Noticeboard

Noticeboard - 21 November 2024

This week's Noticeboard contains a message from Dr Sue Harrison; the latest Oracle Transition for Schools update, information on the Bring it on Brum! Winter programme, an opportunity to be part of the Alternative Provision Working Group and more.

This week's noticeboard includes: 

Message from Dr Sue Harrison, Strategic Director of Children and Families

Dear colleagues

I hope you’ve all enjoyed a productive and fulfilling week. Despite the recent snowfall, I trust that your schools have remained largely unaffected and that you and your pupils have stayed safe and warm.

Last Friday, 15 November, I wrote to Headteachers and School Governors, providing information on HR, Payroll, and Pensions Services, as well as Schools Financial Services. I would greatly appreciate your prompt response to confirm your intentions regarding the continuation of your existing SLAs and your preferred SFS package by Wednesday, 15 January 2025. Your timely feedback is crucial for us to make decisions as part of our review of this service. I understand that the ongoing changes within BCC are significantly impacting schools, and I sincerely appreciate your continued support and engagement during this time.

As always, we will continue to provide regular updates on the Oracle Transition via the School Noticeboard. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to the team at oracleschoolsrelationship@birmingham.gov.uk if you need any further information or have any queries. We are here to support you.

I was pleased to learn that schools have today received written confirmation from Katy Fox, Director of People Services that agreement has now been reached on the Teachers Pay Award for 2024. This will be paid, including back-dated pay, all in time for the December pay run (20 December). If you do have any queries around this, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the team at HROpsManagers@birmingham.gov.uk, and they’ll be happy to assist.

I’m also pleased to see that Bring it on Brum! is once again providing free holiday clubs over the festive period to support our most vulnerable children, young people, and families. This government-funded initiative is crucial to ensuring that these individuals have access to enriching activities, nutritious meals, and a safe environment during the holidays. By offering these services, we are helping to alleviate some of the pressures faced by families and ensuring that every child has the opportunity to enjoy the winter holidays. Schools have been provided with all the necessary information to communicate with eligible families. However, if you need any additional details, please let us know promptly, as bookings open on Monday, 2nd December 2024!

We’re seeking headteacher representatives for the newly formed Alternative Provision Working Group. The first meeting will be held on Thursday, 12 December 2024 via Microsoft Teams. This is a fantastic opportunity to contribute to the development and implementation of the Alternative Provision Strategy across the city. If you’re interested in participating or would like more information, please reach out. Full details are provided in the article below, and both Wasim and Lisa would be delighted to hear from you!

Thank you as always for everything you continue to do for our children, young people and families. Together, we are striving to make Birmingham a great place where our children and young people can grow, thrive, and reach their full potential.

With my very best wishes for a fabulous weekend ahead!

Sue

Oracle Transition for Schools Update

The latest updates can be found here: Oracle transition for schools, updates, questions and answers.

Archived Q&A can be found here: Archived Oracle Transition Q&A.

For any queries or further information please contact the team at oracleschoolsrelationship@birmingham.gov.uk

Thank you for your ongoing support. 

Birmingham Alternative Provision Working Group

Following recent communications regarding the Education Board and other school forums, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Alternative Provision (AP) Working Group. The terms of reference for this group can be found at this link: Birmingham Alternative Provision Working Group Terms of Reference

We are seeking one Headteacher representative from each of the following sectors: Post-16, Primary, Secondary, Special, and Alternative Provision. These representatives will join the working group to help drive the AP strategy across the city.

To register your interest or for any queries, please contact Wasim Arif, Interim Head of Service for Attendance and Inclusive Pathways, at Wasim.Arif@birmingham.gov.uk, or Lisa Smith, Head of Strategic School Improvement at Lisa.Smith@birmingham.gov.uk.

The first meeting is scheduled for Thursday, 12 December, from 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM on Teams. Initially, meetings will be held monthly, transitioning to a half-termly schedule. Further dates will be agreed upon during the December meeting.

Bring it on Brum! is back for Winter 2024!

Full details on the Winter Holiday Club Activities have recently been sent to schools, including:

  • Bring It On Brum Code by School
  • Comms from schools to families – Winter 2024
  • Comms from schools to families – Enrichment offer – Winter 2024
  • Mail merge guidance

The Bring it on Brum! holiday clubs will run from Monday, 23 December to Friday, 3 January (excluding weekends and Bank Holidays), for young people aged 4-16 who are eligible for benefits-related free school meals.

Bookings for Winter holiday clubs will open on Monday, 2 December 2024 at: www.bringitonbrum.co.uk

Equal Pay Programme

Over recent months, schools may have been contacted to participate in the collection of job information for the Equal Pay Programme. The Equal Pay Programme (EPP) team has decided to pause this collection within schools to review and refine the process based on the knowledge and experience gained so far.

The EPP team thank colleagues and appreciate the time and effort many of you have invested in engaging with the programme through emails, calls, and workshops. Your participation has been invaluable in helping us understand the complexities within schools, which will shape and improve future job information collection.

The team will continue processing job information already collected for the following roles:

  • School Nurse
  • Director of Support Services
  • General Assistant
  • Deputy Cook
  • Senior Lunchtime Supervisor
  • Nursery Officer

For all other roles, future workshops have been postponed. The EPP team will provide updates on the next steps for all school roles in the coming months.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your continued support of the programme. We will be in touch with further information on our approach to collecting job information, anticipated in the new year.

If you have any feedback on the process or communications, or if you have any questions, please contact the team at EPPschools@birmingham.gov.uk.

Transport for Pupils Attending a Resource Base

We would like to clarify the updated transport policy regarding eligibility for Children and Young People's Travel Service (CYPTS) assistance. A child will only be eligible for transport assistance if they meet specific criteria. It is essential that a child is enrolled in the nearest school or Resource Base (RB) that can meet their educational needs.

We have received feedback indicating that some schools are advising parents to apply for RB placements that meet the distance criteria, even if there is a closer RB able to meet their child’s needs. However, if parents choose a school or RB further from home solely based on preference, this may impact their eligibility for transport, as CYPTS is not obligated to provide transport in these cases.

To support the clear communication of this policy, we will also include a reminder in the upcoming SENCo noticeboard in early December.

Thank you for helping to ensure that families understand this policy, making informed choices that align with the eligibility criteria for transport support.

School Attendance Updates

Absence due to adverse weather conditions

Some schools may have experienced difficulties with attendance relating to the recent snow. Schools should ensure that the following registration codes have been used which are classified for statistical purposes as not a possible attendance so do not count as absence:

  • Code Y1: Unable to attend due to transport normally provided not being available – this code should be used when LA arranged transport is not available due to adverse weather conditions.
  • Code Y2: Unable to attend due to widespread disruption to travel – this code should be used for individual pupils unable to attend because of widespread disruption to travel caused by a local, national, or international emergency such as adverse weather conditions.
  • Code Y4: Unable to attend due to the whole school site being unexpectedly closed – this code should be used when the whole school has had to close due circumstances which could include the adverse weather conditions
  • Code Y3: which is where pupils are unable to attend due to part of the school premises being closed, may also be applicable if the snow has caused part of the school building to become accessible due to flooding or a boiler breaking for example.

Part-time/reduced timetable webinar

A reminder that a webinar has been arranged for schools covering the Part-time/reduced timetable guidance, notifications and updates such as use of the C2 code. The session will be delivered by Edwina Langley MBE, Lead Attendance Officer and Sarah Scarr, Deputy Service Lead for Communication and Autism Team. 

The webinar will take place on Thursday, 5 December 2024 at 10:30-12:00.

To book your place please use the link below. If you don’t have an account with BESS you can also set one up using the same link: https://birminghameducationsupportservices.co.uk/Event/252944

Mainstream Schools and Academies Split Site Funding 2025/26

The split sites factor was introduced in 2024/25 is compulsory for all local authorities, ensuring that split sites funding will be allocated consistently and fairly across the country.

The basic eligibility criteria for split sites funding requires additional sites to:

  • be part of the main school, that is, to share the same unique reference number (URN) with the school’s main site
  • be separated from the school’s main site by a public road or railway
  • have a building on them which is maintained by the school, and which is primarily used for the education of 5 to 16- year-old pupils in mainstream education. This excludes playing fields, ‘ancillary buildings’ and buildings leased out full time by the school to another entity

Funding for the distance element should be allocated through a tapered approach, beginning at 100 metres, with allocations increasing linearly up to 500 metres, from which point schools should receive the total maximum funding allowed.

The number of additional sites that schools can receive funding for should be capped at 3 per school. If a school has more than 3 additional sites, the distance funding should be calculated based on those that are furthest away from the main site.

To enable the local authority to calculate split site funding as part of the 2025/26 schools budget setting process, we require all mainstream schools and academies to complete the Maintained school & academy split site funding 2025/26 data collection template and return it to  FairFunding@birmingham.gov.uk  no later than Friday, 29 November 2024. Thank you! 

Communication and Autism Team (CAT) - January 2025

CAT have undertaken recruitment this term and are pleased to share that all vacancies have successfully been filled. We will have seven new members of staff joining the team from January 2025. This will ensure the delivery of the additional hours allocated to settings this academic year are fulfilled across all of our settings. In addition to increased core hours schools, we have also allocated protected hours for strategic work; we would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the commitment and enthusiasm from settings that have engaged with this element. 

From January 2025 we will be increasing our offer to parents/carers through our highly skilled Autism Advisory Practitioners who will also be operating within our localities where additional support and advice is required.

These additions will require some re-organisation of allocated CAT teachers to schools; these changes are only made where necessary and to secure longer-term permanency.  If your setting is affected, you will receive email confirmation directly and the team will ensure a smooth handover.

For further information, please contact a member of the CAT leadership team at CATLeadershipTeam@birmingham.gov.uk

Pupil Voice Project  (PVP) –  Making Birmingham a Great Place to Grow Up In

The Pupil Voice Project, is an exciting long-term initiative borne out of the Inclusive Cities work to create an Inclusive Charter. It’s been driven forward by the Education System Leaders Group, with senior leaders from Early Years, mainstream primary/secondary, special schools, AP and University of Birmingham.

The project has been co-created and tested by Headteachers and children/young people. It is a long-term plan for change, where views will be taken to the highest level.

Be part of this exciting project to better understand pupil’s experiences of inclusion, what makes Birmingham a great place to grow up in and how it can be made even better. We really want to hear from children/young people through all Birmingham schools asking some key questions with either a small focus group or 1:1 if more appropriate. This group needs to include range of pupils including EHCP and SEN support; this should take no more than an hour’s session.

We want pupil views at the heart of the Inclusion Charter; they are the agents of change.

Follow the link to hear some of the positive comments from our children/young people who took part in a pilot of this project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JQMNzTVIkw

To access the questions and complete the feedback, before the end of this term wherever possible, please use the appropriate links below:

Please note the deadline for responses is Tuesday, 31 December 2024.

For further information or any queries, please email: PupilVoice@birmingham.gov.uk 

Young People’s Services – Schools Survey

A big thank you to everyone who has already contributed to our Schools Survey on Young People’s Services!

We still need more voices! Please encourage your students aged 11-18 to take a quick 5-minute survey. Their feedback is essential in identifying the issues that matter most to them. Please note Monday, 25 November as the deadline for completion. 

Thank you for your continued support in making a difference for our young people.

Birmingham Libraries Consultation

In the final phase of consultation, we based option 3 on library rankings. The rankings were generated by a priority list which balanced community need and usage and access data. Subsequently, an error has been identified in the priority list rankings. This has been corrected and a revised option 3 produced. This does not change the recommended option (option 4); however, we welcome comments on the revised option 3.

To find out more details on the revised option 3  proposal and to share your comments please follow this link: www.birminghambeheard.org.uk/bcc/lc24-co3.

This comments period will close on Thursday, 12 December at 23:59.

Paper copies of the Be Heard comments survey are available at all Birmingham City Council Libraries including requests for community languages or other formats. You can also email comments to the Libraries Public Consultation mailbox: LibrariesPublicConsultation@birmingham.gov.uk

Your views really matter, so please take the time to be involved.

Birmingham Healthy Schools Approach: ‘Lunch and Learn’ Webinars

Next Webinar:

  • Topic: Antimicrobial Resistance – How Can Schools Get Involved?
  • Date: Tuesday, 26th November
  • Time: 12:30 PM

The session will cover:

  • What is AMR?
  • Key AMR messages and actions
  • Tools/resources for schools

Speaker: Helen Bissett, Senior Officer in the Health Protection team, Birmingham City Council

Register here:  Antimicrobial Resistance - how can schools get involved?

All staff interested in student health and well-being are invited.

Free Webinar: KS1 Assessment and What it Means for School Leaders

Monday, 25 November 2024 – 16:00-16:45

Join Services for Education for this free online update from the Moderation Team to make sure that schools are up to date with the latest recommendations from the STA and LA for the KS1 Assessments.

This session will reflect upon recent changes and how this might impact the Assessment Schedule, with a short 15 minutes Q&A session at the end. During the webinar, schools will deepen their understanding of:

  • National and Local Expectations
  • Available Resources
  • An understanding of the support available for you
  • A reflection upon potential strategies to ensure best practice

Book your free place for the webinar by simply following this link

Health & Safety Training Webinars

Risk Assessment Webinar via Microsoft Teams

This course is suitable for staff with roles which include promoting Health and Safety in the workplace and ensuring schools are safe environments. This course will help to give you a better understanding of the risk assessment process and how it should be applied within a school/workplace.

Covering the following key areas:

  • What is a risk assessment
  • Why do we do risk assessments
  • Who does the risk assessments
  • Contents of a risk assessment

Dates:

This event is free but anyone wishing to attend will need click and register for whichever of the above dates for which they wish to attend.

For general enquiries please email: schoolsafety@birmingham.gov.uk

This entry was posted by Dawn Evans on 18/11/2024.

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