Programme

Aspirant DCS Programme NOW BOOKING

Update

The Staff College, Institute of Public Care, Skills for Care, and GatenbySanderson – supported by DfE - invite applications for the upon Aspirant Directors Programme. Applications close 13 June 2022

Action Required

Starting in late September 2022 and running until March 2023, the upon Programme will welcome around 40 Aspirant Directors. The flyer is here or contact upon@thestaffcollege.uk or call 0161-826-9450.

Programme

Schooling for the Future: 1pm Monday 30 May

Update

Over the past 10 years or so, The Staff College has been actively engaged in promoting international dialogue on addressing the question “What is the purpose of Schooling?”. Informed by this dialogue, we have developed the Schooling for The Future Series; a suite of online academic and practical resources themed as: Future Schooling; Inclusive Schooling; Community Schooling. There is a flyer here.

Action Required

To celebrate the launch, three of our contributing authors, Professor Mel Ainscow, Professor Kathryn Riley and Valerie Hannon have agreed to join Jane Parfrement, the College CEO, and Anton Florek, the Series Editor, for an online panel discussion during which they will provide an overview of their contribution to the series.
To join our discussion and find out more about the thinking behind the materials, please book a place by CLICKING HERE.

Programme

Disrupting the Routes between Care and Custody for Girls and Women

Update

On 4 May the Centre for Child and Family Justice Research (CFJ) published Disrupting the routes between care and custody for girls and women, a report on the over-representation of care-experienced girls and women in the criminal justice system. 

Action Required

Interviews were conducted with 17 girls and young women who had been in care in England. Findings include: over-criminalisation in children’s homes; experiences of abuse, victimisation and exploitation whilst in the care system; and 12 participants discussed experiences that would fit under the government definition of child sexual exploitation or child criminal exploitation. Recommendations include: building a trauma-responsive care system and addressing the link between stigma and violence against care-experienced girls. 

The full report is here

Programme

Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner - Annual Report published

Update

On 27 April the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner has published its annual report for 2021-2022 looking at modern slavery. 

The full report is here

Action Required

The report highlights the increasing numbers of children being identified as potential victims of modern slavery and raises concerns about the safeguarding response to these children. The Commissioner also discusses national efforts to improve strategic responses.

Programme

Working together to improve school attendance

Update

On 6 May DfE published Working together to improve school attendance, Guidance to help schools, academy trusts, governing bodies, and local authorities maintain high levels of school attendance including roles and responsibilities which apply from September 2022.

Action Required

It includes expected standards for attendance support and the power for LAs to use proceeds from penalty notices towards service costs. Further statutory minimum standards for LAs’ attendance services will be published in due course.

The full guidance is here, a summary table of responsibilities for school attendance is here

Key dates

Future dates for network meetings

Workstream

Lead Members Group: Friday 8 July 10.00am.  More from Alison Michalska (contact details below)

Data Benchmarking: Tuesday 12 July 10:00am More from Alastair Lee (contact details below)

Adoption and Special Guardianship Leadership Board: Wednesday 20 July 10.30am-12noon More from Rebecca Eligon (contact details below)

Activity

AD Education: Friday 1 July 10:00am. More from Chris Owen (contact details below)

AD Safeguarding: Friday 10 June 10:00am. More from Mark Evans (contact details below)

QA Network: Thursday 16 June 2:00pm - 5:00pm. More from Amanda Meadows (contact details below)

Fostering Network: Wednesday 13 July 10-11.30am More from Rebecca Eligon (contact details below)

SEND SE19: Wednesday 15 June 12 - 1.30 Strategic Conversation: LAs & DfE. More from Sheelagh Sullivan (contact details below)

Early Help: Wednesday 25 May 1.30pm. More from Rebecca Eligon (contact details below)

Family Hubs Community of Practice: SEND workshop via Teams Thursday 9 June 9.20 - 11.30. More from Carly Bain (contact details below) 

Key dates

Social Work England - Consultation on new education and training approval standards for approved mental capacity professionals

Workstream

On 9 May, Social Work England published a consultation on new education and training approval standards for approved mental capacity professionals. This consultation relates to the role of the approved mental capacity professional (AMCP), the successor qualification to best interests assessor, which is being consulted on in the DHSC’s consultation on Liberty Protection Safeguards.

Activity

The consultation period is 12 weeks and will end at midday (12pm) on Monday 1 August 2022.

You can complete the online survey here

SWE is also consulting on the role of approved mental health professionals (AMHP).

Key dates

Data to Insight - National Project - October 2021 Briefing

Workstream

Alistair Herbert of Data to Insight writes

"A quick note to alert you that we’ve updated ChAT to include a new “RIIA” tab which calculates many of the measures for the revised RIIA quarterly data collection."

Activity

"We’ve also stored the RIIA collection template itself on the D2I website, so that we can maintain this with periodic updates as required."

Key dates

The Relationship Between Poverty and Child Abuse and Neglect: New Evidence

Workstream

On 31 March Paul Bywaters and Guy Skinner (and others, University of Huddersfield) published The Relationship Between Poverty and Child Abuse and Neglect: New Evidence

Activity

The evidence for this relationship between poverty and child abuse and neglect is much stronger than five years ago. Seventeen studies show that changes in the economic conditions of family life alone – without changing any other factors – impact on rates of abuse and neglect.

The full report is here

Key dates

Fostering Network report shows allegations process is failing both children in care and foster carers

Workstream

On 27 April The Fostering Network published State of the Nation's Foster Care 2021. It includes two thematic reports, one on the status of foster carers and the other on the allegation process in foster care.

Activity

The press release is here

The full report is here

The thematic report on allegations is here

Key dates

Commission on Young Lives publishes 'All Together Now: Inclusion not exclusion - supporting all young people to succeed in school'.

Workstream

On 29 April the Commission on Young Lives published 'All Together Now: Inclusion not exclusion - supporting all young people to succeed in school'. 

Activity

The report looks at how thousands of vulnerable children are falling through gaps in the education system, putting them at risk not only of low attainment but also serious violence, county lines, criminal exploitation, grooming and harm. It calls for a new era of incentivising all schools to become more inclusive and makes a series of recommendations for how schools can be supported to divert vulnerable teenagers away from crime and exploitation and enable them to thrive.

The full report is here