News
Nurseries to give children a better start in life
November 03 2014
EYFSP statistics are showing that too few infants and toddlers are ready for school. Nurseries are now being urged to take action.
To combat this, the government is introducing a number of initiatives to support those children who are falling behind:
Fewer pupils are missing school
November 03 2014
Absence rates in schools have decreased from 5.3% in autumn 2012 and spring 2013 to 4.4% in autumn 2013 and spring 2014, which is the lowest percentage since 2006. This is in line with the government’s initiatives to encourage increased attendance in school. This includes pushing schools to deal with continuous absence from the outset, for which the threshold has been reduced from 20% to 15%.
Read more about this topic on the GOV.UK website.
Early Years Initial Teacher Training - a great start to the year
November 03 2014
We are delighted that the DfE has used two Best Practice Network case studies on the Early Years ITT website.
Excellent feedback
Early Years Teacher Status is now in its second year - 293 of the first birth to five specialist teachers trained with Best Practice Network. We are also delighted to have had excellent feedback:
Improving participation levels and standards of PE lessons
November 03 2014
Ofsted recently undertook a survey of 22 schools that had previously been identified as performing well in the Subject of PE. This survey was to measure the effectiveness of the Primary PE and Sport premium which was introduced by the government in 2013 to compliment the Olympic Legacy Funding.
London Schools Gold Club Autumn programme released
November 03 2014
A free school to school support programme funded by the Greater London Authority has just launched its programme of autumn and spring events. The programme, which is school-led, is free to attend for all schools across London. Details can be found on their website.
Ofsted inspections - Clarifications for Schools
November 03 2014
Ofsted has recently published information to schools to try to dispel some of the myths about inspection with the aim of reducing stress and unnecessary workload in schools. But the recent changes to the Inspection Framework continue to cause understandable anxieties.
Redesigned SBM qualifications
November 03 2014
The National College for Teaching and Leadership will shortly be offering a new round of scholarship funding for the School Business Manager Qualifications, which are now accredited by the Institute of Leadership and Management.
The forthcoming window will offer aspiring and current business managers the opportunity to access a £500-£700 subsidy towards the cost of these qualifications, but will only be open for a short period of time.
State of the Nation 2014 Report
November 03 2014
Even though Britain is in a period of Economic Growth, this alone does not impact upon reducing child poverty rates - The Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission has published its second annual State of the Nation 2014 Report – Read more about it on the GOV.UK website.
Outstanding Change4Life Sports Club delivery
November 01 2014
HLTA Josie Wilkinson recently celebrated her school's success at the SGO National Summit Awards 2014 in the category of 'Outstanding Change4Life Sports Club delivery.' Josie gained HLTA status with Best Practice Network and the HLTA National Assessment Partnership, with PE as her area of expertise.
If you could have the best learning platform in the world, what would it do for you?
September 06 2014
I remember doing my NPQH way back in 2003, the joy of being with like-minded professionals eager to develop, the thrill of learning new ways of doing things, the anxiety of that final assessment! The trouble was, I only met with these folks either on the face-to-face days or the occasional meeting with my study group.
What kept me going was the ability to use the discussion networks on the National College website so I could get some feedback on my own thoughts from colleagues and get some solutions for the issues I faced.