Contact: John Clarke, Deputy County Education Officer, Tel: 01962 846459 Email: [email protected]
Robin Thomas, Acting Assistant County Education Officer, Tel: 01962 846426 email: [email protected]

1. Background

1.1 Work is being undertaken to improve provision for supporting schools and individuals on behaviour issues, building on good practice here and in other LEAs.

1.2 Hampshire's seven Education Centres are working under pressure of numbers. Full time provision (20+ hours per week) for pupils permanently excluded from school has during the past year been possible for just under 85% of pupils using the centres' resources and other facilities such as colleges and outdoor centres. A variety of programmes has been used for the other pupils.

1.3 On 23 March 2004, two papers were presented to the Education PRC, identifying the way forward. The first reflected the outcomes of the Best Value Review of the Education Other Than At School (EOTAS) Service and the second was a proposed Strategic Framework for EOTAS identifying a strategic way forward. EOTAS staff have expressed support for changing the way in which they work in order to make best use of their skills.

1.4 At that Education PRC meeting, following the strong endorsement of the two papers, elected members requested an update report to be brought to the meeting in July 2004.

1.5 This approach supports Hampshire County Council's corporate aims in terms of:

_ Aim 1 - maximising life opportunities

_ Aim 4 - building strong and safe communities

_ Aim 5 - improving services

1.6 It is also consistent with establishing equality of opportunity and provision for some of Hampshire's most vulnerable and disadvantaged young people.

2. Involvement of other services, departments and agencies

2.1 Since March 2004, extensive work has been carried out on many fronts, with particular emphasis being placed on whole County Council involvement. In addition, work has also taken place with several Post-16 colleges, the Learning and Skills Council (LSC), Connexions and a number of voluntary organisations.

2.2 Discussions have also taken place with Hampshire's Children's Fund Co-ordinator, in order to research possible additional funding streams and ensure a joined-up approach within and between different projects and organisations.

2.3 In terms of the wider County Council, meetings have taken place with colleagues in HIAS, Outdoor Education, the Youth Service, Recreation and Heritage and Social Services. The whole thrust of these discussions has been on the development of a county-wide strategic approach to address the behavioural needs of some of our most vulnerable and disaffected young people and to explore alternative curriculum approaches to their learning. A number of the above services and departments are drawing up specific plans to identify the contribution that they can make.

3. Information sharing - governors, unions / associations

3.1 Presentations have been made to the Hampshire Governors' Forum and to all the Area Forums across the county. These have been well received with considerable support being identified for the suggested way forward.

3.2 Staff unions and associations have been kept fully informed of developments and of the strategy being proposed.

4. Working in partnership with head teachers

4.1 Meetings have taken place with head teachers (particularly, but not solely secondary), in order to discuss issues and to make specific plans for the future. Leadership and ownership by head teachers of what is being proposed, are pivotal to the success of the overall strategy.

4.2 A whole day, county-wide conference has been held with representative head teachers from across the phases. Also attending were senior officers from the Inclusion Branch, HIAS and other interested parties. A follow-up conference is planned for September 2004.

4.3 Andrew Seber, the County Education Officer, has written to all secondary head teachers and this letter is attached at Appendix 1.

5 Research into policies / strategies in other LEAs

5.1 Visits have been made to a number of other LEAs, including Birmingham, Brighton and Hove, Cambridgeshire and Oxfordshire. These LEAs were selected for a number of reasons, e.g. Brighton and Hove's structure for meeting the needs of a variety of vulnerable pupils, but mainly on the basis of comparing statistics for permanent exclusions with those in Hampshire.

5.2 The most recently published statistics for Cambridgeshire, show that their rate of permanent exclusions is considerably less than half of Hampshire's. So far in this academic year (Sep. 2003 - June 2004), Cambridgeshire officers have processed just one permanent exclusion, compared with Hampshire's 195 during the same period, with Hampshire having a further 29 awaiting ratification.

5.3 In all the LEAs visited, significant emphasis is placed on preventative, pro- active, early intervention. Considerable importance is also attached to the relationship and trust between schools and officers in this most contentious area of work.

6. Discussions with HMI / DfES

6.1 The Acting Assistant County Education Officer (Inclusion) has held detailed discussions with one of Her Majesty's Inspectors, who is at present involved in inspecting a number of educational establishments in Hampshire. These discussions have been extremely useful in identifying issues, investigating alternative strategies and establishing possible ways forward.

6.2 Officers have also met senior DfES officials to discuss the emerging model of provision in Basingstoke (please see below) looking also at what other LEAs are doing on behaviour support, as well as what Hampshire is proposing within its Strategic Framework for EOTAS.

7. An emerging model in Basingstoke

7.1 Due to the proposals made (now confirmed) by the County Council to close

Hawthorns School and the Ashwood Education Centre in Basingstoke and to

improve and develop the behaviour support and curriculum opportunities being

provided to pupils in the area, particular importance has been attached to

working closely with Basingstoke secondary head teachers.

7.2 The emerging model in Basingstoke will depend on the outcome of the present consultation to close Hawthorns School, but the overall thrust of discussions to date has been on all schools working closely together, in order to meet the needs of the community of all pupils. Again, preventative, pro-active early intervention, working closely with schools and families, is seen as being the key.

7.3 Work has been carried out to develop an imaginative and demanding curriculum for the young people attending the Basingstoke provision from this coming September.

7.4 Early in July 2004, a two day conference is being planned, involving the

Basingstoke secondary head teachers, senior officers and other colleagues

closely involved in developing Hampshire's behaviour strategy.

7.5 A letters has been sent to all parents / carers of young people who will be attending the new provision in Basingstoke in September 2004. The letter provides details of the provision that will be available in terms of the type of activities, the location of pupils and the services involved. It is anticipated that a further letter to parents / carers will be sent before the end of this term. A detailed plan is being devised for every young person who would otherwise have been attending Hawthorns or Ashwood.

8. The way forward

8.1 Throughout all the above discussions and developments, there have been a

number of considerations:

· the most appropriate and effective education and provision for the vulnerable young people involved

· the impact of the Green Paper "Every Child Matters", the Children Bill and the forthcoming Children Act

· the need to ensure high quality education for all pupils

· the radical changes that need to be brought about in the procedures at present operating in Hampshire

· the effective management of the resource implications of all developments including consideration of available funding streams

· the support and training necessary for staff who work with vulnerable, disaffected pupils

· the necessary changes to the management and operational structure of EOTAS; the existing Behaviour Support Team (BST) - at present operating mostly, but not solely, in primary schools; and, the need to involve and effectively manage a far wider group of services, departments and other agencies, than has been common practice in the past.

The intention is to work with young people, their teachers and families in such a way as to address disruptive behaviour far more effectively and far earlier than at present. It is not the intention to simply maintain poorly behaved, disruptive pupils in mainstream classrooms, regardless of the impact.

8.2 A two pronged approach is being taken in the development of the

behaviour strategy:

· to continue to improve the capacity of schools to meet the needs of all pupils, through good teaching and the provision of a flexible, appropriate curriculum

· to improve the multi-agency response and provision available to vulnerable pupils, their families and schools.

8.3 Intensive work will continue over the summer period, to identify changes that

will be necessary to staffing structures and procedures to support and develop the work of skilled staff. Work on Green Paper developments, suggests that there should be an emphasis on strategic planning across the county, with streamlined and effective leadership, but with the local delivery of services. Present thinking on the Green Paper would indicate the need for between 15 - 20 local teams, based on clusters of schools, with the teams grouped for purposes of management and development. . Clearly, it will be vital to ensure that whatever is proposed for behaviour support is both consistent with and complementary to Green Paper developments. In addition any resource implications will form part of the budget strategy for 2005/6 onwards.

8.4 The overriding aim of the County Council must continue to be the provision of

high quality education to all children and additional, effective, timely early intervention and support, to children, their families and their schools when it is required.

Recommendation

That this report is noted

That a further report is brought to Education PRC in the autumn.

Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - Background Documents

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB The list excludes:

1. Published works

2. Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

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