Lead spring 2021

Leadership conference Union launches ethics code. See page 7.

Claiming annual leave Your legal rights explained.

See page 14.

The magazine for NEU Leadership members

Assessment commission Experts look into 14-19 system. See page 9

Spring 2021

Agent of change Meet the leader and rep pioneering work on diversity and inclusion

Domestic abuse How to create a supportive workplace See page 20

Welcome

Lead.

Spring 2021

Martin Neve, middle leader and NEU rep Photo: Matt Wilkinson NEU president: Robin Bevan NEU joint general secretaries: Mary Bousted & Kevin Courtney Editor: Sally Gillen Editorial assistant: Sarah Thompson

IT’S premature to assume we’ll soon see the back of Covid-19 – whatever the Government suggests. If the last year has taught us anything, it’s that the virus is unpredictable. It is the reason the NEU, along with other unions, opposed the big bang reopening of all schools in England last month (see pages 4 and 22). The implications of that gamble remain to be seen.

In the meantime, now that our learners are back in class, the focus must be on recovery. The NEU’s education recovery plan sets out a range of measures to do just that.

You can read it at neu.org.uk/recovery-plan.

On page 10, NEU Leadership member Marc Howells, a primary head in Wales, discusses the impact of two lockdowns on his school and his approach to recovery for his pupils. In this issue, you can also find out more about the independent assessment commission, which is looking at the system for 14- to 19-year-olds across England (page 9). The input of leaders into the commission’s work is vital. Please do get involved and share your ideas with the panel of experts.

And for the many dedicated leaders who have missed out on weeks of annual leave, as you’ve struggled to keep running your school or college during a year of Government U-turns and ever-changing guidance, there is some legal advice on page 14.

Finally, between 7-9 April annual conference will take place at Hamilton House. Please do follow the debates at @NEU_Leadership.

Thank you, as always, for your hard work and commitment.

Mary Bousted Joint general secretary National Education Union

neu.org.uk

Contents

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Assessment

Is England’s assessment system fit for purpose?

10 The Interview

Marc Howells on leading through lockdown and beyond

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Except where the NEU has formally negotiated agreements with companies as part of its services to members, inclusion of an advertisement in Lead does not imply any form of recommendation. While every effort is made to ensure the reliability of advertisers, the NEU cannot accept any liability for the quality of goods or services offered. Lead is printed by Walstead.

Features

16 How I…

Building a more diverse school

20 Masterclass 20

How to deal with domestic abuse

Update

Union warns the return to school is reckless, and TUC Women’s Conference

15 Opinion

NEU president Robin Bevan on Gavin Williamson’s failings

22 Final word

Following the science is key, says Kevin Courtney

lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

3

Update

‘Big bang’ school return in England was reckless, NEU warns AGAINST scientific advice, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a “big bang” return of all schools in England on 8 March.

The NEU warned that the decision – the opposite of the phased approach in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland – was “reckless”, and, as Lead went to press, the logistics of mass testing in schools was

“Leaders have had to cope with Government incompetence on a huge scale.”

resulting in a de facto phased return in most secondary schools and colleges.

NEU joint general secretary Mary Bousted said the Government should allow this to continue beyond the period necessary for the tests to be completed, in line with the union’s call for a phased return until Easter.

“Boris Johnson has pressed ahead with this gamble on the wider opening of schools and colleges in one swoop and ignored the advice for a phased return,” she said. “Time and again in this pandemic the Government has not followed the science, closing schools too late and then opening them too early.”

She added: “Leaders have had to cope with Government incompetence on a huge scale – from repeated versions of guidance to rescuing and operating a track and trace

system throughout the pandemic.”

Leaders and their staff had planned carefully for the safest possible return, but had faced obstacles, said Mary. In secondaries and colleges, leaders were struggling to gain parental consent for testing students.

“We all hope that this is the last lockdown, but ministers had two months to make schools and colleges safer and failed to put the necessary measures in place to achieve this,” she said. “While everyone hopes that things will go well, we are clear whose responsibility it will be if they do not. We will hold the Government to account.”

Go to neu.org.uk/advice/coronavirusleadership-advice See Kevin Courtney’s final word on page 22.

GOVERNMENT EXAMS SOLUTION ‘LEAST WORST OPTION,’ SAYS UNION LONG-AWAITED confirmation

demanding clarity, some

of the way GCSE and

certainty and robust

A-level students will be

contingency planning since

assessed and graded were

the start of the academic

eventually published by the

year and options to facilitate

Department for Education

these were highlighted to

(DfE) at the end of February.

Government by the NEU.”

Months after the NEU

repeated pledges that

unions began pressing

exams would take place, in

the Government for some

the middle of a pandemic,

clarity, following last

proved to be unachievable

summer’s fiasco, Education

and teachers, given just

Secretary Gavin Williamson

weeks of in-school teaching

there would already be

announced that teacher

with exam classes, now

some evidence of student

stepped up pressure on

assessment would be used

feel they are “carrying

performance ‘in the bank’.

the DfE to rethink plans

this year.

the can for ministerial

“It is wrong that education professionals,

4

Mary added that the

and other education

incompetence”.

The anxious wait had

Handing in the NEU’s exams petition in November

“Secondly, Government

In November, the NEU

to go ahead with exams

has acted too late. Had

as normal this year, with

there been steps taken at

a petition signed by

parents and students have

been exacerbated by two

the start of the academic

more than 60,000 people

had to wait to know how

things, said Mary. “Firstly,

year to prepare for the

opposing Government

grades will be determined,”

for GCSEs and A-levels, if

eventuality that exams may

plans.

said NEU joint general

Government didn’t rely

not be able to happen,

secretary Mary Bousted.

solely on end-of-course

this could have been more

“They have rightly been

exams to give the grade,

easily resolved,” she said.

lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

Assessment commission launches page 9.

Update

‘Disappointing, short-sighted’ Budget ignores Covid impact education sector needs specific funding to pay for the extra costs of Covid-19, Kevin added. “Additional supply costs amounted to £290 million last term alone, schools are losing £290 million a year in lettings income and the Government is offering no help.

“Maintained nursery schools are struggling to survive year on year without a long-term funding settlement. The pandemic is stretching already overstretched budgets further,” said Kevin.

He went on to say that the extension of the furlough scheme, although welcome, had some significant flaws that included being voluntary for employers, which means groups of workers such as supply staff are routinely excluded from it.

IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON WOMEN IS UNEQUAL, TUC CONFERENCE HEARS SEND teacher and joint district

McKenzie spoke on ending gender-

was among the NEU members

based violence and harassment.

who took part in the TUC’s women’s

“One woman is murdered every three

conference.

days in the UK, and Covid has seen a surge in domestic abuse,” she said.

impact of Covid-19 on women,

“In the NEU we are saying ‘no more

Emma described the experiences

silence to violence.’ Our union has

of members who have lost work

prioritised this campaign, producing

and pay because their employers

resources – including a model policy

refused to make adjustments for

and checklist for leaders – to increase

them. Among them were a pregnant

understanding of the impact of

teacher who was signed off with

domestic abuse on educators’

stress after she was told she could

working lives. Early intervention in

not work from home. A support staff

the workplace is key for supporting

member and single mother was

members to stay in work and

forced to take three weeks’ unpaid

maintain financial independence.”

leave to care for her children when

Go to neu.org.uk/recovery-plan

Executive member Heather

secretary in Durham Emma Parker

Speaking on the unequal

THE NEU and the social mobility charity the Sutton Trust have recommended to Government that an extra £750 million is needed for pupil premium – the Government has announced £302 million.

NEU joint general secretary Mary Bousted said: “The number of children and families in poverty is rising, so more students will need support via schools and colleges. This challenge is too significant to be met with half measures.”

Mary said that giving schools the flexibility to use the recovery premium for disadvantaged learners as they wish was rare recognition by Government that schools know best.

However, a broader redesign of education policy, backed by proper investment over the next five years, is badly needed, said Mary.

The union has produced an education recovery plan that includes measures to tackle the huge and lasting impact of child poverty.

Marcus Rashford scoops NEU award INSPIRATIONAL footballer and food poverty campaigner Marcus Rashford has won the union’s Fred and Anne Jarvis Award for his campaigning on Free School Meals – which forced the Government into two U-turns on extending provision in the holidays.

The award is given to an individual from outside the union who has campaigned tirelessly at a national or local level.

PHOTOGRAPHY: MARK WAUGH

CHANCELLOR Rishi Sunak ignored the financial impact of the pandemic on education when he failed to announce any new money for the sector in last month’s Budget.

NEU joint general secretary Kevin Courtney said despite claims that schools are a national priority, the Treasury had not provided more resources for them to manage coronavirus.

“Once again this Government has failed to pay attention to the educational professionals who see first-hand the detrimental impact underfunding of our education system has on the children and young people they teach or care for,” he said.

NEU research shows school spending power is £2 billion less today than it was in 2015-16, and the

BOOST TO PUPIL PREMIUM £448M SHORT, SAYS UNION

The NEU’s motion calling

they were sent home from school.

for domestic abuse policies in

She then had to use a food bank to

workplaces and better support for

feed them. “Women make valuable

survivors was passed by the women’s

contributions to our workforces

committee.

and we shouldn’t have to choose between working and caring for those we love,” said Emma.

Find out more about the domestic abuse resources on on page 20.

Award-winner Marcus Rashford with his mum Melanie

lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

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Update

£1m in vouchers sent to poorest schools thanks to joint NEU appeal MORE than a thousand schools have received vouchers to buy basics such as pens and paper, with money raised by the NEU and the Daily Mirror.

Help a Child to Learn, an appeal launched in January with a £1m donation from the union, has so far enabled 1,011 schools in England and Wales to buy resources for children learning at home. An extra £248,277.55 had been raised

through donations from the public, Mirror readers and the union’s districts and branches.

Vouchers worth £500, £1,000 or £1,500 have been given to schools.

Dave McPartlin, head teacher at Flakefleet Primary School, which is in the deprived area of Fleetwood, in Lancashire, received a £1,500 voucher. He said: “The conversation in terms of deprived children has been about digital devices and data connection, but the reality is that early on in the lockdown we needed to drop off pens, pencils, paper and gluesticks – resources that many of us take for granted, but which many families just didn’t have in the house. If we hadn’t provided these resources, some children wouldn’t have been able to engage.”

Find out more about Help a Child to Learn on page 19.

At annual conference...

ABOLISHING Ofsted and league tables will be among the motions debated at the union’s annual conference, which takes place online between 7-9 April.

The inspection framework introduced in 2019 is not fit for purpose, the union believes, and demands created by accountability are the most significant cause of school and college leaders’ workload.

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The motion calls on the NEU executive to develop a framework that is based on self-evaluation.

Primary assessment is also on the agenda, as well as a motion calling for the NEU to work with other unions to challenge the pay freeze.

Follow the action on Twitter @NEU_Leadership #AnnualConf21

lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

FSM IN WALES UNTIL EASTER 2022 THE union has welcomed the extension of Free School Meals in Wales until Easter 2022, but is disappointed that a bid by Plaid Cymru to make all children whose families receive Universal Credit eligible for them was voted down.

EYFS GUIDANCE REPORT OUT A REPORT by the Early Years Sector Coalition, Birth to 5 matters, has been published.

It provides practical guidance on how the revised Early Years Foundation Stage document can be translated into classroom practice. birthto5matters.org.uk

RECOVERY HUB A RECOVERY Education Hub has been developed by the union. The website includes guidance for leaders on adapting teaching and learning to support pupils; looking after the health and wellbeing of your whole school community, and practical tips and examples from leaders. Sign in to Guild, the app exclusively for NEU Leadership members, to share ideas. If you haven’t yet joined Guild, go to guildenquiries@neu.org

MIDDLE LEADER MASTERCLASSES MASTERCLASSES aimed at middle leaders will run until June. Led by Hannah Wilson, a coach for the DfE Women Leading in Education Initiative, the webinars cover different aspects of personal leadership skills. A coaching programme for experienced head teachers, Established Leaders, launches this month. Find out more about the training on offer for leaders at neu.org.uk/national-cpd and @NEU_CPD

WOMEN’S DAY EVENTS MEMBERS took part in a series of events throughout March, organised by the union to celebrate International Women’s Day. Online talks included how women have been impacted by Covid-19 at work; the NEU’s education recovery plan and how it will work for women; and the history of women in the trade union movement. neu.org.uk/international-womens-day

Leadership conference report

DfE has failed to act ethically, say leaders Sally Gillen reports on the NEU Leadership conference, where the union launched its code of ethics.

Robin Bevan, Anne Swift and John Hayes addressing members at the NEU Leadership conference

A SNAPSHOT poll of leaders has delivered a damning verdict on the behaviour of the Department for Education (DfE) over the past year – with 100 per cent saying it has failed to lead ethically.

For 24 per cent, the most serious failing has been a lack of honesty. Members were asked for their views by the union’s president Robin Bevan, at the NEU Leadership conference, before he launched the union’s Code of Ethical Practice in Leadership.

“We’ve been operating in an environment where in some instances decision-making at

a national level has been of a very temporary and lurching kind,” he said. “We go from one day to the next not knowing what we’re going to be expected to do, what’s going to change.”

Agreeing, NEU Leadership Council member and London primary head John Hayes said: “In any ethical approach to leadership, the ability to take appropriate criticism, to admit to mistakes and to apologise when you have got things wrong is key. If we had seen that from the Government, and from Gavin Williamson, instead of them pretending that everything

they do is correct, instead of talking their way round every question they are asked, then perhaps we would feel more confident in their ability to lead us.”

The union’s nine-page code is designed to “shed a bit more detailed light on what it means to be a good leader,” said Robin.

He added: “The document sets out advice, guidance and direction to all of us in positions of leadership to help us understand and shape the way we make decisions. It also exists to help all of us review how we are working in our schools and colleges.”

Robin said he had already used the code with SLT colleagues to identify the strengths and weaknesses at his school.

NEU Leadership Council chair Anne Swift said the union had spent a long time working on the code. “We all have a duty as leaders to bring on the next generation of leaders. Those considering a move into leadership can use the code to reflect on their own practice.”

TURNING THEORY INTO PRACTICE

In the next issue of Lead, head teachers John Hayes and Ken Johnson, members of the National Leadership Council, discuss how they are using the code at their schools.

Code of Ethical Practice in Leadership neu.org. uk/ethical-practiceleadership

CONFERENCE ROUND-UP LIBERAL Democrat Education Spokesperson Daisy Cooper commended the union for producing “a really good document,” promising to take the Code of Ethical Practice in Leadership to the party’s policy forum for discussion. “The section on active leadership really

struck a chord,” she said.

“Leadership is generally unrecognised in all sorts of sectors.”

Professor Kathryn Riley at the Institute of Education gave a thought-provoking presentation on her NEU-funded study, Place and belonging in school: why it matters today. She

said, in a time of crisis belonging becomes even more important, and leaders need to work to create a culture of compassion in their schools and colleges.

“Being a leader is about leading people into the unknown,” she said. “‘We have a leadership vacuum in Whitehall in

many ways. We have never had this space before, where heads can come together and say ‘this is what we’re going to do’, and the NEU can play a significant role in that happening.’”

Read more about the research here neu.org.uk/ media/13026/view

lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

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Feature

Is England’s assessment system fit for purpose?

Ten experts appointed to an independent assessment commission begin their investigation to find out.

Alison Peacock, CEO, Chartered College of Teaching

Words: Sally Gillen

TIMING has not been a strong point for Education Secretary Gavin Williamson and his team at the Department for Education over the last year. And the announcement on this summer’s exams, which eventually came at the end of February, proved no exception. It came much too late, yes. Nevertheless, the NEU believes that replacing GCSE and A-level exams with teacher assessment this year offers a much-needed opportunity to explore an alternative way of assessing students.

Against this backdrop, an independent assessment commission, set up by the NEU, begins work this month.

The commission’s task is to examine whether the qualifications and assessment system for 14-19-year-olds is fit for purpose, before considering if and how it

should be reformed.

Established as a result of a motion passed at the union’s special conference in 2020, where many angry and dismayed leaders and teachers detailed the impact of last summer’s exams fiasco on students, the commission will draw on the expertise of a range of groups, from leaders to parents to assessment experts.

The union appointed independent chair Louise Hayward, professor of educational assessment and innovation at the University of Glasgow, who selected ten experts to join the commission (see box, below).

Professor of race and education at Leeds Beckett University Vini Lander, and Alison Peacock, chief executive of the Chartered College of Teaching and a former head teacher, are among the commissioners.

Dame Peacock tells Lead: “I am

THE TEN COMMISSIONERS • L ouise Hayward - professor of educational assessment and innovation at the University of Glasgow • J o-Anne Baird - professor of educational assessment at the University of Oxford • R obin Bevan - president of the NEU and head teacher at Southend High School for Boys • S alsabil Elmegri - vicepresident further education at the National Union of Students ini Lander - professor of • V

• • •

• •

race and education at Leeds Beckett University Olly Newton - executive director at Edge Foundation Kerry-Jane Packman/ Kirsty Yates - Parentkind Dame Alison Peacock - CEO of the Chartered College of Teaching Matthew Percival - director of people and skills, CBI Dominic Wyse - BERA president - professor, Curriculum, UCL

Vini Lander, professor of race and education, Leeds Beckett University

interested in learning more about how we ensure assessment serves rather than drives education. Having been a pioneer for high expectations of every child within the classroom, I am keen to see how our qualifications system might be adapted to ensure that broader recognition of achievement is also valued.”

Professor Lander says: “It’s vital that the voices of Black and minority ethnic people are represented on such an important issue as assessment.”

Focus groups will begin later this month and run until June, and the union is keen for NEU Leadership members with an interest in assessment to take part, and contribute written suggestions to the commission.

International research and examples of what works well elsewhere will also be investigated by the commission, which will publish its report in October.

HAVE YOUR SAY IT is vital that the commission hears from leaders. You will have the opportunity to respond to an open call for contributions, as well as share experiences and ideas at focus groups. Look out for more details, which will be published soon on neu.org.uk lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

9

Interview

‘Children need to catch up with enjoying being children’

Marc Howells, a head teacher in Wales, discusses the impact of two lockdowns and explains why catch-up isn’t his top priority.

Words: Sally Gillen Photos: Aled Llywelyn

AS a head teacher in Wales, Marc Howells has been spared some of the day-to-day headaches caused by running a school during a pandemic faced by his counterparts in England.

For one thing, he escaped the frustration during the first lockdown of trying to log onto the Edenred system in the early hours of the morning. In Wales, some families eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) can choose to have the weekly £19.50 per child paid directly into a bank account. Most parents at Marc’s school, where 35 per cent of children have FSM, were able to opt for this

“There are more important things that the children will have to catch up with, such as friendships, and personal wellbeing.”

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lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

straightforward arrangement.

Simpler systems for ordering and paying for Covid-related supplies have also made life a bit easier. If the school is running low on sanitiser, Marc orders some from the council, and it’s delivered within two days. It’s provided by Carmarthenshire County Council, which has also delivered PPE, portable sinks for classrooms and signage at no cost to schools.

“The system for ordering works well in Wales, and Covid hasn’t cost the school anything directly, which is the same for all schools,” says Marc, who leads Bigyn Primary School in Llanelli, a former industrial town which has high levels of deprivation.

He’s realistic, however, that at some point the costs will be felt by schools. “I know somebody will have to pay for it. I can’t see me having the same budget next year or the year after because these costs will have to be paid for in the future,” he says.

It will be a blow to the school. Before Covid hit, it had been in deficit for five out of six years and was steadily working its way towards a surplus in March 2022, but only by making some very difficult cuts – including the loss of 3.5 teachers and two learning support assistants.

Money from the Accelerated Learning Programme, launched by the Welsh Government last year to help children catch up after the first lockdown, is helpful, but a drop in the ocean. It has enabled Marc to recruit an extra learning support assistant, albeit temporarily.

“It’s good to have that money but it’s only £9,000 for my school so you’re not going to be able to get 220 pupils to catch up with that,” he says.

On 22 February, as part of a phased return implemented by the Welsh Government, Marc began to welcome back his foundation phase pupils, a relief given the difficulties there have been to engage a significant number of pupils in online learning. Only half of pupils were logging on consistently, up from 30 per cent during the first lockdown, but still concerning.

Marc says staff found many of the children had regressed with their reading, writing and numeracy skills. “This is only to be expected and we have tried not to place undue emphasis on it,” he says. “The children will catch up but it may take some time and a lot of focused investment. There are more important things that the children will have to catch up with, such as friendships and personal wellbeing.”

Interview

“There’s no point pretending that online learning is anywhere near as effective as inschool learning.”

During lockdown, families weren’t engaging for a variety of reasons, explains Marc. A lot of them were being cared for during the day by grandparents who didn’t have the IT skills to support learning at home, and many other children were using older digital devices that weren’t always compatible with Hwb, the online platform used by schools across Wales.

Carmarthenshire County Council organised a scheme to lend newer devices to families during the first lockdown, and the school had loaned devices to families more recently.

Despite this, online learning is not ideal, especially with the younger pupils, says Marc, adding that it can’t be expected that three-and four-year-olds can sit in front of a screen for long. “There’s no point pretending that online learning is anywhere near as effective as in-school learning,” he says. “That’s why children needed to be back in school.”

The new curriculum in Wales, which comes in next year, has in some senses been well-timed. Its focus on wellbeing has allowed Marc to think about how best to settle children back into the classroom, when many of them had lost confidence and “a bit of spark” after months away.

“Wellbeing will have as much importance as numeracy and literacy in the new curriculum, and a lot of children’s wellbeing has been affected during the lockdowns,” explains Marc. “Expressive arts and humanities are also two of the new areas of learning and experience (AoLEs). The lockdowns have given 12

lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

Marc Howells: “Wellbeing will have as much importance as numeracy and literacy in the new curriculum”

staff time to focus on what will be very big curriculum changes. During the first lockdown a new humanities scheme of work was developed for the whole school. There was also a new emphasis on expressive arts including involving pupils in two twinning art projects with schools from Europe.”

Marc adds: “A lot of children came back to school in September really down in the dumps. That was difficult because usually if children are having problems you can provide them with positive play sessions, but we couldn’t do that because our positive play workers could not mix with different bubbles. For most of September we shut the curriculum down and had a big focus on art, just to cheer the children up. They went home covered in charcoal and paint, but they were smiling.”

It helps that the Welsh inspectorate, Estyn, which has suspended inspections until next year, has taken what Marc describes as a “very human approach” to working with leaders during the pandemic. “There won’t be any

inspections and the interactions we are having as heads are very supportive,” he adds.

Marc says the foundation phase children were very excited and happy to return to school in February. “I don’t think the children were as adversely affected during this second lockdown, as it was shorter. It was great to see the children full of smiles coming back to school.”

Marc is keen to focus on one important priority: “We must not talk about children having fallen behind or needing to catch up, as that implies that there is something negative with them,” he says. “We need to focus on how positive they have been during the past year and the resilience and character that they have shown during very difficult times. Yes, they will need to catch up with their reading and maths skills, but this needs to be done in a non-pressurised way. More importantly, the children need to catch up with their social lives, confidence, wellbeing and happiness.

They need to catch up with enjoying being children.”

Leading question

What are your legal rights to leave?

The demands of running a school during the pandemic have robbed many leaders of annual leave. Head of the union’s employment rights unit Jayne Phillips sets out your legal entitlements to holiday.

FOR over a year, last-minute guidance and changes of plan by the Department for Education (DfE) have seen leader members forgo holidays more than ever in order to try and comply with its requirements.

This will continue to be the case, not least following the DfE announcement that exam results will be brought forward to 10 August; and continued, vague, references to extending the summer term.

For heads in secondary schools, with the summer term finishing, at the earliest, in late July this already leaves precious little time for many leaders to take their muchneeded annual leave.

All UK workers have a statutory entitlement (under the Working Time Regulations 1998) to a minimum of 28 days’ holiday (excluding Saturdays and Sundays). That statutory right exists for health and safety reasons. People need time away from work to rest and recover, never more so than during the stress and strain of a pandemic. Annual leave is vital for an individual’s mental and physical wellbeing.

State school leaders will know that the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) sets out the maximum number of days a teacher can be directed to work. Those provisions do not apply to heads, deputies and assistant heads. However, paragraph 52.4 of the STPCD explicitly states that governing bodies must have regard for the need for all staff, including heads, to experience a proper work/life balance and to ensure the governing body complies with the Working Time Regulations 1998 requirements.

The STPCD does not override the Working Time Regulations and so your 14

lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

governing body must ensure you have at least 28 days of annual leave each year.

What if you have not taken all your statutory annual leave?

You should start by checking your contract in case your contractual entitlement exceeds 5.6 weeks (28 days). The contract should also set out when the holiday period starts and ends – usually from 1 September until 31 August.

The 28 days includes bank holidays so if you have taken, and will take, each bank holiday as annual leave, deduct them. The total number of bank holidays will be eight days, leaving 20 days. How many days holiday have you taken since September?

Be honest. Do not include days you were supposed to be on holiday but actually worked. How many days are you left with?

Then, speak to your chair of governors or governing body to discuss how and when you, and other SLT members of staff, will take leave over the summer.

There are notice provisions contained within the legislation compelling employers to accept holiday requests. If your governing body proves difficult then speak to the NEU AdviceLine on 0345 811 8111.

What if you have taken all your statutory leave, but still need a break in the summer?

This may be unlikely this year – but needing a summer break is still perfectly understandable. There are good reasons why schools are split into terms and half terms. Pupils and staff simply cannot work effectively without breaks during the school year. Come the summer, the whole school is in need of a proper rest. So, you should speak to your governing body and the rest of your SLT to agree who will have time away from school and when. The earlier plans are formulated the easier it will be to ensure that you and your senior colleagues get the time off you are entitled to and deserve.

Opinion

‘You only have to manage a crisis if you’ve failed to plan for the scenario’ Gavin Williamson’s failure to provide effective leadership during the pandemic has made the challenges and uncertainty faced by the sector even worse, writes Robin Bevan.

NEU president Robin Bevan is head teacher at Southend High School for Boys

GOOD leaders will always learn from their mistakes. But it’s even better when leaders avoid the errors altogether, learning – perhaps – from the mistakes of others.

It would be easy to list Education Secretary Gavin Williamson’s U-turns, or parody his public announcements, but let’s look at how he has been seeking to lead, and what has let him down.

A simple adage applies: you only have to manage a crisis if you’ve failed to plan for the scenario. We know that aspects of the pandemic have been hard to predict with certainty; and need to avoid judgement in hindsight. However, Mr Williamson has allowed his ‘event horizon’ to fall far too short. We can, of course, only take small steps forward each day; but we must never let the immediate cause us to lose sight of the strategic.

School and college leaders often plan backwards from their desired goal, two to three years into the future. So how on earth did we find ourselves with no contingency plans for 2021 examinations and not even a whisper from the Department for Education (DfE) about 2022? It appears that Gavin needs a lesson in backwards planning.

Sometimes, a crisis genuinely demands ‘command-control’ leadership. As a head teacher, I’ve been there, in urgent circumstances that demand rapid decision-making and concise instructions from the top. But ‘command-control’ also has profound weaknesses. First, the technique assumes the leader has an all-encompassing expertise. Moreover, if overused the flow of direct commands then ceases, followers can become directionless, even mutinous.

This is why command-control leadership has to stop as soon as the immediate emergency has passed.

When Mr Williamson stepped up to take control, he did not have the relevant breadth of expertise. He lacked contextual knowledge, and then started to be over-prescriptive in his instructions. It is why he simply looks ‘silly’ when answering detailed policy questions.

Take the story of schools and lateral flow testing. He assumed expertise on the effectiveness of a medical diagnostic, promised the Army, delivered tests, failed to calculate how many volunteers would be needed – all before he was over-ruled by public health experts and widely disregarded by school leaders who had read the instructions properly.

Every day the legacy of this over-assertive approach pops itself into the inbox. It is the (un)welcome notification ping of the DfE ‘Coronavirus – Daily update’ email. Occasionally the content is helpful. However, if you are responsible for the strategic oversight of a service and you are providing revised instructions on a daily basis you are not exercising leadership, but micro-managing while propagating an appearance of panic, and you will inevitably induce weariness.

Please just stop.

Finally, skilled leaders know how to take the people with them. Beyond the professional management approaches of appropriate recruitment, effective deployment and workplace training, there are only two tools available that permit leaders to foster ‘followership’. Those tools are ‘authentic empathy’ and ‘appreciation’ alongside ‘providing reasons for decisions’.

Asserting that exams are the fairest form of assessment does not make them so. Declaring nursery settings safe, but treating infants differently, demands an explanation. If you do not give the rationale, people will just pick and choose what they are going to do. Instructions that appear arbitrary become arbitrary.

Too often, Gavin Williamson has faked the first one. He thanks teachers for their hard work; but never speaks out when others denigrate what we do. People know if you really appreciate what they are doing. Colleagues can sense whether there is genuine care. It is not there in Gavin; so our primitive psychology mirrors back the disdain. lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

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Changing the landscape Photo: Matt Wilkinson

Martin Neve tells Sally Gillen about his pioneering work to make his school more diverse and inclusive.

THE Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests in 2020 gave Martin Neve an opportunity to start some work on diversity and inclusion at the rural grammar where he has worked for 15 years.

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lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

Senior leaders at Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School (BRGS) had expressed a wish to support diversity but said work on BLM needed to come from the students.

“I asked pupils what they wanted

to do around BLM and we got this avalanche of emails,” explains Martin, who is head of drama, an NEU rep and equality officer for his local branch in Lancashire.

Martin began to push for change

How I…

“We know that it changes the whole landscape of the school positively to have those role models, so that’s my absolute vision.” at his school in 2019 after attending an NEU LGBT+ conference, leaving with a conviction to increase LGBT+ support and celebration at BRGS. From there it snowballed. Martin signed up for what was a “life-affirming and totally inspiring” NEU equality course, attended by Black and LGBT+ teachers, and he then contacted his local branch and became an equality officer. By then he was keen to broaden his work by including all protected characteristics to create strong solidarity for all minority groups, he says.

“It struck me as odd that when almost half of our pupils are Black and minority ethnic, we only had two BAME teachers, and just one out LGBTQ+ teacher – me – meaning minority group role models for pupils are thin on the ground,” says Martin. “As a drama teacher, I have always known that differences become strengths in all collaborative endeavour and all will ultimately benefit. It is worth celebrating.”

He has had to start from scratch.

There were no policies to inherit, no practices developed by a predecessor on which to build. “It’s been a lot of work and non-stop, but there have been some changes,” he says, adding that he has been well-supported by many of his colleagues.

“The great thing about being a rep is you’re not on your own.”

One of those changes is that one of the two BAME teachers has been persuaded to become a teacher-governor.

“It’s staggering and probably a bit

shameful that we have just two BAME teachers when half of the students are BAME,” says Martin, adding that the SLT agreed to his suggestion that he look into the reasons why there is no diversity among the teaching staff. It hasn’t been an easy inquiry. Basic equal opportunities monitoring hadn’t existed at the school, so records were scant. One of the changes that Martin has secured is that there will an equal opportunities form to complete as part of the recruitment process, and valuable information from exit interviews will now be shared with governors, rather than read only by the head.

But, as well as the changes to recruitment practices, there is also a new focus on diversity and inclusion for pupils. In form time, they now learn about the nine protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010. It’s a “big win,” according to Martin. “It has been one of the most rewarding aspects of the work.

At the moment there is a lot of teaching of the facts, and not always the celebration of diversity. I do want to see more celebration, but it’s one step at a time.”

Progress in other areas has been slower, with some concerns that promoting and celebrating LGBT+ could lead to complaints from some parents.

“Although there isn’t a lot of homophobic bullying in the school, neither has there been any form of celebration,” says Martin.

A breakthrough came in February, however, when Martin’s plans for a series of celebrations of LGBT+ History Month were given the go-ahead by SLT. Next, Martin hopes that training for staff on LGBT+ will be approved by SLT. “We are determined that training will run

“I asked pupils what they wanted to do around BLM and we got this avalanche of emails.”

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION… A WORK IN PROGRESS • Governors agree that they will look at information from exit interviews.

• Governors agree that equal opportunities forms will be introduced as part of recruitment practice.

• Pupils begin learning about each of the nine protected characteristics – age, disability, gender. reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation – in the Equality Act 2010 during form time.

• One of the two BAME teachers is elected as a teacher-governor.

at some point,” he says. Reflecting on the progress so far, he says: “If you’re working from a good place, and with integrity, then retrospectively colleagues will look back and see you had a point. This work isn’t about heroes and villains. We are actually all learning.”

His vision for a more diverse and inclusive school is that the curriculum will be decolonised, that there will be a more diverse SLT and that BAME teachers will be promoted to head of department and SLT roles. He believes a more diverse staff will mean there are more role models for the pupils.

“We know that it changes the whole landscape of the school positively to have those role models, so that’s my absolute vision,” he says.

HAVE YOU GOT A STORY? Have you introduced a change at your school or college that you want to share with other leaders?

Contact Lead editor Sally Gillen sally.gillen@neu.org.uk lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

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Campaigns

Union donates £1m to launch joint Help a Child to Learn appeal Campaign provides children with basic learning materials.

Words: Sally Gillen

LEADERS of the most deprived schools in England and Wales are using vouchers to buy basics such as pens and papers for children who do not have them at home, with money raised by an NEU and Daily Mirror campaign.

Kickstarted by £1 million from the NEU, Help a Child to Learn provides schools with the highest numbers of children on Free School Meals with vouchers worth £500, £1,000 or £1,500.

They can then be redeemed with stationery supplier Viking.

The union launched the campaign with the Daily Mirror after a union survey of 2,500 members found that 95 per cent said they were teaching students with limited or no access to learning resources at home.

One member said: “Pupils would bring in ‘work’ or ‘drawings’ which were on flyers or sheets of toilet paper in biro due to lack of resources at home.”

Joint general secretaries of the NEU Mary Bousted and Kevin Courtney said: “Cardboard and toilet paper are not substitutes for exercise books.

“Our Help a Child to Learn campaign is driven by the level of need NEU members see.

The sheer scale of child poverty and its effects on children’s learning is heartbreaking. It should not be necessary, in 2021, to supply pupils with the very basics they need to participate in remote learning, but it is necessary and this campaign will rise to the challenge.”

Donations are being made at helpachildtolearn.com

Sandra Clarke

Deputy head at Woodlands in Luton, one of England’s largest special secondary schools. £500 voucher.

THROUGHOUT both lockdowns, staff dropped off packs to families. We have children with a range of needs, so to some it was pens, paper, gluesticks and scissors, while others do more sensory activities, so we made up packs including items like rice, feathers, oats and bouncy balls that light up.

Luton has a lot of deprivation and we became aware that if we weren’t supplying the paper then there would be children who wouldn’t engage. Children can learn wherever they are, and if they have a bit more equipment they will learn more, so we’re very grateful for the £500 from Help a Child to Learn.

Dave McPartlin

Head teacher at Flakefleet Primary School, in Fleetwood, Lancashire. £1,500 voucher.

HALF of our children have Free School Meals – and then in the middle of the last lockdown our families really began to struggle.

Spending a couple of quid on stationery when you don’t have a huge amount of money is a lot. Our parents would rather put that money in the gas meter.

The Help a Child to Learn voucher is really helpful because I’m not able to claim anything back. We are fairly lucky in that our reserves aren’t too bad, but we were saving for a minibus, and the reality is we’ll now be eating into that money. lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

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Masterclass

Dealing with domestic abuse Jacqui Kilburn at Women’s Aid has been working with the union on new domestic abuse training. Here she tells Sarah Thompson what leaders can do to create a supportive workplace.

THE surge in domestic abuse cases throughout the Covid-19 crisis is such that it has been described as a “shadow pandemic”. Ten women and two children were killed by abusers in Wales and England – three times higher than the weekly average – in the first two weeks after lockdown in March 2020.

And the pandemic has highlighted the role employers can have in identifying and supporting staff, most of them women, who are in abusive relationships. The Domestic Abuse Bill, which is going through Parliament, also puts an extra emphasis on the role of employers.

In education, where three-quarters of the teaching workforce are women, ensuring there are effective policies and practices in place is especially vital. Yet a lack of awareness of the issue is not uncommon.

And it can have serious consequences.

Jacqui Kilburn, training and development manager at charity Women’s

Aid, recalls a “horrendous case” involving a secondary school head of department whose partner, also a teacher, tried to run her over.

With Jacqui’s support, the teacher left her partner and found a new job. But he continued to harass her, so she was forced to seek an injunction. When officials arrived at the former partner’s school to serve it, they were refused entry by the head teacher. He told them: “That sort of thing doesn’t happen in my school.”

Ignorance to this degree may be surprising nowadays, and you may know that neither you nor your colleagues would react similarly. But how confident are you that your school or college is doing all it can to support staff who may be experiencing domestic abuse? ‘“One of the strongest messages you can give your staff is that you have a good policy on domestic abuse,” says Jacqui. “The message must be ‘we will support you 100 per cent. Don’t be afraid to let us know what

NEU RESOURCES FOR DEALING WITH DOMESTIC ABUSE Checklist for leaders • work with your NEU rep to put in place the NEU’s model domestic abuse policy.

• share the material with your SLT and discuss the benefits of putting the policy in place.

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• invest in training for all line managers.

• nominate at least one woman colleague as a point of contact on domestic abuse.

• talk about domestic abuse in the workplace.

lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

• display posters in your workplace – choose a place where they are easily visible.

• understand that a person’s vulnerability to abuse may be increased by factors including their sex, age, disability etc.

Jacqui Kilburn from Women’s Aid

is happening to you. Don’t be afraid to ask for any support you need.”’

A good policy (see the NEU model policy, right) acknowledges the existence of domestic abuse, its impact on staff, and crucially, the support available. It should be publicised on noticeboards in the workplace, discussed at staff meetings, included in staff bulletins, and be part of induction training for new recruits, advises Jacqui.

Remember, she adds, that for many survivors of abuse, the workplace is their only safe space, the place where they might disclose what is happening to them.

A point of contact for domestic abuse issues within the school or college, who has in-depth training and who will be a link for line managers, staff and external agencies, is recommended. Leaders can play a key role in encouraging staff to volunteer for the role, and they should also be alert to signs that a staff member may be experiencing domestic abuse.

Anxiety, being easily distracted, self-

Masterclass

“Perpetrators want to know where you are every minute of the day and you can be interrogated to an unbearable degree, which can impact work performance because it creates anxiety and hypervigilance.” isolating, excessive or inappropriate clothing that hides injuries and unexplained absences and lateness are all potential indicators that something may be wrong.

Lockdown made the situation much worse for women in abusive homes. “It closed down the routes to safety, such as friends, family and work,” says Jacqui, adding women who are particularly reliant on their partners, such as those who are disabled, have had medication withheld and been denied food.

Supporting staff in abusive homes is, of course, especially difficult during lockdowns when they are working from home.

Indicators that something may be wrong will be there, however. Perhaps they are avoiding video calls. Or maybe their partner comes in and out of the room regularly during video calls, listening to what’s being said.

“Usually, domestic abuse involves a high degree of surveillance,” explains Jacqui.

“Perpetrators want to know where you are every minute of the day and you can be interrogated to an unbearable degree, which can impact work performance because it creates anxiety and hypervigilance.”

If performance is affected this can in turn create a feeling among colleagues that the individual is “being carried,” says Jacqui. ‘“If a teacher is ringing in sick it can

create real difficulties, especially in the morning. Colleagues can start to feel resentful and frustrated, so at Women’s Aid, we always say ‘think beyond the call, think about what might be happening.’”

Individuals who are left unsupported may find themselves on capability proceedings or losing some of their responsibilities. Ultimately, they may lose their job. Home Office figures show one in 50 women loses their job as a result of domestic abuse.

“You should never be afraid to ask someone if they are experiencing domestic abuse,” says Jacqui. “Lots of people believe that survivors of domestic abuse don’t want to be asked, but what you have done is let them know you care about them. You should not pressurise someone into a disclosure, but when they do feel safe and ready they will know they have support.”

Don’t bombard them with suggestions of what they should do, urges Jacqui, because that can be overwhelming, especially for someone whose freedom to make decisions has been taken away by an abuser. Instead, simply ask the individual what they need from you.

“There is no prescribed thing to say and do,” she adds. “Every person will be different. If someone discloses to you, stay with them, and find a private place to talk.

Give them time and help them feel safe.”

NEU AND WOMEN’S AID TRAINING LOOK out for training that the NEU will run jointly with Women’s Aid later this year. It will include case studies of different scenarios, a look at assumptions, including who is impacted (all relationships, cultures and classes), why it happens and why it is not a ‘domestic’ issue any more and nobody can ignore it.

USEFUL RESOURCES • The NEU toolkit provides advice on supporting members affected by domestic abuse and includes a model policy, guidance, posters and a checklist for union reps and leaders. neu.org.uk/domestic-abuseand-workplace • NEU webinar – Tackling domestic abuse in the workplace youtube.com/ watch?v=x4Fg9lumg5g.

• A Perfect Storm womensaid.org.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2020/08/APerfect-Storm-August-2020-1. pdf • Live Chat service chat.womensaid.org.uk • National Domestic Abuse Helpline 0808 2000 274 • Southall Black Sisters 020 8571 9595 • Survivors Forum – Speak to other women https://survivorsforum. womensaid.org.uk • Domestic Abuse Helpline for Men This helpline is for men experiencing domestic violence. Helpline: 0808 801 0327 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm) Email: info@mensadviceline. org.uk

Go to neu.org.uk/learning lead. The magazine for NEU Leadership members

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Final word

We will continue to seek to understand and follow the science.

Kevin Courtney Joint general secretary, National Education Union neu.org.uk facebook.com/ national education union NEUnion

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IGNORING the advice from Sage to open schools in phases, the Government in Westminster decided on a “big bang,” forcing all schools to reopen on 8 March.

It didn’t follow the example set by the devolved governments, and it went against the unprecedented statement of nine organisations, including the NEU, the National Governance Association, NAHT and ASCL. We had been engaged with the Department for Education (DfE) since January, talking about models of phasing, as well as extra mitigations that might be put in place. But, despite that engagement, we still had no notice before the Prime Minister’s announcement of what he would say.

School leaders have every right to be angry with the DfE and Boris Johnson; planning has been slow, engagement with science patchy and decision-making late.

On the other hand, you kept your schools running throughout – through periods of wider opening as well as periods when only key worker and vulnerable children were on site. You responded brilliantly to the task of providing widespread online learning. As our president Robin Bevan says, it is the most successful example of a public sector IT project ever.

We know that the Government has made significant errors – including specifically around the question of school opening and closing. It was a serious error by the Government to threaten Greenwich Council and many schools with legal action in the last week of December; it is now clear the new Kent variant was spreading fast through schools at that time. It was another huge error to open so many schools on Monday 4 January – only to then instruct them all to close that very evening.

Throughout the pandemic, the NEU has sought to understand and follow the science.

And we have been proved right repeatedly.

The science is more complicated now than during other periods.

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The best measure of cases in secondary school students is the ONS coronavirus infection survey because it is a random sample and finds asymptomatic cases.

At the end of last term one secondary pupil in every 36 had the virus, not far off one per class.

Schools then remained closed and from January the rest of society has been in a lockdown, and cases have fallen sharply.

By 12 February, one child in every 250 had the virus – the same as 25 September last year.

If cases had carried on falling at the same rate, by the time we got to 8 March cases could be one in 1,000 – the same rate as on 7 September. On a more conservative estimate, if the falling rate slows, by 8 March one child in 500 may have the virus.

These are competing factors: the close of the rest of society, mask wearing and testing may reduce the pressure for growth, while the new variant may increase it.

The fall ahead of the March reopening was very good and, a month in, we want to avoid the high rate we saw last term, which resulted in many children being repeatedly sent home as well as a rise in cases among staff.

So, we were right to be in favour of caution, of phasing return to see what happens. And we are right to be in favour of further mitigations being put in place – filter units where ventilation isn’t good enough, rotas where cases begin to rise quickly etc.

We will contine to engage with the science, to share all insights with you, and to challenge the Government if we need to.

“School leaders have every right to be angry with the DfE and Boris Johnson; planning has been slow, engagement with science patchy and decision-making late.”