Bringing it all back home
With the now entirely normalised chaos of our national politics, the announcements and promises of conference season have barely registered on my radar. Instead, I’ve focused on things closer to home, and the new discussion paper from Michael Gove’s former special adviser, Sam Freedman, has fit that bill perfectly.
Published by the Campaign for Learning, Bringing it all Back Home – Reviving and Unifying the Family Learning and Parental Engagement Agendas puts forward seven recommendations that seem so imminently sensible, you do wonder how far the DfE has strayed from the realities of the system it manages.
Freedman’s key recommendation is that the DfE should develop a single ‘children and families strategy’ that brings together policy on children’s social care, SEND, mental health, parental engagement and family learning. It should set out the relative roles and responsibilities of local authorities, other parts of local government, academy trusts and central government.
Why this hasn’t been a central consideration in the past decade or more’s systemic reforms – many of which Freedman himself was helping to shape – is anyone’s guess. But with the field wide open for more big changes, all parties should join the discussion now.
Childcare for teachers
With schools minister, Jonathan Gullis announcing this week that the government is costing the option of providing better childcare support for teachers, there’s good reason to look for the devil in the detail.
The government’s consultation on earlier proposals to change staff-to-child ratios from 1:4 to 1:5 to reduce costs has been met with fierce opposition from the sector’s providers this week, who warn the change could be “catastrophic” for them – and especially for children with SEND and from disadvantaged backgrounds. A whopping 83 per cent of National Day Nurseries Association members oppose the changes, and nearly three-quarters (74 per cent) say they won’t implement it regardless.
Again, it seems so simple as to be obvious that early intervention through high-quality early years education is a valuable investment. Well-resourced, qualified and motivated staff who can work effectively with children in settings with as small a staff:child ratio as possible are vital for preparing children for school, and for identifying and supporting specific needs early. Parents know it and teachers seem the least likely group of people to acquiesce to any less than that.
Improved childcare support will no doubt be beneficial to teachers and schools. But maintaining high standards must be as much a ministerial concern for early years education professionals as it is for the rest of us.
The comprehensive Carter
I had the pleasure of working with Sir David Carter when he was regional schools commissioner for the south west. Sir David is someone I admire greatly and I really enjoyed hearing him open up about his personal and professional life in the first episode of Phil Denton’s new edu-podcast, Kaizen Education. From Dave Grohl togolf to maintaining the standards you expect, there are loads of great take-aways for anyone in education, but particularly for leaders.
Like Sir David and so many in our profession, I am the product of a comprehensive school and the first of my family to go to university.
Carter’s interview is a great listen, not least because it’s a gentle reminder that the comprehensive system has converted ambition to success in the shape of many leaders right across the spectrum of education and business.
Behaviour in AP
Lastly this week, a relatively new blog has been making its way up my list of must-reads. Blogs about alternative provision are as rare as hens’ teeth, so it’s fantastic to have Lee Garner set out to analyse and reflect best practice across the sector.
Having been involved in this area of education for over twenty years, he absolutely nails it from the outset when he says that AP “can only be considered successful if it is capable of enabling children and young people to survive, contribute positively and be productive in society”.
And his tips for ensuring good behaviour in AP settings are a fantastic place to start to on the road to that success.
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