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Communications (test)

Unity Teaching School Alliance has a few places left on the following courses; if you would like to sign up or require further information please contact cpdbooking@unitytrustsolihull.org.uk.

Understanding your school data

26th November 2019 at Fordbridge Primary School

This half day session will be led by James Pembroke, who is a national advisory consultant in education data and tracking. The workshop will focus on analysing your data in an effective and meaningful way - please bring your laptop and school data to this session.

The course will take place between 1.00pm and 4.00pm and the cost per delegate is £70.00.

Maths conference

14 November 2019 at Fordbridge Community Primary School between 9.00am and 3.00pm

This is a full day course entitled Challenge for All which will focus on how to support the struggling learners in the mastery approach. This course will be led by Claire Duncan and will cover the following areas:

  • How do scaffold and challenge when teaching a whole class.
  • Strategies for scaffolding children who may struggle and things that can be taking place outside the maths lesson to support these pupils.
  • Strategies to challenge children within a maths lesson, without teaching different content.
  • Session on developing fact fluency.

Tea/coffee/registration will be from 9am with the course commencing at 9.15am. The cost of the day will be £120.00 including a sandwich lunch and refreshments.

Qualifications in leadership

Unity TSA is running two cohorts this year for NPQML and NPQSL - we still have a few places left on each. If you wish to enrol on either cohort, please contact us as soon as possible so we can send the application forms across to you.

The cost of these DFE accredited courses are:

  • NPQML - National Professional Qualification in Middle Leadership - £750.00 per person
  • NPQSL - National Professional Qualification in Senior Leadership - £850.00 per person

The cost includes externally verified assessment and 360 diagnostic.

If you would like further information please do get in touch.

All enquiries should be sent to cpdbooking@unitytrustsolihull.org.uk.

Referrals to Cedars SEMH ARP are welcomed throughout the year as and when the need arises.  The panel meets to consider referrals as they are submitted, usually once every half term.  Referral details are on Tudor Grange Primary Academy Yew Tree website.

https://www.yew-treeprimary.co.uk/arp/

Solihull's inclusion charter

The draft inclusion charter is now out for sign off to parents groups, schools through collaborative groups, early years settings, local authority, health and social care colleagues. It will be finalised and published in December 2019. Work on Solihull’s SEND strategy will be based on the values of the inclusion charter and will commence in November 2019.

Speech and language strategy

Six schools have just completed the first year of the ELKLAN pilot. This is a joint project delivered by SISS and the speech and language therapy service (SALT) aimed at supporting schools to gain communication friendly status.

A huge well done to the 27 school and SISS ARC support staff who have worked hard to achieve their level 3 award in speech and language support for 5-11 year olds. Five of the six schools are now beginning their level 4 award to become accredited communication friendly schools by the end of this academic year.

In addition, for 2019/20 we are running a pilot with SALT for early years ELKLAN, supporting eight settings to become communication friendly.

The ELKLAN projects are the next phase of delivering Solihull’s speech and language strategy. Language link continues to be used successfully in most schools, with particular successes for the language link training with parents.

Policy work

We are working alongside colleagues form adult services and schools to produce a draft policy for provision of equipment and a corporate manual handling policy. Policies will be finalised by Easter 2020.

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The DfE has produced a guide for primary headteachers setting out why they must engage parents on their school’s relationships education policy and tips on how to do so.

You will find additional useful information on the health and wellbeing pages of Solgrid within the PSHE section. Please click here.

We would appreciate schools' help in publicising this event.

Solihull Council’s fostering service is looking for people to provide a stable home for children across the Borough. If you think you could help or would like to find out more, please pop along to an information evening on Tuesday 15 October, 6.30 - 8pm at the Civic Suite, behind the Council House, Manor Square, Solihull, B91 3PX.

For more information, please sign up to Solihull Council’s Stay Connected fostering bulletins by following this link www.solihull.gov.uk/stayconnected or call 0121 788 4253.

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Children who are cared for on a full-time basis by people who are not direct relatives are in a private fostering arrangement.

A private fostering arrangement is essentially one that is made, without the involvement of a local authority, for the care of a child under the age of 16 (under 18 if disabled) by someone other than a parent or close relative for 28 days or more.

Private foster carers may be from the extended family, such as a cousin or great aunt. However, a person who is a relative such as a grandparent, brother, sister, uncle or aunt (whether of the full or half blood or by marriage) or step-parent will not be a private foster carer.

If you know of a child in this situation, the law says you must notify the local authority so they can make sure the person caring for the child can receive information, support and advice and that the child is safe. Please call us if you are caring for, or you know anyone who is caring for someone else’s child on 0121 788 4300 or visit https://bit.ly/2krupeZ for more information.

 

For more information about World Mental Health Day, please see the health and wellbeing website's news page.

Health and wellbeing website.

Free seasonal flu vaccinations are now available for all council staff, in particular frontline staff who are in regular, direct contact with the public and service users. Having a flu jab is safe and helps protect you from serious illness as well as helping us protect the most vulnerable people that we support.

There is a limit on the number of vouchers available so please only order a voucher if you will definitely use it. Staff eligible to receive a free vaccination from their GP should use that service rather than the staff scheme.

Please use these links below to apply for a vaccination voucher either individually or for a group of up to ten colleagues. To avoid delays please check that all data is entered correctly. You can choose to receive an email or SMS text to take to a Boots pharmacy.

Employees who do not have email or SMS access, or are unable to ask a colleague to print off the voucher for them, should telephone the contact centre on 0121 704 6000.

Vouchers are valid until 31 December 2019.

Individual: https://eservices.solihull.gov.uk/SMBCWebForms/?Form=Flu

Group: https://eservices.solihull.gov.uk/SMBCWebForms/?Form=Flu_Multi

For more information contact Kim Westman on 0121 704 6922.

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An employee wellbeing event will be held at the Bluebell Centre in Chelmsley Wood on Monday 14 October, between 1.30pm to 4.30pm.  All are welcome.

Employees are invited to drop in between these times to find out more about the wellbeing initiatives currently available at the council, as well as providing an opportunity to meet all of our benefit providers in one location. Some of the stands will include:

  • Birmingham Hospital Saturday Fund – corporate health cash plan
  • Teachers’ Pension Scheme
  • Mental health first aid
  • Vectis cards
  • Everyone Active leisure centre gym membership
  • Travel passes
  • Nutritional advice
  • Solihull Carers Stand

The event will take place in The Loft at the Bluebell Centre, West Mall, Chelmsley Wood, Solihull, B37 5TN.

Please book some time in your diary to come along and attend.

For more information contact Claire Cooksey in HR on 0121 704 8136, or email claire.cooksey@solihull.gov.uk.

Eat well, move more is a healthy lifestyles programme, commissioned by public health, for children aged 4-16 years. The aim is to improve health through increased physical activity, increased intake of fruit and veg, better knowledge of a healthy lifestyle and how to sustain this.

The children who would be involved in the Eat well, move more programme would be those teachers/parents/carers feel there are concerns over their health such as being overweight/underweight, lacking nutritional knowledge, fussy eaters or inactive. The programme is designed to sensitively target these hard to reach groups, therefore we can run programmes for a select group of children or for the whole class as the focus is a healthy lifestyle.

Spaces available for schools during the autumn term or spring term contact elizabeth.knowles@solihull.gov.uk to reserve your space.