Meeting documents

For the Committee to receive an update on the Side-by-Side project.

Contributors:

Paulette Thompson-Omenka – Service Director Education

Anita Cranmer – Cabinet Member for Education & Skills

Mr Drawmer, Head of Achievement and Learning, gave an update about the Side by Side School Improvement project. The following points were made:

·         There was a modest amount of funding available for this project which had been allocated to Schools based on their level of need. If a School wanted to use additional support but wasn’t identified as having a need for it, they were able to pay for the support.

·         Schools were divided into three categories; Intervention Schools who had up to 18 funded days per annum, Prevention Schools who had up to 6 funded days per annum and Enhancement Schools, who didn’t require much support but could access support if they funded it themselves.

·         Schools could access group work and prevention conferences throughout the year.

·         There was a current audit taking place across Buckinghamshire Secondary Schools. Furzedown and Chiltern Wood had been carrying out audit work to support teaching assistants. The council had been funding this work so that the Schools could release their staff to complete the audit.

·         Across Chiltern and South Bucks, Stony Dean School had been carrying out work which focussed on reintegrating pupils into mainstream schooling. It was anticipated that this work would get broadened out into a wider SEND programme over time.

·         Inclusion work and work to reduce permanent exclusions, while identifying best practice, had been taking place across the County, led by the Head Teacher at Aspire Secondary PRU.

·         There had recently been a 2 day leadership conference at Bucks Academy for Head Teachers. This had been vital in supporting School leaders to develop the quality of their work and form networks of support.

·         The Council had focussed on creating teacher networks so that they had been able to become ambassadors for the side-by-side project. 18 liaison groups were looking at running small research groups and would receive seed money so that they could improve performance across the County.

·         All side-by-side project work was managed by the Council, through a small grant of £650,000 per year.

·         Schools were prioritised based on the distance until their next Ofsted inspection and their last result. They were well-supported in the process leading up to an inspection. Larger schools also required additional support.

·         Support was always tailored to each School’s needs. The Council ensured that the right people were mentoring each School and that they had a thorough and correct understanding of the context of the School and the problems which it faced, to be able to assist effectively

·         The success of the project had been measured through key performance indicators which included higher performing attainment 8 results, differences across selective and non-selective performance and Ofsted gradings, which were good or better.

·         A Member suggested that it would be helpful to hear accounts from Schools who had been involved in providing support and those who had been supported. It was agreed that this could be brought to a future meeting.

·         A Parent Governor Representative suggested that particular Schools within the enhancement group had not been getting support, despite paying into the budget. They wanted to know who they should contact as these Schools had been unable to find contact details for main project officers. Mr Drawmer advised that every Enhancement School could come through to the School Improvement Team to request support. School grading and allocation to the prescribed categories was fluid and could be assessed again when a School neared their Ofsted inspection cycle. Schools could request that the Council revise their categorisation once they have analysed their risk assessments and looked at data and vulnerability.

The Chairman thanked Mr Drawmer for his update.