Agenda item

STOCKTON-ON-TEES BOROUGH COUNCIL

 

CABINET DECISION

 

PROFORMA

 

Cabinet Meeting ........................................................................ 17 October 2024

 

1.Title of Item/Report

 

Scrutiny Review of Narrowing the Gap in Educational Attainment

 

2.Record of the Decision

 

Consideration was given to a report Scrutiny Review of Narrowing the Gap in Educational Attainment.

 

The Children and Young People Select Committee had completed a review examining Narrowing the Gap in Educational Attainment. A copy of the Select Committee’s report and recommendation was attached to the report.

 

Based on the top challenges identified by Stockton Primary and Secondary Schools, the Select Committee decided to focus their work on two key factors impacting on educational attainment:

 

•Attendance

•Communication (vocabulary, oracy and literacy)

 

 

The overall aim of the project was to work collaboratively with schools and partners to explore what good practice already exists and what could still be done to support of families, establish innovative ways of working and make better use of resources through a renewed approach.

 

An Appreciative Inquiry (AI) approach was adopted for the review. This approach promoted a positive mindset by:

 

•valuing strengths rather than focusing on deficiencies

•identifying what is valued and effective and building on that

•involving all the stakeholders to work together to agree solutions  

•sharing the responsibility with all stakeholders for making the solutions happen

 

RESOLVED that Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council works collaboratively with partners and key stakeholders to deliver the following shared objectives:

 

1.Improve attendance

Support schools to improve attendance:

Encourage school leaders’ use of the Attendance Self Evaluation Toolkit to identify what is working well, and areas which could be developed

Promote an inclusive and relevant curriculum - where a young person wants to attend

Work with the Team Around the School Service.

Ensure that schools are equipped to deal with health issues.

Identify individual barriers to attendance to better target support and intervention with specific reference to young carers

 

2.Forge positive relationships

Ensure that school culture proactively forges positive relationships between pupils, staff and parent/ carers:

Promote respectful behaviours from all partners including teachers.

Involve parents in school life.

Extend opportunities for enhanced transition.

 

3.Improve communication

Design, deliver and support parent/carer communication strategies:

Use new technologies and apps.

Implement communication strategies early ensuring that good communication is embedded across the school community.

Consider single points of contact and how best to communicate (not relying on technology alone).

Offer parent/ carer engagement training for all staff.

 

4.Identify and support young carers

Raise awareness of young carer identification and support for pupils.

Extend the range of opportunities for young carers to link with others socially.

 

5.Managing emotions

Strengthen environment and opportunities for pupils to manage emotions:

Engage with the Healthy Schools Programme and Healthy Settings Programme

Design and delivery of courses to meet pupil need and support parents, with specific reference to:

managing behaviour effectively.

supporting mental health and wellbeing – especially to de-escalate heightened behaviour or to reduce stress levels.

positive parenting skills.

Strengthen the use of pupil voice to support development of school environments which better support them to manage their emotions.

 

6.Refine teaching strategies

Further refine teaching strategies to improve lesson enjoyment, encourage speaking and listening and strengthen understanding also ensuring that teaching is tailored to the needs of the individual child.

 

7.Developing speaking and listening skills

Ensure the curriculum and school clubs provide opportunities to develop speaking and listening skills, for example through debating clubs.

Raise awareness of regional and national opportunities to develop speaking and listening skills

 

8.Extend enrichment offer

Strengthen and extend curriculum enrichment offer which better matches pupils needs and interests:

Extend enrichment to include kick-boxing; boxing; coding; cooking clubs; sports clubs and story.

Extend and promote the Tees Active Offer to include First Aid, paddle boards (team building) and extend offer within school holidays.

Engage with the Healthy Schools Programme and Healthy Settings Programme

 

9.Celebrate achievement

Extend the range of opportunities to celebrate achievement including recognition for out of school activities and engagement with local, regional and national awards and competitions.

 

10.Enhance curriculum development

Work with partners and labour markets, making more explicit links to future employment.

Innovate a local curriculum.

 

11.Strengthen understanding of career pathways

Clarify pathways to careers early in school life:

Design and delivery of courses to clarify current career pathways for pupils and parents, including vocational careers and options other than traditional routes.

Employment & Training Hub to link with schools to notify parents of apprenticeships events.

Promote aspirational/motivational approaches.

Strengthen links between schools/parents/careers advisor.

Share best practice regarding "careers" evenings/ events in primary and secondary schools.

Invite parents into school who have unusual careers.

Educate parents on opportunities post 16.

 

12.Strengthen transition arrangements

Ensure that transition arrangements better fits bespoke pupil needs, with specific reference to vulnerable pupils:

Ensure plans are put in place well in advance of any transition.

Consider transition to post-16 and post-18/19 as well as primary and secondary and school readiness.

Consider transition between year groups as appropriate.

 

13.Enhance skills to respond to special needs

Increase range of opportunities to enhance skills in mainstream schools to respond to Special Educational Needs (SEN), Child Protection Plans (CPP) and Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA):

Share best practice of integrating SEN pupils into mainstream schools.

Promote vocational opportunities.

 

14.Review behaviour policies

Review behaviour policies to ensure that they are appropriate and proportionate and that inclusion policies align with behaviour policies:

What happens when a young person is removed from the classroom. Where do they go? What teaching takes place?

 

15.Embed and extend pastoral support

Embed and extend pastoral support in schools targeted to need.

Engage with the Healthy Schools Programme and Healthy Settings Programme.

 

 

16.Strengthen support for parent/carers to develop language and reading skills

Design and deliver courses and activities to develop reading and language skills.

Promote Functional English Courses.

Invite parents/ carers to support reading groups at primary school.

Promote reading through free Enrichment/after school clubs.

Ensure parents understand the importance of reading.

Use school social media to help parents/carers learn

Ensure materials are easy read/jargon free to involve parent/carers.

Key messages being shared from antenatal contact.

Work with Read Easy Charity - helping people learn to read.

 

17.Review cost of living responses to diminish impact

Review Cost of Living responses to diminish its impact, with specific reference to period poverty, food poverty and school uniform:

Work with Child Poverty Network.

Work with schools to better promote/communicate Cost of Living interventions.

Encourage all schools to ‘Poverty Proof the School Day’.

 

3.Reasons for the Decision

 

            This topic was included in the Scrutiny Work Programme for 2023/24.  The review is now complete and the recommendations have been endorsed by the Children and Young People Select Committee for submission to Cabinet.

 

4.Alternative Options Considered and Rejected

 

            None

 

5.Declared (Cabinet Member) Conflicts of Interest

 

            None

 

6.Details of any Dispensations

 

            None

 

7.Date and Time by which Call In must be executed

 

            Midnight Friday 25 October 2024

 

 

 

Proper Officer