The Schools Blog

Despite the fact that Oxford and Cambridge Universities have announced that they will have no problem with accepting students to appropriate courses with Diplomas there is now another suggestion that the courses that students take at A level can affect how the universities will look at their applications.

There is a daily blog on the internet which tells the tale of a school which was taken over by a group of crooks posing as an academy. Their daily activities in restricting what teachers can say, do, wear, and teach, as well as their attempts to set up a total surveillance system are reported in the diary of an administrator at the school. In the end the crooks are defeated through the resistance of those in the school office, aided by a couple of far seeing teachers. (There’s a link to the blog at the end of this piece.)

It is meant as a chuckle - a bit of light relief - as well as a way of establishing the great work that those in school admin do.

But when stories start to emerge about fraud and corruption by those who are running our Academies, one begins to wonder.

Today the news has arrived that there is to be an inquiry into the alleged mismanagement of millions of pounds of money poured into schools.
The accused organisation is Edutrust, a religious group which has been given millions to run a load of academies - including 8 new ones opening next September. The group’s CEO was sacked from a £200,000 a year job for “poor performance.” He says it was because he complained of financial irregularities and didn’t want to be compromised.

What is particularly interesting, and what makes all this read as if it were something from a blogged work of fiction is the fact that the Guardian now reports that immediately after the CEO’s contract was ended “Edutrust announced that its new director general would be Sir Bruce Liddington, formerly the schools commissioner, the most senior role responsible for academies in the DCSF.”

So some questions might be asked, suchas why Edutrust got special status to run all these schools? Why are some of them fast tracked? In fact Edutrust hold the record for the fastest ever set up for an academy - five months.

Most alarming was the fact that when The Guardian asked Edutrust about the affair Edutrust said “We are not aware of any serious concerns that Mr Comfort [the CEO] raised during his employment with us.”

Of course this blog has no insight into what is really happening with the Academes across the country beyond that which appears in the papers and in the PriceWaterhouseCoopers report into the academies (a report which does suggest that there might be some financial irregularities going on.) It certainly does appear from this that academies regularly use taxpayers money to set up subsidiary companies which are outside of the government’s control.

It is quite possible that nothing untoward is going on - one will have to wait and see. Meanwhile the daily diary of April First, school administrator, makes amusing reading - although you may have to skim back a few weeks to grasp what exactly is going on in her school. The blog is at www.blog.admin.org.uk

Almost £62 million of fast track funding will be awarded to 21 successful bidders across the country as part of Government investment to deliver “world class places for young people”, according to the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families.

This is the first wave of funding from a pot close to £202m to provide exciting safe places for young people to go to and where young people can take part in a wide range of positive activities such as sport, dance and music. The BIG Lottery Fund will oversee the projects to ensure young people get exactly what they want, including £4.8m for Stoke on Trent, almost £5m for Carlisle and nearly £5m for Leeds.

myplace is a project to transform the way facilities and locations for young people are planned and delivered. All myplace projects are based on partnership between councils and third sector organisations and are driven by the active participation of young people and their views and needs.

The fast track funding round has received an additional £11.7m to increase the original £50m allocation to £61.7m.

Background

1. The successful bidders for the fast track round of funding include:

The Sutton Life Centre, Sutton, London (£4.075m) - This project will create a modern, multi-functional facility with youth advice services, a citizenship and life skills centre, rehearsal space for arts projects, coffee shop, Internet café, community rooms and a state-of-the-art library. External facilities include a climbing wall and a sensory eco garden. The project includes outreach work to local schools and will open 9.00am to 11.00pm seven days a week to benefit young people between ages of 13 and 24 including young people with disabilities.

The Salmon Youth Centre, Bermondsey, London (£1.119m) - This project will provide a training kitchen, ICT suite, counselling room, fitness studio, bicycle workshop and drop-in area for support and advice services at the Salmon Centre in Bermondsey. Also included is a garage for two minibuses, a trailer and camp store, a specialist art and craft room, and an Enterprise and Learning Centre to develop business skills. The facilities will be open seven days a week to benefit disadvantaged young people between ages of 14 and 20.

TaB Centre Plus, Enfield, London (£2.168m) - This project in Enfield will refurbish an existing building to provide a sports hall with semi-sprung floor, gym space and a sprung floor dance studio. It includes adding new rooms, changing rooms and showers, computer area and a sound proof media suite for singing, drama and photography. It will also offer counselling and advice sessions and a coffee shop. Aimed primarily at 13 to 19 year olds it will open 7 days a week

New Life Centre, Hartlepool, in the North East region (£4.516m) - This project will create a specialist performing arts facility including all varieties of dance, music practice and recording and drama to benefit 13 to 19 year olds. In partnership with a local school and two other organisations the project includes involvement from young people in its design and implementation. It will open 7 days a week and also offers workshops, advice and support sessions

The Hub, Barnard Castle, in the North East region (£4.952m) - This project will provide a building comprising a café, music rehearsal facilities, dance and drama studios, a performance area, art and media rooms. There will also be 36-bed accommodation for visiting youth groups. Sporting facilities will include a BMX/cycle track, skate bowl, canoe and kayak paddle lake, adventure area with climbing boulders, ropes course and zip line. It will be a low impact building with a grassed/sedum roof and wind turbines.

Bradley Youth Hub, Pendle, in the North West region (£1.336m) - This project will replace an existing poor quality youth centre with a youth-led facility designed by local young people. Activities will include arts, music and drama workshops, outdoor activities, residential opportunities and the Duke of Edinburgh Award. There will be a café with Internet access, IT suite music studio and indoor sports area. Young people will be able to access advice on careers, sexual health and educational courses. It will benefit 11-25yr olds with a focus on the 13-19yr olds

Carlisle Youth Zone, Carlisle, in the North West region (£4.98m) - Carlisle Youth Zone will be a new youth facility in the city centre for young people, including a sports hall, climbing wall, games and social area, kitchen, arts/crafts zone, changing rooms, kitchen, hall and multi-purpose rooms.

The Hub, Dartford, in the South East region (£2.20m) - This project will build new and refurbish an existing building to house facilities for young people aged 8-21yrs old including, a music studio, rehearsal room, multi-use activity area, IT suite and chill out lounge. Educational courses, sports activities and entry to employment schemes will be offered and the project will particularly benefit young people not in training, education or employment, who are living in deprived areas or who are at risk of offending.

The Pegasus Theatre Project, Oxford, in the South East region (£1.8m) - This project is to build a new arts facilities for young people up to 23 years old at the Pegasus Theatre Trust in Oxford. It will include a large auditorium, information point, rehearsal and dance studio, dressing room space, café and workshop area. It will benefit a range of young people, including those with learning and physical disabilities and those from low-income areas. Young people are at the centre of designing and running the project which will be open seven days a week until 10.00pm.

Access All Areas, Bridgwater, in the South West region (£3.922m) - This carbon-neutral youth facility in Bridgwater will have a focus on sport and outdoor activities and will include a health and fitness suite, a sports hall, indoor climbing, a water sports area and a MUGA. It will also offer activities such as a community radio station managed by young people, a cafe area and community recording studio. A wide range of advice and work experience services will be delivered by Connexions, Sedgemoor PCT and the local authority alongside the YMCA.

Dawlish Integrated Youth Centre, Dawlish, in the South West region (£1.7m) - Facilities at this youth centre for 13 to 19 year olds will include a recording studio, a social and games area and a disco area with DJ booth. There will also be an IT suite, office area, and facilities where young people can learn vocational skills from building to hairdressing. Activities such as sports, drama, arts and media will be offered in response to what young people in the area want. Council youth workers and other support organisations will be based on site to offer young people help and guidance.

Minehead EYE, Minehead, in the South West region (£3.156m) - The facility in West Somerset will include a two storey, 550m² BMX/skate area, a café/shop/chill-out area with a viewing area over the skatepark and a computer area. There will also be a multi-media suite, recording studio and DJ booth and an exhibition space and art/graffiti wall. CLOWNS, a partner organisation, will have a base on the ground floor alongside a range of organisations, such as youth workers from Somerset County Council and the local PCT, who will offer support and guidance.

The Primetime Project, Bournemouth, in the South West region (£1.30m) - This project will deliver state-of-the-art youth provision covering performance, music, film, and radio across two sites. The project’s hub at Pokesdown will include an acoustic shell and performance area, as well as a wide range of multi-media facilities. A separate wing will offer supported accommodation for vulnerable young people and a children’s centre. A site at Boscombe will focus on community projects, planning and business support for youth enterprises. A youth bus will also deliver outreach work.

The Young Person’s Village, Stoke-on-Trent, in the West Midlands region (£4.8m) - This project will renovate and add to an existing YMCA building, to include a sports hall, library and basement areas beneath residential blocks to provide additional training and exhibition facilities. Targeted at vulnerable, deprived and excluded young people and ex-offenders, the project aims to give them somewhere safe to meet, socialise and find accommodation, while participating in meaningful activities. It will also work with the wider community to confront negative public perceptions.

The Green Rivers Centre, Bloxwich, Walsall, in the West Midlands region (£1.287m) - This project will build a new facility for young people aged 11 to 18 years old that includes a sports hall for racquet sports, volleyball, dance, boxing and martial arts. The canal side location means outdoor activities will be offered including fishing and raft building. IT provision, financial and sexual health advice will also be provided and after school and school holiday clubs will use the facility for creative arts. It will be open 9.00am - 10.00pm seven days a week.

The Big Hub, Leeds, in the Yorkshire and Humber region (£4.979m) - This project on the Belle Isle Estate in Leeds will extend an existing building and include a multi-use games area, café, ICT, motorcycle repair, hairdressing training and creative arts studio. Careers advice and confidential advice on drugs, alcohol and relationships will be available on site and the project will include a mobile information and advice service in South Leeds. Open 7 days a week the project will be led by young people and will increase their self-esteem and pride in their neighbourhood.

My Place Chesterfield, Chesterfield, East midlands region (£3.108m) - This project is to refurbish and add to an existing centre, to include sports halls, an art room, recording and dance studios, performance spaces and chill out area. Young people will be able to get career advice and counselling on issues such as sexual health through agencies like Connexions and Women’s Aid. Targeting young people from 11 to 25, including those with learning difficulties and from disadvantaged areas, the centre will aim to raise their aspirations by developing new skills.

Hinckley Club for Young People, Leicestershire, in the East midlands region (£4.505m) - This project will create a new club building at Richmond Park, including a sports hall, quiet rooms and chill out zone, computer workspace, climbing wall and fitness suite. Outdoor facilities will include a skate-park and BMX track. Young people from 8 to 19 will be offered activities ranging from judo and archery to car maintenance, based on their own ideas and needs. The eco-friendly building design will ensure a low carbon footprint through rainwater harvesting and high efficiency lighting.

OPEN Centre Project, Norwich, in the Eastern region (£1.257m) - This project will refurbish a listed building into a meeting place for young people. Facilities will include a live music venue, theatre, conference and other arts-based activities, a young people’s nightclub, climbing wall, educational kitchen and café, music recording studios and video editing suites, plus a dance and performing arts space, health centre and education space with computers. The project will target young people aged 13 to 25 years but, more specifically, young people under the age of 18.

Shoeburyness Youth Centre, Shoeburyness, in the Eastern region (£2.988m) - This project aims to build a vibrant centre for young people in Shoeburyness which will raise the aspirations of local young people and make a real difference to their lives. The vision is for an inspiring, environmentally sustainable building offering high quality youth facilities, a large scale social enterprise initiative, a youth volunteering centre and the co-location of a range of youth support workers.

The Big Lottery Fund (BIG) distributes lottery funding to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK. It also uses its expertise in grant-giving to distribute non-lottery funding. BIG has been appointed to distribute £202 million of Government funding from DCSF to develop world-class youth facilities in England through the myplace progamme. For any questions regarding individual successful projects please contact the BIG Lottery Fund press office on 020 7211 1888 or out of hours on 07867 500 572.

For further information on myplace please visit the website http://www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/youthmatters/aiminghigh/myplace/

Projects that have bid for a further £110m through the myplace standard track will know the outcome of their application by the end of Feb 2009. Grants are between £1m and £5m.

The increase in funding for the fast track round will have no impact on funding available for standard track or round 2.

Note: this service is one of many that we run for teachers - if you would like to see details of all the other free news services we offer please visit www.schools.co.uk/aboutEMN.html

According to the government academies are meeting their aim of raising school standards thanks to their innovative approach.  The government cites an independent report by PricewaterhouseCoopers published 27 November.

In their fifth and final annual report into the Academies programme, PwC also highlight the positive impact of strong leadership, sponsors and their increasing popularity with parents.

The report confirms the NAO report last year which suggested that Academies are “on track to deliver good value for money” and the Government’s flagship programme is raising attainment in deprived areas.

The PwC report says “the picture that emerges is one of positive overall progress in securing improvements in performance”, adding that “many Academies performed better than the national average for progress from Key Stage 2 to GCSE”.

The report says that 2007 GCSE results showed an average Academy improvement rate of four times the national average - 8 percentage points (ppts) compared to 2 ppts. Even when English and Maths is included, the average Academy improvement rate (5 ppts) is still way above the national average.

The report concludes that there is “a clear message from the evidence” that the following key elements of Academies help school improvement:

• The support and expertise of sponsors, increasing diversity and choice and helping strengthen school leadership and teaching;
• Increased potential to deliver high quality local education for a greater number of pupils from lower socio-economic backgrounds and pupils with special educational needs;
• Flexibility over issues like sponsorship, governance and staffing;
• State of the art buildings.

The PwC report concludes that Academies are having a growing impact on the wider educational landscape, for example creating closer links between independent and state schools.

Background

• There are 130 open Academies, a further 80 are due to open in September 2009 and 100 in September 2010;

• The Government is committed to creating at least 400 Academies.

• Compared to pupils attending other state schools, pupils attending an Academy are more likely to be eligible for free school meals, speak English as an additional language and be classified as having Special Educational Needs

Tony Attwood

Hamilton House Mailings plc reg number 2444392 VAT 354907535GB.  Phone 01536 399 000.

Figures just published show that almost all infant and junior age pupils in Wales are taught in class sizes of 30 or fewer.

Since 2001 all infant class have been subject to the 30 pupil class size limit. After taking into account the exceptions permitted by law, the September 2008 Class Size Count showed that just 15 of the 3991 infant classes in Wales had more than 30 pupils.

The Welsh Assembly Government is working with local authorities and schools to ensure that all 15 classes comply with the legislative limit by the start of next school term.

The Welsh Assembly Government also has a target of ensuring that junior classes contain 30 pupils or fewer. At the time of the count, 3.7% of junior classes had more than 30 pupils. This compares with 25% in 1999 and 3% in 2007.

Over the next few years the roll out of the Foundation Phase should enable nursery and infant age children to benefit from even greater levels of small group working and individual attention.

The statistics are available at:

http://new.wales.gov.uk/topics/statistics/headlines/schools2008/hdw20081126/?lang=en

Tony Attwood