The Department for Education has named the first 21 of 90 new integrated behaviour and attendance hubs set to open in September.
And former behaviour tsar Tom Bennett and former headteacher Jayne Lowe have been appointed as ambassadors for the scheme.
Government has announced today 800 schools with 6,000 pupils will have access to the newly integrated RISE hubs from September.
Behaviour and attendance hubs are being merged, with the scheme receiving £1.5 million investment – significantly lower than the two schemes it replaces.
The appointments of Bennett and Lowe come after the DfE told Schools Week that Bennett and Rob Tarn, the former attendance tsar, were no longer in the positions they took up under previous Conservative governments, but were welcome to reapply.
Ambassadors Bennett and Lowe will “play a key role in ensuring the sector’s voice is reflected in shaping the programme”, according to the DFE
21 out of 90 announced
In May, the DfE said it was seeking 90 “best of the best” schools “with a track record of improving attendance and behaviour standards” to apply to lead hubs. Now, 21 have been announced in the first wave, with more set to be opened throughout the year, the DfE told Schools Week.
Over time, 500 schools in the most need will receive “intensive, targeted help”, while 5,000 schools overall will have access to hubs when all have been opened.
The DfE said in May that schools in line for support would have “significant attendance and behaviour challenges”, and they have not yet been chosen.
‘Proven expertise’
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “We know what works – strong leadership, consistent attendance and schools standing shoulder to shoulder with families.
“That’s why we’re investing in proven expertise so that schools facing the biggest challenges can get the support they need.”
Pepe Di’Iasio, of school leaders’ union ASCL said that although he wished the new hubs “every success”, it is “important to understand that we need to see much more action from the government to support schools and colleges in their vital work.
“It is extremely difficult to put in place the pastoral systems necessary to support children and young people given the chronic underfunding of the education system.”
The first 21 attendance and behaviour hubs schools
- Tennyson Road Primary School, East of England
- Denbigh High School, East of England
- Bedford Free School, East of England
- Bluecoat Wollaton Academy, East Midlands
- Tidemill Academy, London
- Charles Dickens Primary School, London
- Forest Academy, London
- St. Paul’s Way School, London
- Drayton Manor High School , London
- Ashington Academy, North East
- The Beacon Cof E Primary School, North West
- Wright Robinson College, North West
- St Edmund’s Catholic School, South East
- Wallscourt Farm Academy, South West
- Marine Academy Primary, South West
- St James School, South West
- E-ACT Heartlands Academy, West Midlands
- E-ACT North Birmingham Academy, West Midlands
- Shireland Collegiate Academy, West Midlands
- Moor End Academy, Yorkshire and Humber
- Dixons Trinity Academy and Dixons Kings Academy, Yorkshire and Humber
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