. Appropriate protocols are in place but schools will need to provide a visitor risk assessment prior to MDT and TAARC staff delivery when booking a workshop.

Information about Telford African and Afro-Caribbean Resource Centre (TAARC) services and resources are also available to download:

TAARC services and resources

The free workshops are available on a first come, first served basis as the number of schools that can be accommodated is limited. Workshops will take place in schools the first two weeks of Black History Month from Monday 3 October to Friday 14 October 2022.

All pupil work, photos and contributions from the workshops, plus other school activities and follow up activities will be displayed in Telford & Wrekin Council’s online media.

Please share how your school or setting is marking and commemorating Black History Month by sending your pictures, and brief description on what you have done to celebrate, via email to education.noticeboard@telford.gov.uk for inclusion in the Education Noticeboard.

Share on your social channels with Telford & Wrekin Council tagged in your posts – @TelfordWrekin – or alternatively please send all photos and blurbs toMonica Floristean via email to Monica.Floristean@telford.gov.uk.

MDT support for individual schools to plan and develop staff knowledge is available upon request. The resource pack for Black History Month available to download, as well as a Windrush resource pack:

Black History Month resource pack

Windrush resource pack

Workshops can booked by contacting the Multicultural Development Team directly. If you would like to attend the free webinar, book for a workshop or enquire about additional workshops or resources also please contact the MDT team.

International Day of Peace - 21 September 2022

The International Day of Peace began on the 21st September 1981 and was organised by the United Nations General Assembly. Its purpose is to ‘provide a globally shared date for all humanity to commit to peace above all differences and to contribute to building a culture of peace'.

Each event has a different theme. This year the theme is 'End Racism. Build Peace'. The United Nations state that this is a date dedicated to strengthening the ideals of peace through a non-violent period of a 24-hour cease-fire.

The United Nations also wants to address hate speech and violence directed at racial minorities. They aim to speak out against hate speech and promote a message of anti-racism through education.

Below are some ideas for activities which could take place within the classroom.

For a creative activity, write a letter to a member of the UN or an MP with a list of peaceful requests or suggestions.

Get your children to make posters which will encourage people to be more environmentally friendly and sustainable.

Make an International Day of Peace display that’s inspired by cultures from all over the world.

Learn about the history of a current conflict.

Follow the link for some resources to support you within the classroom.

EAL Network Meeting

EAL coordinators are aware of the ever increasing gap in learning that English as an Additional Language (EAL) pupils experience. The session will provide an opportunity for participants to:

Free EAL and Maths work group opportunities.
Engage with the Council’s key focus of Equality and Diversity provision including evaluation of school’s practice using the new Diversity Calendar developed by the Multicultural Development Team (MDT).
IRIS update and access to free training.
School of Sanctuary Award.
Flash Academy Assessment provision to improve attainment.
Updates (Ukrainian refugees, ethnicity groups in Telford, New EAL resources and research).
Feedback from the South Asian Heritage Month in July 2022.
Information regarding the Black History Month workshops in October 2022.
New Resources on the MDT website.

Delegates will improve their understanding of:

Effective ways to support EAL learners and promote their access to the curriculum
Planning Black History Month.
How to ensure the Equality and Diversity legal requirements are met in your school.
Access to online resources, free workshops and MDT free training.

The Network Meeting will take place on Tuesday 20 September 2022, 4pm – 5.30pm, online via Microsoft Teams.

To book a place on the training course please visit the CPD booklet online. If you would like to attend or express an interest in the training, please contact the Multicultural Development Team.

Any queries can be directed to Kirsty Holden and Qamar Maqsood, of the MDT Team, via email or by calling 07855148693 or 07800 671756.

Changes to ‘The Individual and Annual Return Racist Incident Reporting and Recording System’ (IRIS)

From Friday 30 September 2022 all historical data of racist incidents will be archived as the new IRIS system goes live on 22 September 2022. Please ensure that you have done the following before this date:

Recorded all incidents during the academic year 2021 - 22 on the current IRIS website.
Completed your annual returns for the academic year 2021-22.

During the next few days, leading up to 30 September 2022, all racist incidents will need to be logged internally and then to be uploaded on the new IRIS website. Reassuringly, any incident from the period 2003 to 2022 will be archived, but can be accessed in the event of any investigations or claims. All schools will be able to continue to access the old IRIS system in Telford & Wrekin for free, but you will not be able to upload any new incident or edit previous incidents.

The IRIS system has been upgraded and improved to include new enhanced recording for all racist incidents to ensure all information needed can be accurately recorded. All designated staff members in schools can now have personal login and password, which will be given to schools to enable them to report any incidents when they occur.

The ability for all designated staff to log incidents when they occur, instead of just one login for all incidents, means that details can be uploaded immediately by staff in the event of a racist incident occurring.

When incidents are logged immediately this enables the local authority to maintain an oversight of any issues beginning to arise in local communities. It enables council agencies to have the information to act quickly to support children, staff, local families and communities. It also ensures that a school has all incidents recorded, negating the need to upload all incidents in one go annually, thus reducing the pressure on the staff member who had the only login and password to IRIS.

IRIS information is held confidentially within the council and used to inform council agencies to ensure that the appropriate support is put in place for schools to access. Schools can request support from the Multicultural Development Team (MDT) if they have specific concerns or questions relating to any incidents.

The upcoming free session,Thursday 22 September 2022, 4pm – 5pm, is available to all school staff responsible for recording incidents on IRIS, and will talk staff through how to set up their logins during that session.

To book a place on the training course please visit the CPD booklet online. If you would like to attend or express an interest in the training, please contact the Multicultural Development Team.

Any queries can be directed to Kirsty Holden and Qamar Maqsood, of the MDT Team, via email or by calling 07855148693 or 07800 671756.

Early Talk Boost for EYFS children and other training

The Early Talk Boost was developed because between 40 – 50% of children growing up in socially disadvantaged areas of the UK are starting school with delayed language. As the early years offers such an opportunity for rich language experiences, it makes sense to start supporting language development at pre-school and nursery so that children have a good foundation when they start school. The Early Talk Boost intervention has been designed by I CAN communication advisors – specialist teachers and speech and language therapists.

Early Talk Boost supports a range of skills that give children’s language a boost:-

Attention and listening: foundation skills for speaking and listening.
Learning and using new words: research shows that children with weaker vocabularies are at risk of difficulties with reading.
Building sentences: putting words together is a vital skill for having conversations and telling stories.

Each school or setting can access 1 free place and will receive an Early Talk Boost pack worth £500. This is suitable for Teachers, Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) leads, setting leads, room leaders, SEND coordinators and childminders. (Childminders will be able to access the packs via Early Learning and Childcare Partnership Hubs, but need to have attended the training).

Stoke Speaks Out is a tool developed by Speech and Language Therapists as part of a School Readiness plan. It provides a quick and easy tool to assess children’s language skills in the EYFS. The screening can be used with children between the ages of 2 – 5 years 11 months, and identifies delays in understanding and spoken language and aids target setting. This is suitable for teachers, EYFS leads, setting leads, room leaders, SEND coordinators and childminders.

ICAN Early Talk training will include extend practitioner knowledge of speech, language and communications skills and processes; identifying risk factors that impact on the development of communication skills; understand the practitioner role in supporting speech, language and communication development; how to gather information around difficulties with Speech, Language and Communication (SLC) including when to and where to refer. This is especially suitable for those who are new to working in EYFS who work directly with children in EYFS settings/school nurseries including apprentices and students.

The dates, including times and room numbers, are available to be downloaded.

Queries can be sent to Lisa Seymour, via email to lisa.seymour@telford.gov.uk. To book a place please send an email to talkingchildcare@telford.gov.uk.

Pedestrian Training Workshops

The KS1 and KS2 Pedestrian Training scheme increases children’s knowledge of the Green Cross Code and teaches them age appropriate behaviour skills. The sessions cost £125 per class.

It provides a classroom based workshop, followed by accompanied walks in the local area. A pre and post evaluation takes place, outliers are highlighted and results are fed back to the class teacher. Feedback on this scheme has been excellent, with post evaluation results consistently high.

For more information or to book a course please contact Gemma Marchant, Road Safety Education Officer, via email to gemma.marhcant@telford.gov.uk.

Free ‘Get into Teaching’ information event

Would you like to find out more about a career in teaching?

Shropshire and Telford Education Partnership (STEP) are holding a free ‘Get Into Teaching’ recruitment event. Taking place on 29 September 2022, it will cover early years, primary and secondary phases.

The event will provide all of the information needed to help you decide if teaching is the career for you, and the Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Leads for the four providers (Severn based in Telford, Salop Teaching Partnership based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire Primary Partnership based in Wem and Shrewsbury and Alliance of Leading Learning based in Oswestry) will be able to answer any questions you may have.

The details are as follows:

Event: Free ‘Get Into Teaching’ recruitment event
Date: Thursday 29 September 2022
Time: 4pm – 6pm
Venue: University Centre, Shrewsbury (Guildhall, Frankwell Quay, Shrewsbury SY3 8HQ)
Booking: No need to book! Just turn up to this free event.

For more details please visit the STEP website, or contact Sian Dean, Project Manager for the Severn Training and Schools Alliance, via email to sian.deane1@taw.org.uk or by calling 01952 387237.

CPD courses for the first half of the Autumn term

The 2022-23 CPD Booklet is available on the Telford Education Services site.

Course bookings with a course code are made by sending a completed CPD booking form via email to cpdschoolimprovement@telford.gov.uk.

Other courses and briefings without a course code are usually booked by sending your email address name and school name to cpdschoolimprovement@telford.gov.uk (unless stated otherwise).

EAL Network Meeting (CPD 526)	Tuesday 20 September 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
Working Together to improve school attendance expectations for schools (AST 001)	Tuesday 20 September 2022	5pm to 6.30pm
The Essential Induction Event for Early Career Teachers (CPD 521)	Wednesday 21 September 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
Newly Appointed Designated Safeguarding Leads' Training (2 days) - part 1 (SG 102)	Wednesday 21 September 2022	9.15am to 4pm
ELSA Training - Part 2 (EPS 004)	Wednesday 21 September 2022	9am to 3pm
Newly Appointed Designated Safeguarding Leads' Training (2 days) - part 2 (SG 102)	Thursday 22 September 2022	9.15am to 4pm
Pay and Conditions of Employment (Book via HRhelpdesk@telford.gov.uk)	Friday 23 September 2022	3pm to 5pm
ECT Induction Tutor - initial training (CPD 520)	Friday 23 September 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
An Introduction to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EY 001)	Tuesday 27 September 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
Forest School and Outdoor Learning for Practitioners Working within EYFS (EY 201)	Wednesday 28 September 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
ELSA Training - Part 3 (EPS 004)	Wednesday 28 September 2022	9am to 3pm
The Hearing Impaired Child in your Class (SIS 002)	Thursday 29 September 2022	8.30am to 4pm
Accredited Safer Recruitment Training (Book via HRhelpdesk@telford.gov.uk)	Thursday 29 September 2022	9am to 4.30pm
Safety Intervention Training (formerly MAPA training) - Part 1 - CPI accredited (BSAT 201)	Thursday 29 September 2022	8.30am to 4pm
Talk Boost - KS2 (LSAT 511)	Monday 3 October 2022	full day
Supporting Pupil Premium Link Governors (GO 602)	Monday 3 October 2022	5pm to 7pm
Weaving Literacy and Mathematical Development into a Broad EYFS Curriculum - Part 1 (EY 304)	Wednesday 5 October 2022	1.15pm to 4pm
ELSA Training - Part 4 (EPS 004)	Wednesday 5 October 2022	9am to 3pm
Pupil Premium Network Meeting (CPD 721)	Wednesday 5 October 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
Developing the Role of the EAL Coordinator (CPD 616)	Thursday 6 October 2022	3.45pm to 6pm
Designated Safeguarding Leads Refresher (SG 107)	Thursday 6 October 2022	9.15am to 3.15pm
Safety Intervention Training (formerly MAPA training) - Part 2 - CPI accredited (BSAT 201)	Thursday 6 October 2022	8.30am to 12.30pm
Early Years Annual Conference (EY 015)	Friday 7 October 2022	9am to 3.30pm
Establishing Yourself as a SEND leader, for new and returning SENCOs (LSAT 302)	Tuesday 11 October 2022	4pm to 5pm
Managing Employee Capability (Performance Management) (Book via HRhelpdesk@telford.gov.uk)	Wednesday 12 October 2022	2.30pm to 5pm
Meeting the Statutory Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements of the EYFS (EY 009)	Wednesday 12 October 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
ELSA Training - Part 5 (EPS 004)	Wednesday 12 October 2022	9am to 3pm
Behaviour Support Intervention Refresher Training - Non accredited (BSAT 302)	Thursday 13 October 2022	8.45am to 12.30pm
Meeting the OFSTED requirements for Equality and Diversity for Governors (CPD 717)	Thursday 13 October 2022	6pm to 8.30pm
Best practice in your breakfast, after-school and holiday provision (EY 104)	Thursday 13 October 2022	9.15am to 12noon
Absence Management of Employees (Book via HRhelpdesk@telford.gov.uk)	Monday 17 October 2022	2.30pm to 5pm
The Visually Impaired Child in Your Class (SIS 001)	Tuesday 18 October 2022	9am to 4pm
Restorative Justice (PSS 003)	Tuesday 18 October 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
The Strategic Role of Governors (GO 601)	Tuesday 18 October 2022	4pm to 6pm
Managing Absence (AST 002)	Tuesday, October 18, 2022	9.30am to 11.30am
Weaving Literacy and Mathematical Development into a Broad EYFS Curriculum - Part 2 (EY 304)	Wednesday 19 October 2022	1.15pm to 4pm
Raising Awareness of Prevent (SG 101)	Wednesday 19 October 2022	3.30pm to 5pm
Designated Teacher for Children in Care Network Meeting (Post 16 ) book via the Virtual School Team	Wednesday 19 October 2022	4pm to 5.30pm
ELSA Training - Part 6 (EPS 004)	Wednesday 19 October 2022	9am to 3pm
Raising Awareness of Child Protection (SG 108)	Thursday 20 October 2022	3.30pm to 5pm
Assessing and Monitoring of progress in EAL (CPD 701)	Thursday 20 October 2022	3.45pm to 6pm

Induction event for Early Careers Teachers

This important induction event, which is taking place Wednesday 21 September 2022 from 4pm to 5.30pm, is for all Early Career Teachers (ECTs) registered with the Telford & Wrekin Appropriate Body.

This event, which is free of charge*, will provide delegates with:

an opportunity to network with other ECTs
an understanding of what to expect during your personalised induction programme
support and information on CPD opportunities
an overview of the professional standards
an understanding of your rights and responsibilities, including key policies and procedures
a frequently asked questions session.

* This event is free of charge for ECTs who are registered with Telford & Wrekin LA Appropriate Body.

Key Outcomes

links with other ECTs
an understanding of the structures and formal elements of ECT assessment
an awareness of the range of support available within the school and the LA
an understanding of rights and responsibilities as a professional working with young people.

To book your place/s please send a completed CPD booking form via email to cpdschoolimprovement@telford.gov.uk.

New course – Motivational Interviewing for education settings

Free places are available on Motivational Interviewing (MI) Training, delivered by the Education Safeguarding Team and aimed at school staff who work directly with families open to the family safeguarding model.

The dates are as follows:

Wednesday 18 January 2023, 1pm – 4pm
Wednesday 1 March 2023, 9.30am – 12.30pm
Wednesday 22 March 2023, 9.30am – 12.30pm
Wednesday 3 May 2023, 1pm – 4pm

The training will provide an overview of Motivational Interviewing including how, as partners, we can model this strengths-based approach within the Family Safeguarding Model.

Key principles:

Engagement with the client, rather than doing something to them – i.e. change cannot be forced or pushed on to someone. It has to be internal for the client in order to be meaningful and long term.
Rolling with resistance (please note, this is not rolling over or being passive).
Expressing empathy.
Avoiding Conflict.
Developing discrepancy in the client’s thinking.
Supporting self-responsibility.

Please note that this training is limited to one free place per school, school nursery, academy and independent school.

Key Outcomes:

Delegates will:

gain an understanding of the spirit and principles of motivational interviewing
gain a practical understanding of the cycle of behaviour change, and how it can encourage positive thinking about change
be able to use key motivational interviewing techniques in the context of conversations, both formal and informal.

To book your school’s free place, please send a completed CPD Booking Form to cpdschoolimprovement@telford.gov.uk.

Heritage open days: Coalbrookdale

Join in with a celebration of 'Astounding Inventions' at Coalbrookdale, with free admission to Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron, The Old Furnance, Enginuity and Darby Houses on 17 and 18 September 2022, as part of Heritage Open Days.

Walk a living timeline of vehicular innovation; start at the vintage steam engine then progress through the petrol and diesel age before finishing with a modern electric vehicle. Get hands on with invention themed activities in the covered bays.

All activities and visits are drop-in and there's no need to pre-book.

For more information on Ironbridge, including the Heritage Open Days, please visit the website.

Recycling Week

The 19th annual recycling week will take place between Monday 19 and Sunday 25 September, 2022.

Recycle Week is an annual event designed to celebrate and promote the benefits of recycling. The theme for this year’s Recycling Week is 'Lets get real about Recycling”. This has been chosen to create opportunities for us all to implement positive change that will help protect our planet.

During a difficult COVID-19 pandemic where we haven’t had much control on day-to-day events, recycling is something we can have control over. The urge is for everybody to step up this Recycle Week and join the fight against climate change.

Recycling Week will see an increase in advertising campaigns across the country through working in partnerships with large companies and well-known brands.

Locally Veolia (Telford) is holding a competition to encourage children up to the age of 11 years old to make a poster promoting recycling at home. The winning poster will win a limited edition Telford and Wrekin Recycling Squad soft toy. The competition closes on Friday 16 September 2022, so get those paints and crayons out and start drawing. Visit the Veolia website for more information on the competition and free workshops for primary schools in Telford and Wrekin.

For further resources about recycling week follow visit the recycle now and twinkl websites.

This entry was posted by Claire on Wednesday, 14 September 2022.

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Every week during term time we publish a new update for the education community. It includes essential briefings and specialist information about education.

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