Putting Children First in North TynesideChildrenfirst

Dec 2009

Keeping you informed | www.northtyneside.gov.uk

Taking stock

2009 exam results

Supporting disabled children

YOS inspection

New Ofsted framework

Inside this issue

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Inspiring diningNorth Tyneside Council is in theprocess of revamping secondaryschool lunches, ahead of theintroduction of closed gatepolicies at lunchtime for someschools.

Students are being offered simple freshfood, easier ways to pay, more choice,less queuing and better, brighter diningareas.

Brand new food on offer includes ‘RiceN Spice’ – a mix of international dishesusing fresh herbs and spices,

‘Deli-Xpress’ – a ‘Subway-style’sandwich counter where students canchoose their own bread and fillings, and‘Pasta-Xpress’ with daily hot pastaspecials. All are offered at under £2including a drink.

Clear displays and improvedpromotional materials help studentsunderstand what they’re buying, itsnutritional content, and whether it’svalue for money.

The improvements have been made inline with the Government’s new and

rigorous food standards for secondaryschools.The guidelines mean schoolsmust make it easier for students to makehealthier choices at lunchtime.

The changes are already going downwell with pupils at Monkseaton High,George Stephenson High and ChurchillCommunity College, and plans are inplace to work with the borough’s otherschools in the near future.

Barbara Patterson, North TynesideCouncil’s Catering Services Manager, isbehind the changes. She says: “Ourstudents told us what they wanted andin response we’ve removed queues,increased choice, improved ourcommunications and brought the diningareas bang up to date. Feedback so farhas been extremely positive and we’relooking forward to working with the restof our secondary schools.”

For more information contact NorthTyneside Council’s Catering Services on(0191) 643 8340.

horizonswidening

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Sixth formers at LongbentonCommunity College arekeeping the peace in theplayground and giving ahelping hand to shy orvulnerable pupils, to reducebullying and truancy at theschool.

The school’s peer mentoringprogramme matches older studentswith younger students who may needextra help or attention.

The one-to-one relationships provideguidance and support for the youngerchild, helping them with challengessuch as school work, homework,friendship issues and family problems,helping to build confidence andself-esteem.

And that scheme is now being backedup by new ‘sixth form surfers’; year 12and 13 peer mentors in distinctivegrey hooded tops who patrol theschool corridors and outdoor areasat lunchtime to act as a friendly facefor students, and a deterrent topotential bullies.

Year 13 sixth form surfer and peermentor Rachel Cowans says:“I workedwith a girl recently whose attendancewas only 40 percent. But through thepeer mentoring we helped herovercome her fears of school and shefinished the year with 85 percentattendance.And so far this year it’sbeen 100 percent, so it really works.”

Pupils who may struggle to talk abouttheir worries face to face at first areable to write down their concernsand drop them into a ‘bother box’,and a peer mentor will contact themprivately.

Peer mentor coordinator at theschool Kim Symington said:“Thepupils who volunteer as eithermentors or as sixth form surfers area credit to themselves as well as theschool. Evidence is showing thattheir work is helping younger pupilsovercome barriers and develop theconfidence to go it alone, and we’reextremely proud of the way thescheme has developed andgrown and the real results we areachieving.”

Beating the bullies

OutstandingShiremoorShiremoor Primary School hasbeen highlighted as one of 20primary schools performing atan outstanding level in verychallenging circumstances.

It featured in the Ofsted report’Twenty outstanding primary schools.Excelling against the odds’, published inOctober.

The named schools from across thecountry defy the association ofdisadvantage with low standards.They serve communities where pupilscome from poorer urbanbackgrounds and an above averageproportion receive free school meals.

Shiremoor was the only school fromthe North East represented in thisreport.The school, which received an‘outstanding’ Ofsted grading inJanuary 2008, was particularly praisedfor the way it helps pupils of all abilitiesand backgrounds to make significantimprovements to their academic andpersonal development.

Headteacher Helen Clegg wasdescribed as having a ‘visionary andunremitting approach to continuallyimproving teaching, learning and thecare that pupils receive’ and is praisedfor introducing innovative schemes suchas a bi-annual careers convention toencourage pupils to have ambition andstrive to achieve goals.

Mrs Clegg commented: “I amdelighted that the school has receivedthis recognition following many years ofhard work resulting in threeconsecutive ‘outstanding’ inspectionresults. It’s a testament to the efforts ofthe staff and pupils and to the school’sfocus on the needs of children and thedevelopment of a curriculum that isdesigned to help them succeed.”

Putting Children First in North Tyneside 3

In April 2010 the first everChildren andYoung People’sPlan for North Tyneside willcome to an end. The planwas launched in 2006 andset out a vision and set ofstrategic objectives for afour year period. The planwas structured around theEvery Child MattersOutcomes, and we added aSixth Outcome – BeSpirited.

Over the next few months we needto take stock, review how far wehave come, agree how far we haveto go and how we will get there.

There is absolutely no doubt thatsince the publication of that firstchildren’s plan there has been rapidchange in North Tyneside.

� Outcomes are improvingoverall;

� More children are happy,healthy and safe and achievingwell in school;

� Our key services areperforming very well, and themajority are top quartilecompared to benchmarks;

� The majority of educationaloutcomes are above thenational average and many attop quartile;

� We have seen significantimprovement in performance atGCSE and are the topperforming authority in theregion in relation to 5 A*- Cincluding English and maths.

� There has been significantimprovement in educationaloutcomes for looked afterchildren and children with alearning difficulty or disability;

� We have a national reputationin many areas, including ourarrangements for securing theparticipation of children andyoung people in decisionmaking; and…

� There has been a visiblestructural change, tangiblecultural change, clarification ofaccountabilities and betterservice integration around theneeds of children and families.

However, there is no time to bask inthe sunlight of our success. There isno doubt that we still have a way togo.

The facts remain that our impacthas been marginal in some areas:childhood obesity; teenagepregnancy; substance misuse; level 3attainment and progression tohigher education particularly fromdisadvantaged areas.

To make a significant difference inthese areas we will need to tacklelongstanding challenges. Challengeswhich require better join upbetween Every Child Matters andregeneration strategies andintervening with chaotic familieswho are reluctant to change. Andperhaps most importantly we neednew solutions to tackling therelationship between poverty, pooreducational outcomes and poorquality lifestyle choices.

Our new plan will cover the period2010 – 2014. It presents us with anopportunity to develop newsolutions to entrenched problems.Problems that have blighted the lifechances of children and youngpeople from one generation to thenext.

We will only achieve this if webreak down departmental andagency silos and remember that weare all mutually responsible forgiving all our children and younghope because they can see abrighter future.

So we have much to celebrate overthe festive period including thedifference we have made tochildren’s lives since 2006. Howeverwhen we return in the NewYearwe be consulting on developing anew plan which will set out thenext stage in our journey ofachieving radical change for childrenand families. I look forward tohearing your views.

Have a Merry Christmas and aHappy NewYear.

Taking Stock

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2009 exam resultsExcellent partnership workingbetween schools has putNorth Tyneside at the top ofthe table in terms of GCSEresults, this year.

It is the best local authority in theregion, according to provisional resultstables for 2009 released by theDepartment for Children, Schoolsand Families (DCSF), in October.

North Tyneside’s results were alsoabove the overall national average.

The percentage of students in NorthTyneside achieving 5 A*-C includingmaths and English was 53. 4 percent.

The national average was 47.8percent, and in the North East region,stands at 49.7 percent.

Cllr GeorgeWestwater, Cabinetmember for Children,Young Peopleand Learning, said: "This achievementis down to hard work, commitment,and excellent partnership working;between schools and the local

authority, and between the schoolsthemselves.

“The results also show that measuresto drive up standards across theborough, including extended andfocused support beyond theclassroom, are working well.

“We will continue to work withschools, maintain our highexpectations, and help our youngpeople become the best they canbe.”

A-level students in North Tynesidealso celebrated first class results for2009.

The borough saw an overall pass rateof 99.6 percent - an increase of 0.6percent on last year - with five of itseight high schools, and TyneMetCollege, all reporting 100 percent ofstudents achieving at least one A-level(A - E).

Almost six percent of studentsachieved three or more A-levels atgrade A.

A roomwith aviewWhitley Bay High has scoopeda national award for a uniqueTeaching Observation Gallerythat’s improving techniques andstandards at the school, andacross the region.

The gallery, which sits between twoclassrooms, has mirrored walls thatallow for unobtrusive observation,and head teacher Adam Chedburndescribes it as 'the single mostimportant tool in improving thequality of teaching in the last tenyears of the school’s history.'

It allows others to effectively ‘sit in' onlessons without interrupting orimpacting on teaching or learning.Teachers or trainees can use thefacility in small groups forcollaborative observation, or as astarting point for discussions onteaching methods.

In October, it won the ‘NationalAward for Impact and Innovation’ atthe 2009 ‘Leading Edge’ conferenceaward ceremony, run by the SpecialistSchools and Academies Trust.

TheWhitley Bay award was for themost innovative project improvingteaching and learning across thecountry, and recognises the uniqueimpact of the gallery.

As well as being used regularly by theschool, the gallery has been usedextensively by teachers from acrossthe region to improve the quality ofteaching and learning in other schools.It’s also being utilised by traineeteachers at Newcastle University whouse the gallery to observe secondand third year teachers in realclassroom settings, teaching realstudents.

Top of the regional table at GCSE

Putting Children First in North Tyneside 5

The environmental features ofthe new Monkseaton HighSchool have been attractinglocal and national interest.

The new landmark building has alsobeen rated as 'very good' byBREEAM - a scheme that gradesenvironmental and sustainabilitystandards in new buildings.

� Its domed roof places anemphasis on allowing natural lightinto the building, and very fewceilings have been installedbetween its three floors.

� The school is one of the first inthe UK to use a pioneeringsystem of interior lighting whichmimics daylight to combat thesedative effects of low levels ofwinter daylight – linked withSeasonal Affective Disorder. Asimilar system is used at the ‘EdenProject’, and the technology willtypically be activated in lateOctober and continue to boostlight levels in short bursts atrelevant intervals, until aroundmid-February.

� The oval and aerodynamic shapeof the building means it inherentlyrequires less energy to heat orcool it, compared to other‘traditional’ block-shaped builds,and its orientation was specificallyplanned to maximise daylight butminimise any over-heating.

� ‘Brise soleil’ panels fitted to theexterior of the school allow lightinto the building whilst reducingsolar gain and glare effect duringcertain times of the year.Thepanels were strategically placedfollowing research which trackedthe path of the sun and the effectof its rays on the building atvarious times of the year andday.

Sustainable school� ‘Wind catchers’ fitted to the roofreduce the need for artificialcooling or heating systems – bydrawing in cool air and suckingout hot air through the roof toimprove natural air movementsand stabilise temperatures.

� The wind-catchers also increasethe prevalence and circulation offresh air, meaning natural oxygenlevels are high, creating betterconditions for concentration and

learning, and improvingperformance in both pupils andstaff.

� Thermal solar panels fitted tothe roof are responsible forheating most of the buildings’ hotwater, reducing reliance on CO2producing systems.

The school was officially opened onFriday 6 November.

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The Aiming High for DisabledChildren Short Break PathfinderProgramme is now into itssecond year and has alreadyachieved a great deal towardsbridging the gaps in care andactivity provision for disabledchildren in North Tyneside.

The first year of the pathfinder sawwide consultation and engagement withdisabled children and their familiesthrough a number of very successfulevents, and led on to the achievementa number of significant milestones andimprovements.

Successful progress continues to bemade in 2009/10. Just some of theachievements and plans in place so farinclude:

� Further Individual Budgets andDirect Payments have been allocatedto families.

� Fifteen young people had campingtrips to the Lake District.

� The rental of a Calvert Trust chaletat Kielder for families to use.

� Ten additional places on the existingsummer holiday playscheme.

� Family Based Short Break CareServices are recruiting two additionalContract Carers.

� Plans for an after school club onenight per week for deaf children anda youth club one night per week fordeaf young people.

� Additional overnight short breakshave been purchased viaindependent providers.

� Plans continue following thepurchase of properties in Annitsfordto develop a property to providethe additional two places for veryspecialist residential overnight shortbreak services for a further 10-12children with complex andchallenging behaviour.

Aiming High forDisabled Children

New factsheetsnow availableNEW - A set of handy factsheetshave been developed for parents ofdisabled children.They are packedwith information on local servicesthat offer practical help for childrenand young people with a disability.

They have been developed inpartnership with the LearningDisabilities Federation, parents, carersand professionals.

The information is aimed at parents,carers and families of children andyoung people who may need additionalsupport because of special or otheradditional needs, including bothdiagnosed and undiagnosed conditions,disability or impairment.

They will also be a useful tool forpractitioners and others who supportchildren and families.

The packs cover the themes of:

� Health� Leisure� Daily living and education

They supplement the factsheets alreadyproduced by the Families InformationService on financial help for parentsbringing up a family.

Copies of all factsheets can beobtained by contacting the FIS on0845 2000 108, emailfis@northtyneside.gov.uk, or can bedownloaded from the council'swebsite athttp://www.northtyneside.gov.uk

For more information, contact Anne Cassidy on (0191) 643 4151

Putting Children First in North Tyneside 7

YouthOffending ServiceInspection focusYouth Offending Services throughoutEngland andWales are undergoing thenext cycle of inspections by HMIProbation replacing the previousarrangements with Core CaseInspection (CCI), Ofsted and ThematicProgrammes. Three main categoriesare covered: risk of harm, safeguardingand likelihood of re-offending.Inspection findings from the CCI willfeed into the council’s annualComprehensive Area Assessment(CAA).

What is particularly unique about thiscycle of inspections is that theinspection team includes regionalassessors i.e. two experiencedYOSOfficers attached from a local YOS.In North Tyneside’s case, reciprocalarrangements were with SouthTyneside.

Although North Tyneside’s lastinspection was in 2004 there werefamiliar elements to it, for example thenotification period, preparation ofadvanced evidence and selecting casesfor HMI consideration.

All YOS staff worked extremely hard inpreparation for this inspection andalthough confident about our practice,as with all inspections, our constantcompanion was ‘can we evidence this?’

Using the inspection criteria duringpreparation was invaluable and

New Referraland AssessmentManagementFrameworkNorth Tyneside established amulti-professional groupincluding social care staff, healthcolleagues and head teachers toreview the referral andassessment framework in use inthe borough.

This review was necessary as theroll-out of the Common AssessmentFramework (CAF) and the increasingdevelopment of support servicesalongside the core statutory servicesfor children at risk of harm, hascreated more complex organisationalsystems.

The children's workforce in theborough have told us that theyneeded more clarity about:

� how to make a clear referralwhen they are concerned

� how to better understand whatthe 'thresholds' are for workundertaken by our children's areateams and that taken on by thecore statutory service

� how we can work bettertogether for the benefit of thosewho need support, help andadvice.

The North Tyneside Referral andAssessment ManagementFramework is the result of severalmonths work to bring clarity to theabove areas and so ensure thatthere is greater cohesion betweenservices and families are betterprovided for.

The new framework will bepresented to the North Tyneside'sChildren Trust arrangement inDecember and formally launchedearly in 2010.

highlighted areas that we identified asbeing in need of addressing. Inacknowledgement, we informed theLead Inspector of our own findings andadvised on our strategies forimprovement.

The CCI commenced week beginningthe 7th September. There were fiveinspectors including the lead and theregional assessors.

North Tyneside YOS is housed withinthe newly developedYouth Village andwas seen as warm and welcoming bythe inspectors as well as a strongadvantage point for children and youngpeople who visit. TheYOS offices wereable to cater for the inspectors whoaccessed the IT suite used by youngpeople.

The CCI itself was just that. Nostatutory/non-statutory partners wereto be interviewed, neither was theChair of the YOS management board orthe YOS manager or operationsmanagers. The inspection was of caseswith interviews of case managers.

The inspection lasted four days andalthough a stressful time it was also anopportunity for us to talk and boastabout the things we do well.

The inspection report had not yet beenpublished as Children First went toprint, but we are feeling optimistic!

Paul Cook, Head of Safeguarding.

Children First is your newsletter – a chance for all partnersdelivering services to children and their families to share information andcelebrate achievements.

If you would like to contribute to the nextedition, please e-mail:nicola.sleightholme@northtyneside.gov.uk,or tel 643 5081.

Ofsted launched a revised framework for the inspection ofmaintained schools from September 2009.

Under the revised school inspection arrangements, inspectors will give particularpriority to:

� Proportionality; the frequency of inspection will be proportionate to need.

� Promoting improvement: inspectors will make specific recommendationsbased on their diagnosis of the school’s strengths and weaknesses.

� Evaluating the achievement and wider well-being of pupils as a whole and ofdifferent groups of pupils, and assessing the extent to which schools ensurethat all pupils, including those most at risk, succeed.

� Evaluating learning and teaching: inspectors will spend a high proportion oftheir on-site inspection time in the classroom.

� Assessing how well schools promote equality of opportunity and howeffectively they tackle discrimination.

� Checking schools’ procedures for safeguarding, keeping children and youngpeople from harm.

� Fostering the engagement of Headteachers and schools’ staff in the process ofinspection so that they understand the judgements made.

� Gathering, analysing and taking into account the views of parents and pupils.

� Assessing how effectively schools work in partnership with other providers inorder to promote better outcomes for pupils.

Schools will be given less that two days inspection notice.

The changes also see the introduction of no-notice inspection for monitoringvisits to schools in Special Measures and those with a Notice to Improve as wellas to about 40 percent of satisfactory schools. Also, where there are particularconcerns, for example connected to welfare, Ofsted may inspect at no notice.

Mark Nugent, Headteacher,Waterville Primary School, said: "Our Ofstedexperience was very intense but equally very rewarding. The inspection teamhad a very clear focus about what they particularly wanted to look at over thecourse of the two days. Safeguarding was a key area of the inspection, with alarge proportion of the first day being spent on this aspect. The inspection teamwere very positive and at all times ensured that myself and other senior leaderswere fully engaged in the process. "

For information, advice and support please contact:Barbara Jordan, Chief Adviser, Primary – (0191) 643 8508Jean Griffiths, Chief Adviser, Secondary – (0191) 643 8507

New inspectionframework forschools

Helen Jones, Headteacher atBeacon Hill School,Wallsend, hasbecome one of only around 100heads throughout the country tobe appointed as a NationalLeader of Education (NLE), bythe National College for SchoolLeadership.

It also means Beacon Hill School isnow dedicated a National SupportSchool (NSS).

Helen’s new role will see her usingher experience and expertise toprovide leadership and support tostruggling schools, as well asnurturing the next generation ofnational leaders.

She said: “I am very pleased formyself and the school that our workhas been nationally recognised in thisway.

“Beacon Hill’s success is focusedclearly on the needs of the childrenand young people we work with andis a great team effort. I am proud tolead that team and hope we will beable share some of our skills andknowledge with other schools.”

Toby Salt, Deputy Chief Executive ofNCSL, said: “I am so proud thatoutstanding school leaders, likeHelen Jones, are being honoured inthis way.

“NLEs, supported by their schools,have a more important role to playthan ever in ensuring that excellentschool leadership and the bestpossible opportunities are availableto as many children as possible.”

A beaconof help forstrugglingschools