School UpdatesHRFinance Update
Events and Resources
Continuous Professional Development
Click on the links above for more information
School Updates
- Essex Education Welfare Service (EWS) Delivery to Schools and Academies from 1 April 2013
- RAISEonline
- Education Essex and Essex Schools Infolink Questionnaire – Share Your Views
- Applications for Home to School Transport and Free School Meals Entitlement
- Transport provision and RPA
- Schools Forum
- Park Road Teams Are On the Move
- 2012 Primary Performance Summaries
Audience: Headteacher
Phase: KS1KS2PrimarySecondary
School Type:All
Important Announcement
As from 1 April 2013 the Education Welfare Service will concentrate on its core statutory responsibilities which will be free at the point of delivery. To understand how this important change will affect your educational establishment, please read the attached letter to all Head teachers.
For further information or if you should have any questions:
Contact: Val Pryor, Strategic Attendance Leader
Email:
Telephone: 01268 632380
RAISEonline
Audience: Teaching Staff
Phase:KS1KS2Primary
School Type: All
A reminder that 2012 validated and interactive Raise Online reports were published last week. You can find the reports here.
Education Essex and Essex Schools Infolink Questionnaire – Share Your Views
Audience: All Staff
Phase:All Phases
School Type: All
As part of our improving communications with schools strategy, we are seeking your views to help us improve Education Essex and Essex Schools Infolink. We would like to know what you find useful and think works well, as well as, what you think needs to improve.
Once received, we will use your feedback to help further develop Education Essex and Essex Schools Infolink to effectively provide you with the latest news, updates and information for schools.
Please complete our brief online questionnaireand share your views with usby 15 March 2013.
You can find the questionnaire at:
Thank you in advance for your support in helping us to improve Essex Education and Essex Schools Infolink and we look forward to receiving your feedback.
Applications for Home to School Transport and Free School Meals Entitlement
Audience: Administration and Finance
Phase:KS1KS2PrimarySecondary
School Type:AcademyMaintained Schools
Action required: Please share information about our web pages in communication to parents of prospective pupils and when dealing with enquiries.
As Primary and Secondary school offers approach, you may receive enquiries from parents and carers about home to school transport and free school meals entitlement.
This year, as the County Council moves toward digital by default, we have decided not to include printed information material in the school offer packs. Rather, parents and carers are being directed to our web pages where they can find all the information they need about eligibility.
If you do receive any enquiries from parents and carers please direct them to:
For Home to School Transport -
For Free School Meals(ECC administered FSM schools only) -
Please try to encourage applications by online means as we are moving away from paper forms in the near future. For those who do not have internet access, in most cases the Contact Centre are able to mediate applications on the parents behalf by filling in the form for them over the phone (the exception to this is Secondary faith school applications).
For further information or if you should have any questions:
Contact: Education Transport & Awards
Email:
Telephone: 0845 603 2200
Transport provision and RPA
Audience: Headteacher/ Heads of Year 11/ Year 11, 12 and 13 students
Phase:SecondaryPost 16 Special Schools
School Type:AcademyMaintained SchoolsFurther EducationCSS
Action required: Please circulate this message to all year 11, 12 and 13 students.
RPA - Transport Provision for Post 16 students from September 2013
There has been no change to the national policy for the provision of home to school transport to take account of children who are affected by the Raising of Participation Age and are now required to stay in education, employment or training up to the age of 17. The provision of transport to children of post 16 age remains a discretionary award for all local authorities.
Essex County Council will continue to make transport available to all Post 16 students qualifying for assistance under our existing Post 16 transport policies. Our qualifying criteria and further information can be found here. You will see this information refers to the current academic year – there will be no change to qualifying criteria for the 2013/14 academic year.
Charges will be increased for the 2013/14 academic year in line with inflation as at December 2012, from £500 to £510 per academic year.
Application forms will be available during April – we will communicate with year 11’s at this point advising them how to apply for this service. Continuation letters will also be sent out to all year 12 and 13 students currently receiving transport assistance who wish for this to continue from September 2013.
Please share this message with those affected in year 11, 12 and 13.
Further information regarding Post 16 Transport policies:
Contact: Education Transport and Awards
Email:
Telephone: 0845 603 2200
Visit: Post 16 Transport
Schools Forum
Audience: Headteacher/ Governors
Phase:All Phases
School Type: All
Headteachers of Community / Voluntary Controlled Junior Schools are reminded that the self-nomination process to join the Essex Schools Forum closes on Friday 1 March.
Two further vacancies have arisen on Schools Forum for a Community / Voluntary Junior School Governor and a Secondary Academy Governor. The self-nomination process closes on Friday 15March.
Schools are reminded that Schools Forum is a public meeting and details of meetings including agendas and minutes are available on theEssex Schools Infolink.
For further information:
Contact: Yannick Stupples-Whyley
Email:
Telephone: 01245 433171
Park Road Teams Are On the Move
Audience: All Staff
Phase:All Phases
School Type:All
All teams currently located at Park Road Colchester are moving. Please see below for updated contact information:
From 25 February 2013 following teams will be located at:
Essex House
200 The Crescent
Colchester Business Park
Colchester
CO4 9 YQ
Fax: 01206 844981
Pre-School / 0300 003 1861
Educational Psychology / 0300 003 1862
Specialist Teachers / 0300 003 1863
Behaviour Support / 0300 003 1864
Community CAMHS will be located at the Mulberry Tree Family Centre from 1 March 2013.
Lewis Gardens
Colchester
Essex
CO1 1JH
Telephone: 0300 003 2193
2012 Primary Performance Summaries
Audience: Headteacher
Phase:KS1KS2Primary
School Type: All
We have recently issued the updated performance summaries and it has been brought to our attention that an administrative error has been made for some schools in the Ofsted Inspection data information. Schools inspected prior to September 2012 and judged satisfactory have been described as ‘requires improvement’. I would like to apologise for this error and we will be correcting it immediately on SSET and resending hard copies to the schools affected.
Regards,
Clare Kershaw
Lead Strategic Commissioner – Pupil and School Intelligence
Education and Learning Services
Events and Resources
- B Safe B Cool
- Read for my School
- Climate Week 2013
- World Skills UK
- Children with Tumours - Design a Christmas Card Competition
- Repeat Signage
Audience: Headteacher
Phase:All Phases
School Type: All
Essex County Council is widely recognised as being a leader in bringing education for safe travel to students of all ages as they move into adulthood.
Like many other local authorities across England and Wales, Essex experiences varying degrees of anti-social behaviour on school and public transport. Following demand for travel awareness training the Student Behaviour Team, in Passenger Transport Co-ordination Centre, developed innovative training and educational tools under the umbrella suite of B Safe B Cool.We are pleased to announce the launch of ‘The Collection’ bringing all our educational tools together on one platform offering flexibility and are easy to use.
B Safe B Cool training is aimed at helping:
- younger children feel more confident travelling on vehicles with no passenger assistant
- students display more respect for drivers and other passengers
- improve behaviour
- reduce instances of bullying, crime and anti-social behaviour provide safer journeys to and from school
Copies of DVDs and information for how to access The Collectionon an electronic platformwill be available to schools in Essex after the campaign is officially launched on 26 February 2013. Information for Schools, Transport Providers and other Local authorities & Partners will be available in The Collection which can be delivered to studentsas part of education training.B Safe B Cool presentations are also available and delivered to schools and organisations by the Student Behaviour Team to compliment The Collection.
For further information on B Safe B Cool or The Collection:
Contact: Student Behaviour Team
Email:
Visit: B Safe B Cool website or Essex County Council B Safe B Cool information page
Read for my School
Audience: Headteacher/ Literacy Coordinator
Phase:KS2Primary
School Type: All
Action required: Register your school to take part as soon as possible and begin reading.
The Pearson Foundation and Booktrust present new national reading competition.
With support from the Department for Education, Read for my School enables all primary schools in England who have access to the internet to enter into a free, secure digitalliteracy competition that promotes and encourages reading for pleasure.
The competition rewards participants with the opportunity to win prizes for themselves and their school by reading books and recording their progress online.
The competition begun in January and whilst many schools are currently competing to take top position on School Leaderboards, registration is still open and entry in to the competition provides opportunities to enter Prize Draws to win books for your school. Also, schools can select winners for their schools to nominate for regional and national awards and prizes including winning up to 1000 books for their school!
Pupils in Year 5 and 6 (aged 9 -11) are required to read, review and log as many books as possible until 22 March 2013 (please refer to FAQs). Once registered, a School ID is provided for pupils to use when signing up to the competition and will allow pupils and staff to track reading actions for the school.Getting Started provides information needed for registration, participation details and preparing pupils for entering the competition.
Teacher resources and recommended books are also available to support schools getting started.
For further information:
Visit:
Register: Teacher/School Registration
Climate Week 2013
Audience: Headteacher/ Teaching Staff/ Heads of all Years
Phase:All Phases
School Type: All
Action required: Register your school to take part as soon as possible and receive your free information pack.
Britain's Biggest Climate Change Campaign – 4 to 10 March 2013
Climate Week is a supercharged national campaign to inspire a new wave of action on climate change. It culminates with thousands of events and activities taking place throughout the week of 4 to 10 March 2013, planned by organisations from every part of society. Showcasing real, practical ways to combat climate change, the campaign aims to renew our ambition to create a more sustainable, low-carbon future.
Organisations and individuals can get involved right now by starting to plan an event for Climate Week. This provides a unique opportunity to profile your own initiatives and innovations to stakeholders and staff, customers and the community, members and the media. You can also spread the word so that others can plan their own activities.
You can register now for the Climate Week Challenge, which is judged by celebrities and it is completely free to take part. The Climate Week Challenge in 2012 was Britain's biggest ever environmental competition, with over 130,000 people participating in the one day and one-hour versions. This is a fun and easy way for kids of all ages (from nursery to 18 year-olds) to get involved in the campaign. The challenge is kept a secret until the start of Climate Week, and everyone who takes part receives a certificate for their efforts. Last year the winners from key stage 4 got to travel to London to make a working prototype of their invention!
There are also a number of other elements to the campaign. New this year is the Climate Week Swap, highlighting the positive impact that swapping clothes, books, toys, DVDs and other items can have on our environment. All those who register a Swap event and help save resources from going to landfill will be entered into a draw to win a swap with a celebrity.
Bubble and Squeak for Climate Week is encouraging people to make the food that they eat a part of the solution to climate change. Using up leftovers to make Bubble and Squeak or by cooking food made from local ingredients or less meat and dairy are all great ideas.
Register your event now at By registering your event, you can help build a social movement for change, encourage others in your area to run their own event, and profile the fantastic work that you are doing. All registered events appear on our online map, so this is your chance to shine.
For some ideas to get you started please see the Climate Week Challenge Summery and Things To Do Guide.
To find out more about Climate Week, or to register your event:
Visit:
Email:
Telephone: 020 3397 2609
Twitter: @climate_week
Facebook:
WorldSkills UK
Audience: Headteacher
Phase:KS4Post 16 Special Schools
School Type:All
Action required: WorldSkills UK National Competitions are now open for registrations until the 22 March 2013.
WorldSkills UK, managed by the National Apprenticeship service, provides the opportunity for learners to compete in local and national competitions where they are rewarded for their talent and level of expertise.
School competitions, aimed at learners aged 14 – 16 studying at Key Stage 4, are a means of inspiring and engaging young learners in to apprenticeships and further education. Regional and National competitions, directed at learners who are working towards or have recently completed Level 2, 3 or 4 qualifications in their related skill, can boost confidence and raise employment aspirations.
Learners can compete and demonstrate their expertise in a wide range of skills to be nominated for Regional and National competitions. Finalists will then compete against learners from all over the UK in the final at The Skills Show. The best of the best from Regional and National competitions are then invited to compete for a place in Squad and Team UK which will allow them to represent the UK in international competitions and access further training to enhance their skills.
‘An introduction for Schools, Colleges and Training Providers’provides information on WorldSkills competitions and how to get involved, as well as, ‘An introduction for Young People and Parents’ provides learners with a guide for what to expect.
Registration for National and Regional heats is now until 22 March 2013. To register please visit ‘Competitions’, choose the skill you wish to enter and read entry details. Please then click on ‘enter this competition’ and follow instructions to register your candidates.
Schools and Colleges are advised to participate in Pre-Competition Activity before registering learners in WorldSkills UK heats.Pre-competition Activityis a great way for teachers, lecturers and training providers to create a real buzz in the classroom, workshop or workplace; and to motivate learners to constantly improve their skills. The 'WorldSkills UK Pre-competition Activity Toolkit'has lots of ideas and resources that you can use to set up and run your own successful competition activity.
Alternatively, see the ‘Have a Go guidance’ for information on providing taster sessions to prepare for next year’s competition.
For further information on WorldSkills UK and registering your school:
Visit:
Children with Tumours - Design a Christmas Card Competition
Audience: Headteacher/ Art and Design Technology Coordinator
Phase:EYFSKS1KS2PrimarySpecial Schools