UPDATE NO 206 29 July 2016

SESLIP Steering Group Lead

Stuart Gallimore (DCS East Sussex) has written:

Dear Colleagues

As you will be aware Janette Karklins (DCS Bracknell Forest) will be retiring in August and therefore following a discussion at our regional ADCS meeting I have agreed to become the new Chair of the SESLIP Steering Group.   I am also pleased to confirm that Alison Jeffery (DCS Portsmouth) has agreed to take my place as the new Vice-Chair.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Janette for all her hard work and contribution to the sector-led programme.

Best wishes, Stuart

With this change, the membership of the SESLIP Steerig Group is now:

For SE ADCS: Stuart Gallimore (East Sussex) and Alison Jeffery (Portsmouth)

For Elected Members: Cllr Charlotte Haitham-Taylor (Wokingham)

For Chief Executives: John Coughlan (Hampshire)

For LGA: Heather Wills/Mona Sehgal (Advisers, job sharers) and Anna Wright (Childrens Services Improvement Adviser)

SEND Benchmarking Workshop

The next SEND benchmarking workshop will be held in Crawley Library on Friday 30 September (10-3). Here is the March 2016 SEND databenchmarking commentary. Here is the pdf version of the 2015-16 Annual SEND benchmarking data report and here is the excel version.

For more information, please contact Tracey Maytas or Alastair Lee (details below)

Office of the Children’s Commissioner – Data Request

The Office of the Children’s Commissioner will be sending direct to DCS’s two data requests at the same time in August regarding Young Carers and Appropriate Adults. 

The ADCS National Performance and Information Management Group (NPIMG) have worked with OCC to ensure the lead time is generous – mid/late Sept. For further help and guidance, please contact Alastair Lee (details below).

LA-led Multi Academy Trusts

Katy Block of ADCS has written:

Dear Colleagues,

I have been contacted by half a dozen or so LAs in the last few weeks looking for information / advice about setting up LA-led multi-academy trusts (MATs).  From recent meetings and coverage in the trade press I’ve started to compile a list of authorities I know are looking at this but I’m sure it’s not exhaustive (Brighton and Hove, Camden, Hertfordshire, Leeds, Lincolnshire, Liverpool, North Yorkshire, Shropshire). 

I’ve been asked to set up a virtual working group as a mechanism for exchanging information based on the membership of the Association’s Educational Achievement Policy Committee but I thought it might be worth seeing what’s happening in the regions to broaden the debate / made sure as many LAs as possible have the chance to get involved.  I guess there might even be opportunities to collaborate and share costs as well as troubleshoot?

If you’re aware of any plans being progressed in particular authorities in your region or work already taking place at a regional level that could usefully be linked in to this exercise do let me know. 

I hope to get this off the ground in the next week or so but it’s likely to be a work in progress for some time.

Many thanks, Katy 0161 826 9490

Maxine Froggatt (North West sector led regional lead) has replied:

Hi Katy and all,

Will be a good sharing exercise. The North West has a School Improvement Partnership Board and three sub regional groups which drive forward the school improvement activity. The RSC covering the majority of the NW (with the exception of Cumbria and Cheshires)  is a key member of the NWSIB and is working with the  sub groups on the MAT landscape. This is an emerging piece of work as you can imagine but happy to share what comes out.

Best wishes, Maxine 07977535041

Pete Chilvers (East Midlands secor led regional lead) has replied:

Yes to any sharing. In the East Midlands most LA areas are configuring partnerships that are starting to coordinate school improvement arrangements for these changing times. Plus we are starting to develop a regional ‘summit ‘ group of the key players to increase leverage and influence. Our Teaching Schools are forging ahead with structural arrangements. Non-connected schools remain a considerable challenge plus the source of support for maintained schools post-LA departure from SI. We also have 3 strongly labour cities where there’s political preference for an ongoing role but (getting to the point!) no firm arrangements for any version of LA-led MATs as yet.

All the best, Pete 07765 665124

Topical Peer Challenge Round 9

Topical Peer Challenge Round 9 has now closed with seven participants (some carried over from Round 8):

Bracknell Forest(LSCB); Kent (tbc); Medway(CiN); Portsmouth (CSE) 28&29 November; Southampton (tbc); West Sussex(MASH); Windsor and Maidenhead (Corporate Parenting).

The planning grid is begining to fill up with confirmed names and dates. I look forward to receiving further confirmations from colleagues involved. I am also recruiting volunteers who would like to go on my “reserve list” of potential Peer Challenge visitors that I can call on to fill vacancies on the planned grid. If you would like to be considered for this list, please contact Richard Tyndall (details below)

Regional Strategic Migration Partnership

Katy Block of ADCS has written on another topic:

Dear Regional Chairs,

Please click here to find a letter that we understand went from the Home Office to all Regional Strategic Migration Partnerships this week regarding additional funding of up to £60,000 per region to support the national transfer of unaccompanied asylum seeking children. 

This information does not seem to have come to LAs or DCSs directly we have however raised this as a concern with the Home Office.  In the meantime it might be useful to begin regional discussions about how this money might best be utilised.

We will share further information on the bidding process and timeframes once available. 

Many thanks, Katy 0161 826 9490

Colleagues who wish to respond or find out more should contact Roy Millard  01304 872186 who is the key contact for the South East Strategic Partnership for Migration.

For further infomation on refugees and unaccompanied children visit:

LGA – National

SECouncils – Regional

Self Evaluation Framework 2016

The South East ADCS meeting on 15 July 2016 approved the programme for a re-launched Self Evaluation Framework including a  strong element of Peer Challenge.

The SEF process is open to all local authorities/children’s services trusts in the south east who choose to sign the Memorandum of Understanding.

More details at the Self Evaluation Framework 2016 page 

Work is underway now (from July 2016 onwards) to secure participants commitment and to identifying those who wish to be “hosts” in the first round. Portsmouth is the first to volunteer – others welcome.

The template for the Self Evaluation Framework 2016 is available here

For a further discussion about the programme please contact Richard Tyndall (details below) in the first instance.

Leadership Development

Southampton have signed up for the Step up to Leadership course in September 2016

We continue to offer our successful portfolio of Leadership Development Courses all of which have been positively evaluated by delegates.

This year we have added a new course recently piloted in Hampshire and IoW. The senior team attended a one-dayCoaching to Improve Performance workshop to ensure the Directorate were fully conversant with the training undertaken by their three cohorts of managers on two-day programme and to develop their own coaching skills to use in their own performance management roles.

We are also offering LAs the opportunity to train their own trainers for all our courses. Our aim is to increase the capacity and capability across the region  to ensure future sustainability within LAs.

A new departure for us has been running these training courses for adult services and for schools so please contact Di Smith, details below, if this is of interest to you. 

All courses are run in-house in the LA who provides the venue. Each course is accompanied by a range of training resources for the delegates including a comprehensive handbook. The current courses on offer are as follows and details of each course and the costs for each can be found by downloading the April 2016 Leadership Development Prospectus. 

Coaching to Improve Performance

Embedding a Coaching Culture

Leading Change in Times of Austerity

Step Up to Leadership   

We can also arrange one-to-one coaching, especially to support newly appointed 2nd and 3rd tier managers

If you require further details or wish to book a course please get in touch with Di Smith (contact details below)