Warwickshire news
Prevent - FREE ZAK Training for Secondaries and Colleges
** Places still available **
FREE Training – ZAK Training for Secondary Schools and colleges
The University of Kent is offering two workshops FREE to introduce school representatives to the Zak resource. Delegates will have the opportunity to engage with the material first hand using laptop PCs in the training room. They will be able to consider how the benefits of using a very 'young people friendly' medium will facilitate engagement of young people about the risks of radicalisation.
Adrian Over attended a similar workshop some time ago and would recommend that schools take advantage of this opportunity to see the Zak resource.
The workshops will take place on:
Monday 28th November 2016
Workshop 1:
8.45-12.15
Workshop 2:
12.45- 4.15
Venue: Trident Technology and Business Centre, Poseidon Way, Warwick, CV34 6SW
Places are strictly limited to 20 per session and will be allocated on a first come first served basis.
When booking, please indicate a first and second choice preference for workshops but please ensure you are available to attend whichever workshop is allocated. Every effort will be made to allocate first choice preferences but you will appreciate the need to ensure that both workshops are as fully attended as possible.
Schools and colleges are welcome to request 2 places but it will be necessary in the first instance to allocate 1 place per school/college to ensure that as many settings as possible are able to take up the offer of this resource.
NB Please note that delegates must have undertaken Designated Safeguarding Lead and Prevent training.
Please note that the workshops are being offered to schools, colleges and alternative providers free of charge. Schools and settings interested in accessing the resource after the workshop will be able to speak directly to the University of Kent. There will be a small cost to purchase a licence to use the resource but it will be a small and affordable cost.
To book your place at a workshop, please contact Sophie Morley via sophiemorley@warwickshire.gov.uk, indicating your and first and second choice preferences for the morning and afternoon sessions.
We hope that as many schools as possible are able to take advantage of this opportunity to enhance their curriculum in teaching children about the risks of radicalisation as part of safeguarding them from extremism.
Warwickshire Maintained Nursery Schools – supporting the early years sector
The six maintained Nursery Schools in Warwickshire currently lead an DfE Early Years Teaching Centre, but hope to join forces with a group of Coventry and Warwickshire Schools to form a Teaching School which will be called: ‘The Warwickshire Consortium Teaching School’ which will focus on the Early Years and Key Stage 1.
Teaching schools play a fundamental role in developing a self-sustaining system where:
- Trainee teachers learn from the best teachers, supported by a culture of coaching and mentoring. Our Early Years Teaching Centre has a strong strategic partnership with Warwick University and will offer 15 places on a specialist early years PGCE commencing in September 2017. Please contact Rachel Gillett head1020@welearn365.com for further information.
- Professional development is a key element of a teaching schools activity and ours is focussed on what works, so that teachers, support staff and leaders improve knowledge and practice through encounters with excellent practice within and beyond their immediate environment.
- Our Teaching School will lead this work through a new organisation called Warwickshire Early Years – ‘Bringing Quality to Life’. Please see warwickshireearlyyears.co.uk for more information or to book onto one of our courses. This traded service will be delivered in partnership with the Local Authority and is developed from the long standing Early Years Advisory Team.
- Bespoke support and advice: The Teaching School Alliance we have planned is well placed to provide support in the arena of EYFS and KS1 because their leaders have local knowledge and can identify where the key resources and expertise lie. So, as well as professional development, Teaching Schools will identify and co-ordinate expertise in partner schools and PVI sector settings, using the best leaders and practitioners to:
- Lead peer-to-peer professional and leadership development
- Identify and develop leadership potential (succession planning and talent management)
- Provide support for other schools
- Designate and broker specialist leaders of education (SLEs)
- Engage in research and development activity
All of our support packages can be adapted to meet identified needs and include clear objectives, an agreed action plan, agreed criteria for success and robust evaluation. You may wish to purchase one of our annual subscription packages to provide you with ongoing support or a one off evaluation day. For more information on commissioning bespoke support in your school or early years settings please contact Amanda King at head1002@welearn365.com
We can help you with:
- Quality audits and reviews
- Leadership and management coaching or mentoring for new managers and leaders
- Support packages: PSED, Well-Being, Leadership, SEN/d, Learning environments, Curriculum and Planning
- Teaching and learning support; joint lesson observations, video reflection, improving practice
- Speech and Language support / CPD
- Observation, Assessment and effective use of data
- Narrowing the gap
- Strategic Development
- Governance, Trust and Committee support and CPD
The Warwickshire Consortium Teaching School includes:
Atherstone Nursery School, Bedworth Heath Nursery School, Boughton Leigh Infants School, Hillfields Nursery School and Childrens Centre, Kenilworth Nursery School, Stockingford Early Years Centre, Stoke Heath Primary School, Sydenham Primary School, Warwick Nursery School, Whitnash Nursery School
Caring for your Career: An education for next health and care generation
Students in Warwickshire will have the opportunity to nurture their skills in health and social care, as leading training provider Midlands Training and Development partner with Warwickshire County Council to launch an exciting new project with schools across the region.
‘Caring for your Career’ is a lively 8 week programme that will see Years 11 and 12 students develop the skills needed to become a future health and care professional, via a series of interactive workshops specially-designed to investigate the values required within health and care sectors. Learners will benefit from workshop delivery tailored to each participating school, with contributions by NHS employers, GP practices and federations, and local private care providers.
In addition, students can choose to boost their learning with optional components including personalised 1-1 career profiling and apprenticeship-ready workshops. There will also be the opportunity to achieve a Level 2 Emergency First Aid at Work qualification to enhance employability.
Leader of Warwickshire County Council, and Chair of the Warwickshire Health & Wellbeing Board Izzi Seccombe,said: "These practical interactive workshops led by key practitioners in the sector will give a real flavour of the variety of roles on offer and provide young people with an insight into the fantastic work being carried out in the fields of health and social care in Warwickshire. It will provide an opportunity for young people to gain employment in the sector when they leave school, which in turn will help address employers' skills shortages.
People working in this sector carry out vital work in our communities and can make a real difference to the lives of some of the most vulnerable members of our community."
Clare McKenzie, Commercial Director of Midlands Training and Development, added “We’re looking forward to inspiring the next generation of carers”.
Compass Young Person’s Substance Misuse Service (YPSMS)
Smoking Cessation
Compass YPSMS are now offering smoking cessation support! The service has been helping young people and adults tackle their problematic substance misuse issues, helping them to move forward and live healthier and happier lives.
Now the service is able to offer support and guidance to those young people that want to stop smoking.
Referrals for smoking cessation can be made via the same referral form or by phone. When a referral has been received, a practitioner from the service will contact the young person and see them in a place where they feel most comfortable, including schools, youth clubs and colleges. They will be able to access structured interventions, tailored to their presenting needs and be able to access pharmaceutical interventions to assist with their treatment where appropriate.
Hidden Harm
The service also is able to support those young people that may not be using substance themselves, but have been directly impacted upon by another’s substance use. Watching a parent use alcohol and substances can cause huge amounts of confusion and anxiety in young people. By accessing support they can talk about their feelings, and any questions they have around drugs and alcohol can be answered in a non-judgmental and informative way.
Contact us today for more information, support and advice:
01788 578227
Warwickshire Music - Providing memorable experiences for our children
Contributing to the school community through singing
Children from all eight Kenilworth area schools are involved in this term’s exciting musical programme ‘Singing Playgrounds’; a ground breaking partnership between Warwickshire Music and ExCathedra.
This innovative partnership started last year when 12 schools from across the county were involved in a project that culminated with a major concert at the University of Warwick arts centre in March 2016.
Children from the Kenilworth schools will feature in a large scale Christmas concert on December 10th at All Saints parish church in Leamington Spa.
The Singing Playgrounds programme is set to continue in the New Year involving schools from the south and north of the county.
Showcase for excellence
Talented young musicians in two of our county groups are performing at a prestigious conference on Friday 11th November.
The conference at the Chestford Grange hotel just outside Kenilworth brings together 150 music services from across the country.
Warwickshire County Viol Consort will be opening the conference and Warwickshire County Windband will be performing in the evening to delegates and parents.
Warwickshire Police Youth Academy
The Warwickshire Police Youth Academy took place over 15th & 16th October at Newbold Revel, Stretton On Fosse.
Over 160 young people aged between 14-16 years old attended for the full two day event which included sessions on Sexting; CSE; Hate Crime; Drugs; Prison Me No Way and Police - Have Your Say. They also saw demonstrations of Drones, Police Dogs and Firearms as well as a full emergency services (police, fire, ambulance) mock Road Traffic Collision (RTC).
Feedback from the young people involved in the event was extremely positive. From the 139 forms received, 100% said they would recommend the Youth Academy to other people and schools, and 84% said they would apply for police cadets in future. The sessions themselves were also scored very highly, with 80% of the scored in the 8,9 and 10 markings (10 = Excellent).
On the forms there was a free comment section, and below are just a selection of the quotes :-
- “I really enjoyed the weekend because it has made me realise I don’t need to be naughty to do things right and make people laugh”
- “I have really enjoyed the weekend and made me want to go in the police cadets”
- “this has been the best weekend ever and I would like to do it again"
- “I thought it was really good and an amazing experience”
Emails that are good enough for NASA
The council sends thousands of emails to customers and stakeholders from email lists maintained by different teams and stored in spreadsheets in separate team folders.
GovDelivery aims to change this...
Let's Get Digital campaign