Core offer toolkit

September 2007 Guidance and support for those engaged in delivering parenting support and swift and easy access as part of the core offer for extended services in and around schools and children’s centres in London Copyright © Government Office for London, 2007 ContinYou’s Toolkit Contents Introduction to the Toolkit 4 Introduces the core offer and explains, the focus on London, who this Toolkit is for and how to use it. Common Areas 10 1) Introduction to common areas Looks at the general requirements of the core offer and the challenges presented by the London context. 12 2) Using the toolkit Looks at who it is for and how to use as a resource to dip in and out of. 13 3) The urban and London context Looks at the distinctive features of developing extended services in London, including pan-London organisations. 18 4) Multi-agency working Provides links to relevant websites, information on change management and the common core of skills. 21 5) The role of the private, voluntary and independent sector (PVI) Ideas on integrating PVI into extended schools and services planning and provision, and a general contact list. 30 6) Establishing a culture of support and change Looks at challenges facing partners in delivering extended services and a process for managing change. 33 7) The importance of leadership and management Emphasises the shared role of leaders and managers in developing extended services and offers ideas on developing leadership and management within schools. 37 8) Mapping local resources Highlights the duty on local authorities to involve all partners in working together to develop and share information. Swift and Easy Access 42 1) Introduction to swift and easy access Specifies the DCSF requirements for swift and easy access, early identification, support and intervention offer for schools, local authorities and children’s trust partners. 44 2) Transitions between schools, institutions and local authorities Looks at movements of students between schools and educational establishments and the challenges these present. 47 3) Roles and responsibilities in identifying and meeting needs in schools Roles and responsibilities in schools, including the headteacher, SENCO, inclusion manager and pastoral leads; developing quality referrals. 56 4) Developing quality referrals Introduces the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) and emphasises the need for shared training in the use of the CAF in the context of integrated working. 62 5) The role of the lead professional Looks at how the lead professional (who can be drawn from a variety of occupational groups) has a key role to play in co-ordinating provision across agencies for a specific child, young person or family. 66 6) Engaging parents and carers in swift and easy access Looks at the critical role parents and carers have in the processes of swift and easy access and considerations for effective engagement. 69 7) Monitoring and evaluating the impact of early identification, support and intervention processes Emphasises the need for shared leadership protocols as a basis for effective monitoring and evaluation. 74 8) Sources of information and advice 2 A new Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), and a Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) were established with immediate effect on 28 June 2007. The work of the former Department of Education and Skills (DfES) and additional work, will be undertaken by the new departments, as follows: Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) - to improve the focus on all aspects of policy affecting children and young people, as part of the Government’s aim to deliver educational excellence. Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) - championing investment in science and skills from within government, as part of the Government’s strategy to make the country more competitive. Throughout this guide, we cite both the DfES and the DCSF. We have used the former where the reference relates to an historical event, such as the publication of a document before 28th June. We have used the latter, DCSF, to refer to any ongoing and non time bound event or non-specific strategy and departmental units. Parenting Support 82 1) Introduction to parenting support Specifies the DCSF requirements for the Parenting Support Offer. 83 2) Joining up parenting support between schools, children’s centres and their partners Looks at how the core offer for extended services is a powerful mechanism for supporting parents. 86 3) Why parenting support is important Looks at the key contributions good parenting makes to a child’s achievement. 88 4) Building on what schools, local authorities and partners are doing already Schools and children’s centres have a key role to play alongside those from other agencies for identifying the needs of children, young people and their families; this section looks at auditing and building on current provision and resources, including staff skills. 91 5) How local authorities can support extended services in and around schools to develop parenting support Local authorities have a duty for developing a joined-up approach to the design and delivery of parenting support services, including commissioning of services; this section considers what actions are needed by whom and the role of schools in supporting the local authority. 94 6) How to develop the parenting support offer Looks at what makes for successful projects, especially with regard to reaching and engaging priority and excluded families. 98 7) How to engage effectively with parents/carers, including those with additional needs Engagement with parents and carers is an on-going process both to inform and improve extended services provision. 107 8) How to make use of consultation and engagement outcomes Once information is gathered it needs to contribute to devising an appropriate range of parenting support services and activities. 111 9) How to set up parenting networks and groups Looks at approaches and activities which overcome the barriers that stop priority and excluded parents from being involved. 115 10) Sources of information and advice Appendices 3 Introduction 4 The toolkit provides guidance and support for those engaged in delivering parenting support and swift and easy access as part of the core offer for extended services in and around schools and children’s centres in London. In order to support the development of extended services, the government has remitted the Training and Development Agency (TDA), ContinYou and 4Children to work together to help local authorities and schools, with their partners, develop extended services. Central to this is the remodelling process, developed by the TDA, which is a proven management of change process that gives schools and their partners tools and techniques to meet new challenges effectively – see www.TDA.gov.uk. ContinYou and 4Children are also associate partners in Together for Children, which has been formed with Serco and other partners, to oversee the roll-out of children’s centres by bringing together national expertise in children’s services and programme management – see: www.childrens-centres.org; www.4Children.org.uk; www.continyou.org.uk. All maintained schools are expected to be meeting the full core offer by 2010 as part of the Every Child Matters: Change for Children programme. This is a new approach to the well-being of children and young people from birth to age 19. The government’s aim is for every child, whatever their background or their circumstances, is to have the support they need to: • be healthy • stay safe • enjoy and achieve • make a positive contribution • achieve economic well-being. This means that the organisations involved with providing services to children – schools, health services, private and voluntary and independent organisations, youth services, youth justice, social care and other education services – need to work in new ways. This will involve more partnership and multi-agency working, and sharing information differently – both between agencies and with parents, children and their families. What are the duties on schools, the local authority, health services, and private, voluntary and independent sector partners? There is a duty on local authorities to make arrangements to promote co-operation between agencies providing children’s services. Schools and their partners are affected by: • Children Act 2004 (ensures a shared sense of responsibility across agencies at a strategic level for safeguarding children and protecting them from harm) • Childcare Act (Section 12) 2006 (local authorities to secure sufficient childcare) • Education and Inspection Act 2006 (duty on governors in maintained schools for the well-being and social cohesion of children and young people) • National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services, DoH, 2004 (sets standards for children’s health and social services, and the interface of those services with education) • Your Health, Your Care, Your Say, DoH, July 2005 (Green Paper which set the framework for designing health and social care services for the future) • Youth Matters, DfES, July 2005 (Green Paper that recommended that young people have more choice and influence over services and facilities that are available to them, and which has led to the development of the Youth Offer). Teachers too should also be aware of their obligations under the new Standards for Professional Teachers in England. These emphasise the need for teachers to make a contribution to their pupils’ well-being as defined by the Children Act 2004. This toolkit will, therefore, be of assistance to teachers who have a major contribution to make to the early identification, support and intervention of vulnerable children. 5 What is the core offer for children, young people and their families through extended services in and around schools? The ‘core offer in extended schools and services’ is a set of services to be developed by 2010 as part of service provision within an integrated approach to children, young people and their families in the community. Schools do not have to provide all the core offer themselves, or on their site. Rather, they must provide access or signposting to these services. So, in addition to collaboration with other agencies and providers, collaboration with other schools in clusters and networks is highly likely. The core offer What is the core offer for children’s centres? Sure Start children’s centres are a key vehicle for providing multi-agency services for families with children under the age of five, especially those who are most disadvantaged. The core offer includes integrated early learning, care, family support, health services, drop-in sessions, outreach services to children and families not attending the centre, access to training and employment advice and support for child minders. By 2010 there will be 3,500 children’s centres. The centres will be central to all local authorities’ efforts to develop mainstream early years services as part of the wider local provision for children. Many children’s centres are to be co-located with schools. Extended services in and around schools Quality childcare A varied menu of activities including study support Community access Parenting support Information sessions at key transition points Parenting programmes run with the support of other children’s services Family learning sessions to allow children to learn with their parents Emphasis on active support for hard-to-reach parents Swift and easy access (early identification, support and intervention) Integrated working between schools and specialist services such as health and social care to identify children with particular needs and ensure that they receive appropriate support quickly 6 Why GOL is focusing on swift and easy access and parenting support in this toolkit Schools and their partners have a key role to play in creating improved outcomes for children, young people and their families. Supporting parents and enabling access to appropriate services are essential elements of the core offer for extended services and children’s centres ContinYou was commissioned by Government Office for London (GOL) to produce this toolkit to help schools and their partners develop these two particular aspects of the core offer. ContinYou has a team of development officers who work across London with individual schools, clusters of schools and with local authorities to support the delivery of the core offer for extended services. The materials in the toolkit draw on an extensive range of practice across London. The importance of extended services and children’s centres Extended services and children’s centres are key building blocks for the improvement in services and outcomes for children and young people. Clusters of schools, school pyramids, collaboratives and federation arrangements ensure that local providers are better able to meet the needs in their area and reflects the spirit of the 2004 Children Act, which encourages a duty to co-operate. Who is the toolkit for? All who work in and around schools to deliver extended services, including before- and after-school provision. It will also be useful to those staff working with schools to develop the core offer and for those involved in developing locality specific arrangements. Why the focus on London? While London has been successful in responding to many challenges, it equally faces serious challenges: • One in three children live in poverty in London when housing costs are taken into account (Households below average income survey 2004–5, DWP). • Smoking in London causes more than 10,000 deaths a year (Health Development Agency, 2004). • London has a higher than national average teenage pregnancy rate (15 to 17) – 5.08% compared with 4.21% for England as a whole (DfES, August 2005). • Twenty-three per cent of formal admissions under the Mental Health Act 1983 to NHS facilities and independent hospitals in England are from London (DoH, 2005). The following figures are sourced from London Challenge 2005. • London has extremes of wealth and deprivation side by side. • School meals eligibility in maintained schools in inner London is nearly three times that of England as a whole (30% compared with 11%). • Nearly 50% of pupils in maintained secondary schools have English as a second language. • Nearly 40% of the country’s pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds are in London, with over 300 languages spoken in the capital’s schools? • Nearly 10% of children in London are the children of refugees and asylum seekers. • Fourteen per cent of pupils attend schools outside their home authority. The mobility of children and young people is a further challenge in London. Many children and young people access services in boroughs which are different from those of their home address. This can include moving house, new arrivals from overseas, vulnerable children being placed out of borough, and so on. Frequent movement also provides challenges to the provision of services, including sharing appropriate referrals, offering speedy responses, and maintaining stability. 7 8 What is in the toolkit? The materials emphasise effective communication and relationships as the basis for all partnership and multiagency working. To assist with this there are the following: • content sections describing particular areas of work, followed by key questions, and a simple selfevaluation and planning tool.While particularly helpful to schools, children’s centres and their partners, many of the questions will also be helpful to local authorities, and to those working in health services, localities and children’s trust arrangements • an introduction to the whole of the core offer and more detailed introductions to swift and easy access and parenting support using the DCSF guidelines • up-to-date practice examples through case studies of how parenting support and swift and easy access is being developed in individual schools, clusters, children’s centres and localities • detailed references of useful material and websites for both parenting support and swift and easy access • an appendix with ideas for activities for those developing swift and easy access, plus a number of useful templates on partnership agreements (the swift and easy access activities will be particularly helpful to schools and their immediate partners) • contact details in some of the case studies to enable you to get in touch with others across London. How to use the toolkit • Use this introduction as a route map for the toolkit as a whole. The materials are designed to enable you to ‘dip in’ and use different sections independently. • Find out which parts of the toolkit you are interested in by referring to the contents list. Each section has a one-line summary. Each section has been designed to stand alone and many references are repeated throughout the text. • Refer to both sources of information section for parenting support and swift and easy access and a glossary of terms which can be accessed on the Every Child Matters website at www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/deliveringservices/multiagencyworking/glossary) • Use the questions, self-evaluation and planning tools (at the end of each section), with colleagues and teams as a basis for needs analysis, planning and evaluation. • Use the activities (for swift and easy access) and templates in the appendix, as additional planning and evaluation tools. Specific activities are highlighted in the relevant sections. Common Areas 9 1) Introduction ContinYou was commissioned by the Government Office for London (GOL) to produce this toolkit to help schools and their partners develop the swift and easy access and parenting support aspects of the core offer. ContinYou has a team of development officers who work across London with individual schools, clusters of schools, and local authorities to support the delivery of the core offer. The materials in the toolkit draw on an extensive range of practice across London. The toolkit provides guidance and support for those engaged in delivering parenting support and swift and easy access as part of the core offer for extended services in and around schools and children’s centres in London. All maintained schools are expected to be meeting the full core offer by 2010 as part of the Every Child Matters: Change for Children programme. This is a new approach to the well-being of children and young people from birth to age 19. The government’s aim is for every child, whatever their background or their circumstances, to have the support they need to: • be healthy • stay safe • enjoy and achieve • to make a positive contribution • to achieve economic well-being. This means that the organisations involved with providing services to children – schools, health services, private and voluntary and independent organisations, youth services, youth justice, social care and other education services – need to work in new ways. This will involve more partnership and multi-agency working, and sharing information differently – both between agencies and with parents, children and their families. What is the core offer for children, young people and their families through extended services in and around schools? The ‘core offer’ is a set of services to be developed by 2010 as part of service provision within an integrated approach to children, young people and their families in the community. Schools do not have to provide all the core offer themselves, or on their site. Rather, they must provide access to these services. So, in addition to collaboration with other agencies, collaboration with other schools in clusters and networks is highly likely. There is also a core offer for children’s centres and, under Youth Matters, there is a core offer for young people. It is vital that schools and their partners, health and youth services, and all those working with and on behalf of children and young people, ensure that services are joined up at all levels. Arrangements will therefore vary across London at borough, locality and school cluster levels. The core offer for parents and families access through all schools by 2010 (Based on DfES slides, December 2006) Quality childcare (primary schools only) • Offer year-round (48 weeks) access to high-quality childcare, 8am to 6pm, or to reflect community demand • Provided on school site or signposted through other local providers with supervised transfer arrangements A varied menu of activities • A varied menu of activities to be on offer, such as homework clubs and study support, sport, music, dance, arts and crafts, visits to museums and galleries, volunteering, business and enterprise activities • From 8am to 6pm on weekdays in term time and more flexibly in the holidays • Engage children and young people and provide a safe place to be in secondary schools 10 Parenting support • Information sessions at key transition points • Parenting programmes run with the support of other children’s services • Family learning sessions to allow children to learn with their parents • Emphasis on active support for hard-to-reach parents Swift and easy access • ‘Schools working closely with other statutory services and the voluntary and community sector, schools have a focus on (and clear processes to support) early identification of, and support and intervention for, children with behavioural, emotional, health or other difficulties. This should be well embedded within, and supported by, the strategic planning and commissioning of the local authority and other Children’s Trust partners, including the PCT.’ Community access • Wider community access to information and communications technology (ICT), sports, arts facilities (including adult learning) • Includes signposting to existing community facilities What are the duties on schools, the local authority, health services, and private, voluntary and independent sector partners? There is a duty on local authorities to make arrangements to promote co-operation between agencies providing children’s services. Schools and their partners are affected by: • Children Act 2004 (ensures a shared sense of responsibility across agencies at a strategic level for safeguarding children and protecting them from harm) • Childcare Act (Section 12) 2006 (local authorities to secure sufficient childcare) • Education and Inspection Act 2006 (duty on governors in maintained schools for the well-being and social cohesion of children and young people) • National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services, DoH, 2004 (sets standards for children’s health and social services, and the interface of those services with education) • Your Health, Your Care, Your Say, DoH, July 2005 (Green Paper which set the framework for designing health and social care services for the future) • Youth Matters, DfES, July 2005 (Green Paper that recommended that young people have more choice and influence over services and facilities that are available to them, and which has led to the development of the Youth Offer). Teachers too should also be aware of their obligations under the new Standards for Professional Teachers in England. These emphasise the need for teachers to make a contribution to their pupils’ well-being as defined by the Children Act 2004. This toolkit will, therefore, be of assistance to teachers who have a major contribution to make to the early identification, support and intervention of vulnerable children. Why GOL is focusing on swift and easy access and parenting support in this toolkit Schools and their partners have a key role to play in creating improved outcomes for children, young people and their families. Supporting parents and enabling access to appropriate services are essential elements of the core offer for extended services and children’s centres. The importance of extended services and children’s centres Sure Start children’s centres are a key vehicle for providing multi-agency services for families with children under the age of five, especially those who are most disadvantaged. The core offer includes integrated early learning, care, family support, health services, drop-in sessions, outreach services to children and families not attending the centre, access to training and employment advice and support for childminders. By 2010 there will be 3,500 children’s centres, one for every community. The centres will be central to all local authorities’ efforts to develop mainstream early years services as part of the wider local provision for children. Many children’s centres are to be co-located with schools. 11 Children’s trusts arrangements Extended services and children’s centres are key building blocks for the improvement in services and outcomes for children and young people. Clusters of schools, school pyramids, collaboratives and federation arrangements ensure that local providers are better able to meet the needs in their area and reflects the spirit of the 2004 Children Act, which encourages a duty to co-operate. Who is the toolkit for? • The toolkit is designed for all who work in and around schools to deliver extended services, including before- and after-school provision. • It will also be useful to those staff working with schools to develop the core offer and for those involved in developing locality arrangements. • The activities for swift and easy access in the appendix will be helpful to all who work with schools, but particularly to those developing this part of the core offer within schools. 2) Using the toolkit Who is the toolkit for? All who work in and around schools to deliver extended services, including before- and after-school provision. It will also be useful to those staff working with schools to develop the core offer and for those involved in developing locality arrangements. What is in the toolkit? The materials emphasise effective communication and relationships as the basis for all partnership and multiagency working. To assist with this there are the following: • content sections describing the area of work, followed by key questions, and a simple self-evaluation and planning tool.While particularly helpful to schools, children’s centres and their partners, many of the questions will also be helpful to local authorities, and to those working in health services, localities and children’s trust arrangements • an introduction to the whole of the core offer and more detailed introductions to swift and easy access and parenting support using the DCSF guidelines • up-to-date practice examples through case studies of how parenting support and swift and easy access is being developed in individual schools, clusters, children’s centres and localities • detailed references of useful material and websites for both parenting support and swift and easy access • an appendix with ideas for activities for those developing swift and easy access, plus useful templates • contact details in some of the case studies to enable you to get in touch with others across London. How to use the toolkit • Use this introduction as a route map for the toolkit as a whole. The materials are designed to enable you to ‘dip in’ and use different sections independently. • Find out which parts of the toolkit you are interested in by referring to the contents list. Each section has a one-line summary. Each section has been designed to stand alone and many references are repeated throughout the text. • Refer to both sources of information section for parenting support and swift and easy access and a glossary of terms which can be accessed on the Every Child Matters website at www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/deliveringservices/multiagencyworking/glossary) • Use the questions, self-evaluation and planning tools (at the end of each section), with colleagues and teams as a basis for needs analysis, planning and evaluation. • Use the activities (for swift and easy access) and templates in the appendix, as additional planning and evaluation tools. Specific activities are highlighted in the relevant sections. 12 3) The urban and London context Services to children, young people and their families in urban environments are often distinctly different from those in other parts of England and Wales. They are challenged by significant deprivation, shifting populations and wide variations in ethnic, religious and cultural characteristics.Whilst diverse populations can be a huge strength, and a source of great richness, they also mean that services to children, young people and their families need to be responsive to the distinctive needs of London. There are 33 local authorities in London and these display marked variations in their demographic features. Because of population settlement patterns, provision of housing stock and transportation infrastructure, there can also be acute differences within individual local authorities. There can also be extremes in terms of diversity, and poverty. The quantity and quality of resources available to support services to children, young people and their families can vary substantially. • One in three children live in poverty in London when housing costs are taken into account (Households below average income survey 2004–5, DWP). • Smoking in London causes more than 10,000 deaths a year (Health Development Agency, 2004). • London has a higher than national average teenage pregnancy rate (15 to 17) – 5.08% compared with 4.21% for England as a whole (DfES, August 2005). • Twenty-three per cent of formal admissions under the Mental Health Act 1983 to NHS facilities and independent hospitals in England are from London (DoH, 2005). The following is taken from London Challenge 2005. • London has extremes of wealth and deprivation side by side • School meals eligibility in maintained schools in inner London is nearly three times of that in England (30% compared with just below 11%). • Nearly 50% of students in maintained secondary schools have English as a second language, compared to nearly 30% in outer London, and compared with a national average of 11%. • Nearly 40% of the country’s students from ethnic minorities are in London, and there are over 300 languages spoken in the capital’s schools. • Nearly 10% of children and young people in London are children of refugees and asylum seekers. The mobility of children and young people is a further challenge in London. Many children and young people access services in boroughs which are different from those of their home address. This can include moving house, new arrivals from overseas, vulnerable children being placed out of borough, and so on. Frequent movement also provides challenges to the provision of services, including sharing appropriate referrals, offering speedy responses, and maintaining stability. These and other factors impact on the ability of services to children, young people and families to make available all the services they may wish to provide to improve outcomes for children. There are wide variations in quality of provision, the availability of specialist support services, and in local authority, health, and private, voluntary and independent infrastructures. Several organisations and local government agencies are working specifically to support services to children and young people in London. They include: • London Challenge • The London Mayor’s Office • Government Office for London • London Councils • Excellence in Cities. Whilst there are other organisations based in London, the above may be considered to be the main players in terms of developing coherent strategies for support, especially for schools and their partners in the development of extended services. They can also be a source of advice, support, training – and ensure that there is co-operation between London boroughs – an important consideration, given that a large number of pupils are educated in schools outside their own local authority. 13 Key questions Activities Refer to Appendix 3, Activities 1 and 2. Planning and self-evaluation Discuss with your partners (for example, other local authority services, private, voluntary and independent organisations) how you would evaluate your current provision in this area: 1 Outstanding 2 Good 3 Satisfactory 4 Inadequate Summarise your priorities/intended actions: 1 2 3 4 How would you use this to inform or contribute to improvement planning and evaluating? Case study Park View Academy – London Borough of Haringey Park View Academy in the London Borough of Haringey has been described by Ofsted as ‘a caring community underpinned by a very strong pastoral system that ensures that each pupil is known very well. There are clear and well thought out procedures and practices to provide high levels of support for individuals in an inclusive community.’ The school prides itself on their very robust and secure procedures for ensuring that students are well supported as well as their systems of swift referrals. It uses electronic data gathering systems to keep a track of students’ attendance and progress in school. There are also effective links with families, many of whom have English as a second language. Support for students takes place through regular reviews by the deployment of a pastoral team, comprising of senior staff, support staff, the Connexions service and the local policeman. The team has been described as ‘a very dedicated group who care passionately for students and go beyond normal bounds to help and support those who have difficulty in coping with many aspects of school life.’ Consequently, the arrangements for the identification of needs, the speed of deciding on the best course of action by the inclusion panel, and the quality and effectiveness of support given are considered by Ofsted to be outstanding. • What are the demographic features of your local area (for example, neighbourhood, school cluster)? • What can the 2001 census tell you about your local area, and what are the implications for developing/delivering extended services? • How has your cluster/organisation/school responded to recent changes in immigration in recent years? • How does an understanding of demographic features of a host population help you plan your work? 14 The school has embraced the challenge of implementing the Every Child Matters Agenda with equal enthusiasm and dedication. In particular, the school recognises there are issues and concerns with students who may be from other local authorities and who commute long distances. This has implications for Park View Academy, not only in terms of complying with their statutory responsibilities in terms of child protection, but also in terms of these students’ access to support guidance and opportunities. These issues include: • access to facilities and resources within the school • the need to ensure joined-up provision and referrals to and from social services and health services from other local authorities • attendance at extra-curricular activities which may be deemed to be supportive, including those for study support • access to school for parents who may have to negotiate considerable distances to get to the school. For students who live in other local authorities, the school recognises that additional strategies are necessary to ensure continuity and support. This is achieved by: • maintaining effective and up-to-date communication systems with other local authorities’ social service departments and health providers • inviting appropriate social workers and other care workers to case conferences and student reviews • making specialist provision in terms of a wider more accessible windows of opportunity’ for parents to visit the school • providing early breakfast opportunities for those pupils who need to travel long distances and who may arrive early • providing opportunities for children to be picked up and collected from the school or after 6pm, should the situation arise after a student has attended an event or activity. This provides for the vagaries of public transport and for parents wishing to collect their children • deploying the assistant heads as learning-mentors to ensure good and effective home–school liaison • maintaining an accurate database of emergency contact numbers and alternative arrangements as a ‘failsafe’ in case pupils are not collected • maintaining a ‘drop-in’ session during lunchtimes for pupils as well as their parents and carers to speak to learning mentors. The school recognises the need to ensure it makes effective use of its IT systems to monitor pupils who attend out-of-hours activities.Whilst this is effective for study support, procedures for identifying those pupils who are attending other activities (and by implication those who are not) is currently being developed. In order to facilitate swift and easy access, with emphasis on early intervention, the school has adopted a number of strategies. These include: • ensuring good lines of communication with social workers and health services of other local authorities, and that databases of contact names and details are regularly updated • ensuring that a broad spectrum of individuals, representing a range of services, including health, are included as part of the pastoral team • ensuring that all staff are kept informed of their responsibilities through regular training and updates to ensure that they meet both the national and local needs, as well as the school’s own exacting standards • parent involvement is given a priority and considerable effort is made to ensure effective communication. This is through the use of appropriate translators, as well as the school’s bilingual staff when necessary • parents are given times to meet with the school staff at mutually convenient times • record-keeping and monitoring is electronically based and highly effective, ensuring that pupil attendance, as well as parent involvement in supporting their children’s education, is evaluated. This enables the school to respond more readily when parents need further support and guidance. 15 Additional strategies include: • The role of learning mentors to address pupils’ emotional and social development. They are given support through training to ensure that they have the right skills to provide counselling, coaching and mentoring. • The effective use of voluntary agencies including, for example, supplementary schools to support pupil progress. • There are strong links with feeder schools with the full involvement of key staff in transition arrangements, including the special educational needs co-ordinator and learning mentor team. • There are weekly inclusion meetings between support staff, senior staff and the special educational needs co-ordinator. The school is acutely aware of the issues regarding pupils who are out of the local authority. In order to address their needs, it has adopted a number of specific strategies and maintains an accurate database on their progress, social and emotional as well as academic. Contact: Lisa Jepson, Deputy Headteacher LJepson@parkview.haringey.sch.uk Pan-London organisations and services The Government Office for London (GOL) The Government Office for London represents central government across the capital, delivering policies and programmes in the London region on behalf of ten central government departments. GOL’s aim is to make London a better place: healthy, safe, clean and green, investing in children and economic development. The key priority areas for 2006/07 are: • making London more healthy • making London safer • making London more sustainable (including greener and cleaner) • investing in London’s children • developing London’s economy. GOL manages over 40 programmes for Whitehall departments. It had a programme budget of £3.3 billion for 2005/06, of which the majority, over £2.5 billion, was grant given to the Greater London Authority and its functional bodies, Transport for London and the London Development Agency. It administers, for example, European programmes, New Deal for Communities, and a range of anti-crime and drug prevention programmes for central government, joining up programmes and policies across ten Whitehall departments to help them deliver more effectively on the ground in London. Riverwalk House 157-161 Millbank London SW1P 4RR Typetalk: 18001 020 7217 3328 Tel: 020 7217 3328 Email: enquiries@gol.gsi.gov.uk Website: www.gos.gov.uk/gol/ London Challenge In 2003 the Prime Minister launched ‘The London Challenge Strategy: transforming London secondary schools’ Since then, London Challenge has developed Phase 2 to include primary schools, as well as focusing on: • parental engagement • the education of 14 to 19 year olds • improving the outcomes for all children in line with Every Child Matters. 16 The London Challenge is a partnership between all those who seek more for London’s young people. It is of the view that: • London’s strength depends more than ever on its education system. Just as London is determined to be a world leader in other areas, so, through a unified effort, London can be established as a leader in education, a world class city for learning and creativity. • There is considerable energy in the education system in London and when the very best of what is happening now in London’s schools becomes the norm, our aim will be realised. London Challenge 8c Sanctuary Buildings Great Smith Street London SW1P 3BT Tel: 020 7925 6252 Fax: 020 7925 6079 Email: london.challenge@dfes.gsi.gov.uk London Mayor The Mayor has published a strategy for children and young people, entitled ‘Making London Better For All Children And Young People’. This is aimed at making London a more child-friendly city. London is a young city, with more than one-fifth of the population under 18 – a higher proportion than in most other cities in Europe. However, the city can be a difficult place for children and young people. In inner London, many children live in poverty. There are not enough safe places to play, and getting around can be difficult and expensive – London can be a dangerous place at times. Many people feel it is time to make London more child-friendly. To help do this, the Mayor has drawn up a strategy for children and young people. It covers all children from birth to 18. It is based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and it includes: • supporting families – for example, by looking for ways to make childcare more affordable and tackling child poverty • making the city safer for children and young people, in particular, by improving the safety of public transport and parks and play areas • making transport more affordable • making it easier to walk or cycle on London’s streets • creating more places to play and improving those we have • encouraging museums, art galleries and other cultural organisations to be more welcoming to children. The Mayor is also setting up a children’s and young people’s unit to make sure children’s voices are heard in all areas, including planning and transport, and to ensure that the proposals in this strategy are taken forward. Mayor of London Greater London Authority City Hall The Queen’s Walk London SE1 2AA Public Liaison Unit: Tel 020 7983 4100 Minicom: 020 7983 4458 17 London Councils London Councils plays a unique role in London governance. Part think-tank and part lobbying organisation, its policy work is supported by a strong track record in delivering excellent services on behalf of the boroughs, all of which are designed to make life better for Londoners. London Councils has a track record of co-ordination at borough, sub-regional and pan-London levels, and has established a number of key pan-London or cross-borough related partnerships which contribute to the overall governance of London, for example, Capital Ambition, London Centre of Excellence and Consumer Direct. It works with more than 400 voluntary groups across London, providing them with £28 million of funding every year on behalf of London’s councils. Grants range from £5,000 to £500,000 and are awarded to a wide range of projects which all seek to tackle disadvantage and promote social inclusion, as well as improving the lives of people who live, work and visit London. London Councils speaks up for Londoners, and their local councils. Its work falls into four main areas: • making the case for London, fighting for adequate resources and powers so that our member councils can do the best job they can • leading the debate on key issues, developing policies and influencing government thinking to benefit Londoners • spreading good practice and generally helping boroughs to improve the services they deliver • providing excellent services, on behalf of the boroughs. London Councils 59_ Southwark Street London SE1 0A Tel:020 7934 9999 Email: info@londoncouncils.gov.uk Website: www.londoncouncils.gov.uk 4) Multi-agency working Every Child Matters identifies that early intervention and effective protection requires professionals to work in an integrated way through multi-disciplinary and multi-agency teams to focus on improved outcomes for children, young people and their families. It also identifies the need for services to be co-located wherever possible in and around schools, in children’s centres, community settings and in primary care settings in the belief that this will assist in removing organisational barriers and professional cultural barriers. (See www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/multiagencyworking for more on multi-agency working.) It also encourages common training for professionals. The Common Core of Skills and Knowledge for the Children’s Workforce (DfES, 2005) establishes the basic skills and knowledge needed by individuals, including volunteers and parents working with children or who have regular contact with young people and families. The skills are identified as being essential to enable effective partnership working in the interests of the child. There can be no part of the core offer where this applies more directly than with swift and easy access. The skills and knowledge are detailed under six main headings: • effective communication and engagement with children, young people and families • child and young person development • safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child • supporting transitions • multi-agency working • sharing information. (This can be downloaded from www.everychildmatters.gov.uk or www.teachernet.gov.uk/publications.) 18 The aim of working in a more joined-up way is to provide support to families at the earliest opportunity and to prevent them from reaching crisis point (Parenting support: guidance for local authorities in England, October 2006 – www.everychildmatters.gov.uk). The Joint Planning and Commissioning Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services (March 2006) aims to help local planners and commissioners to design a unified system in an area which puts outcomes for children and young people at the forefront of decision-making and creates a clear picture of what children, young people and parents need (www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/strategicplanningandcommissioning). Integrated working and multi-agency approaches present challenges to urban areas such as London, where there is a significant movement of children and young people between boroughs and services. For example, one third of Camden’s secondary school population does not go to school in Camden. Putting the needs of children and families first means that, increasingly, boroughs and individual schools and services need to find ways of developing cross-borough/area/school support. A key to achieving this is the effective sharing of information about children’s needs, linked into robust management systems. The All London Directors of Children’s Services Group (ALDCS) has agreed that sharing information is key to moving towards greater integration of services and that directors of children’s services will use the common assessment framework (CAF), as a minimum to manage information across London. (See the section ‘Developing quality referrals.) For schools and their partners, the government has contracted the Training and Development Agency (TDA) to use a proven change process which enables schools and other organisations to develop effective, long-term change programmes that meet their own specific circumstances (www.tda.gov.uk/remodelling/managingchange/ remodellingprocess/process.aspx). Also useful is the Multiagency working toolkit: www.ecm.gov.uk/multiagencyworking. Schools and their partners already operate in an environment of multi-agency working. The development of locality management structures, children’s trust arrangements, children’s centres, and initiatives such as Targeted Youth Support are all designed to provide a more integrated approach to supporting families. Some reasons for multi-agency working include the following: • It leads to better co-ordination and joining up of services. • It allows for more work across boundaries between services. • People are able to do things in new ways. • People can share resources – money, staff, expertise, buildings, skills and intelligence. • It is more efficient; things are less likely to be done twice. • It enables organisations to put the needs of children, young people and families at the centre, through breaking down barriers which exist within and between organisations. • It leads to improved understanding of children, young people and families and consequently their needs can be better targeted. • It enables schools, clusters and partner agencies and individuals to be better able to represent, speak on, and work with issues and concerns facing children, young people and families. • It can bring about more efficient and responsive development of those who work with and on behalf of children, young people and families – for example, through joint training across agencies/occupational groups/workforce development. Key questions • What contribution does leadership and management make to effective multi-agency working? • In what ways do/might multi-agency teams support early intervention in your school/cluster/locality? • In what ways are staff being trained across professional boundaries? • How do you know that the multi-agency approach is being successful? 19 Planning and self-evaluation Discuss with your partners (for example, other local authority services, private, voluntary and independent organisations) how you would evaluate your current provision in this area: 1 Outstanding 2 Good 3 Satisfactory 4 Inadequate Summarise your priorities/intended actions: 1 2 3 4 How would you use this to inform or contribute to improvement planning and evaluating? Case study New Addington Early Intervention Team, Croydon The early intervention team is based in New Addington and hosts a variety of practitioners who are ready, willing and able to assist you with addressing any concerns you have with regard to a child or young person aged 19 or under who lives in New Addington or Fieldway. We are not social services and it’s important for you to know that our remit is intervention and prevention. If the situation is already at crisis point, that is, you believe a child is at risk, we are not the service you should be referring to. If you believe that a household you are working with would benefit from the input of an education welfare officer, a health visitor, a Connexions advisor, a family support worker, a CAMH’s officer or a combination of all, then give us a call.We will try to get back to you within one working day and, if required, to instigate contact with the family within two working days. How can we help? That depends on the situation, but some of the ways we should be able to help are: • help prevent the behaviour of a child or young person result in eviction • help the family make the best of their environment and to organise their day-to-day life in a way that ensures a child or young person meets their full potential • listen to the family’s concerns and act on those we can, referring others to the relevant agency • intervene to prevent younger siblings from entering into a cycle of behaviour that may negatively impact upon them • enhance the parenting skills already there and help to develop others. (From April 2007 a school nurse is also being appointed to the team.) How do we do this? Again, that really depends on what is required.We can provide one-to-one or group parenting programmes around behaviour, establishing and maintaining parental authority, potty training, and so on – basically anything ‘supernanny’ can do, but ‘with knobs on’, help young people openly discuss and make life choices, tackle truancy and bullying at school and open effective lines of communication between the various services available. 20 The early intervention team is a part of the children’s trust, a project spawned largely as a result of the government Green Papers Every Child Matters and Youth Matters. The emphasis of the EIT is on intervention and preventative work. The plan is to have a team in the New Addington area and another in the Thornton Heath area. These would work closely with schools and other agencies, both voluntary and statutory, to reduce the risk of significant harm of any kind to all young people in the perspective local areas. The agenda is laid down by the five target areas of Every Child Matters: • be healthy • stay safe • enjoy and achieve • make a positive contribution • achieve economic well-being. The team aims to work with families and young people from birth to 19 to ensure that incidents that might lead to more serious problems down the line are identified and addressed.Whether through family support, education or health, we plan to improve young people’s chances of having a great future. If the expertise is in the team, then matters will be dealt with by the team; however, if we feel that it is a case where we cannot provide the right support, then we have access to a wide variety of services that can signpost your concern. The EIT exists to support the local community. The EIT exists to help. Contact: Debby MacCormack Extended Schools Development Manager 10.11 Taberner House Park Lane Croydon CR9 1TP Tel: 020 8686 4433 ext 62638 Fax: 020 8407 1353 Website: www.extendedschools.croydon.lgfl.net 5) The role of the private, voluntary and independent sector (PVI) The policy context Working with voluntary and community organisations to deliver change for children and young people, Every Child Matters: Change for Children, 2004 (www.everychildmatters.gov.uk) recognised the experience that voluntary and community organisations have in partnership working with local authorities and with health authorities, to support work with children, young people and their families. This document emphasised the importance of learning from existing partnership working between public bodies and the voluntary and community sectors, for example, through: • children’s fund • Connexions partnerships • youth offending teams • Sure Start local programmes • early years development and childcare partnerships. Steps were announced to increase at national and local levels the capacity of the voluntary and community sector to participate more effectively in the Change for Children Agenda (Chapters 2 and 3). The increasingly important role played by private and independent sector partners is also recognised, and generally these types of providers are referred to collectively as the private, voluntary and independent (PVI) sector. Private, voluntary and independent organisations have continued to play a vital role in contributing to and forging new partnerships through, for example, supporting children’s centres and extended services in and around schools, and in programmes such as Targeted Youth Support. 21 The 2004 Children Act, Section 10, makes provision for the ‘duty to co-operate’ between partners in delivering joined-up services for children and young people (Statutory guidance on inter-agency co-operation to improve the well-being of children: children’s trusts – www.everychildmatters.gov.uk). Under Section 10 ‘The local authority will need to lead in establishing arrangements that help all public, private, voluntary and community organisations to work together effectively to achieve agreed outcomes’ (1.11 of the statutory guidance). The local authority has a duty to co-operate with public health bodies, the police, district councils, Learning and Skills Council and others; the co-operation arrangements under the Children Act Section 10 (1) (c) states that ‘agencies that exercise functions or are engaged in activities in relation to children and young people should also be involved’. This means that all agencies, including private, voluntary and independent organisations, have a duty to work together to improve outcomes for children and young people. Alongside this guidance schools, under the 2006 Education and Inspection Act, are to be assessed on: • how far the education provided in the school meets the needs of the range of pupils at the school • the contribution made by the school to the well-being of those pupils. Inspectors will therefore assess the overall effectiveness of the school, including any extended services (1.22 of the guidance), and the quality of relationships schools have with external partners. How schools can work with private, voluntary and independent organisations to deliver the core offer Schools and their communities are complex and diverse organisations, and it may be that parents or governors already have links with private, voluntary and independent organisations. Just sending a standard questionnaire for completion by the adult community may surprise those involved as to the skills, knowledge, and experiences present among parents, families and carers of the students in the school. Schools should encourage the involvement of the private, voluntary and independent sector because they: • provide services • have knowledge of the local community • can help in consultation • may have links with existing statutory or local organisations • help provide skills and knowledge needed to fill gaps left by some statutory provision. For there to be effective involvement between schools and private, voluntary and independent organisations, it is important that sufficient time is given to getting to know partners and that there is transparency in relationships. This can be assisted by developing effective service-level agreements (see the Tom Hood partnership agreement example at the end of this section) and other protocols which ensure that, for all partners, issues such as accountability, quality assurance, who pays for what, who delivers what and by when are understood and monitored. The private, voluntary and independent sector is very varied, from well-established national organisations (such as Barnardo’s, Ican, Place2be, and so on) where staff will have specialised training, to smaller local organisations, networks and groups. It is important that those developing extended services in and around schools ensure that cluster and other networking arrangements enable the private, voluntary and independent sector to be fully involved in emerging children’s trusts arrangements. The Children’s Information Service (CIS) and other databases held by the local authority are important sources of information about what private, voluntary and independent organisations offer. Under Section 12 of the Childcare Act 2006 local authorities are required to ensure that all parents have information they might need for their children right through to their 20th birthday. (See also ‘Mapping local resources.) 22 Key questions Activities Refer to Appendix 5, Activities 1 and 2. Planning and self-evaluation Discuss with your partners (for example, other local authority services, private, voluntary and independent organisations) how you would evaluate your current provision in this area: 1 Outstanding 2 Good 3 Satisfactory 4 Inadequate Summarise your priorities/intended actions: 1 2 3 4 How would you use this to inform or contribute to improvement planning and evaluating? Case study The Place2Be The Place2Be is an organisation committed to supporting troubled, unhappy children in schools. It provides emotional and therapeutic support to children in primary schools across the UK. Its work began in 1994 in response to increasing concern in primary schools about the extent and depth of the emotional and behavioural difficulties displayed in classrooms and playgrounds. It became clear that some children required more attention than school staff could give in the ordinary business of carrying out their teaching duties. Moreover, the needs of these children and families did not meet the thresholds for existing statutory child and mental health services as they did not constitute mental health problems.What was clearly needed was an assessment and counselling service based within the school’s premises – a place that was essentially familiar and accessible. • In what ways do you consider your private, voluntary or independent organisation contributes to extended services, in particular: swift and easy access? parenting support? • What arrangements exist for the leadership and governance of your local cluster/network? How is the private, voluntary and independent sector involved? • What agreements are in place to assist work between private, voluntary and independent sector organisations and schools? In what ways are they monitored and reviewed? • In what ways could things be improved to assist your partnership working? 23 Children’s most common worries include: • parental divorce and separation • (parental) drug/alcohol related problems • long-term family illness • bereavement/loss • bullying • domestic violence • trauma • deprivation • neglect • self-harm • physical or sexual abuse. The Place2Be takes its place within the context of the growing conviction among practitioners in the field of child mental health, during the last 30 years or so, that greater priority needs to be given to the promotion of children’s mental health, as well as to the prevention of mental health problems. Of course, the treatment of children’s mental disorders matters, but so too does early intervention – ‘early’ in the sense of onset of problems and ‘early’ in the course of children’s development. This conviction has built up on the basis of numerous studies, notably in the USA, which have demonstrated the value of promotion and preventive activity. Greater clarity too has been achieved in identifying the risks and resilience factors that determine children’s mental health. Children’s experiences of secure or insecure attachment, in relation to their parents and later significant adults, is clearly of central importance, as is the provision of caring and stimulating school environments. Since its early days, The Place2Be has grown substantially in confidence and size. It is currently operating in 112 schools in twelve hubs in England and Scotland. In each school, the organisation will place a qualified counsellor as a school project manager, whose primary responsibilities are to liaise with school staff, take referrals from teachers and parents, and supervise volunteer counsellors who carry out the individual counselling with children. The volunteers are carefully selected and, while the majority are trainees on placement in the second year of their diploma counselling courses, an increasing number are already qualified. The school project manager also meets and supports parents of children seen in The Place2Be and runs a lunchtime self-referral service that is available to all children in the school. The Place2Be has taken a bold step as a voluntary sector organisation in initiating and providing a comprehensive counselling service in primary schools, entering into children’s lives at a crucial time in their development. As such, it has developed outside the customary domains of the statutory sector – and yet provides crucially important services that properly sit in Tier 2 in the broad framework of preventative CAMHS. It has taken care, too, to carry out regular internal audits to measure outcomes. The findings are very positive. Recognising the importance of support for parents, the Place2Be established A Place for Parents, now operating in six geographic areas. The key to the success of this service so far has been the development of strong relationships between the parent workers and the school project managers, the accessibility of the service to parents and, most significantly, the trust that parents have in The Place2Be. The Place2Be has also developed a range of accredited training programmes based on practical experience that are designed to support the professional development of the children’s workforce. Possibly the greatest strength is that the Place2be is structured as to ensure that provision is based firmly within the schools it will serve. It is not located in separate clinic premises, often too hard to reach for many families. The Place2Be is, in effect, an ‘external’ service that embeds itself in the ‘inner’ fabric of the schools. In this way, over time, the organisation establishes itself as a well known presence, trusted and consulted by most in the school – teachers, support staff, parents and children – a presence that contributes greatly to the overall morale and emotional literacy of the school. 24 Michaela’s Story Primary school in Brent, North West London. When she was 10 years old Michaela was the victim of bullying. Michaela did talk to her mum about it but was adamant that she didn’t want her going to school and talking to the teachers. She feared that telling would only make the bullying worse. Her mum Soray suggested Michaela go to The Place2Be. ‘I knew the service was running in the school’ says Soray ‘and I felt it would be a discreet means of support for my daughter.’ ‘The Place2Be really helped’ says Michaela. ‘My Place2Be counsellor spoke to the girl who was bullying me and said she should go to The Place2Be too. They found out why she did it (but they never revealed that to me) and helped her stop being a bully. So she got something out of is as well and by the end of the year we had actually become friends’. ‘It was such a positive experience’ says Soray ‘I’m so pleased I was able to stand back and let Michaela sort it out herself with all the proper support from The Place2Be.’ Key questions from the case study Contact: The Place2Be Wapping Telephone Exchange Royal Mint Street London E1 8LQ Tel: 020 7780 6189 Email: enquiries@theplace2be.org.uk • What links do you have already with the community and voluntary (third sector) services? • Do you have parents or members of the school community (governors, employees, and so on) who are involved in voluntary services, particularly those that support children? • What support do you give to parents who may wish to set up a voluntary group to support pupils, such as supplementary schools? • What are the ‘blockers’ in your school to engaging the voluntary services and how can these be resolved? 25 Private, voluntary and independent sector contacts Useful organisations and addresses Council for Voluntary Service This is a voluntary organisation, which is set up, owned and run by local groups to support, promote and develop local voluntary and community action. CVS supports their members by providing them with a range of services and by acting as a voice for the local voluntary and community sector. Usually funded by the local authority and other local statutory agencies, there is a CVS working in almost every district and city in England. Individual CVS differ in character and size, although they usually work to the same geographical boundaries as the local authority. They also differ in name. Many are called CVS, while others might be called Voluntary Action or Voluntary Sector Council. Charities Commission The Charity Commission is established by law as the regulator and registrar for charities in England and Wales. It aims to provide the best possible regulation of charities in England and Wales in order to increase charities’ effectiveness and public confidence and trust. It will provide advice on setting up a charity, using a set of model governing documents, as well as support issues for registered charities, advice on accounts/annual return completion and fundraising queries. Harmsworth House 13–15 Bouverie Street London EC4Y 8DP Tel: 0870 333 0123 Website: www.charitycommission.gov.uk Community Development Exchange (CDX) This is a UK-wide umbrella organisation for community development, which promotes community development through supporting local, regional and national networks and forums for practitioners and allies. 4th Floor, Furnival House 48 Furnival Gate Sheffield S1 4QP Tel: 0114 270 1718 Fax: 0114 276 7496 Email: admin@cdx.org.uk Website: www.cdx.org.uk Community Foundation Network Support organisation for UK Community Foundations. These are grant-making trusts which support voluntary and community activity in their geographic areas. They have a strong focus on outreach to grassroots groups. Arena House 66–68 Pentonville Road London N1 9HS Tel: 020 7713 9326 Fax: 020 7422 8616 Email: network@communityfoundations.org.uk Website: www.communityfoundations.org.uk 26 Community Fund Distributes money raised by the National Lottery to support charitable, benevolent and philanthropic organisations throughout the UK. St Vincent House 16 Suffolk Street London SW1Y 4NL Tel: 020 7747 5300 Enquiries Line: 020 7747 5299 Email: enquiries.england@community-fund.org.uk Website: www.community-fund.org.uk Community Matters Represents the interests of local community organisations nationally, and promotes their activities in the areas of education, recreation and social welfare. 12–20 Baron Street London N1 9LL Tel: 020 7837 7887 Helpline: 0870 727 2373 Fax: 020 7278 9253 Email: communitymatters@communitymatters.org.uk Website: www.communitymatters.org.uk Council of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Organisations (CEMVO) Set up to mobilise increasing resources for the ethnic minority voluntary sector. The Council’s headquarters is in London, with regional offices spread across the UK. Boardman House 64 Broadway Stratford London E15 1NT Tel: 020 8432 0307 Fax: 020 8432 0319 Email: enquiries@emf-cemvo.co.uk Website: www.emf-cemvo.co.uk Federation of Community Work Training Groups This organisation supports the development of communities through advancing and promoting community development learning at local, regional and national levels and the creation of appropriate opportunities for training and qualification. 4th Floor, Furnival House 48 Furnival Gate Sheffield S1 4QP Tel: 0114 273 9391 Fax: 0114 276 2377 Email: info@fcwtg.demon.co.uk Website: www.communitydevelopmentlearning.org.uk 27 Partnership agreement Tom Hood School This document will be supplemented by a pack containing the relevant school policies. 1 This agreement establishes the roles and responsibilities of the school and its partners in delivering extended services. 2 For the purposes of this agreement _______________ (service provider) will deliver the following service: Title: Description: Dates and times: Beginning (start date): to (end date): Target group: Min and max numbers: 3 The school is responsible for: 3.1 identifying an appropriate room, ensuring that it is open and ready for use at the beginning of the session 3.2 publicising the activity among pupils 3.3 making available to the provider a ‘pigeon-hole’ or similar to facilitate communication with school staff 3.4 providing information about fire and emergency procedures 3.5 providing access to all appropriate whole-school policies 3.6 reporting to governors and others about the activities to ensure that the work of the partner organisation is recognised and acknowledged 3.7 completing an evaluation report where required. 4 The service provider is responsible for: 4.1 staffing Staff must be suitably qualified and experienced, and have undergone criminal records bureau (CRB) checks. No adult without CRB checks can be involved in any work with Tom Hood pupils 4.2 activities The services as described in paragraph 2 must be appropriately planned and delivered, and a programme of activities provided well in advance. Appropriate resources must be provided.Where school resources are to be used, adequate notice must be given, and the responsibility for any damage of school property remains with the provider. Suitable and sufficient risk assessments must be undertaken for each activity Young people must be adequately supervised during the session, ensuring that they attend promptly, remain for the duration, and leave the building promptly at the end. Young people must never be left unattended. Relevant records are to be maintained and made available to the school, including a register of attendance, a record of activities per session, and referral details as appropriate. 4.3 pastoral issues In any situation where a service provider becomes aware of an issue which concerns a pupil’s safety or well-being, particularly in relation to child protection issues, the partner organisation is required to inform the relevant school staff promptly: Liz Tudor, Deputy Head (Pastoral) or Lee Hagger, Asst Head (Pastoral). 28 29 Where service providers become aware of significant issues concerning the child’s experience at school, the school should be promptly informed, with the agreement of the pupil concerned. Where service providers become aware of significant issues concerning the child’s experience at home, the school does not need to be informed, and the provider is required to follow their own organisation’s procedures. 4.4 confidentiality All partners are required to adhere to Tom Hood School’s confidentiality procedure. Staff must be aware that they cannot offer pupils guaranteed or unconditional confidentiality. If a child reveals any information relating to their own safety or that of any other young person, the relevant school staff must be informed promptly: Liz Tudor, Deputy Head (Pastoral) or Lee Hagger, Asst Head (Pastoral). Exceptional circumstances in relation to health professionals: The law allows health professionals to see and, in some circumstances, treat young people confidentially, and a part of this process should include counselling and discussion about talking to parents. Health professionals may be bound by their professional codes of conduct in a one-to-one situation with individual pupils, but in a classroom situation or group setting they should follow the school’s confidentiality policy. 4.5 trips Partners are required to adhere to school policies and procedures for any trips or activities taking place outside the school. In practice this will mean informing the school in writing at least four weeks in advance of a trip lasting a day or less, and at least a term in advance of a trip involving an overnight stay. 4.6 insurance The service provider is responsible for indemnifying against injury to staff and pupils and loss and damage to any property occurring as a result of these activities. 4.7 evaluation Partners are expected to meet with relevant members of the school staff regularly (either once per term or once per half-term) to assess progress. Partner agencies are asked to provide statistical information at these meetings. 4.8 other matters All activities organised as part of Tom Hood Extended School fall within the management and governance of the school. The school is delighted to be working with partner organisations in extending the range of opportunities available to our pupils and local community.We would ask, however, that partners remain conscious that schools are more constrained than many other organisations, and request that we are kept informed of any variation on the service as described in paragraph 2. For: Tom Hood School For: Name: Name: Position: Position: Signature: Signature: Date: Date: Policies to be attached • Fire • Accident reporting • Confidentiality 6) Establishing a culture of support and change Context The Every Child Matters agenda is a new way of working for everyone associated with the care and support and education of children. For the first time services, which hitherto were considered either remote or hard to reach because of differences in culture, attitudes, personnel and protocols, are now being brought together under a legal framework for the benefit of children. It is also underpinned by changes in the local authority and health service management structures, with departments merging under all-embracing children’s services. New standards are being established for the children’s workforce; new protocols for assessment and responsibility for delivery of support are being implemented. The changes are challenging. Managing change Change can always be difficult to accept. The Every Child Matters agenda is being delivered at a time when there are also multiple changes across all services – not least, in health, social care, and education. All serve the purpose of attempting to drive up standards, secure the safety of children, and ensure that the five outcomes are established for all children and young people. However, experience tells us that institutional and policy change can lead to uncertainty. This is frequently caused by ambiguity in the interpretation of legislation and directives. There is a danger that those charged with delivering services in the first instance can experience disappointment as, to start with, the changes may not seem to deliver the desired impact on improving outcomes for children and young people that they would wish. This may be because perceived success criteria do not fit in with an individual’s expectations; or, it may be that there are inherent ambiguities in legislation and guidance that still need clarification.Whatever the cause, it is to be hoped that those involved in developing extended services in and around schools will see any early anomalies or flaws as challenges, not as blocks, to extending services. In order to support the development of extended services in and around schools, the government has remitted the Training and Development Agency (TDA), ContinYou and 4Children to work together to help local authorities and schools, with their partners, to develop extended services. Central to this is the remodelling process, developed by the TDA, which is a proven management of change process that gives schools and their partners tools and techniques to meet new challenges effectively: www.tda.gov.uk. The TDA remodelling process is designed around six key principles: • effective leadership • inclusive culture • proactive change team • constructive collaboration • a proven change process • consideration of the rational, emotional and political factors. These principles are embodied within a five-step proven change process which: mobilises those engaged in the process around the change agenda; discovers what the strengths and challenges currently are; deepens the understanding of these through extensive consultation and information gathering; develops and interrogates plans to take the agreed change agenda forward; advances thinking into delivery; and builds in plans for sustainability. 30 Building effective relationships The development of extended services in and around schools is dependent on all partners engaging with one another in order to create successful working relationships. The development of the healthy schools initiative is one example of how a government programme can impact positively on schools, as long as everyone takes responsibility for its delivery. Successful practices in healthy schools tell us that in order to deliver successful change, schools and their partners need to establish a sense of partnership through the development of: • a climate of trust, where people are open and honest about their views and opinions • secure communication, between individuals, organisations, teams and institutions • shared goals, whereby the work of the school and its partners focuses on the needs of children, particularly those who are vulnerable • a commitment to professional development – with high standards of provision in terms of knowledge, skills and awareness required to ensure successful delivery of new practice • clear strategic planning, in order that change can be implemented at a rate which is easily assimilated and understood by all practitioners and personnel • critical and appropriate evaluation: in order to identify the effective use of resources, including time, personnel and emotional commitment • effective and able partnership working, which does not rely on an individual’s personality and commitment, but is stable and part of an institution’s framework and expectations More important perhaps is the need to establish a strong ‘culture of change’. This requires individuals to move away from their comfort zone, to try new ideas and ways and methods of working. It requires people to understand that occasionally it may not work as well as they would like, but that is not a sufficient excuse not to re-evaluate and re-orientate methods, strategies or techniques. Key questions Activities Refer to Appendix 6, Activities 1 and 2. • What are some of the main challenges to you and your partners in developing extended services? (You may wish to draw on some of the TDA change tools for this activity: www.remodelling.org/remodelling/managingchange/tools/aspx.) • What experience of culture change have you had already? What were some of the challenges and successes? • In what ways can you involve children and young people, parents, community members, and partner agencies in the change process? • In what ways can you keep all parties informed and able to manage changes themselves? • What are the implications for schools and their partners for the recruitment and induction of staff, and for staff and professional development including volunteers, both paid and unpaid? 31 Planning and self-evaluation Discuss with your partners (for example, other local authority services, private, voluntary and independent organisations) how you would evaluate your current provision in this area: 1 Outstanding 2 Good 3 Satisfactory 4 Inadequate Summarise your priorities/intended actions: 1 2 3 4 How would you use this to inform or contribute to improvement planning and evaluating? Case study The experience of healthy schools Under the Every Child Matters agenda, pupils in schools will increasingly be able to receive a high standard of care from the health service. This is part of the strategy for the national service framework for children, as well as the young people and maternity services. Pupils will be able to receive better access to information as well as the involvement of more front-line services to ensure that pupils are appropriately screened. The purpose of this is to ensure that children and young people develop healthier lifestyles, with improved knowledge and understanding of how they can make the appropriate choices. The healthy school strategy also has specific targets to focus on teenage pregnancies, smoking cessation, obesity, and so on. The National Healthy School Standard, established in 1999, demonstrated the need for schools to work together with health services. In order to be awarded a ‘healthy school status’ schools had to ensure the delivery of high-quality support in key themes. These included: healthy eating, personal, social and health education (PSHE), citizenship, drug education (including tobacco and alcohol), emotional health and well-being (including bullying), physical activity, safety, and sex and relationship education. Schools working towards the standard had to demonstrate a commitment of support through partnership working with various agencies. It also meant ensuring that curricular change impacted on children’s lifestyles and health. For many teachers and schools, it would be the first time that they would be working with external agencies and health services to deliver an effective school curriculum. Schools successfully introducing these changes had to adopt new protocols and procedures for communication and engagement of partners. 32 7) The importance of leadership and management Context The Children Act 2004 requires local authorities to take the lead in establishing arrangements to ensure cooperation between local partners and groups. Most local authorities have already appointed a director of children’s services and designated a lead member for children’s services. They are also required to identify a single commissioner of parenting support services. Local authorities with their health services have a key leadership role in bringing together partners and groups from across local services. This will include consultation about the children and young people’s plan, arrangements around children’s trusts and guidance on services available locally. Every Child Matters: Change for Children outlines key elements of inter-agency governance, which are: • ‘effective leadership by the local authority • full engagement of all key partners • clear accountabilities • relationships built on trust, a shared vision and a determination to improve outcomes • engagement of senior representatives of all key partner organisations to give shared strategic leadership and direction and drive through change.’ How leaders and managers can work in partnership This section aims to give you an understanding of how leaders and managers can work in partnership across a range of agencies and organisations to support early identification, support and intervention in extended services in and around schools and children’s centres. Schools need to be aware of what they can do well within their own organisation to support vulnerable children and young people and to consider where they need the expertise of others. They need to consider who their partners are in these circumstances and how they can best work together to meet the needs of the vulnerable child/young person. In order to effectively meet the needs of vulnerable children, young people and their families, leadership will need to be carefully planned and distributed across organisations, agencies, clusters and the individual school, as well as across local authority and health service boundaries. Consideration will need to be given to how children and young people can be involved in this process. Success will be based on the development of a shared vision and an ethos of trust, as well as a respect for each others’ strengths and capabilities. Working across agencies (Refer to ‘Multi-agency working’.) Most local authorities will have been working through change processes with schools and their partners to develop extended services and activities, and will be familiar with the change management process supported by the Training and Development Agency. (See the section ‘Establishing a culture of support and change’ or go to http://tda.gov.uk/remodelling/managingchange.aspx). However, working across a wider range of agencies and organisations can present challenges and the TDA has developed additional processes to support the development of Targeted Youth Support Teams that successfully involve partners across the full range of providers (see www.tda.gov.uk/remodelling/targetedyouthsupport.aspx). 33 Leaders in extended schools must secure the commitment of others and ensure that those involved know what they can and can’t do. In order to do this and to establish a shared vision, leaders will need to deploy a range of leadership styles, including coercive, authoritative, affiliative, democratic, pace setting and coaching (Goleman, D, 2002, The new leaders), possibly through delegating leadership tasks to others. (See Collaborative leadership in extended schools – leading in a multi-agency environment, at www.ncsl.org.uk.) Successful leaders recognise how these styles can support establishing a vision, developing an ethos and making use of the range of opportunities which arise. They are aware of the need to consider: • how to distribute leadership and responsibilities, recognising the strengths of other leaders and partners • how to involve others in the process, not necessarily teachers, giving them a voice and ownership of the decision-making process • changing relationships and the management of change • new roles and responsibilities, creating new leaders • the importance of good communication strategies • sharing targets • agreeing working practices • joint planning, monitoring and evaluation • the review and revision of systems and processes • who is responsible for providing the funding. What you may need to do: • decide where you want to be and then consider what you need to do to get there • plan the change process • identify partners and the leaders in these organisations and agencies • decide who will lead specific aspects • be honest and realistic about what you can offer each other • discuss with partners a communication strategy • consider the data protection act and local information sharing protocols • review and revise training and professional development systems • consider the opportunities for mentoring • define and specify roles and responsibilities • devise a partnership agreement • agree who will be involved in performance management • agree lines of reporting. Key questions Activities Refer to Appendix 7, Activities 1 to 3. • How do you know who leads what? Where do you find the management structure and contact details? • How do you know that all job descriptions are up-to-date, with responsibilities and expectations clearly defined? • How do you know that governors have a clear understanding of the role of leaders and how leadership has been distributed? • Is there a clear plan for succession? Is there an organised programme of staff development and training? (The Investors in People Framework may help here. Go to www.investorsinpeople.co.uk.) • How are you involving children and young people in the decision-making process? 34 Planning and self-evaluation Discuss with your partners (for example, other local authority services, private, voluntary and independent organisations) how you would evaluate your current provision in this area: 1 Outstanding 2 Good 3 Satisfactory 4 Inadequate Summarise your priorities/intended actions: 1 2 3 4 How would you use this to inform or contribute to improvement planning and evaluating? Case study Kentish Town Church of England Primary School, London Kentish Town Church of England Primary School has developed an action plan for the Every Child Matters agenda. The headteacher has delegated the responsibility for the delivery of the various strands to a fast track teacher, Anna Cooper. This also includes responsibility for PSHE and citizenship. Together with the headteacher, Anna has introduced new ways of assessing children’s development in PSHE, using the end-of-key-stage statements from the QCA. She has co-ordinated a successful application for the Healthy Schools award. The headteacher has successfully distributed leadership across the school so that a range of staff share leadership responsibility. The success of this approach is seen in the way that Anna has coordinated a range of activities and events and developed partnerships with a range of agencies and providers, who share the delivery of activities and services. Part of the success is due to the support and encouragement Anna receives from the leadership team, as well as from an experienced fast track teaching mentor, within the school. The headteacher has been closely involved at the developing and planning stage to ensure that Anna is involved in the school self-evaluation process, including contributing to the self-evaluation form. The school comments on the impact of Anna’s work, in terms of children’s awareness and their behaviour and attitudes. Anna works collaboratively with other teachers in school, organising training sessions, and working with governors. This approach to distributed leadership at Kentish Town Primary School provides opportunities for professional development and extending leadership responsibilities. Through empowering others to develop skills, knowledge and competencies, it has enabled more to be achieved in a short time. This is because different people are able to take the lead in different areas of the Every Child Matters agenda, including other agencies. Contact: Anna Cooper Islip Street London NW5 2TU Tel: 020 7485 1279 Website: www.kentishtown.camden.sch.uk 35 Resources Every child matters: change for children www.everychildmatters.org.uk SBN: 1 8447 83553 DfES/1081/2004 Training and Development Agency: Remodelling/Managing Change http://tda.gov.uk/remodelling/managingchange.aspx Common Core of Skills and Knowledge for the Children’s Workforce www.teachernet.gov.uk/publications ISBN 1-84478-375-8 DfES/1189/2005 National Professional Standards for Headteachers www.ncsl.org Every Child Matters – perspectives on community leadership www.everychildmatters.org.uk Meg Bond, Beatrix Echerverri, Alan Flintham et al Government Response to the Education and Skills Report on Special Educational Needs DfES Cm 6940 October 2006-11-27 Poole Local Authority Multi Agency Locality Groups www.tda.gov.uk/remodelling/extendedschools/resources/casestudies/remodelling/ poole_multi_agency_approach.aspx Governance and Management of Extended Schools and Sure Start Children’s Centres November 2006 Teachernet website www.teachernet.gov.uk Training and Development Agency – Development (TDAD) website www.tda.gov.uk ContinYou website www.continyou.org.uk National College of School Leadership (NCSL) website www.ncsl.org.uk 36 8) Mapping local resources In order to improve children’s well-being, the Children Act 2004 placed a duty on local authorities to make arrangements to promote co-operation between organisations and agencies (including the private, voluntary and independent sector). They are required to consider how to integrate systems and processes across all departments. The Act also placed a duty on key partners to become involved in this process. Many local authorities have addressed this by considering a range of support and services along a continuum, based on local services responding to the differing local needs across an authority, often using children’s centres and using clusters of schools providing extended services and activities. All local authorities have a directory of services including the Children’s Information Service (CIS). This provides updated information on what is available locally. Additionally, many local authorities are compiling directories of services for children and families as part of their response to integrated service development and user participation, which are often web-based. By knowing more about what is available locally, regionally and nationally to support children and families, it is possible to quickly and accurately signpost services, as well as access suitable and timely support, consultation and provision from the public, private and third sector. You will need to consider: • where you can find information on the services and provision available locally • where there are gaps that may need drawing to the attention of planners and policy makers or which could be filled by the setting up of extended services and activities • how you can work with the local children’s centre, other schools, nurseries and pre-school providers and childminders • how you can link with adult services for young people on the threshold between adult and children’s services or for their carers • how to make contact with these services. Key questions Activities Refer to Appendix 8, Activities 1 and 2. • How do you know what is available locally? • How do you access locally available services? If you don’t know, what do you need to do? • What does your local children’s centre offer and how can you become involved? • What extended services and activities are available within your school and cluster for early intervention and support? 37 Planning and self-evaluation Discuss with your partners (for example, other local authority services, private, voluntary and independent organisations) how you would evaluate your current provision in this area: 1 Outstanding 2 Good 3 Satisfactory 4 Inadequate Summarise your priorities/intended actions: 1 2 3 4 How would you use this to inform or contribute to improvement planning and evaluating? Case study Harrow Local Authority is one of the least education-deprived places in England. However, there are small pockets of deprivation in the centre, south and east. Harrow places a strong emphasis on area development, focusing on how the authority can respond to differences around the local authority. It is divided into three areas, each with an area manager, which in turn are managed by a lead director. Harrow has co-ordinated a wide range of information on each ward to form a Harrow vitality profiles – a portrait of Harrow and its people in statistics. This document supports planning of interagency working using baseline information. The main aim in Harrow is to have services responding to local needs across the authority using clusters of schools. The pockets of most deprivation are organised into three local public service agreement (LPSA) clusters of schools which are funded to identify local needs and strategies. Harrow’s strategic plan is to develop extended services and activities across clusters using the findings of the initial clusters and the full-service extended school, to raise attainment for all children and improve opportunities within the community. The aim is to develop more coherent services through working partnerships facilitated by cluster co-ordinators and area managers. The rapid intervention team in Harrow Harrow has for some time been concerned at the high exclusion rates within the authority – more than its statistical neighbours and at odds with Ofsted judgements of its schools, where behaviour has been deemed to be at least satisfactory and in the majority of schools good. This project developed from the activities of the children’s support panel, a partnership between agencies and services working in Harrow to support vulnerable pupils of the Canon’s Cluster. This led to the formation of a borough-wide rapid response team meeting weekly to review the support and placement of pupils at risk of permanent exclusion. This multiagency team was highly successful in both keeping pupils in school and helping schools to access appropriate support. A fundamental review of provision and support led to the signing of a compact setting a clear vision statement agreed between all the services and agencies involved and all schools. 38 As part of that compact it was agreed to establish a rapid intervention team to work on a cyclical basis across the three council areas. The prime aim is to ‘ensure young people are educated in schools’. The team aims to provide early and effective support and to contribute to the five outcomes of Every Child Matters by using a problem-solving approach with specific and short-term interventions. These are agreed at the meeting and co-ordinated and monitored by the area managers. Headteachers are provided with guidance notes for referral and a list of what should have happened before the meeting. Schools can refer pupils causing serious concern, at risk of exclusion and where other strategies have failed. The school completes the referral form and discusses this with the parents and the child and gives feedback to the parents and the child following the meeting The multi-agency team meets on a weekly basis and up to three pupils are discussed at each meeting. Each team is chaired by the relevant area manager. The notes are reviewed in advance so the chair can invite the agencies appropriate to the needs of the children being discussed. The team have committed every Wednesday through the year for these meetings to ensure they take place. The panel includes core representatives from health, educational psychology, education welfare, achievement and inclusion, social care and family support, Connexions and child and adolescent mental health, but other services and agencies will be invited as required – for example, police or other health professionals. It is too early to say that the rapid intervention team is successful as it has only been fully operational since mid February 2006. However its predecessor, the rapid response team, was highly successful in both reducing exclusions (down 23 per cent in 2004–05) and developing effective practice in schools as teachers and headteachers deployed a wider range of strategies in response to pupil behaviour and also made more effective referrals to key services because better links were established. The work of the team was highly valued by the headteachers that used it and the increased number of referrals (including referrals from primary schools) reflected the positive views expressed by heads to their colleagues. The professionals involved became increasingly committed to attending meetings as they realised the benefits that could be gained from clear strategic thinking across services. The commitment at a high level within all partner organisations and services will hopefully ensure that the commitment is maintained. The team is funded from within existing resources with each partner dedicating resources to support not just attendance at the meetings but time to follow up on agreed actions. There is a small resource requirement for administration. These costs are offset by time and resources saved in dealing with crisis situations.We, therefore, believe that the rapid intervention team is sustainable. The difficulties and challenges should not be underestimated and these have been identified and planned for – including: • sustaining commitment from all partners • growth in referrals in the first instance, putting pressure on capacity • capacity to carry out agreed actions in an already crowded diary • resources to support agreed action – both human and financial • continuity – turnover in staff in some services may lead to continually having to revisit ways of working • overall this is an excellent example of partnership working across services to meet the needs of children and young people. Contact: Ms Kashmir Takhar Harrow Local Authority Harrow Council PO Box 34 Civic Centre, Station Road Harrow HA1 2XF Tel: 0208 424 1365 Website: www.harrow.gov.uk 39 Resources Every child matters: change for children www.teachernet.gov.uk/publications DfES/1081/2004 ISBN: 1 8447 83553 Children and Young People’s Plan Your local authority Children’s Information Service Your local authority Every Child Matters website www.everychildmatters.gov.uk Teachernet website www.teachernet.gov.uk TDA website www.tda.gov.uk ContinYou website www.continyou.org.uk NCSL website www.ncsl.org.uk The Census www.statistics.gov.uk 40 Swift and Easy Access 41 1) Introduction Early identification, support and intervention What is expected of schools, their partners and local authorities? Swift and easy access requires new ways of thinking about how vulnerable children and young people, or those with additional needs, can be supported.Whilst guidance is continually being updated, the most recent DfES guidance (December, 2006) states ‘Schools, working closely with other statutory services and the private, voluntary and independent sector (PVI), should focus on (and have clear processes to support) early identification of, and support and intervention for, children with behavioural, emotional, health or other difficulties. This should be well embedded within, and supported by, the strategic planning and commissioning of the local authority and other Children’s Trust partners, including the Primary Care Trust (PCT)’. Compliance to the requirements can be found on the appropriate web sites for delivery of Every Child Matters (www.everychildmatters.gov.uk). What do schools need to have in place now to meet this part of the core offer? The ESRA is the strategic lead for developing the extended schools vision within each local authority, and is supported by the Training and Development Agency (TDA). The following is reproduced from the December 2006 DFES core offer slides for Extended Schools Remodelling Advisers (ESRAs). Schools should: What do schools need to plan to have in place by 31/12/08 to meet this part of the offer? Schools should: Named individual - The named individual is the school link, but is not necessarily the lead professional • Be proactive in using the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) to identify needs and ensure that any interventions/referrals are appropriate in accordance with the Local Authority and the CAF rollout. Schools may have staff trained to use the CAF or will have access to those who can. They should use internal expertise from (Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators (SENCOs), schools nurses etc) as well as support from other services if necessary to aid identification • Where problems are identified, ensure that any support that can be provided within the school to address the child’s need with on-going guidance from other services if necessary, is in place (e.g. through primary or secondary Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) programme). They should support young people in accessing support directly (e.g. drop-in provision) but all times respect the choice of young people to receive support in this way or through other routes. • Where interventions are needed directly from other services, ensure that someone from within the school retains clear responsibility for liaising with that service; ensures the impact of the intervention is monitored and takes more steps if necessary; and liaises with the child’s family to discuss the initial referral and subsequent progress/further interventions where appropriate. Agreed timeframes for referrals should be communicated clearly to children and parents. • Ensure their current arrangements are effective in identifying children or young people in need of support in a non stigmatising way and review them regularly (annually) to assess impact. This would include identification of emerging emotional distress and health needs • Consider how services provided by their Children’s Trust partners can contribute to other parts of the core offer e.g. parenting support and the varied menu of activities parts of the offer, and through the curriculum where appropriate • Use the guidance provided by the Local Authority to signpost adults to services which are directly accessible where there is an obvious need and where there is a willingness to receive services. 42 Where schools decide to commission services directly in order to meet the needs of the Children and Young Peoples Plan (CYPP) they should ensure that this is consistent with the strategic commissioning priorities of the Local Authorities or Children’s Trusts so that there is no duplication of services or undermining of existing services All staff should be made aware of and carry out existing responsibilities under current legislation and common law with regard to identifying pupil need, in particular special educational needs and child protection, and make adjustments for disabled children How will local authorities and their children’s trust partners support schools and children’s centres? By September 2007, local authorities and children’s trust partners should: • bring services together to provide effective multi-agency support through extended schools and children’s centres • ensure schools are engaged in relevant discussions from CYPP through to operational arrangements to aid understanding of needs/challenges of different services • provide guidance on the range of services available, based on an electronic service directory. And by end December 2008, local authorities and children’s trust partners should: • offer support to schools on integrating preventative work into other elements of the core offer and the wider curriculum • help schools develop CAF-based processes for identifying children with emerging needs, involving partners and communicating processes widely • through the children’s trust arrangements and as a commissioning body, ensure services are brought together to provide effective multi-agency support for children delivered in and through extended schools and children’s centres • ensure children have access to appropriate professional support within the school, including drop-in provision where appropriate, and put in place clear referral pathways leading to swift engagement of appropriate services and continuing interaction between the school and other services to review arrangements and progress; there should be agreed communication and accountability protocols between services to support this. The importance of working together To develop effective swift and easy access practices schools, support services and agencies will need to work together to ensure the needs of all children, young people and their parents or carers are met. Staff in different agencies will work together and share information to promote child safety and well being. Sharing information with children, young people and their families, so that processes and issues are understood and clear, is important. For more on information sharing, see www.ecm.gov.uk/informationsharing. Benefits of swift and easy access include: • enhanced support for vulnerable children and those most at risk • improved help to staff and parents to address the wider needs of children and young people • helping to eradicate the possibility of problems getting worse due to delay • enabling and encouraging improved communication between agencies. Over time, it is expected that everyone working with children, young people and families will be able to demonstrate a basic level of competence in the six areas of the Common Core: • effective communication and engagement with children, young people and families • child and young person development • safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the child • supporting transitions • multi-agency working • sharing information. 43 See www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/deliveringservices/commoncore. These have also been incorporated into the new professional standards for teachers (www.tda.gov.uk/teachers/professionalstandards.aspx). In the future, the common core will form part of qualifications for working with children, young people and families, and it will act as a foundation for training and development programmes run by employers and training organisations. Refer to Appendix 9a for more information. Key questions Activities Refer to Appendix 9, Activities 1 and 2. 2) Transitions between schools, institutions, and local authorities Most students will attend several schools and educational establishments while they are receiving statutory education, even when the transition only occurs between the different key stages and further education. Variation depends upon a student’s background, family circumstances, and the type of structure in their local authority. There are some students who, because of temporary housing, or because their parents or carers have frequent moves, such as children of travellers, will attend numerous schools and establishments for very short periods. Students may also attend special schools, pupil referral units (PRU) or may be hospitalised. There is an essential need for good communication. Headteachers and managers of these schools and establishments need to ensure that records and appropriate documentation are up to date, relevant and serve the interest of the child or young person and are in a form that facilitates multi-agency working. Students with special educational needs, at whatever level, may need special consideration and support. There are several questioned to be resolved: • Will there be continuation of a similar level of support in the new establishment? • Are patterns of support and multi-agency structures similar to the child’s previous placement? • Who needs to be informed that the pupil is now in a different establishment and may require a different strategy of support? • Have the child’s needs changed? • What are the implications for the lead professional, the headteacher and the local authority concerned? There are issues regarding the students who may reside in one local authority, but receive their education in another. This ‘cross-border’ or inter-local authority arrangement should pose no problem providing: • the local authority from which the student came is informed of the presence of the pupil • the headteacher takes proactive steps to obtain a full set of appropriate records • where there is already multi-agency involvement, the lead professional ensures that there is a transition arrangement between the local authorities. • In what ways is your school with its partners, becoming familiar with the requirements of the Core Offer for Swift and Easy Access? • In what ways are you accessing the Every Child Matters (ECM) website for the latest information? • In what ways are you incorporating what you are learning into existing or new procedures and policies for early identification, support and intervention? • In what ways are you involving governors? E.g. Are they accessing GovernorNet? 44 In many ways, the delivery of services concept of multi-agency working implies that schools and partners need to consider new ways of thinking to ensure transition arrangements are experienced as seamless by the child and family. Many of the pilot projects for swift and easy access show that there needs to be consideration of: • strategic and operational issues • coherent support through community and voluntary sector agencies • evaluation of service provision • time-frames for services to be embedded and delivered • agreed protocols and line management. And in the London context many of these protocols and arrangements will need to be made cross-borough. Key questions Activities Refer to Appendix 10, Activities 1 and 2. Planning and self-evaluation Discuss with your partners (for example, other local authority services, private, voluntary and independent organisations) how you would evaluate your current provision in this area: 1 Outstanding 2 Good 3 Satisfactory 4 Inadequate Summarise your priorities/intended actions: 1 2 3 4 How would you use this to inform or contribute to improvement planning and evaluating? • What procedures do you have to identify the students in your school who may be ‘out of authority’ and what are the implications for their siblings who may be educated in another local authority? • What mechanisms are in place to ensure timely and relevant exchange of records and appropriate information between schools and institutions in different local authorities? • How useful/used are the records received from other providers and establishments – is this information trusted and utilised? • What audits have taken place identifying pupils taking up extended school activities (study support, sport, clubs, and so on) and whether there are any issues pertaining to those who may be considered to be out of the local authority? • Have you evaluated your own school’s transfer arrangements between schools and institutions? 45 Case study The Ellen Wilkinson School, in the London Borough of Ealing, recognises the importance of ensuring a smooth transition, particularly from Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3. The school is developing a comprehensive programme of support, ensuring that the move from Year 6 pupils to starting a new school as Year 7 is as smooth as possible and trauma free. Several months before the end of the academic year all pupils are visited at their respective primary schools. What happens for those children not transferring into Ellen Wilkinson? The majority of teachers within the school are involved in this process. To assist in ensuring that information gathering from the feeder primary school and its pupils is consistent, teachers are provided with training. Upon visiting a feeder primary school, pupils are also given an induction pack with puzzles, games and a pencil case with accessories. A booklet with a sheet from each subject department, with an introductory exercise, is also provided for the pupils to complete, giving them a flavour of the new subjects that will be taught to them. The school also makes use of the common transfer form in place in the local authority, ensuring that current levels of attainment, ethnicity, and special needs, including those who are gifted and talented, are properly recorded. The school’s special educational needs department ensures that it has appropriate records on all its pupils, regardless of whether or not they have a statement of special educational needs. This i