virtual schools | Schools Week

The (virtual) heads dealing with a kids in care crisis

The role of virtual heads is “vital now more than ever” in a post-pandemic world where vulnerable pupils have further lost out, the government has said. Virtual heads will from this month support the attendance, attainment and progress of children in kinship care – the latest expansion of their role since the support was made […]

Virtual schools: beware ‘mission creep’

Guidance for virtual school heads was updated recently to expand their statutory duties to include previously looked-after children. Sally Kelly welcomes the changes, but warns of mission creep and funding shortfalls I have been a virtual school head (VSH) for seven years now. This revelation used to draw strange looks, but most people, especially in […]

Teachers for pupils in care must have ‘trauma’ training

Schools must appoint and train a member of staff to spot the mental health needs of pupils who have been in the care system, according to new statutory guidance. Under the new rules, school governors must ensure they have a “designated teacher” trained to “understand trauma and attachment” issues, as well as spot special educational […]

How schools can do more to support looked after children

Everyone needs a pushy parent, so why should looked-after children (LAC) be any different? That was the question Matthew Blood, the virtual school head for three West London boroughs, posed at Optimus Education’s conference in Birmingham last month. Blood presented a mixed picture on how well LAC are performing in schools. He, like other virtual […]

Care leavers: The Achievement gap isn’t closing, it’s widening

In a five-part series, Schools Week is exploring the way vulnerable groups of learners have been treated under the Coalition – and asks what can be expected for them in coming years. In this second instalment, Ann McGauran reveals that narrowing the stubbornly high achievement gap for children in care remains a significant challenge The […]