Categories
Consultation Schools

Determining your school's admission arrangements for entry in September 2021

Determining your admission arrangements for 2021/22 (even if you have not consulted).
Dear Headteacher and Chair of Governors,
Admission arrangements for entry in September 2021
This information is for academies, free schools, voluntary-aided and foundation schools only. (It is copied to community and voluntary controlled schools for information only, as the local authority (LA), as your admitting authority, undertakes this task for you.)
Consultation on admission arrangements for entry in September 2021
I am writing to all governing bodies of own admitting authority schools (academies, free schools, voluntary-aided and foundation schools) to ask if your governing body is intending to consult on your admission arrangements for entry in September 2021.
You are only required to consult for entry in September 2021 if you propose to change the arrangements your governing body determined for entry in September 2021. The School Admissions Code (2014) stipulates that consultation must also take place if a seven year period has elapsed without consultation on arrangements.
If you are going to consult, your proposed arrangements must be in the public domain for a minimum of six weeks between 1 October 2020 and 31 January 2021. If your governing body is going to consult, please let me know if you would like the LA to circulate your proposed admission arrangements when we go out to consultation for Haringey community and voluntary controlled (VC) schools in November this year.
Why the LA consults each year 
We consult on our admission arrangements annually irrespective of whether or not there is a proposed change to the arrangements. This is to ensure transparency and openness on the contents of our arrangements and to allow parents, carers and other stakeholders who might not previously been interested in admission arrangements (perhaps because they didn’t have a child of school age) to make a representation which can then be considered as part of the determination of the arrangements.
If you are intending to consult, then please refer to the consultation on your website and ensure you include information on how can respond to the consultation so we can signpost to this when we consult all relevant stakeholders. Please contact me direct for further information.
Determining your admission arrangements for entry in September 2021 (even if you have not consulted this year)  
Your governing body must meet to determine your admission arrangements by 28 February 2020.
If you have not consulted because the arrangements have not changed you must still minute that the governing body have determined the admission arrangements for entry in September 2021 and in all cases, I must receive a copy of your arrangements to be posted on the LA website by 15 March 2020.  
Please do not hesitate to contact me should you have any questions about the consultation and determination processes.  
Carlo Kodsi, Carlo.Kodsi@haringey.gov.uk
020 8489 1823
Admission arrangements for entry in September 2021

Categories
Schools

Free period products in schools and colleges – guidance

The Department of Education has issued guidance on the provision of free period products in schools and colleges.
No-one should be held back from accessing education due to their period. We have introduced this period product scheme to provide free period products for all learners who need them.
This means learners at all state-maintained schools and 16 to 19 education organisations in England will have access to free period products in their place of study.
To make sure organisations have access to a wide range of period products in the most cost-effective and efficient way, we have a contract with Personnel Hygiene Services Limited (phs). This allows you to order period products and have them delivered when you need them.
This guidance contains information on:

  • choosing and ordering period products
  • distributing products within institutions
  • tackling stigma

 
 

Categories
Schools

It's Game On! Sport Relief 2020 school song filmed at Lancasterian Primary School

This year’s official Sport Relief song was filmed at Lancasterian Primary School – you can watch it on You Tube here.
The video was filmed with pupils and staff last term and great fun was had by all!  Sport Relief day is on 13 March 2020.
Read more about Sport Relief 2020 here.
 
 

Categories
Schools

New energy contracts for schools from 1 April

Following on from the Bursars’ meeting last year, we are pleased to update you on Haringey’s new energy contracts from 1 April 2020 and opting for us to purchase your school’s energy through our value for money contracts.
The current Crown Commercial Service (CCS) framework and supply contracts with EDF, British Gas and Corona expire on 31 March 2020. Our new framework provider will be LASER, a public sector central purchasing body (CPB) owned by Kent County Council. Npower will be the supplier for electricity and Corona the supplier for gas.
By accessing the framework, your school will be purchasing competitively priced renewable energy and you also access a range of other benefits including energy audits and energy efficiency measures. Your school will benefit from support from Haringey’s Energy Management team with any billing or metering queries and can access Haringey’s value for money water contract as we leave Castle Water for Wave.
The new energy contracts offer a wide range of benefits including:
Renewable energy

  • The environment is an important issue for our schools, which is why we have ensured that 100% of the electricity purchased in our contract will be generated from renewable sources such as solar or wind.
  • The renewable electricity will be backed by Renewable Energy Guarantee Origin (REGO) certification and all schools will receive certification on this once set up.

Value for money

  • We know that budgetary concerns remain a high priority for all schools. Over many years now, Haringey’s contracts typically achieve better prices than the market average, delivering long-term savings on energy bills. Average savings for the most recent three-year cycle of the Haringey Contracts showed savings of between 2-6%.
  • By buying energy at such scale, across London boroughs and other public sector organisations, the frameworks we are part of attract much better prices than individual site level procurements.
  • While we cannot provide prices for the new contracts at this moment in time as our suppliers will be actively trading energy up to the day before the supply period starts to ensure the best prices possible, once in contract, you will receive pricing at the beginning of each financial year so you will have price certainty for that year.
  • Our suppliers have a risk-managed approach to purchasing energy, over a long period in advance of the supply periods. This reduces the impact of sudden price changes in the market. Other suppliers may go out to the market on any single day and spot-price. If the market is high that day, you risk be subject to that price for the duration of your contract period.

Pathways to zero carbon

  • As well as renewable energy, schools are increasingly asking for ways to improve the energy efficiency of their buildings. As well as reducing bills, energy efficiency measures also improve thermal comfort and working conditions for both staff and pupils.
  • Haringey’s new contracts include energy audits, available for free for your school. These will identify opportunities to improve energy efficiency, in the short and longer term, and individually tailor pathways to zero carbon for your school.
  • Through the framework, schools can also access energy efficiency improvements such LED lighting, solar PV and other energy services including automatic metering and Display Energy Certificates (DECs).
  • We recognise that schools will play a huge part in helping Haringey to realise our zero carbon targets and we look forward to working with you to achieve this.

Additional benefits

  • Your schools can be assured that our suppliers pay the London Living Wage.
  • Schools on Haringey’s energy contract can also access Haringey’s water contract with Wave (Anglian Water for Business). As well as value for money supply, you can also access a water footprint report, water efficiency measures and automatic metering.
  • Support from Haringey’s Energy Management team with supplier queries and billing – we’re here to help!

The new energy contracts have been procured though a framework run by LASER and the OJEU compliant procurement was run by the London Energy Project (a collaborative public sector Category Management resource) on behalf of London and South East local authorities and other public sector organisations. 
Contract term dates
The contracts will run from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2024, with a one-year option to extend to 31 March 2025. 
Termination notice dates
If organisations wish to leave during the term of the council’s Energy Contract, a two-year notice period will be required. This would need to be provided in writing by the end of March two years in advance of leaving. This will reduce the amount of energy the council purchases on your behalf in advance, as this in ‘advance purchase’ offers us cheaper rates.
If your school’s energy supplies are on the current Haringey contract and you do not wish to join the new contract, you will need to let us know by 31 January 2020 and we will remove you from the contract. However, you will need to get new energy suppliers in place by 1April 2020 following public procurement rules. 
Risks of opting out

  • No longer receive the benefit achieved through this at-scale procurement with other London boroughs and public sector organisations (such as the Met. Police and TfL).
  • Going onto higher out of contract rates if no contract is put in place by 1 April 2020.
  • Brokers often ask for at least three year contracts. These often start well / cheap, but end far more expensively, but you will not be able to leave during the term of contract.
  • Haringey’s Energy Management Team will be unable to support organisations not on the energy contracts for help on water suppliers and bill issues. Organisations will need to procure their own water supplier from April 2020.
  • No support from Haringey’s Energy Management team with energy billing or supplier queries.

Opt in/out
Please confirm if you would like your school to opt in or out of the new energy contracts as soon as possible –  by 31 January 2020 at the latest.
If your school’s energy supply(ies) are already on Haringey’s contract, the energy supply(ies) at your school on the existing contract will automatically be included in the new contract from 1 April 2020 if we do not hear back by 31 January 2020. This will ensure you do not fall out of contract with higher costs.  
We would also welcome back any organisations that have previously left the council’s energy contract, if their existing contracts allow them to do so.  
We are more than happy to discuss further any of the points above so please do not hesitate to get in touch if you need any more information at all. 
Kind regards, 
Risa 
Risa Wilkinson
Energy Manager
Carbon Management Team
River Park House 6th floor
Haringey Council
225 High Road
Wood Green
London N22 8HQ 
T. 020 8489 2178
E. risa.wilkinson@haringey.gov.uk

Categories
Consultation

St Thomas More Catholic School – consultation on proposed admission arrangements

FAO all Haringey schools
The Governing body of St Thomas More Catholic School is consulting on admission arrangements for entry in September 2021.
For further details, please read the information below and the proposed admission arrangements.

Categories
Consultation Schools

Fortismere School – consultation on proposed admission arrangements

 FAO All Haringey Admission Authorities
The governing body of Fortismere is consulting on a change to the school’s admission arrangements for entry in September 2021.  For further details please see the documents belowThe consultation will run until 30 January 2020.
Fortismere School Admissions policy consultation document December 2019 Fortismere School Admissions policy 2021 proposed for consultation

Categories
Ofsted

Ofsted to visit all schools judged to be outstanding

The government has announced plans for universal school inspections: Ofsted will visit all schools judged to be outstanding within the next five years, bringing an end to the era of some schools going over a decade without inspection
The change will mean schools rated as outstanding by Ofsted will no longer be exempt from routine inspection, as is currently the case, and underlines the government’s position that school inspection serves a vital purpose in improving standards and behaviour.
Under the proposals in the consultation being launched on 10 January, all outstanding schools and colleges will be brought back into a regular inspection cycle – with Ofsted visiting every four to five years. This will affect around 3,700 schools and colleges rated outstanding when the exemption is lifted in September.
Ending the exemption, which was introduced in 2012, will mean all parents have up-to-date information about every school and can be confident that their children’s schools are continuing to deliver the best education. It will also help to maintain the rising standards that have enabled schools to help pupils get to grips with the new, more demanding curriculum at both primary and secondary level.
Last year the Department for Education announced plans to remove the exemption that means schools judged outstanding by Ofsted are not subject to routine inspection.
The proposals in the consultation, which will be subject to parliamentary approval, will prioritise those schools that have gone the longest without inspection. Ofsted is preparing so that it is ready to inspect from September 2020.
It means every school in the country will receive regular inspection, giving parents a clear picture of the standard of schools in their area.
The exemption was introduced in 2012 in part so that Ofsted could focus on failing and underperforming schools. Standards have risen since then, with the percentage of schools graded inadequate or require improvement dropping from 33% in 2012 to just 14% in August 2019, so now is the right time to end the exemption and restore universal inspection.

Categories
Schools

Lancasterian Primary School – SEND clarification

As many will be aware, Lancasterian Primary School shares its site with The Vale Special School. We are very proud of this co-located model and the inclusive offer that it provides for children attending both schools. Pupils from Lancasterian and The Vale share play and lunchtimes together, will occasionally collaborate on joint special projects and a very small number of children are able to access provision in the partner school, according to their individual needs. However, Lancasterian Primary and The Vale are two separate schools with their own separate staff, budgets and governance.
It has recently become apparent from discussions with colleagues across Haringey that there may be some misconceptions within the borough as to whether Lancasterian Primary is a special school, a mainstream school with a specialist provision/unit, or a standard mainstream school. To clarify, we are a standard mainstream school. Confusion on this issue – undoubtedly caused by the co-location of Lancasterian Primary and The Vale – has seemingly led professionals to direct parents/carers of children with special needs to Lancasterian Primary; as a result, we now have extremely high numbers of children with EHCPs or SEN Support. Whilst inclusion is one of our school values and we are proud of the diverse community we serve, we are not staffed or equipped to cater for a disproportionate number of SEND children; like all mainstream schools, we believe in being part of a system where all schools work equitably to meet the needs of the Haringey community. 
The purpose of this communication is to clarify all of the above, and to seek the support of professionals in ensuring that parents/carers are given accurate information about Lancasterian Primary School and the fact that we are a mainstream provision. 
Paul Murphy
Head Teacher
Lancasterian Primary School

Categories
Health and Safety

Managing Safely course dates

Unfortunately there were only three delegates booked on the IOSH Managing Safely course starting on 16 January, so the course was cancelled. I have however organised another course:
Day 1 of 4      –     26 February 2020 (9.30 – 16.30pm)
Day 2 of 4      –     4 March 2020 (9.30 – 16.30pm)
Day 3 of 4      –     11 March 2020 (9.30 – 16.30pm)
Day 4 of 4      –     18 March 2020 (9.30 – 16.30pm)
Feedback from delegates on previous courses rated all aspects of the course as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’. Some of their comments were:
•          ‘Enjoyed the whole course’.
•          Question: What you have enjoyed and why?  ‘The pace and enabling us to understand the concepts to be confident. In particular risk assessments’.
•          ‘This course would be good for all site managers in the council’.
•          ‘Would like to see a course for School Business Managers’.
Please bear in mind that attendance is obligatory on all four days of the course in order to obtain the qualification. This course will not be cancelled but if we do not get sufficient delegates, it might not be delivered again in the future.  
The course will be put on the Traded Services Website shortly.
In the meantime, If you would like to attend this course, please let my colleague Marie know (Marie.Jeng-Kanu@haringey.gov.uk). This course costs £100 for schools that buy into the H&S for Schools SLA and £200 for others.  
Alexis Correa PgC CMIOSH GIFire, Deputy Head of Service – Health and Safety

Categories
Events

Haringey School Business Leaders Conference 2020 – save the date

Please save the date for Haringey School Business Leaders’ and Administrative/Finance Officers’ Conference (SBM/SAO)  on Wednesday 24  and Thursday 25  June 2020.
More information on the conference programme and booking details will be sent out soon.