Education Business 26.1

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ISSUE 26.1

Business Information for Education Decision Makers EB AWARDS

DESIGN & BUILD

OUTDOOR LEARNING

IT & COMPUTING

RETURNING TO REMOTE TEACHING How are schools meeting the challenges of delivering remote learning?

Contracts for Schools

Giving you a helping hand on all your procurement contracts – from facilities management to utilities Find out more >>

PLUS: G-CLOUD | CLEANING | CYBER SECURITY | PROCUREMENT

A member of

ISSUE 26.1

Business Information for Education Decision Makers EB AWARDS

DESIGN & BUILD

Comment

www.educationbusinessuk.net

OUTDOOR LEARNING

IT & COMPUTING

RETURNING TO REMOTE TEACHING How are schools meeting the challenges of delivering remote learning?

Contracts for Schools

Giving you a helping hand on all your procurement contracts – from facilities management to utilities Find out more >>

PLUS: G-CLOUD | CLEANING | CYBER SECURITY | PROCUREMENT

Returning to remote teaching I write this as schools are shut once again to most pupils and remote teaching is offered at home, in an attempt to curb the drastic rise in Covid-19 cases.

The announcement came at the eleventh hour, once many schools had already opened their doors to pupils for the Spring term.

The constantly changing guidance for schools has been confusing and challenging, to say the least. And despite schools being better prepared to deliver remote learning gained from the first lockdown (and during periods of pupil isolation), it still has its challenges.

There are many barriers to pupils receiving a meaningful education at home.

On page 31, Victoria Temple from the National Centre for Computing Education shares how schools are coping with the challenges of delivering remote education during the pandemic, and Mark Bentley from charitable trust LGfL discusses ways to keep children safe whilst working online.

Follow and interact with us on Twitter: @EducationBizz

Page 16 shares the success stories of our recent Education Business Award winners, showcasing the dedication of the education sector during these difficult times.

Angela Pisanu, editor

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Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Contents

Contents Education Business 26.1 16

07 News

37 Cyber Security

New Institute of Teaching set to be

Mark Bentley, safeguarding and cybersecurity manager at the charitable trust LGfL – the National Grid for Learning, reviews remote learning and keeping children safe whilst working online

established; 41,000 new trainee teachers recruited during 2020; and £800 million schools upgrade in Scotland

13 Procurement

41 G-Cloud

Matthew Gage, programme director for the

support schools with procurement in the future

The rapid switch to remote teaching caused by the Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the value of cloud services for the education sector.

We take a look at how schools can benefit from buying cloud services through the Crown Commercial Service’s G-Cloud 12 framework

16 EB Awards

46 Catering Procurement

The winners of the Education Business Awards

If you are questioning whether you should bring your catering provision in-house, there are many matters to evaluate first, as outlined here by education owned charity CPL Group

Department for Education’s commercial team for schools looks back at the Schools’ Buying Strategy, and shares how the department aims to

21

have been announced, with schools across the UK recognised for the dedication and hard work of teaching and support staff, who have been put under particular pressure during the pandemic

21 Cleaning

25

Cleaning is a fundamental part of keeping schools safe for both staff and pupils during the pandemic. Ciara Lamb from The Key outlines what regular cleaning arrangements you should have in place to minimise the chance of coronavirus spreading in your school, and what to do in the event of a suspected case of Covid-19

31

49 Outdoor Learning Phil Avery from Bohunt Education Trust argues an outdoor programme, led by holistic aims rather than performance measures, has the potential to help self, school and system

53 Flexible Working Emma Turner explores the benefits of flexible working from the viewpoints of school leaders and teaching staff, and challenges traditional working practises and ‘part-time’ prejudice to promote more innovative and flexible ways of working

25 Design & Build

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The use of offsite modular technology will help deliver the government’s ten-year school rebuilding programme, as well as help meet the UK’s net-zero target. The MPBA’s chief executive Jackie Maginnis explains how

29 Security It is important for schools and colleges to have a policy and plan in place to manage and respond to security related incidents. The Department for Education’s guidance on school and college security offers some advice on crime prevention measures

31 IT & Computing How are schools meeting the challenges of delivering remote learning? Computing

37

experts are leading the way on coping with the challenges of education during coronavirus

Education Business magazine

49

www.educationbusinessuk.net Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Advertisement Feature

Ready to help pupils rediscover their love for learning Plugging the attainment gap with the NTP. A combination of parents having to adapt to homeschooling at speed, makeshift equipment and in some cases, families being unable to afford computer equipment, meant that some pupils across the UK were unable to do the virtual work they were set when schools were closed, resulting in a delayed delivery of curriculum.

These were just some of the issues outlined in Ofsted’s recent report, as it warned the scale of lost learning caused by Covid-19 will be ‘significant’.

Reinforcing the issue of the impact that Covid has had on education over the past few months, further insight provided

by Ofsted revealed that across all age groups, children with SEND have been seriously affected in both their care and education, as the services that families relied on – particularly speech and language services – were unavailable.

Almost all (98%) of the 3,000 teachers questioned by the foundation admitted that their pupils were behind the place in the curriculum they would normally expect for the time of year. With the sample surveyed revealing that they had covered just 66% of their usual curriculum by July, this meant that pupils were estimated at three months behind in their learning due to no fault of their own.

by school closures owing to Covid-19, the National Tutoring Programme is designed to offer schools the opportunity to access discounted programmes of tuition through approved tuition partners.

This catch-up tuition funding is in addition to the pupil premium and pupil premium plus funding, which schools may already be accessing to provide additional support to pupils who require it.

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News

TEACHER TRAINING

New Institute of Teaching set to be established

A new Institute of Teaching is set to be established in England to provide teachers and school leaders with training and development throughout their career.

Training will be delivered through at

least four regional campuses, launching in September 2022, with the Institute being the first of its kind in the world.

The national initiative will deliver evidencebased approaches to teacher training, and

also include mentoring and early career support, alongside leadership courses and continued professional development, building on existing high-quality provision.

It will be funded as part of £22 million for teacher quality agreed at the Spending Review.

The Institute will become England’s flagship teacher training and development provider.

The training is likely to be delivered through a blend of online, face-to-face and schoolbased means. When the Institute is at full capacity, it is expected to deliver training for around 1,000 ITT trainees annually; around 2,000 Early Career Teachers and 2,000 mentors annually; and 1,000 NPQ participants annually.

It will continue to build evidence around the most effective approaches to training and developing teachers, and will use this to support other teacher development organisations, including new Teaching School Hubs.

CLICK TO READ MORE

EDUCATION

STUDYING ABROAD

Education and children’s services recognised in New Year’s Honours List

New study abroad programme replaces Erasmus scheme

119 people have been recognised in this year’s New Year Honours List for their outstanding contributions to the education and children’s services sectors. The list includes headteachers, teachers, social workers, foster carers and many more who work with the most disadvantaged in society as well as those selected for their efforts during the pandemic.

Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson said: “The work that went in to making sure pupils could continue their vital education during national restrictions has been phenomenal. It is fantastic to see so many people being recognised with some of the highest honours this country can award.

“I would like to congratulate all the recipients on the New Year’s List because their work is so inspiring and deserving of recognition.

“I would also like to offer a special thank you to those who continue to dedicate their

time and support during this national effort to combat Covid 19. This list highlights the many committed professionals who are working tirelessly across education and children’s services to deliver better outcomes for young people and students across the country during this challenging period.”

Mark Siswick, headteacher at Chesterton Primary School, which located in a highly deprived area of South West London, has received an MBE for his efforts during the pandemic. When the Prime Minister announced that all schools would be closed from 23 March 2020 except for vulnerable children and the children of key workers, Siswick was at the forefront of an effort to make over 140 films that teach the government’s ‘letters and sounds’ programme available to children remotely.

CLICK TO READ MORE

A new programme known as the Turing scheme will replace the UK’s participation in Erasmus+, allowing students to study and work abroad.

The scheme will be backed by over £100 million, providing funding for around 35,000 students in universities, colleges and schools to go on placements and exchanges overseas, starting in September 2021.

The new scheme will also target students from disadvantaged backgrounds and areas which did not previously have many students benefiting from Erasmus+.

The programme will provide similar opportunities for students to study and work abroad as the Erasmus+ programme but it will include countries across the world and aims to deliver greater value.

CLICK TO READ MORE

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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News

RECRUITMENT

41,000 new trainee teachers recruited during 2020 Annual recruitment figures have shown that there were 41,000 new trainee teachers recruited during 2020.

Following this, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson has reaffirmed his commitment to boost the numbers of teachers to “build back better from the Covid pandemic in 2021”.

Campaigns to hire more teachers, NHS staff, prison officers will be ramped up throughout the year, with ministers ready to redouble efforts to fill frontline roles to further support public services.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “We have the very best public servants and I feel an enormous sense of admiration when I think about the care, fortitude and determination with which our doctors, nurses, teachers, police officers and prison workers have faced up to the challenges of the pandemic.

“There is light at the end of the Covid tunnel - the vaccine provides increasing hope of returning to normality by Easter and I am determined that we build back

better from the pandemic and take advantage of the opportunities that are ahead. My commitment to recruit more teachers, nurses, police officers and other frontline workers is unwavering. We have made good progress this year, but 2021 will be a year of growth and renewal – and having the very best frontline workers will be a critical part of that.”

CLICK TO READ MORE

EXAMS

Interim chief regulator of Ofqual appointed

Simon Lebus has been appointed as interim chief regulator of Ofqual, replacing Dame Glenys Stacey from 1 January 2021. He will be in post up to 17 September 2021.

Lebus has worked in the education sector

since 2002, most notably as chief executive of Cambridge Assessment between 2002 and 2018. He now has a non-executive portfolio.

Ian Bauckham CBE, interim chair of Ofqual from January 2021, said: “We are delighted to have secured Simon Lebus as interim chief regulator. Taken together these arrangements will ensure that Ofqual has the extra capacity, support and oversight it needs to make sure that next year’s arrangements command public confidence, and to deliver its part in key qualification reform programmes.”

Simon Lebus, interim chief regulator at Ofqual from January 2021, said: “I am pleased to have the opportunity to serve as chief regulator. I look forward to working

REMOTE LEARNING

FINANCE

BBC TV programmes to boost remote learning

Almost all schools incurred extra costs due to pandemic

The BBC will start broadcasting educational programmes for both primary and secondaryaged pupils from 11 January while schools are closed during the lockdown.

It said there would be three hours of primary-aged shows including BBC Live Lessons and Bitesize Daily Lessons on its CBBC channel each weekday. This will include content such as Horrible Histories, Art Ninja and Operation Ouch as well as occasional Celebrity Supply Teacher lessons.

BBC Two will broadcast two hours of shows each week day for secondary-aged students, designed to support the GCSE curriculum.

CLICK TO READ MORE

Less than a third (31 per cent) of the additional costs facing schools as a result of the pandemic are covered by the government’s support fund, a new report by the Education Policy Institute (EPI) finds.

The research finds that virtually all schools have had to spend more this year in order to operate in a ‘Covid-safe’ environment, with half of schools having to use their reserves and half unlikely to balance their budget by the end of the year.

The analysis, which is based on responses from over 700 schools covering March to November 2020, distributed through the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) and the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), finds that almost all schools reported extra expenditure on PPE and cleaning supplies, while a large majority faced additional costs from signage, digital equipment and handwashing facilities.

Schools have also spent more on

with colleagues at Ofqual, its board, the DfE, awarding organisations and across the education and training sector to ensure a smooth-running exam series in 2021 and to tackle important longer-term issues such as technical and vocational qualification reform and supporting innovation in assessment.

“Having spent 15 years of my career involved with public exams and qualifications, I have no doubt that Ofqual has an absolutely central role in ensuring the integrity, independence, fairness and quality of our assessment system and it will be a privilege to lead it in doing that.”

CLICK TO READ MORE

teaching staff this year and this is expected to increase in the months ahead.

While the government has provided some financial relief to schools through its ‘exceptional cost fund’, EPI estimates that of the total Covid-related costs to schools in the country, the majority will not be met by the fund.

This means that many schools will still be facing a significant bill following the pandemic – a shortfall which amounts to £40 per pupil and which may force schools to make savings elsewhere. This shortfall is the equivalent of half the funding allocated by the Department for Education to schools to help pupils catch up with lost learning.

Significantly, while all schools have seen extra costs last year, these new findings indicate that the pressure of this additional expenditure will be felt most in schools with high levels of disadvantage.

CLICK TO READ MORE

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Advertisement Feature

Build safer campuses with hybrid cloud surveillance Across the UK, schools, colleges, and universities are investing in hybrid cloud video security in order to instantly strengthen critical security infrastructure across educational sites.

By eliminating the need for NVRs or DVRs – one of the most common entry points to a network by hackers – and requiring only a single ethernet cable, Verkada Hybrid Cloud cameras are brought online instantly. No technical configurations or downloads are required, giving authorised users the ability to quickly access and share footage on any device.

One of the inherent advantages of Hybrid Cloud security is centralised video management, with the ability to gain instant visibility of cameras and system health all on one screen, from any device. With cloud-connected cameras that operate at 20kbps, the system scales—whether you’re deploying ten or hundreds of cameras—without depleting bandwidth resources.

Unlike traditional CCTV systems, Verkada systems have no open ports and release regular firmware and software updates. With the highest encryption standards and security enhancements that deploy automatically—and at no cost—systems are always up-to-date with the latest security regulations.

In 2019, Mayfield School received a multi-million pound grant from the Department for Education (DfE) for a complete campus rebuild and a new Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Maths (STEAM) centre. As part of the rebuild, head teacher David Jeapes, was required to

upgrade the school’s CCTV system, which was decades old and semi-operational.

Also attractive with a Hybrid Cloud solution is that it makes planning for the school year simple. Verkada’s pricing model is as simple as it gets: cost of camera and cost of software. With an industry leading 10-year product warranty and free system updates, always have the latest in security without affecting forecasted budgets.

Due to the large student body and expansive campus, it’s imperative for David Jeapes and the 200 staff on campus to be trained and aligned in response to emergency situations. “When we last did fire drills, I used Verkada’s heat map technology and multi-camera playback to analyse how to manage traffic through different corridors, stairways and exits. The ability to pinpoint where blockages exist, then develop solutions as a precaution, makes all the difference for any high-risk situation.”

With seven major campuses and a number of teaching sites that span across Bath, and surrounding areas, Bath Spa University has embraced Verkada’s Hybrid Cloud solution in order to improve visibility across campus. By centralising camera feeds into an easy-to-use platform that requires no onboarding, security and facilities staff can find incidents of interest quickly. In emergency situations, users can share live feeds instantly via SMS or link and quickly get footage into the hands of first responders.

“Because I can curate and control who has access to which feeds, it’s easy for me to ensure that data is guarded with utmost security. (Verkada) provides the necessary protections that allow us to be fully GDPR compliant.”

- Andy Williams, Head of Facilities and Services, Bath Spa University

To learn more about Verkada’s easy-to-use CCTV solution, get started with a 30-day camera trial today.

News

DESIGN & BUILD

CORONAVIRUS

£800 million schools upgrade in Scotland

NHS Test and Trace launches Covid website for schools

Scottish Education Secretary John Swinney has revealed that 25 new schools and campuses are to be constructed or refurbished to provide modern, state of the art learning facilities for approximately 21,000 children and young people across Scotland.

Scottish Government funding, alongside local authority contributions to Phase 2 of the Learning Estate Investment Programme, will enable almost £800 million of investment across 18 local authorities. The programme will deliver digitally enabled, low-carbon schools and campuses, ensuring they are inclusive and welcoming places that meet the needs of the whole community.

The Learning Estate Investment Programme follows on from the successful Scotland’s Schools for the Future (SSF) Programme which to date has delivered 116 new or refurbished learning facilities, with the final project in the programme due to open in April 2021. The SSF programme will have benefitted approximately 78,000 pupils who will now learn in fit for purpose, good or satisfactory condition schools.

CLICK TO READ MORE

PE & SPORT

Wonder Woman resources to raise activity levels Charity Youth Sport Trust is teaming up with Warner Bros Pictures’ upcoming film Wonder Woman 1984 to support schools and families who are experiencing rising levels of inactivity.

The partnership has seen the creation of free digital resources themed around the inspirational DC Wonder Woman franchise and Wonder Woman 1984. Together, they hope to harness the power of sport to help families re-connect with one another, have fun, be challenged, re-establish friendships and create a sense of belonging.

Wonder Woman’s characteristics of truthfulness, compassion, strength, optimism and courage, as well as her promotion of peace, her fight for justice and her sense of equality, are referred to throughout the resources. They have also been designed to include multiple levels of challenge, be fully accessible to children with and without Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), and provide a range of activities based on individual, team or adventure challenges - all with safety protocols in mind.

Schools can access the resources by visiting the Youth Sport Trust’s website.

CLICK TO READ MORE

A new website has been launched by the government to help children and young people better understand how to keep safe during the pandemic, as well as guiding them through the testing process.

The new Storicise website has been developed for schools by NHS Test and Trace in collaboration with the doctors who feature in CBBC’s Operation Ouch! The website contains coronavirus facts, presented in a format designed to inform and reassure children.

The new platform has been designed to support classroom teachers on the new

testing programme, with engaging content and resources delivered by the well-known Drs Xand and Chris Van Tulleken. Materials use interactive storytelling and quiz-style games to bring to life the work of NHS Test and Trace so children aged 5 to 18 can better understand coronavirus, the importance of testing, and how they can stay safe through regular handwashing and creating space around others.

CLICK TO READ MORE

RECRUITMENT

Rise in teacher numbers in Scotland, statistics show The total number of full time equivalent teachers in Scotland has risen to its highest figure since 2008, official statistics confirm.

New figures have revealed that there were 53,400 teachers employed in early learning and childcare, primary, secondary and special schools or centrally employed. This is 1,153 more than the 2019 total (52,247).

Average class size in primary schools fell to their smallest since 2012, down to 23.1 from 23.5 in 2019.

The 2020 pupil teacher ratio for all publicly funded schools was 13.3, an improvement on 2019 when it was 13.6.

The data relates to the annual census of pupils and teachers which took place on 16 September 2020.

Education Secretary John Swinney said: “I welcome this significant rise in teacher numbers, which is the largest annual increase since equivalent statistics began in 2006.

“The COVID-19 pandemic led us to take action to help pupils catch up with learning having been out of school, and

we have invested an additional £80 million to recruit more than 1,400 additional teachers and 200 support staff this year – all of whom are now in place.

“A drop in class sizes is also welcome news as it is a crucial element in our ambition to close the attainment gap between the most and least deprived.

As we continue to navigate through this pandemic, our focus will steadfastly remain on delivering equity and excellence.”

CLICK TO READ MORE

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Advertisement Feature

Promotional content by American Express

The solution to streamlining student payments

Written by Dan Edelman, vice president & UK general manager, Global Merchant Services at American Express

At American Express, we’re proud to be offering innovative new products, like Pay with Bank transfer, to help education providers in the UK operate smoothly, safely and successfully this academic year while significantly easing the administrative burden on education organisations.

As we start a new year, one of the only things we can be certain of is change. The Covid19 pandemic has created a huge amount of disruption and forced all sectors to adapt, pivot and try new things. The education sector is no exception and technology will continue to play a fundamental role in underpinning change, whether facilitating remote teaching or ensuring the right back end processes are in place to support virtual administration.

When it comes to payments, initiatives like Open Banking, and the technology behind it are also driving changes with benefits for both students and staff alike. For students, it’s helping provide a secure, speedy way to pay for things online and on the move, directly from their bank account. And for finance and accounting teams at education providers, it offers them an important opportunity to overcome the challenges associated with financial reconciliation.

Overcoming the challenge of inaccurate payments It may sound surprising given the comparative size of many financial transactions in the education sector, such as in the form of course fees or accommodation costs, but payment reconciliation continues to be a significant challenge.

The main issue is that it’s usually a very manual process. And, as with any manual process, there’s plenty of opportunity for human error. Often, setting up these payments involves many fields to fill out with long numbers and codes - and it takes just one small slip to enter a number or letter incorrectly. Not only is the process time consuming, but it can also be stressful. Particularly when larger sums of money are involved, like course fees.

12

Untangling these small errors can cause delays and hassle for both the payer and payee - in this case, the student and education organisations. With hundreds, sometimes thousands, of students paying for different courses and other education costs, reconciling payments can be a significant drain on schools’ and universities’ time.

Why Open Banking is the answer Open Banking legislation, which allows the secure sharing of financial data, has led to the creation of new technology platforms and products that can help tackle this reconciliation problem currently faced by the education sector.

One such product that is providing measurable results in this area is Pay with Bank transfer, powered by American Express.

Pay with Bank transfer launched in September 2019 and leverages Open Banking technology to offer UK consumers a fast and secure way to make payments. It’s one of the first Open Banking initiatives in the UK powered by a globally recognised and trusted brand, and enables users to make payments to a wide variety of merchants directly from their bank account, safely and securely, without the need for a card to hand.

The service can be used by current account holders at major UK banks, from high street banks such as Barclays and HSBC to digital banks such as Monzo. And they don’t need to be an American Express® Cardmember to use it.

Pay with Bank transfer almost entirely removes the requirement to manually enter payment information, by using embedded identifiers that can be instantly matched to the right student account. This makes it an easy, accurate and convenient payment method for students

How Lancaster University is using this technology One of the UK’s top-ranked higher education institutions, Lancaster University, adopted Pay with Bank transfer in 2020 to help streamline its payments process.

Seeking to empower students and parents to make course fee payments with greater ease and security, Lancaster University turned to Pay with Bank transfer to support this process.

Whereas before students would be required to manually set-up and enter all payment information, Pay with Bank transfer has automated the payee set-up. This includes a bespoke integration of student IDs, directly into the payment process. This is pre-populated using information provided and verified by Lancaster University, meaning that each payment is automatically attributed to the correct student account - vastly improving the experience for the University and its students alike.

“Lancaster University see Pay with Bank transfer as an exciting opportunity to further improve our payment experience for students, parents, and alumni, whilst at the same time delivering processing and financial benefits to the university” commented a spokesperson from the University.

And users of the payment tool are no less enthused about its ease and convenience: “I didn’t have to use any passwords to log into either the Lancaster site or my banking app (both utilising face ID) so the process was genuinely one of the best online transactions I can remember doing.”

At American Express, we’re proud to be offering innovative new products like Pay with Bank transfer to help universities and education providers in the UK operate smoothly, safely and successfully this academic year. L

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BUSINESS INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION | www.educationbusinessuk.net

Back in 2017, the Department for Education I was told recently about Purley Oaks Primary launched the Schools’ Buying Strategy.

School, Nursery and Children’s Centre in The intention was to deliver a range of Croydon, a local authority maintained interventions to directly support buyers school. They saved £20 per pupil using in schools to get best value, save them RPA, halving their annual cost of cover. time and ultimately enable them to invest But it’s not just financial benefits that RPA those savings back into the front line. offers. The RPA team are taking a more Over the last three years we have worked holistic and proactive approach to protecting with schools and partners and seen incredible schools who are at greatest risk of flooding progress. With the support of ‘Buying for or crime. We are working closely with Schools’ initiatives, schools across England partners across government to take action have realised savings of £337 million as of and reduce the risk of schools flooding or November 2019 and this money has gone becoming victims of crime in the first place. back into the front line. We should not Whilst ensuring that we respond quickly underestimate this collective achievement. when the worst happens, prioritising

supporting getting schools back up and Building on what works well running as soon as possible, to ensure children We have listened and learnt a lot from don’t miss out on valuable days of education. school leaders, school business professionals We want to continue to expand and and professional associations. And with improve the range of DfE approved deals this learning in mind, we will publish our for schools in the coming year and be updated ‘Buying for Schools’ Prospectus in responsive to your needs as buyers.

2021. Our approach for the next three years will be one of evolution. We want to build More than just money upon what you have told us works well.

You have told us, loud and clear, that We’re very lucky to work with fantastic value in procurement terms is about more school business professional networks, than money. It’s about time efficiency, over 100 of them across the country. These ease of access and use and customer networks offer invaluable peer to service. We will keep that at the peer support, share best practice forefront of our thinking as we and are provide us at DfE deliver on this strategy.

My commit with feedback and insight Late last year we ment to you about the big issues launched our new in you are facing. Our furniture deal for beyond 2021 and is ambition is to have schools, working t o provide you wit an active network in with six providers in h b e t ter acce to quali every part of England. s s ty In 2020 we launched services procurement a the first Special that wil nd support Schools Network. l time an save you This was the vision of d mone a colleague who was y formerly a school business manager in a special school.

She recognised the unique set of buying challenges that working in that environment brings, and the value of connecting with peers. I am incredibly proud to say than since launch in September 2020, this network now has 170 members.

2020 also saw the Risk Protection Arrangement (RPA), the DfE’s own alternative to commercial insurance, made available to local authority schools, as well as academies.

RPA now provides both value for money and peace of mind to a membership of Matthew Gage, over 7,300 schools and academies across programme director, Department for Education’s England. In the first few months over 450 commercial team for schools local authority schools have signed up.

the market, we were able to put together a framework that offers the education sector choice and flexibility – as well as value. We’ve received over 70 enquiries in the first few weeks and we hope to bring more new deals to you in early 2021.

Improving our digital support to you is also a priority, providing better access to deals that meet your needs and developing a range of helpful tools and guides to make complex buying easier for you.

In the coming year, we will continue to work with our pilot school buying hubs in the North West and South West and move towards offering all schools and academies across England hands-on support with complex procurements.

I recognise that the last year has been incredibly challenging for everyone who works in a school. The importance of the work you do as school business professionals has been rightly bought to the fore during the pandemic and is recognised and greatly appreciated. My commitment to you in 2021 and beyond is to provide you with better access to quality procurement services and support that will save you time, money – and provide value for your school. L

Written by Matthew Gage, programme director, school’s commercial team, Department for Education

Matthew Gage, programme director for the Department for Education’s commercial team, looks back at the Schools’ Buying Strategy, and shares how the department aims to support schools with procurement in the future

Procurement

DfE support for school procurement

To find out more about how the DfE can help you and your school search, ‘buying for schools’ at www.gov.uk FURTHER INFORMATION www.gov.uk

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Giving you a helping hand on all your procurement contracts – from facilities management to utilities YPO has created a Contracts for Schools offering, with a handpicked range of framework agreements to help save schools time and money when setting up their contracts

We understand that you’ve got a million and one things to think about when it comes to running your school. So here at YPO, we’ve created a Contracts for Schools offering, where we’ve handpicked a range of framework agreements to help save you time and money when setting up your contracts. Our recently established education procurement team is dedicated to simplifying the procurement process for primary and secondary schools across the UK. Research carried out by the British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA) found that 40 per cent of schools currently believe their procurement process isn’t costeffective. With education budgets increasingly tight, our education procurement team offers customers a way to maximise their buying power and simplify the procurement process, while also remaining compliant with public sector procurement regulations.

Since YPO was first established in 1974, we’ve helped drive public sector efficiency savings through our bulk buying power for product supplies and centralised contract services initiatives. Our newly established team offers schools direct access to these benefits completely free of charge, reducing the need for costly in-house administration and procurement consultancy support.

Ash Cartwright, Education Business Manager answers the most frequently asked questions around contracts for schools and how YPO can help you.

How did YPO come up with this offering?

Our research showed that some school business managers didn’t know where to start when it comes to contracts. Do you start looking at your utilities or catering?

Where are your quick wins for saving money? How complex is this procurement?

How do you write a specification? How much would it cost to get a consultant in to do this? The list goes on.

That’s why we’ve handpicked and created bespoke framework solutions for education

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establishments, to help save you time and money. Lots of our education customers are already using them, so we’ve been able to create over 40 solutions, knowing the challenges and budget restrictions you may be facing. Our team will help completely free of charge, it’s impartial, and you don’t have to use our frameworks. We’re here to give you the care and support you need.

Can a school hand over all thing’s procurement to YPO’s education procurement team and is there a cost?

We’d first look at the needs and wants of your school. It might be an array of things such as whether your contract is running out in the next six or 12 months; if you want to switch suppliers; guidance on writing a specification; if you need help with supplier management; or if you are reviewing prices you’re currently paying.

As a team, we work out exactly what you’re trying to achieve and where we can give you support. So, whether it’s a simple task of looking at specifications or that full end to end process of carrying out the procurement.

We then put a proposal together to see the timelines and what your expectations are, then take it onto the next stage.

Does YPO have a benchmark figure of what a consultant would cost against YPO’s free of charge service?

It depends on the size of your project. We’ve found that if it’s large scale projects some consultants have been charging £5,000 upwards just to do a little piece of work on the consultancy side of things. Whereas because we’ve already got those frameworks set up and we’ve got procurement qualified staff, it’s sort of incomparable to a consultant.

We want you to view us as an extension to your team, an education specialist hub that’s there to support and advise on purchasing best practice for schools.

This year a member of our team was on a secondment in a MAT as a free impartial procurement advisor. The good thing for YPO is if we do put our staff into a school and we haven’t got a certain framework for them, we’re learning as well. We’re getting that insight on what can be beneficial for schools first-hand and then we can put a solution in place to meet that need.

Recently a school came to us asking about a contract for school uniforms, which we didn’t have at the time. But we’re now in the process of pulling that offering together.

Where would YPO help us, where do you start?

We start by putting together a procurement pipeline, looking at what you’d like to do over the next 12 – 24 months. Then look at what your goal is. Is it to make savings on some of your current contracts, or is it to set up a brand-new contract? We’ll review your current contracts and suppliers if that’s what your goal is and advise on how you can make savings. Then we can start planning out projects for you to review over the next six, 12, 18, 24 months, mapping out what needs to be completed when, and hopefully help your school become more efficient and make some savings along the way.

What are the key frameworks that schools are looking for at the moment?

COVID-19 has had a great impact on schools and buying patterns. Schools are wanting support around deep cleans and washroom services, so we’ve helped by looking at their current contractors to see if they’re getting the correct service.

Remote working has become the new norm, bringing an increase in ICT solutions.

We’re also seeing an uplift in printing and photocopiers. With each pupil having to have their own individual classroom packs there’s more of a demand on having to make copies of workbooks etc which means more people are using the machines. So there’s also that need for photocopiers to be more COVID-19 secure and transitioning over to infrared solutions to minimise the amount of cross-contamination.

Other areas we’re seeing more of a focus around is office supplies. We’re looking at doing consolidated office supply deals too as people are wanting to secure and drive down better deals for their essentials and consumables so they’ve got a lock- in price, which we can do.

How has COVID-19 effected procurement in the education sector?

When COVID-19 started to affect our day to

BUSINESS INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION | www.educationbusinessuk.net

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day lives back in March, the government put in place some emergency procurement rules and changes. These changes meant that schools could extend current contracts they were in at the time, rather than having to do a new procurement. We helped a lot of customers do that and get the best value. We also helped schools emergency award their contracts, whereas previously a school would have to do the full tender process to award. If it was related to COVID-19, you could bypass the standard regulations. This was used for schools to get some emergency deep cleans done or purchase essential cleaning equipment.

What if a customer is completely new to procurement, doesn’t understand the procurement jargon? Can you help? Some of the frameworks that customers see in the public sector seem very complicated.

When we carried out our research, we found that some of the terminology used in public sector procurement is quite complex and this was reflected in our framework offering that was predominantly used by our local authority customers. So, we’ve tailored our Contract for Schools offering to strip back the jargon, make

it easy and to understand, and the team will hand hold customers every step of the way.

We’ve changed the titles of our contracts, reviewed our user guides and created a standardised template for each stage of a school’s procurement project.

Procurement in general can be quite daunting as it encompasses a huge array of things. The team can help you with underperforming suppliers; if you’re paying too much money for something; or if the price of a service has gone up.

The team can also help if your contracts need renewing; knowing where to start if you’re completely new to procurement; and pulling together templates and checklists.

YPO also helps with credit checks and supplier insurance review; checking your supplier’s third-party contractors; advertising your procurement for you; holding supplier opening days; and working with you to answer any clarifications a tendering supplier may have. The team can also evaluate tenders with you or on your behalf, or leave it completely to you.

We’d ask those high-level questions like how big is your premises? How many times will you need it cleaning? Who is your current supplier?

Are they private or public sector or through

your local authority? How many staff members do you have on-site, how many pupils? Our team have a checklist of essential criteria and once we’ve got your background information, we’ll pull together some recommendations and guidance to see how we can help you, and how much support you need.

We’ve also created templates we can give to customers so we can support you through the journey. So with setting up a CCTV contract, for example, you’ll need to know the point of entry within the building, the quality of camera you’re needing, your broadband speed to link the CCTV equipment up to. We pull together all the details to help us paint a picture of what’s required.

Another thing we can do is supplier management. So over the life of the contract, we can help support you through that. We don’t just leave you to it once you’ve set up your contract. We’ve got a sales team that can help, they can be on-site or have regular zoom meetings, they can help stabilise that new supplier, ensure that they’ve got a physical presence on the ground. We can do that full end to end support.

A customer might be someone who’s already been involved in procurement before that can hit the ground running, or maybe it’s somebody that requires more handholding. Whatever your procurement needs, we’re here to help!

Does YPO have any DfE recommended frameworks?

We have a few including our Gas and Electricity offering as well as Photocopiers and Printers. We also have our Home to School App, which helps parents monitor their children’s journeys on school buses. Featuring alerts and automated messages, the app uses realtime tracking to notify schools and parents of delays, route changes and absences. This has also been an approved route to market by the DfE during the COVID-19 pandemic. L FURTHER INFORMATION www.ypo.co.uk/contractsforschools

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Education Business Awards

2020 Education Business Awards winners revealed

With Digital Information Technology, Creative Media and Computer Science offered on the curriculum at Blessed William Howard, facilities to enhance learning are essential.

The school has a ratio of roughly three computers per child and features ‘pods’ of computers in all subject sector areas as well as four dedicated ICT Suites.

The ICT Innovation Award, sponsored by PFU, was presented to Dartford Grammar in Kent, for its work as a Computing Hub, driving up computing standards in schools across the region. Following the impact of coronavirus, the school was quick to switch to the remote delivery of courses. Minister for School Standards Nick Gibb has recently praised its ambition and work.

The winners of the Education Business Awards have been announced, with schools across the UK recognised for the dedication and hard work of teaching and support staff, who have been put under particular pressure during the pandemic The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted how vital schools are to society. In the height of lockdown, schools remained open to children with key worker parents and vulnerable children. They also had to keep pupils motivated and engaged from a distance. Once schools re-opened, they had the difficult task of balancing the need for a Covid-safe environment while still providing a full educational experience for pupils, as well as ensuring remote learning is provided for those self isolating.

The Education Business Awards, sponsored by LocknCharge, have been recognising and celebrating school success stories since 2006. This year, due to social distancing restrictions, they were presented live online on 26 November by award-winning comedy impressionist and classically-trained singer Jess Robinson, who was joined live by voiceover artist and impressionist Darren Altman.

Outstanding progress Scooping the award for Outstanding Progress in the Independent school sector, sponsored by Lock ‘N’ Charge, was Whitgift School in London.

At Whitgift this year, over half of students achieved 40+ points in the International Baccalaureate, a feat typically achieved by only the top 10 per cent of students worldwide. This year’s scores were based on externally marked coursework for all students in all subjects. At the beginning of 2020, a director of partnerships and community was appointed to further enhance and take forward the School’s vision. While the school remained closed during the pandemic, it supplied vans and drivers for the Croydon Volunteer Action Food Banks and created visors as Personal Protective Equipment for frontline NHS staff.

Kearsley Academy in Bolton meanwhile were the winners for Outstanding Progress Award in the secondary school category, sponsored by Lock’n’Charge. Kearsley Academy’s GCSE results for 2019 stood at 65.3 per cent, a rise of 23.3 per cent since 2017. Despite being located in a disadvantaged area where the percentage of students drawing pupil premium is around double that of the national average, over

16

Security and safety Southfields Academy in London won the School Security Award, sponsored by the past two years the number of students Churches Fire and Security, for making use who pass English and Maths has risen by well of body cameras on teachers. When the over 20 per cent, with 52 per cent of students camera is switched on to film an incident, achieving a strong pass - far higher than the default option means that the footage national average figures. This has placed the is encrypted and it cannot be edited prior to Academy in the top 20 most improved schools. being uploaded to a secure Cloud account.

The primary school that took home the Their presence has helped to de-escalate trophy for Outstanding Progress, sponsored confrontations. by the Emotional Logic Centre, was Perry The School Safety Award, sponsored by Court E-ACT Academy in Bristol.

Churches Fire & Security, was presented to St In 2017, Perry Court was the worst Mark’s CofE Primary School, for the support performing school in Bristol and placed in the it gave families to manage the return to bottom one per cent of the country’s primary school after the Covid-19 lockdown. Strong schools. A dramatic turnaround now sees relationships with parents include employing Perry Court ranked in the top one per cent of a community and wellbeing leader and an schools nationally for both attainment attendance officer to support pupils, and progress in reading, including phone calls and home visits writing and mathematics, The fortnightly, weekly and every three a particularly impressive awards working days. Bespoke and achievement given were p targeted learning packs ensure that half of all pupils home learning is purposeful, at the academy are by impr resented e s achievable and well from disadvantaged s i o nist and singer J monitored by staff. The suite backgrounds. ess

and vo

Robinso n,

iceover Buildings a a n d i m and the pressionrtist Darren i environment Altmanst The Environmental Practice Award, sponsored by Office Depot, was presented to Damers First School in Dorse for their eco-work, which has had a huge reach locally and nationally. The school has worked with their local community, informing everyone how they could reduce their use of plastics. Pupils even put pressure on local businesses leading to one local butchers becoming a zero waste shop.

In recognition of its new £40 million, energy efficient building, Harris Academy Sutton won the School Building Award, sponsored

by TG Escapes. It is the first secondary school in the country to meet the Passivhaus energy performance standard, which uses around 80 per cent less energy than equivalent buildings of traditional design.

Technology The ICT Facility Award, sponsored by Lock’n’ Charge, was taken home by Blessed William Howard Catholic High School in Staffordshire.

BUSINESS INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION | www.educationbusinessuk.net

school has developed strong relationships with the local community. Links with Exeter Area Arts presented the opportunity for West Hill to work with a master’s student from the University of Exeter. The focus topic of ‘holistic art education’ and how it is perceived by teachers gave rise to lengthy interview sessions and explored the importance of the Arts within the curriculum and how it supports children’s personal confidence, mental health and well-being as well as the potential to unlock creativity, talents, depths and excellence. The school aims to continue to develop its arts provision and extend the effects and influence further through activities, experiences and CPD that benefit both pupils and teachers in tangible ways.

Gretton School scooped the SEN Provision Award in recognition of the first class education it provides to children on the autism spectrum, and for taking care of the physical and mental wellbeing of pupils and staff during the coronavirus pandemic.

Three teachers were also recognised in last year’s Pearson National Teaching Awards.

Gretton’s headteacher Beth Elkins said: “It is just lovely to even be nominated for an award - the thought that people ‘out there’ have not only heard of Gretton, but have recognised all that we do is wonderful. To win the award was astonishing! I was in the virtual awards ceremony, and - when the SEN Provision of the Year category came up - I found I was holding my breath! We were up against some very worthy opponents, so when they announced that we had won, it was just so exciting! What a recognition! Though, when I look at the staff and all that we do for and with our wonderful young people, it feels like recognition of the very best kind. We are really delighted.”

Downlands Community School in West Sussex was awarded the STEM trophy for coordinating and managing the Sussex Science Learning Partnership (SLP), which

provides subject specific continuous professional development (CPD) for primary and secondary schools and FE providers in the area. Three 4Clubs have raised the profile of STEM subjects nationwide.

Catering and procurement The School Catering Award was presented to Finham Park 2 in Coventry for its Food Preparation and Nutrition room, which has 20 cooking stations for pupils to work independently. The school also runs a ‘Grub Club’ - an after school club for Pupil Premium and vulnerable students where they are taught to cook a cheap, healthy meal.

The School Procurement Award was taken home by Addington School & Wokingham Borough Council for its modular buildings contract. The expansion will enable an additional 50 local children with special educational needs and disabilities to be educated closer to home, with the school’s capacity boosted to more than 250 students due to the extra space.

Sixty to seventy per cent of the building work for the new block will be completed offsite, helping to keep disruption to the school and its students at a minimum.

The School Recruitment Award, sponsored

by Randstad Education, was awarded to Sturton-by-Stow Primary School in Lincoln for its work carrying out interviews remotely.

Following advice from HR, pre-employment checks were adapted so that they can be completed remotely whilst complying with safer recruitment. The School Business Manager held video calls with successful candidates, who displayed the necessary documents on the screen and then sent copies for verification by the local authority. L

Education Business Awards

of options for home learning can be deployed flexibly in the year ahead; especially if there are unplanned school closures or pupil absences.

Wrenbury Primary School in Cheshire scooped the Community Award for its partnership with a medical practice and nursing home. Year 4 children visited a medical practice to promote awareness about immunisation in their local community.

Wrenbury Nursing Home also provided the children with personal stories of life prevaccination from some of the residents. The school followed their immunisation activity up by presenting what the children had learnt to parents and grandparents at their Summer term Sharing Afternoon. The children involved then went on to lead an assembly on the importance of immunisation.

The School Music Award was presented to Cobham Free School in Surrey for its links to Yehudi Menuhin School and a number of flourishing instrumental and choral groups, as well as its Music Award Scheme. At Key Stage 3 all students have class music lessons taught by the director of music, with a wide range of topics, covering and extending beyond the requirements of the national curriculum.

The School Sports Award was given to Upton Junior School in Kent, for its strength delivering PE and sport, confirmed recently by the Youth Sports Trust. During the ongoing lockdown, sports coaches Callum Noble and Jordan Maclaurin ensure no-one misses out by regularly providing structured activities via online streaming for boys and girls. These include fitness videos, sports challenges and lockdown sports clubs for the children as well as participation in the virtual Viking Games with Upton’s partner Viking Academy Trust schools, Ramsgate Arts Primary and Chilton Primary.

The Art & Craft Award was presented to West Hill Primary School in Devon. In September 2019, the school was awarded its third Artsmark Gold, and through its activities the

FURTHER INFORMATION www.awards.educationbusinessuk.net

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Tips for the sanitisation of devices in schools Through routine sanitisation practices, the potential threat posed by contaminated devices can be significantly reduced. Read on to learn about the differences between cleaning and sanitising, along with effective sanitisation methods for your frequently used devices

Most of us understand the power of hand washing to prevent the spread of germs.

Because people frequently touch their eyes, nose and mouth without realising it, keeping your hands clean can keep you healthy. But not everyone thinks about how touching cell phones and other devices contaminates our hands before we reach up to scratch our noses.

Typical mobile phone users touch their phone 2,617 times every day. And that’s just the average! Ten per cent of phone users touch their phones twice as much1.

In its Guidance for Schools and Child Care Programs, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises that surfaces that are frequently touched should be cleaned and disinfected, especially classroom laptops and tablets.

We think everyone would agree that thousands of times per day is frequent.

Through routine sanitisation practices, the potential threat posed by contaminated devices can be significantly reduced.

Read on to learn about the differences between cleaning and sanitizing along with effective sanitisation methods.

What’s the difference between cleaning, disinfecting, and sanitising?

The CDC provides the following guidance on the difference between cleaning, sanitising, and disinfecting.

Cleaning removes germs from surfaces or objects by using soap or detergent and water to physically remove germs.

Disinfecting meanwhile kills germs on surfaces or objects by using chemicals.

Sanitizing lowers the number of germs on surfaces or objects to a safe level, as judged by public health standards or requirements.2 Why is sanitising and disinfecting cellphones and smart devices important?

Did you know a cell phone has 18x more bacteria than a public restroom?

Streptococcus, MRSA and E. coli have all been found lurking on devices.

Nonporous surfaces like smartphone screens can also make it a perfect environment for the coronavirus. Studies show that coronaviruses may persist on surfaces for a few hours up to several days 3. School bathrooms are cleaned frequently, so should school devices.

With proper sanitisation methods, you’re lowering germs on a surface, which can reduce the risk of spreading germs.

What are the best methods for sanitisation?

As our friends at Firefly Computers say, “You can’t just drench a computer in Lysol®.” Care has to be taken to avoid getting moisture on charging ports or other openings and damaging screen, keys, and internal components. There’s also more to keeping your school devices clean than just wiping them down with a microfiber cloth. Here are three of the best methods for sanitisation.

1. Isopropyl alcohol wipes Apple® recommends the following sanitisation method. “Using a 70 percent isopropyl alcohol wipe or Clorox Disinfecting Wipes, you may gently wipe the hard, nonporous surfaces of your Apple product, such as the display, keyboard, or other exterior surfaces.” Google confirms that it’s okay to use isopropyl alcohol wipes on their devices as well4.Regardless of the type of device, always power it down first.

2. Rapid UV-C technology with UVone™ If you’re looking for a sanitisation method that is up to 10x more effective than wipes against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that casuses COVID-19, UVone helps mitigate the spread of viral bacteria anywhere devices are being used or shared through rapid UV-C technology*.

To be effective, traditional wipes can take upwards of three minutes to disinfect.

Teachers and IT staff already short on time, can’t spare several minutes sanitizing each device. UVone UV-C disinfection for mobile devices works in just 30 seconds.

Also, UV-C light disinfects in a consistent manner, making it more reliable and efficient than wipes – plus, it does not degrade the integrity of devices over time.

With touchless sensors, students and staff never physically touch the station, reducing cross-contamination.

UVone rapid uv-c technology seamlessly integrates into any school environment, such as inside classrooms, in communal public areas, or any other location that is most convenient and visible.

3. 5 Steps to clean sanitise classroom laptops Experts recommend first powering off the device and removing accessories or plug-ins. Then clean the screen with an LCD-safe solution applied to a microfiber cloth. Use 70 per cent isopropyl alcohol applied to a soft cotton rag to wipe down the keyboard and external chassis. Lastly, wait for the alcohol solution to evaporate before turning the laptop back on.

Take care of yourself and put together a back to school safety plan. Keep washing those hands and sanitising those devices, and let us know if we can help keep the germs at bay in your school or classroom. L FURTHER INFORMATION For more information, visit www.lockncharge.com

*LocknCharge’s kill rate claims are based on data conducted by accredited, BSL-compliant laboratories. For more information about our testing data, please visit www.lockncharge.com/ uvone-testing-data.

Sources: 1 Here’s how many times we touch our phones every day – Business Insider 2 How to Clean and Disinfect Schools to Help Slow the Spread of Flu – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 3 Study suggests new coronavirus may remain on surfaces for days – National Institute of Health 4 How to Sanitise Your Smartphone – Consumer Reports Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Keeping schools as safe as possible during the coronavirus outbreak involves robust cleaning, including increasing your regular cleaning schedule Speak to your cleaning staff to agree additional hours for cleaning. You don’t need to deep clean on a regular basis (only when someone has symptoms of, or confirmed COVID-19). However, enhanced regular cleaning is required, and your cleaning staff will need to clean frequently-touched objects between use by different groups (see the section directly below to find out which objects this applies to). They will also need to clean rooms and shared areas more frequently, and between use by different groups.

To make cleaning easier, try to minimise clutter and remove items that are difficult to clean, throughout your school, where you can.

scanners. The same applies to communal Focus on high-contact kitchens or canteens - speak to your catering and shared areas staff about whether they’re doing this, or Your cleaning staff should use standard whether your cleaning staff need to. cleaning products (such as detergents and Your cleaning staff should also clean shared bleach) to clean and disinfect frequently areas and resources between every use by touched objects and surfaces, and should different bubbles or groups. This includes wipe these down regularly. These include: outdoor playground equipment, dining halls, door and window handles, banisters, work classrooms, hard toys (you shouldn’t have surfaces (including desks and tables), soft toys in school during coronavirus) bathroom facilities (including taps and sports, art and science and flush buttons), remote equipment. If it’s not possible controls, computer equipment Check to clean equipment between (including keyboards and whethe groups, store it for 48 mouse devices), classroom cleanin r your hours (or 72 hours for resources such as books g plastics) between uses. and games, furniture, carry ou staff will t Avoid asking nonlight switches, reception a d c e lean as ep cleaning staff to do desks, telephones not fee some may daily cleaning like E and fingerprint

Written by Ciara Lamb, content editor at The Key

Cleaning is a fundamental part of keeping schools safe for both staff and pupils during the pandemic. Ciara Lamb from The Key outlines what regular cleaning arrangements you should have in place to minimise the chance of coronavirus spreading in your school, and what to do in the event of a suspected case of Covid-19

Cleaning

How to approach cleaning in your school during coronavirus

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Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Cleaning after a suspected case of COVID-19 If you’ve had a suspected case on your premises, you may need to do a deep clean of certain areas. It’s unlikely that you’ll need to close the school to do this. Your local health protection team will contact you to carry out a risk assessment and advise whether or not a deep clean is necessary.

Check whether your cleaning staff will carry out a deep clean as they may not feel equipped or comfortable to carry out a deep clean, and some unions are advising against it. To check this, speak with your cleaning provider (if you outsource) or your cleaning staff directly (if you keep it in-house).

If your cleaning staff aren’t comfortable carrying out the deep clean, speak to your LA to find a suitable specialist cleaning provider.

It can be helpful to provide a checklist for a deep clean to your cleaning staff, or the provider carrying out a deep clean, so you can be confident that everything’s covered.

The Key has a free downloadable checklist which is based on Public Health England’s guidance for COVID-19 decontamination in non-healthcare settings that schools are being signposted towards in the DfE’s guidance for full opening of schools.

When carrying out a deep clean As a minimum, cleaning staff need to wear disposable gloves and aprons – they should wash their hands with soap and water for 20 seconds once they remove these. If there’s

You’ll need a safe and secure place (away from children) where you can store waste from suspected cases until the individual’s test results are known, and for at least 72 hours if they test positive a higher level of contamination (e.g. the symptomatic individual has slept somewhere on site) or there’s visible contamination with body fluids, cleaning staff may need to protect their eyes, nose and mouth. The local health protection team’s risk assessment will let you know if this is necessary.

Make sure staff use one of the following cleaning products; either a combined detergent/disinfectant solution at a dilution of 1,000 parts per million available chlorine, or a household detergent followed by a disinfectant with the same dilution as above.

If they use an alternative disinfectant, check that it’s effective against ‘enveloped viruses’.

Check you can meet the waste disposal requirements You’ll need a safe and secure place (away from children) where you can store waste from suspected cases until the individual’s test results are known, and for at least 72 hours if they test positive. If you don’t have an appropriate place to store the waste, you’ll need to arrange for a collection of ‘category B’ infectious waste by your local waste collection authority (if they currently collect your waste), or a specialist clinical waste contractor. L

Ciara Lamb is a content editor at The Key, a provider of up-to-the-minute sector

Cleaning

 washing bathrooms, or cleaning desks or floors, unless it’s in their job description.

If you’re concerned you don’t have enough cleaning staff to carry out the enhanced regular cleaning outlined above, contact your local authority (LA) for advice.

intelligence and resources that empower education leaders with the knowledge to act.

The advice in this article was taken from The Key’s resource ‘Coronavirus: how to approach cleaning in your school’, which is based on guidance from the Department for Education, Public Health England and advice from the following unions: Unison, ASCL and NASUWT. FURTHER INFORMATION www.thekeysupport.com

Frequently touched objects and surfaces Frequently-touched objects and surfaces, like the following, should be regularly cleaned: Door and window handles Banisters Work surfaces (including desks and tables) Bathroom facilities (including taps and flush buttons) Remote controls Computer equipment (including keyboards and mouse devices) Classroom resources, such as books and games Furniture Light switches Reception desks Telephones Fingerprint scanners Communal kitchens or canteens (speak to your catering staff about whether they’ll be doing this) And between every use by different bubbles or groups, your cleaning staff should clean shared areas and resources, such as: Sports, art and science equipment Outdoor playground equipment Hard toys (you shouldn’t have soft toys in school during coronavirus) Dining halls Classrooms

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Design & Build

Polegate School ©Wernick

Written by the MPBA’s chief executive Jackie Maginnis

Modular technology in the school rebuilding programme which will help to deliver high-quality education facilities as swiftly as possible.

Many are concerned about the impact Covid-19 will have on education, it is therefore even more crucially important that school building programmes get back on track as soon as possible to ensure teachers and students have the best possible England – including substantial investment environments as they make up for lost time. in the North and the Midlands – as part

School buildings are critically of the Prime Minister’s plan to level important. The physical and up opportunity for all. social environment in which Inschoolchildren and staff Expertise in modular house spend a high proportion technology conditio of every weekday has As the construction ns profound effects on their industry starts to emerge prevent physical, emotional from this pandemic, from in weather and mental health as it’s important we lay h i b itin constru well as affecting their the foundations for ction p g the r attainment. For most a more rapid and o c e guaran schools, however, creating sustainable schools teeing ss, efficien new spaces is not a building programme, cy straightforward task - there where the focus is on will be many practical and quality and delivering financial constraints to consider. education facilities that The major headaches for are fit for the future. The use of headteachers and governors include serious offsite modular technology will help disruption such as, noise, dust, changes meet the government’s net-zero target. to access, security, caused by a traditional We are pleased that some of our members construction project and managing the health have been appointed to bring their expertise and safety of the staff and children during the in volumetric modular technology to the construction period. There are already E fore within the offsite schools framework,

The use of offsite modular technology will help deliver the government’s ten-year school rebuilding programme, as well as help meet the UK’s net-zero target. The MPBA’s chief executive Jackie Maginnis explains how Schools across England are set for a transformative ten-year rebuilding programme under radical plans to be set out by the Prime Minister at the end of June 2020.

Representing the first major school rebuilding programme to be launched since 2014, schools will benefit from substantial additional investment. The rebuilding programme will start in 2020-21 with the first 50 projects.

These new education projects will be greener, helping meet the government’s net-zero target, and will focus on modern construction methods – volumetric modular technology will play a major part in the delivery strategy.

This initiative comes on the back of the Department for Education’s (DfE) announcement in January 2020 revealing the offsite schools framework ‘to cultivate innovation and modernise the industry by increasing the adoption of Modern Methods of Construction.’

The DfE programme will deliver some 30 offsite schools a year with a projected pipeline of up to £3 billion over the next four years.

Investment will be targeted at school buildings in the worst condition across

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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BUSINESS INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION | www.educationbusinessuk.net

 complex challenges around operating school sites securely and cost-effectively, to deliver a safe and suitable environment for pupils, staff, and community users.

Although many think volumetric modular construction is a new thing – numerous companies have remarkable histories, in some cases between 55 to 80 plus years, in providing the highest-quality modular buildings – from temporary classrooms to multi-storey teaching blocks complete with offices, catering facilities and welfare accommodation.

The modular industry has had a remarkable impact on reducing build programmes whilst increasing quality and safety. Having gained considerable momentum over the past few years, advanced modular techniques reduce build times by an impressive 50-60 per cent.

The demand for customisation has led the industry to develop methods for adaptation during the mass production process to meet individual school’s requirements.

Benefits The main benefits of these modern methods for the education sector include predictability of costs and timescales, faster delivery, and less disruption, noise and dust on-site. Other benefits include 90 per cent fewer vehicle movements, improved health and safety, consistent quality, and a major reduction in post-handover defects. Reduced environmental impact and enhanced Sustainabilitylifecycle analysis, demonstrating 40 per cent reduction overall, are other benefits.

Offsite technology offers benefits that have had a huge positive impact on the construction industry, bringing longstanding traditional practices up to date. The first key shift away from traditional methods is that build processes take place in controlled factory conditions, which requires a change of mind-set and approach. These modules can be delivered to site pre-fitted with electrics, plumbing, heating, doors and windows, thereby reducing the onsite building programme and accelerating the overall construction process.

Aesthetics More and more schools are switching on to the speed of factory manufactured buildings, but what about the aesthetic? The characterless demountables of the past have given way to

Design & Build

Riverside School ©Portakabin

The demand for customisation has led the industry to develop methods for adaptation during the mass production process to meet individual school’s requirements. digitally-led, modern designs, indistinguishable from traditionally constructed buildings.

Module selection is influenced by transportation dimensions and shipping distances. A number of other factors are also holistically considered to achieve optimal design efficiency. Module connection details and quantities, installation and crane rates, specific site logistics, all must be considered, together with foundations/ transfer decks, volumes of required materials and other service core requirements.

As units are factory manufactured, stringent quality control processes can be undertaken within these well-managed environments.

These in-house conditions also prevent weather from inhibiting the construction process, guaranteeing efficiency. In addition, modular construction enables site work and building processes to be completed simultaneously, reducing labour costs and build times.

Modular approaches are revolutionising the construction industry. Whilst traditional build processes are laced with pitfalls, hidden costs and are highly disruptive – volumetric modular buildings are easy to plan, budget, and are quick to install. Modular technology

brings a host of benefits to the construction industry, contributing to healthier, safer and more cost-efficient environments.

Factory construction methods pose far fewer risks when compared with inherent dangers of a building site. The reduced onsite building time, coupled with the indoor manufacturing environment, combines to reduce the risk of accidents associated with construction sites. A recent report

by CIBSE (Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers) Journal has concluded the construction industry could reasonably expect a significant reduction in incidents if it adopted more of a manufacturing mindset.

With students becoming more conscious of climate change, introducing the concept of sustainable volumetric modular construction approaches will be beneficial. The modular way limits the amount of concrete, which is a significant issue for traditional builders.

Eco-friendly materials are often specified and each individual component can be selected specifically for its performance characteristics, tailoring every inch of a modular build. There is also minimal waste, as the classrooms are built to exacting designed specifications and any offs-cut can be reused or recycled – reducing waste to landfill.

About the MPBA The MPBA plays a key role in the connecting of sectors in the modular and portable building industry. The association collaborates with specialist technical advisors to enhance innovation in the design and manufacture of modular buildings. These can be designed and manufactured from timber or steel in any size and shape to meet individual client needs while ensuring full compliance with building regulations. To discover how modular technology can benefit education construction plans visit the website below. L FURTHER INFORMATION

Polegate School Classroom ©Wernick

www.mpba.biz

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Advertisement Feature

Is your school fence dangerous?

A smart, secure, fence can go a long way to building the image of a school, but fencing that’s been vandalised, looks in disrepair, or appears easy to breach communicates a less positive message. Simply installing a secure fence isn’t enough, it must be regularly inspected so that it continues to protect the school and does not endanger any pupils or staff.

So, what should you look out for when checking whether your fencing is safe and secure?

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Sharp edges – Including peeling paint and splinters, knots in timber that could trap pupils’ fingers, and foreign objects stuck in the fence.

Additional features – Is there anything attached to the fence that could pose a risk? Does any attached lighting have dangerous dangling cables? Or have signs been cable-tied to the fence, creating a potential arm trap?

Climbing aids – Make sure bins or play equipment are stored away from the fence to stop people climbing in or out of the school.

Natural hazards –Thorny plants growing through the fence can pose a safety risk, as can any overgrown trees pushing down on the fence.

Instability – Give the fence a push to check its structural integrity and look for any leaning. A bad installation or shifting foundations could pose a danger. Additionally, look for loose pales that could be removed and replaced to gain repeated access.

Access points It’s essential any vehicles entering or leaving are not using

the same gates as the children. If this isn’t possible, consider implementing restricted times for vehicles to enter; before the school day or during lesson times.

Automated gates must be installed by a reputable professional and regularly maintained. Improperly calibrated gates or lack of safety devices can pose a huge safety risk.

Health and wellbeing We generally think of a dangerous fence as something that could physically hurt a pupil. However, as mental health awareness has increased, so too have the designs of fencing. Tall, rusty chain-link fences could create a prison-like atmosphere, rather than a safe, nurturing environment, and cause unnecessary mental distress.

Noise Noise pollution can also impact mental health, as well as disrupting learning. If your school is close to a busy road, it may be worth considering an acoustic fence to block harmful sound. This also works both ways, a school should always try and keep neighbours happy by trying to reduce noise.

Playgrounds Playground fencing should be RoSPA approved with anti-trap properties, safe fixings and self-closing gates to prevent injury.

Contact us today and we’ll talk you through how to improve the safety and wellbeing of your students and staff.

www.jacksons-security.co.uk | security@jacksons-fencing.co.uk | : +44 (0) 800 408 1359

It is important for schools and colleges to have a policy and plan in place to manage and respond to security related incidents.

The Department for Education’s guidance on school and college security offers some advice on crime prevention measures Protection of premises against a potential criminal, terrorist and other unlawful action is an important issue. You should consider how both local and national security incidents might impact on your day-to-day business and the safety and security of staff and students.

Whilst you may determine that you would routinely have to deal with incidents involving abusive or threatening individuals, or acts of vandalism on site, consideration should be given to the likelihood of a more serious incident occurring, such as one involving a student with an offensive weapon, a serious cyberattack, or a physical attack on the premises.

In determining the type of preventative action to be taken, you should keep in mind that any measures put in place should be proportionate to the type of threat when assessed alongside the likelihood of it occurring and the impact that it would have on school or college life. Where significant risk is identified, you should review your existing measures and where necessary update them. For example, review invacuation and evacuation procedures, or consider whether to introduce dynamic lockdown procedures in order to help manage an increased level of risk. The local police will be best placed to give advice on lockdown procedures where there is a threat to your school or college.

Making the best of your estate In particular, understanding and making best use of your estate can improve its security.

A well maintained estate can act as a visible

deterrent and underpin risk prevention plans.

For example, having good access controls and effective physical security measures, such as security lighting, will make it harder for an intruder to infiltrate buildings and premises.

The DfE’s good estate management for schools offers practical advice on effective estate management and governance.

Controlling access to school premises provides guidance on handling incidents and restricting access to, and barring of abusive or threatening individuals from, school premises and clarifies what a school is able to do should such an incident occur. Section 85A of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 enables the removal of a person committing, or who has committed an offence of nuisance or causing a disturbance when on premises of colleges, 16 to 19 academies and institutions maintained by local authorities that provide FE and HE. Searching, screening and confiscation at schools makes clear that where a headteacher or an authorised member of staff has reasonable grounds for suspecting that a pupil may have a prohibited item in school, they have statutory powers to search pupils and their possessions without consent and can seize prohibited items found as a result of the search. The advice also explains the law on the deletion of images from mobile phones and the confiscation of prohibited items. This may be particularly relevant if you are facing challenges associated with pupils carrying offensive weapons, especially knives, into

Security

The importance of protecting people and premises

schools. Sections 85AA to 85AD of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 creates separate search powers relating to FE institutions and 16 to 19 academies if there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that a student may be carrying a prohibited item applicable to their age.

If you have concerns about weapons being brought on to your premises, you should discuss these concerns with the students identified as being at risk and establish what mechanisms should be put in place to ensure the students are kept safe. Before considering the installation of any physical screening of pupils (for instance a knife arch or wand), you should first consult with the local police, who will be able to provide advice about whether installation of these devices is appropriate.

The Home Office provides Preventing youth violence and gang involvement guidance for staff in schools or colleges affected by gang or youth violence. When developing an approach, it is recommended that you discuss ways to address youth violence with local police and community safety partners, as well as other local educational institutions.

Violent crime As part of its response to violent crime the Home Office has also developed a resource pack for teachers and other professionals working with young people at risk of involvement in knife crime. These resources can be used in lessons or alongside other relevant materials to deliver messages and advice to young people on the consequences of knife crime. The campaign signposts teachers and young people to support services.

Counter Terrorism Policing have collaborated with specialists from the PSHE Association and Girlguiding to produce ACT for Youth.

The Run Hide Tell resource pack provides a comprehensive toolkit, including lesson plans, posters and short films. You can use it to introduce security awareness into your school or college, to actively and openly engage with students about the impact and consequences of violent crime and terrorist activity on themselves and others and equip them with good advice and strategies to use outside of your school or college.

In circumstances where the DfE is made aware of an extremist or counter terrorismrelated incident at an education institution, it will work with the local authority and other partners to ensure that the relevant support is provided. This would include, if appropriate, support from a FE or HE Prevent Coordinator or the Prevent Education Officer.

External providers and visitors can provide a varied and useful range of information, resources and speakers that can help you deliver security related messages to staff and students.

Whilst these sources can make an effective contribution to internal programmes, you must be careful to ensure that external programmes and providers are effective. Local authorities, academy trusts or other schools and colleges in local networks may be able to give advice on the effectiveness of providers and resources. L FURTHER INFORMATION www.gov.uk

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Advertisement Feature

Radix VISO TeacherView – fixing what’s broken in K12 remote or hybrid learning

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The world is moving towards distance learning/working for many reasons. COVID 19 changed our world and accelerated the transformation process. In order to keep safe and open, schools moved to distance learning, transforming the classroom experience. If moving to distance learning wasn’t easy for many, teachers also had to work with at least two or three platforms in order to manage the class: classroom management, video conference and learning management systems. Moving between platforms is not ideal, it is time-consuming and teachers are less focused on teaching. Other challenges that teachers are facing in remote or hybrid learning setting, communicate with their students while keeping their digital safety a high priority.

Look to Radix VISO TeacherView, an all-in-one solution: A cloud-based classroom management solution equipped with a built-in video conference system, enabling teachers to focus on teaching in a remote or hybrid setting, stay in touch with their students and provide them the best possible learning experience.

Built to scale, VISO TeacherView provides teachers with the tools they need to have a seamless experience of a traditional physical classroom virtually, monitoring not only the video camera, but also the students’ desktops in real-time, virtually walk between students and engage either in 1:1 mode or group collaboration, monitor the class attention level and assist students in real-time.

Streamline the learning experience and keep your finger on the classroom pulse.

Remote at home, local at school or hybrid classrooms, the solution can be used during emergency and routine, move to distance learning in a click of a button.

For further information visit: www.radix-int.com

Key features: • Share teacher or student screens and video camera • Distribute content from the cloud/ local drive and share websites • Use multi-user whiteboard for collaborative learning • Respond silently to electronic “hand raises” • View thumbnails of students’ screens in real-time • Work alongside or remotely take control of screens • Keep students on-task and apply device usage policies • Lock screens to maximize attention and minimize distractions • Limit access by blacklisting and whitelisting websites • Conduct surveys and quizzes • Synchronize with Google Classroom Other key benefits: • Running on AWS – redundancy and a highly secured environment • GDPR compliant Running on: • Windows devices, Chromebooks and Macs • Coming soon Android and iOS support We welcome all customers looking to facilitate remote, local or hybrid learning

The impact of coronavirus saw teachers The digital divide adapt quickly to new ways of working in Lack of access to technology has, by far, 2020. It looks like the challenges are set to been the biggest challenge. “We carried out continue in 2021. For teachers who specialise a technology survey to see what devices in computing and STEM subjects, it’s seen students had at home. Many students have them bring their expertise to the fore. smartphones but they can’t complete work Chris Hillidge, director of STEM at The on these. Work is set on Google Classroom Challenge Academy Trust which runs schools and lessons are live streamed or pre-recorded and colleges in Warrington, said their prior focus so children can access them,” said Chris. on tech had meant they were well-placed to “Our school is an area of considerable meet the challenges of the impact of COVID-19. socio-economic deprivation and many “Luckily, we were ahead of the game to students simply do not have a suitable some extent because I’d already introduced device at home, or access to the internet.

Google Classroom in 2019 across the “As teachers have become more proficient school for ‘flipped learning,’ pre-learning and provided better quality content we have and extension work,” said Chris. seen an increasing divide, especially with “The first lockdown accelerated our use of younger students, whose parents don’t have online resources and remote the necessary tech skills to support their capabilities and, since children to access learning online.”

September, we have Overcoming those challenges For seen some amazing has meant drawing on support teacher innovative practice who sp s from teachers of in comp ecialise all subjects.” ut

ing and STEM s u b j e lockdow cts, the them b n has seen expertisring their e to the fore

Training to deliver online lessons At Bolder Academy in Isleworth, West London, staff were given training to deliver online lessons.

“Staff were given a choice regarding the methods of delivery, such as live lessons or pre-recorded - which helped to ensure staff felt comfortable and confident whilst still providing a high quality curriculum,” explained Adrienne Tough, head of computing, e-safety and digital learning at the school.

“We also contact home to help resolve any practical issues and encourage engagement.

This parental contact, combined with praise through virtual postcards and house points has had a positive impact for online attendance and helped us achieve a strong online presence.”

Primary schools have also faced challenges, particularly with online access and with balancing classroom teaching with remote learning.

Martyn Soulsby of the leadership team at North Lakes Primary School, Penrith, said the workload has been immense for staff who are already stretched.

“Staff are coping with extra duties because they are in bubbles,” said Martyn who is also computing lead at the school.

“Tech at home is a real issue as well as ensuring staff have decent laptops, with laptops doubling in price and schools simply not having the budget for these. We are in Cumbria and broadband is variable – it is not possible to provide equality when E

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

Written by Victoria Temple, community engagement officer at the National Centre for Computing Education

How are schools meeting the challenges of delivering remote learning? Victoria Temple from the National Centre for Computing Education shares how computing experts are coping with the challenges of education during the pandemic

IT & Computing

Enabling learning from a distance

from a variety of sources. Laptops have come via the government’s programme, Get Help with Tech, and some local authority provision as well as new partnerships. Their Local Enterprise Partnership funded 35 laptops and WiFi dongles for disadvantaged students and they’ve received 50 SIM cards with data allowance from Vodafone.

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Parallels RAS for Education Software on demand, anywhere “Parallels RAS makes it simple for our IT admins to support any device that students and teachers prefer to use and saves us hours of setup time.

The Parallels RAS mobile client for iOS and Android enables our students and teachers to be truly productive on the go or at home.”

Paul Miller, Head of IT, Cambridge Judge Business School

STUDENTS AND FACULTY Our technology allows students and faculty to work on the go without losing their progress. There is no need to start over sessions or reconfigure printers & scanners. Secure access is assured using either smart cards or multifactor authentication (MFA) on mobile devices.

REDUCE HELP DESK TICKETS Centralizing the IT infrastructure reduces complexity while cutting up to 70% of he number of trouble tickets, giving back time to IT staff to work on other projects.

STUDENT LABS Each year, efforts to recreate deliverable labs to students can be expensive and time-consuming. Our solution allows you to centralize the lab infrastructure and stream it to students. Templates enable easy management and deployment.

REINFORCED SECURITY By delivering server-based desktops and applications from a central location, IT can easily back up endpoints, deploy and maintain applications securely, and meet compliance regulations.

LICENSE CONTROL WITH BYOD Streaming applications and desktops minimizes deployment time, updates and license control for institutions that have a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy.

parallels.com/ras

Developing the solution to post-pandemic learning

The most pressing problem facing university and school administrators during the current COVID-19 pandemic is how to deliver high-quality education remotely.

In a world where distance learning is fast becoming normal, university and school IT administrators need to ensure their solutions are equipped for the digital learning environment students expect.

A virtual desktop infrastructure or (VDI) delivers applications and desktops to any device. In the multi-device era, any remote learning solution must be able to support smartphones, in addition to desktops and laptops, to deliver flexible learning for all students.

Applications play a huge role in providing students the environment they need to continue classroom activities online and educators should ensure this experience is as seamless as possible.

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The best solutions provide IT administrators with the convenience of diverse options for delivering applications and desktops remotely: through Remote Desktop Session Host (RDSH), VDI, Windows Virtual Desktop or Remote PC. VDI solutions don’t have to be complex and expensive – the highest-quality solutions can also be cost-effective and easy-to-use.

Features like simple configuration and fast installation keeps the focus on improving the educational process. VDI solutions that don’t require complicated set-ups or have out-of-the-box load balancing technology ensures simplicity for both users and IT support. When it comes to security, look for multifactor authentication, smart card authentication, advanced encryption protocols and a granular level of filtering.

Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) has a proven track-record as a

remote working solution for universities and schools, adding value by centralising management and control of system access. IT administrators don’t have to install, patch, configure and secure every digital resource on each individual device. Moreover, it’s possible to create remote labs with simplified access.

The Cambridge Judge Business School implemented a VDI solution with Parallels RAS. The school has a staff and student body of 520, all using different devices. The CJBS IT department wanted flexible, mobileready learning workspaces that would be simple to secure, scale and maintain through a consolidated IT infrastructure.

Using Parallels RAS, the business school was able to extend their bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy to support more devices and decrease time spent on IT maintenance.

Developing location-dependent learning has never been more important. Parallels RAS allows both educators and students to use the applications they need when they need them. To find out more visit Parallels RAS for education and try it for free. Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn. L FURTHER INFORMATION www.parallels.com/ras

BUSINESS INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION | www.educationbusinessuk.net

IT & Computing

 not all pupils have connectivity or when there are three pupils sharing one device with parents working from home too.”

The right resources Devices are key, but so is getting the right online resource. The National Centre for Computing Education (NCCE) has also adapted to ensure its resources support teachers’ new reality of delivering remote and classroom learning.

Dave Gibbs, STEM Learning’s senior computing and technology specialist and part of the NCCE’s team, praised teachers who have “performed minor miracles to keep children learning.”

“Schools are now past the ‘emergency response’ phase of remote teaching and into more regular patterns of provision,” said Dave.

Support from the NCCE has been designed with both classroom and remote teaching in mind, feeding into the government’s Oak National Academy home learning provision.

“The NCCE has been busy adapting our Teach Computing Curriculum to Oak National Academy. The lessons are video-rich; are freely-available; and require no registration,” said Dave.

“For A-level Computer Science teachers, the Isaac Computer Science platform provides learning materials and videos, as well as self-assessments and online student master classes, to support the full curriculum.”

The NCCE launched its Teach Computing Curriculum in the summer with over 500 hours of teaching materials to deliver the entire computing curriculum from Key Stages 1 to 4 in England.

“There have been over 145,000 lesson downloads by all our users since September,

with an overall satisfaction rating of 97 per cent positive,” said Dave.

“And to help schools develop a curriculum implementation plan, which may include remote teaching, our team of subject matter experts is ready to work with schools upon request. They’ve already supported 1,000 schools across England.”

While the coronavirus may have led to isolation, it’s also shown the value and strength of communities.

Computing at School (CAS), a teacher-led network supported by the NCCE, has seen increased attendance at its online meetings and events to share resources and ideas.

“CAS Community Leaders have supported their communities with targeted meetings and our programme of CAS Inspire events has focussed on cross-curricular delivery of Computing to support the primary curriculum and teaching safely using online technologies,” said Beverly Clarke, national community manager at CAS. Back in Warrington, Chris Hillidge, who also runs a CAS community and leads the NCCE Computing Hub for Merseyside and Warrington agreed, says: “CAS has been a really useful support network and back in May and June we saw increased numbers of teachers accessing the NCCE’s remote CPD courses.

“I think it showed teachers that remote learning can be as simple or complex as you want to make it so long as it is effective and learning takes place.

“The pandemic has definitely accelerated teachers’ tech skills – teachers who were Chromebook-phobic in March are now running virtual subject networks remotely because they realise that it saves so much time without travelling to a central venue.

“We’ve come through an extraordinary, challenging year and, despite the social

distancing we’ve also seen new and stronger partnerships forming which will stand us in good stead for the future.” L FURTHER INFORMATION www.teachcomputing.org

National Centre for Computing Education The National Centre for Computing Education provides a range of support in England to improve the teaching of computing in schools and colleges from primary through to GCSE and A level and aims to drive up participation in Computer Science.

It delivers a wide range of professional development, both face-to-face and online, along with resources and support from regional school-based Computing Hubs and the grassroots Computing at School community.

It was established in November 2018 with £84 million of government funding and is led by a consortium of STEM Learning, The Raspberry Pi Foundation, and BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT. This level of investment in the development of teachers of computing is unprecedented anywhere in the world.

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Advertisement Feature

Remote learning: five takeaways from a thriving district tech department If there’s one thing we’ve learned from the 2019-2020 school year, it’s that we all have adaptability within us. Here we are, navigating fully-remote learning. As we’ve witnessed innate creativity and problem solving surface during these unprecedented times, it’s helpful to take a look at the best practices that have allowed some schools to pivot a little more quickly and smoothly than others

David Termunde is the Chief Technology Officer for Arbor Park School District 145 in the greater Chicago area. He leads the Information Technology Department, or what’s better known as PandaTech, handling everything software, app and hardware related for their four schools and fleet of school busses. As the district’s first-ever CTO, David was hired three years ago to not only bring Arbor Park up to speed technologically, but also to future proof their tech plans.

While no one could have predicted the future for which they were “proofing”, David and his team felt well positioned when the sudden shift to remote learning struck.

Here are the top five takeaways that they believe set them up for success.

1. Jump In In the past two years, Arbor Park made a complete shift from labs with traditional desktop computers and shared mobile devices to a 1:1 program for grades 1-8.

After rigorous research and setting up a forward-thinking infrastructure, they were able to move quickly, which has helped to acclimate students and staff at an even pace with little pushback. According to David, “the extensive teacher training and professional development on new devices and platforms has certainly paid off during COVID-19.”

2. Charging is Key While 1:1 take-home programs can help foster a sense of responsibility in

students, lost and uncharged devices can be a prevalent interruption. To combat uncharged devices, Arbor Park offers a charging station in the lunchroom of the middle school. Their media center houses a LocknCharge FUYL Tower, which features an Intelligent Asset Management System and 15 individually-lockable compartments.

Each compartment is equipped with a power outlet and USB port, putting the tech team in total control of any device they secure – whether that’s the Microsoft Surface Go laptops used by 3rd-8th graders, the staff’s Surface Pros, the younger students’ iPads or virtually any other mobile device.

3. No More Behind-the-Scenes IT Part of the big picture plan for the district was to give the tech team its own mascot and brand. They’re not a stale, impersonal “help desk.” They’re the Pandas. Although their desks are housed in PandaLand, you’re more likely to see them out and about in one classroom or another – fixing issues or looking for problems to solve proactively.

Equipment like the FUYL Tower plays a part in the Panda brand. It doesn’t look like a relic of the past. It’s exciting, sleek and modern, and it piques the interest of students. The team has successfully made themselves more visible and more approachable – an invaluable aspect to their 21st century IT Department.

As students, teachers, staff, and parents rely more heavily on technology for learning, they also rely on their Pandas for support.

4. Technology as a Teammate PandaTech is made up of five full-time employees. While that’s a bigger team than they’ve had in years past, they’re also managing more technology than ever before.

In a district of 1,350 students, and especially during these remote learning circumstances, finding ways to let technology work harder for your team is crucial.

Typically, their FUYL Tower is used for securing charged and ready-to-go loaner devices. When students have forgotten or lost their device, they are able to independently check out what they need from a Tower.

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Due to COVID-19 school closures, the Pandas have tweaked their FUYL Tower workflow to enable a no-contact pickup location for warranty replacement devices and accessory purchases. Here’s how it works. Just like an amazon locker, the FUYL Tower was relocated to a publicly-accessible location within the school. Parents are able to place tech orders from the district’s ecommerce site, and Pandas fulfill the order by placing it in a FUYL Tower compartment.

Parents follow simple email instructions to unlock and pick up their order from their assigned FUYL Tower locker number the following day.

Pandas are able to view the Tower’s activity log, change pin codes, open up compartment doors and more – all remotely through the web-based management portal. David compared the FUYL Tower to “a part-time Panda” that’s always there helping the team provide the

same high level of service, even when they’re not on site. Best of all, it allows them to be available and focused on e-learning support, rather than curbside pickups.

5. Keep Innovating Arbor Park was fortunate to have a level of preparedness for remote learning that many districts did not. It’s not by chance, but instead a top-down, district-wide commitment to technology, improvement and innovation. LocknCharge is a company built on that same spirit. Just like Arbor Park School District 145, we’re always looking for solutions to tomorrow’s problems so that we can continue to make life easier for our customers. L FURTHER INFORMATION www.lockncharge.com/eu/

Hygiene compliance during unprecedented times For years, LocknCharge products have been known to save time and make life easier. UVone from LocknCharge is no exception. If you’re looking for a sanitisation method that is up to 10x more effective than wipes against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that casuses COVID-19, UVone helps mitigate the spread of viral bacteria anywhere devices are being used or shared through rapid UV-C technology*. To be effective, traditional wipes can take upwards of three minutes to disinfect.

Teachers and IT staff already short on time, can’t spare several minutes sanitizing each device. UVone UV-C disinfection for mobile devices works in just 30 seconds. Also, UV-C light disinfects in a consistent manner, making it more reliable and efficient than wipes – plus, it does not degrade the integrity of devices over time.

With touchless sensors, students and staff never physically touch the station, reducing cross-contamination.

UVone rapid uv-c technology seamlessly integrates into any school environment, such as inside classrooms, in communal public areas, or any other location that is most convenient and visible. *LocknCharge’s kill rate claims are based on data conducted by accredited, BSL-compliant laboratories. For more information about our testing data, please visit www.lockncharge.com/uvonetesting-data

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Offering help in your school’s cyber space Accordant’s Education Assessment looks at cybersecurity through the specific eyes of the education sector and its unique demands

Keeping Students Secure Never without its challenges! The education sector has seen a whole new way of working in 2020; students at home and lessons delivered online, schools open then closed again, regional differences and enforcing social distancing with teenagers – no small ask that’s for certain.

And then there was cybersecurity...

The idea of students being at home sounds pretty simple to the lay person, yet it brings with it many layers of security issues. They are using their own devices for the most part, not always the same ones or even the same types. Identity validation may be straight forward when you can see your student on the screen, yet what about at login or work submission? Sending course work back and forth you need to be certain that your malware defences are 100 per cent secure.

During the year, we have looked at a number of school cybersecurity reports and policies, and they vary widely. Some are ‘External’ and include reports to governors, as you would expect, yet almost all focused on GDPR as the only dimension of education cybersecurity. This is a bit like looking at the back of a playing card and guessing at the value. It’s one sided. Taking education

cyber security seriously, you need to have a full understanding of all the data flows, as well as the data sources and sinks; the staff and student interactions, how and where these take place, and through which vehicles and toolsets. Of course, internally within the organisation you have a degree of control that you can exercise, yet once data leaves the building, you are, to a degree, exposed to the whims of others.

Protecting students means what exactly?

Students’ personal data, next of kin details and course work, are well known examples; however, what controls have you put around data with other levels of security and risk? Welfare reports, statements of need, communications with other agencies such as CAMHS or CAFCASS? These data are sensitive and need much more protection.

Are the same laptops used to deliver Year 9 Science, used to deliver an individual’s statement of need? If so, how are they segregated, and where is that laptop?

Physically we mean. Is it locked away or left on a kitchen table? What polices are in place? Does insurance cover it, and who is responsible for that data and securing it?

Without doubt, many of these issues you will have tackled, and brought to the fore if not solved. Yet, in 100 per cent of the reports we have seen, these aspects were either skipped, or inadequately accounted for. These gaps present governance risks to your school, college or academy and need to be closed.

The Covid-19 vaccine is, we know, a great breakthrough, and will bring back a degree of normality at some point in 2021. Yet until then, the potential is that regional differences may remain. In practical terms, this means that year groups, or maybe entire schools, may need to rapidly revert to remote learning on a periodic basis; so the frameworks needed around your cybersecurity are not going to lessen. Indeed, in talking to school governors, we are hearing that such topics are being raised more frequently, with an increasing sense of urgency and import. Local authorities are being contacted for guidance.

Confronted with a multitude of possible approaches, for the authorities, finding the common denominator is the goal, thereafter enabling the individual institutions to layer-on additional controls specific to their needs.

Don’t panic!

Believe it or not, at Accordant we are parents, and over the year we have had a school governor or two in our ranks, so we empathise with the problem. As such, we have developed our Education Assessment aimed specifically at schools, colleges and academies. Whilst It looks at cybersecurity through the specific eyes of the education sector and its unique demands, it also calls on our industry experience to bring to bear best practice and the practical application of tools and techniques that can be implemented quickly and cost effectively.

Our Governors’ Report is comprehensive and thorough; you and your Board can rest assured knowing that the pitfalls and risks have been identified and mitigated, or in the worst case you have an action plan in motion. People, process and technology are often seen as the three cornerstones, yet they also need companions, in the form of policies and processes, to make the security regime complete and all encompassing.

We cover all these aspects, and more.

Call today for a free quick review of the key areas and see how Accordant can help in your cyber space. L Click here to watch our video FURTHER INFORMATION www.accordantsolutions.co.uk info@accordantsolutions.co.uk 0800 118 2390

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BUSINESS INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION | www.educationbusinessuk.net

Cyber Security Written by Mark Bentley, safeguarding and cybersecurity manager, LGfL

Keeping students safe whilst working at home Mark Bentley, safeguarding and cybersecurity manager at the charitable trust LGfL – the National Grid for Learning, reviews remote learning and keeping children safe whilst working online Twenty-twenty has been a year of challenge and change. With remote learning becoming mainstream and students spending more and more time online, the need to keep them safe has become ever more pressing. This has been recognised in the government’s statutory guide for schools and colleges Keeping Children Safe in Education 2020, with new references to online safety in the home.

More time spent online at home will by nature increase exposure to online harms ranging from bullying to child sexual and criminal exploitation. It’s important when remote learning is implemented during bubble/school closures, the same principles of safeguarding, online safety and behaviour apply. Most schools will not need to make major changes to policy documents; however, leaders should review policies, remind stakeholders of agreements and responsibilities, and identify and

update any that need reinforcing due to Policies should reflect the realities of remote new online procedures and activities. learning and the safeguarding reporting There are key things to remember when process should still function using live streaming and other when staff or students remote teaching technologies. aren’t in school.

More tim Although these are all great Ensure your Data e teaching and learning tools, Protection Officer spent o it’s important to take is happy with any home w nline at precautions to keep pupils new technologies il l b y natur increase safe and protect staff from and that GDPR e e online h xposure to allegations of impropriety. is covered. arms ra It is important to n ging from bu Precautions when ensure no pupils are llyin conducting remote excluded - all pupils crimina g to learning should have access to exploita l Ensure that only schoolthe internet, a device tion registered and approved and a quiet place to accounts are used and that learn, and that teachers staff and pupils understand are aware of vulnerable the principles of the acceptable-use pupils with SEND and CP needs. agreements they have signed.

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Teaching students how to produce a strong and persuasive argument can often be challenging. With most students focused on factual learning, there is little time to improve their essay technique. At Endoxa Learning we put the argument first, our software ensures that students understand how to produce an effective argument whilst also teaching the key arguments within their academic syllabus. Each lesson presents an academic argument as a diagram, called an argument graph, which makes it easy to understand. These argument graphs show students how they can create strong arguments within their essays and exams whilst also allowing them to develop their own ideas using the graphical platform. Let’s see how Endoxa Learning would work for your class.

How to use Endoxa Learning The flexible nature of the software enables it to be used both in the classroom and as a tool for homework, therefore lending itself to be best suited for blended learning or flipped classroom approaches. Within Endoxa Learning you can set students two different types of tasks, we call these “learn” and “think”. “Learn” involves students working on a lesson from a topic as homework before discussing in class, this ensures all students have a strong grasp of the core arguments for the topic allowing for more critical and involved discussions in class time.

“Think” asks students to actually add their own ideas and arguments to an argument graph, which can either be

assessed remotely by teachers or discussed and added to using an interactive whiteboard or projector in class.

Teacher Dashboard Endoxa Learning’s teacher dashboard centralises the homework process and allows teachers to create classes, set tasks and monitor student progress all in one place.

Teachers can monitor how many students have started, completed and submitted a task whilst also being able to view the students’ work within the software. Both teacher and student can add comments directly within our feedback chat function allowing for a dedicated feedback loop engaging both staff and students.

Teacher Benefits Endoxa Learning provides a wealth of curriculum-mapped resources which can be utilised both at home and in the classroom, for revision and for learning. These resources go further than the traditional text books and provide not just facts but the key arguments for each topic in a logical, step-by-step manner for all students to understand. Not only does the graphical nature of the software make it easier to understand for students, it also makes it quicker for teachers to assess due to the huge reduction in word-count compared to an essay, ultimately saving teacher time.

To find out more or to discuss how Endoxa Learning could work in your school email teachers@endoxalearning.com

teachers.endoxalearning.com

 insist that teachers only stream with another member staff in the ‘room’ – as a minimum, other colleagues must always be aware when live sessions are in progress.

Schools should also ensure teachers do not engage in any one-to-one sessions unless pre-approved by SLTs, and staff keep a log of details from each session - what, when, with whom and anything that went wrong.

Staff should also be aware that pupils may secretly record them, and there should be protocols for pupils to share ideas, ask questions and receive support are set up.

If staff are unsure, or there is any uncertainty about the safety or reliability of a system, it would be better not to use it.

Advice to give parents Parents are also going to worry about extra screen time and the risks that it presents.

Here is some advice for supporting parents and a list of recommended sites that are informative and easily accessible.

Educate parents about quality screen time, rather than the amount of time spent online: spending time creating a film or story is not the same as scrolling through social media or Skyping friends and family.

The Children’s Commissioner’s ‘Digital Five a Day’ (www.childrenscommissioner. gov.uk/digital/5-a-day) is a great resource to help parents understand and plan or review their child’s time online.

Inform them about the safety settings that can be used on home internet, mobile devices, consoles, apps or games. Internet Matters - www.internetmatters.org has hundreds of guides to age appropriate parental controls.

Encourage parents to be involved in their children’s online ‘life’ so they can monitor what their child is doing and with whom and if they are accessing age appropriate apps and games. Some great sites for parent guides including reviews and recommendations for safe apps and video platforms are Common Sense Media - www. commonsensemedia.org and the NSPCC’s NetAware - www.net-aware.org.uk.

The UK Government’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) has created CyberAware - a simple and informative six step system to support online safety that you can share with parents and pupils of all ages. This includes creating a separate password for your email; creating a strong

password using three random words; saving your passwords in your browser, turning on two-factor authentication; updating your devices; and turning on backup.

Parents may feel overwhelmed by the number of online safety issues; one overall guide for parents and pupils is that when online pupils should behave the same way as they do offline but realise that other people do not. Parents should remind their children to be good friends and ask for help if they are worried or if someone is being mean, not do anything inappropriate on camera, for example undress, and immediately report anyone who suggests that they do.

Support from the school is very important; parents should feel free to ask if they are unsure about their child’s online safety.

Education Don’t forget too that the new subject Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) has 66 mentions of life online, so this new home of online safety is a great place to start preparing young people for the risks and opportunities presented by the online world. At LGfL we offer training on teaching online safety through RSHE which is free to all schools, so why not send your RSHE coordinator to find out more on the website.

Education is of course a vital piece of the jigsaw but can’t cover all bases.

That’s why legislation and regulation are important. The government’s Online Harms Bill will hopefully finally come into force in 2021, with great new initiatives such a duty of care for social media providers.

What’s more, we recommend you take the opportunity to check that your school’s filtering provider offers ‘appropriate filtering’ and has filed a submission with the UK Safer Internet Centre to say how they do this. Keeping Children Safe in Education 2020 makes new mentions of keeping children safe in the home, so why not have a look at our offer of free home filtering for the next six months to cover the current period of uncertainty when you may be sending devices home to facilitate remote learning to ensure that your students are safe when learning at home. L FURTHER INFORMATION

LGfL is offering to filter internet connectivity at home for free for six months so that children can be safe at home whilst learning remotely.

Cyber Security

With remote learning becoming mainstream and students spending more and more time online, the need to keep them safe has become ever more pressing. This has been recognised in the government’s statutory guide for schools and colleges ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education 2020’, with new references to online safety in the home.

Free internet filtering for students learning remotely

This will address one of the key safety concerns for both schools and parents who have expressed concerns about how children can be placed at risk of abuse, or exposed to inappropriate content, whilst using the internet at home - issues that were identified in Hopes and Streams, LGfL’s research into the online behaviour of over 40,000 pupils.

LGfL’s offer to filter internet connectivity at home will be available to thousands of schools across the UK, including those connected to LGfL’s broadband services. Tens of thousands of children in a number of schools and Multi Academy Trusts are already benefitting from this service.

Commenting on the new service, Louise Pragnell, head of IT, Learning in Harmony Trust, said: “With safeguarding being at the top of every school’s priorities, it was really important to the Trust to be able to extend the protection that internet filtering brings to our learners at home. As always, LGfL has recognised the requirements of schools and has delivered a costeffective solution to our current challenge. As a G Suite for Education MAT, the set up and configuration couldn’t have been easier, giving us peace of mind that we have an effective and well supported system in place.”

Mark Bentley, safeguarding and cybersecurity manager, charitable trust LGfL - the national grid for Learning

www.lgfl.net

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We help students and teachers maintain consistent learning environments 1UC are leading experts in Adoption and Training for Microsoft, Google and UniďŹ ed Communications within the Education Industry

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User Adoption

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G-Cloud

A move to the cloud The rapid switch to remote teaching caused by the Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the value of cloud services for the education sector. We take a look at how schools can benefit from buying cloud services through the Crown Commercial Service’s G-Cloud 12 framework If the Covid-19 pandemic has taught the education sector anything, it is for the need to be more flexible and agile in its approach to teaching. Moving to the cloud can bring many benefits and cost savings, including ease of access to resources from any location, which is key to delivering remote teaching and learning.

Cloud based services can be used to improve other areas of school operations, such as HR and finance systems, management information systems (MIS) and curriculum software, as well as back office systems including document storage, backup, content, filtering and user and device management.

Some schools may have everything in the cloud with a server free solution, but for others, a mix of cloud and locally hosted systems or services may be preferred.

But it doesn’t have to be all or nothing; moving to the cloud can be gradual and specific to a school’s requirements.

G-Cloud 12 Framework The G-Cloud 12 framework from the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) offers schools and other public sector organisations a straightforward and compliant way to purchase cloud based services, such as hosting, software, and support. This is provided through an online catalogue called the Digital Marketplace.

The Crown Commercial Service is an executive agency and trading fund of the Cabinet Office of the UK Government.

Its role is to improve the government’s commercial and procurement activity.

Since the G-Cloud’s launch in 2012, nearly £100 million of cloud services have been

Procuring through G-Cloud also offers access purchased by the education sector using the to the latest innovation and technologies framework. This is growing annually. With and the ability to move away from long term 5,224 suppliers awarded a place on G-Cloud contracts – maximum duration is 24 months, 12, over 38,000 services are available for which is then easily refreshed or can be customers to access. This also includes over extended by two 12 month periods. It also 1,340 education specific services, including includes clauses to help schools address both classroom management, eLearning, online modern slavery and corporate social value. courses, school administration, student management and a range of other services.

Access to smaller suppliers Patrick Nolan, technology pillar director G-Cloud provides easy access to a at Crown Commercial Service (CCS), said: range of smaller suppliers, owing to the “G-Cloud continues to be a great public government’s commitment to spend £1 sector success. It encourages innovation in every £3 with small businesses. and improves services for UK citizens, by CCS has worked to empower customers allowing customers and suppliers to find to achieve their target of 33 per cent each other easily. Now, more than ever, spend with SMEs by providing SMEs have a crucial role to play in them with the information our economy, and G-Cloud is Since they need to make informed a proven method through its laun decisions and by making which they can grow their in 2012 ch it easier for SMEs to businesses and support , n join the framework. the national recovery.” e a rly £100m By removing some o f c loud services of the barriers to The benefits of entry that small and the framework purcha have been sed by micro businesses The framework is an educati t encounter, this has agreement between on sect he o using G resulted in 91 per government and -Cloud r cent of all suppliers on suppliers and makes G-Cloud being SMEs with buying services faster and 80 per cent of those being cheaper than entering into small and micro businesses. CCS individual procurement contracts. has have achieved this through making Procuring cloud services using G-Cloud the application process easier (while still 12 allows for a straightforward contract award completing ongoing assurance works) and by using a quick and easy six step process on the providing a transparent purchasing platform.

Digital Marketplace. It offers transparent prices, CCS spend data is published monthly where the catalogue shows suppliers, services, through a publicly accessible dashboard E prices and supplier terms and conditions.

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Adopt a Cloud First Approach

DRIVING TRANSFORMATION AND EFFICIENCY WITH THE CLOUD Public sector organisations are adopting the Government (OGCS) ‘Cloud Strategy and discovering how cloud solutions can empower performance and results. With over 23 years’ experience, we can help you to adapt and migrate relevant solutions to Public, Private and Hybrid cloud environments. Whether you are looking to drive remote working or looking for backup solution we can help.

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It’s Time For Budget Holders To Take Ownership Beyond’s Forecasting and Budget Management Applications for Oracle ERP / EPM enables public sector budget holders to become self-sufficient.

Simple, Affordable and Secure Automation reduces forecast cycle Removes reliance on spreadsheets Auditing ensures accountability Self-Service reduces finance workload

Commentary at multiple levels

Find Beyond Systems on the G-Cloud Digital Marketplace

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SCHEDULE YOUR DEMO HERE

 on the CCS website. CCS has also worked to make the Digital Marketplace (DMp) more transparent and clear in terms of the services on offer, so customers can review a multitude of services to ensure they award the best service to suit their needs.

Wider support CCS’s team is on hand to provide support to any customers who have questions about procuring through G-Cloud and there are monthly webinars explaining how to use the framework.

CCS has brought on board new strategic business managers to help engage with the

wider public sector and assist customers.

This team engages with individual organisations, clusters, and umbrella bodies to build awareness of CCS’s commercial solutions, identify customer requirements and deliver expert support to enable the wider public sector to access CCS offers.

As well as investing in additional headcount, CCS is helping its customers by providing resources such as framework webinars and guidance documents, providing advice through blogs, news articles and whitepapers, as well as regularly attending industry events.

G-Cloud 12 has now made service definition documents mandatory for all

G-Cloud

services. This provides a greater level of detail to public sector bodies when evaluating services and helps its customers make a well informed decision.

Ready to move to the cloud?

If you’re thinking about moving to cloudbased services, you should consider how you are using the cloud already and whether you’re using it to its full potential. You should consider whether staff, pupils or parents are using unofficial services, and what the benefits are of services you are using – such as efficiency, access, security and online safety.

Think about what other functions you could use in the cloud and how you would introduce this functionality to teachers and pupils. Consider how using cloud-based services would support your overall school strategy, and whether you need a cloud champion to support your school or multi-academy trust strategy.

Consideration must also be given to infrastructure. Is your current internet connection sufficient – many schools will need a full fibre connection. Also does your school network offer the right level of connectivity? Many schools will use both wired and wireless infrastructure.

Plan how to make your system as resilient as possible as part of your move to the cloud. L FURTHER INFORMATION www.crowncommercial.gov.uk

Helping you deliver compliance through technology Manage all areas of compliance such as: water hygiene, fire, gas and electrical safety

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How Swansea University made a success of multi-site teaching and remote guest lectures

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Swansea University Medical School is one of six Welsh and Irish universities that are partners in the Celtic Advanced Life Science Innovation Network (CALIN), a project supported by the European Regional Development Fund through the Ireland Wales Cooperation programme. This network helps businesses to innovate, grow and develop new life-changing health products. CALIN provides access to technology, research support and scientific expertise in advanced medical and pharmaceutical sciences.

Swansea University selected GoToWebinar by LogMeIn to provide the unified collaboration capabilities needed by CALIN. Dr Gareth Healey, senior lecturer at Swansea University Medical School, explains: “The GoTo suite of tools stood out for me because we needed something that was easy to use and could be readily adopted by our partners. We had a lot of support from the LogMeIn onboarding team, and our partners were quickly able to begin collaborating online.�

Initially, GoToWebinar was used to host webinars to promote the activities of CALIN and to establish best practice. The ease of use meant the tool was soon deployed more widely to deliver webinars to students on Masters courses at Swansea University. A series of webinars has now been developed to teach modules specifically designed for distance learning.

Implementing GoToWebinar has enabled academics, businesses and specialists to communicate often complex ideas effectively and easily among multiple parties in different locations. The resulting cost and time savings are considerable, while the quality and frequency of communication and knowledgesharing across CALIN has been greatly enhanced.

In addition, GoToWebinar has enabled Swansea University to enhance its teaching in advanced medical sciences.

It can now reach out to students beyond the classroom, and host webinars by experts from outside the university to widen the pool of expertise available to students.

As the decision makers in primary and secondary education continue to manage the issues that the COVID-19 pandemic introduced, they can also look to the opportunities that collaboration tools, such as GoToWebinar, create for multi-site teaching and introducing remote guests to the classroom, with the additional teaching methods and engagement that these bring.

To find out more about the Swansea University story and how tools such as the GoTo Suite can improve the connections between teams and the efficiency of collaboration across multiple locations, visit https://lp.logmeininc.com/ Swansea-Case-Study_LP.html?source=edbusiness

https://lp.logmeininc.com/Swansea-Case-Study_LP.html?source=edbusiness

Bett is the largest education community in the world. From humble beginnings in the car park of the Barbican in 1985 to the ExCel centre, the London Bett Show (incorporating the Education Show) event attracts over 40,000 attendees from over 100 countries each January. Visitors range from Minister of Education to MAT CEO to School Business Manager to NQT. They come to learn at our 11 stages of world class content, to meet colleagues, to test out the latest technology from global suppliers and to discover new ideas to take back to the classroom.

Moving online So what happens when a live events business can no longer run live events? How does Bett, rooted in EdTech for 35 years, stay connected to its visitors and support them as they move overnight to remote teaching and learning.

Our first step was to create a community hub where we could share free resources offered by the EdTech community and where teachers could write articles outlining their experiences and offering best practice (www. bettshow.com/bett-community-hub). Over the past nine months this has developed into an invaluable resource built by those who would normally connect in person.

We’ve produced a regular Bettcast with contributions from schools and universities from around the world and continued our Podcast series with the EdTech Podcast.

For the first time ever we’ve also added videos from the January show so you can get inspiration from our stellar list of speakers ranging from EdTech Demonstrator schools sharing best practice to institutions outlining their journey to a full digital strategy.

Our community hub also has a strong wellbeing focus specifically designed to address the immediate challenges of students

studying remotely and ways to support both students and teachers during this extended period of hybrid teaching and learning.

Main Stage: 2pm – 4pm each day. Tune in to hear keynote speakers and see best practice from the front line. Each day will focus on one of the BettFest themes with an outstanding speaker lineup from the UK as well as inspiring leaders from around the world. The full agenda can be found on the website (link at the end).

Solutions Showcase: Stream new product showcases daily and discover what’s new and exciting in tech including a preview of the Bett Awards shortlist

The creation of BettFest The past year has helped us move beyond Bett Academy: live events to connect with more schools Sign up for the Bett Academy and update and colleges around the world. But we’re your CPD, either during the show or visit Bett and we exist to bring people together. on-demand whenever you have the time.

So we’ve created. It’s with this in mind that Sessions will be provided by Microsoft, we’ve created BettFest, something different Apple, Connected Learning Centre and to celebrate and support the education Animate2Educate. The CPD is accredited community. The three days will offer product

by CPDUK and participants will be able to discovery, practical CPD and best practice download a certificate of attendance. for educating students during a pandemic.

The completely new, dynamic content will After School Club: focus on three dedicated BettFest themes.

Bett wouldn’t be Bett without some of The first is leadership which will included the famous fringe events. We’re bringing content on leading successful remote you some of the best: you can attend the and blended learning; collaborating to UK or International Teachmeet, the Global design innovative solutions; designing an EdTech Startup Awards, a Microsoft Flipgrid adaptable, and scalable digital strategy. event and a ceremony to announce the The second theme is digital inclusion, Bett Awards Covid-19 Champions. with content on solutions to overcome Registration is now open and we the digital divide; improving access and would love to welcome you and skills for students at all levels and ensuring your colleagues to join us online to impactful teaching for SEND students. share, celebrate and be inspired.

The third theme is resilient futures which BettFest takes place on includes content on building a 20-22 January 2021. strong workplace culture and The full Bett Awards will avoiding burnout; enabling How take place in-person a culture of resilience; and does Be on 16 June 2021. the Fourth Education tt, rooted The next in-person Bett Revolution reimagined. in EdTe ch for 35 y show will take place BettFest is free ears, st on 19-21 January 2022 to attend and will connec a y ted to it at ExCeL London. L comprise a Main s visitor and sup Stage, Solutions s p o rt th they m Sarah Marshall is Global Showcase, Bett ove to em as Head of Content for Bett Academy and After r e m ote teachin and is interested in all things School Club fringe events. g? education, learning and tech.

Sarah has been volunteering as a mentor in secondary school since 2009 and has been a Governor at a primary school since 2014 where she is now Chair. Prior to joining the Bett team Sarah was Head of Events for Optimus Education where she was responsible for the programme of training and conferences for teachers.

Written by By Sarah Marshall, Global Head of Content, Bett Global Series

Sarah Marshall talks us through the creation of BettFest, something different to celebrate and support the education community. The three days will offer product discovery, practical CPD and best practice for educating students during a pandemic

BettFest Preview

Join the global education community at BettFest this January

FURTHER INFORMATION www.bettshow.com/bettfest-registration www.bettshow.com/BettFest-agenda

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Catering Procurement Written by CPL Group

What to consider before bringing your catering service back in-house?

Should you be questioning whether to bring your catering provision in-house, there are many matters to evaluate first, as outlined here by education owned charity CPL Group Many schools and academies who outsource their catering provision have contracts in place that are nil cost or that include profit sharing arrangements. However, the impact of Covid-19 on the daily sales figures of school meals has meant many institutions are undertaking contractual negotiations with catering providers on future costs of the service. This has led some institutions to question whether they should be bringing their catering provision inhouse.

There are many matters to evaluate when deciding whether to ‘back source’ a contract and in this article CPL Group discuss three of the key considerations specific to school and academy catering services to help you if you are considering providing this service inhouse.

Conducting a financial viability analysis There are many component costs to running a catering service and it is important to identify as many of these as accurately as possible. Conduct some key financial analysis which includes the cost of buying food and research how much you would need to budget each month. Consider how these products would be procured as you will not get the best prices as a standalone buyer. You can access preferential pricing when joining purchasing consortia such as TUCO (www.tuco.ac.uk) who specialise in creating deals on food products for education institutions.

Buying your food via a consortium will also ensure compliance with UK procurement regulations as food spend could well exceed the procurement spend threshold.

There could be a need for you to invest capital to replace equipment that your catering contractor owns such as serving equipment, ovens, plates and cutlery. Dining facilities may need to be rebranded which will incur costs for signage and design.

Conduct a condition survey of all outlets and agree an equipment and asset schedule.

Costs associated with the employment of catering staff should also be evaluated.

These could include costs associated with the development and training of staff.

Your institution would be responsible for providing staff with access to learning

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service internally will also need careful opportunities to ensure the catering consideration and whilst the daily onsite service remains fresh, meets your sales catering staff are likely to transfer, those targets and is compliant with relevant responsible for the management of legislation such as food poisoning, the contract may not. You may need to food hazards, allergen awareness, recruit for this position depending on temperature control and food handling.

Additional staffing costs to evaluate could relate to uniforms, DBS checks, recruitment costs Conduc and costs associated k e y financt with Local Authority ial analys Pension Schemes that the catering staff may include is which become entitled to of buyi s the cost join if now employed researc ng food and by your institution. h Some institutions you wo how much opt for creating a to budguld need separate trading et each company as a subsidiary m o nth of your organisation so the catering service can be managed as an arms-length entity with separate terms and conditions of employment. Staffing is one of the largest costs after food purchases.

Workforce requirements Your institution will generally be required by law to offer employment to the existing catering staff on the same terms and conditions of employment that they are currently on due to the Transfer of Undertaking (Protection of Employment) Regulations (more widely known as TUPE). This could include any outstanding employment related liabilities depending on the provisions of your contract with your catering provider.

Conversely some of the existing catering staff may choose to remain in the employment of the catering provider, resulting in the need for you to recruit.

It is essential to include your HR teams in any back-sourcing preparations so the impact of transferring these staff to your employment can be assessed. Amongst other requirements your HR teams would need to be involved in the staff consultation process, joint consultation with the incumbent caterer and individual one to ones with staff eligible for transfer.

How and who will manage the

BUSINESS INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION | www.educationbusinessuk.net

Knowledge management Consider the knowledge and resources needed to run a successful catering service without the expertise of a catering provider. Your existing food safety policy and due diligence arrangements would need updating. You will also need to look at software to help manage recipe development, nutrition and school food standards adherence as well as allergen management and new labelling requirements coming in 2021 because of Natasha’s Law. Menus will need to be designed and tariffs agreed along with a marketing strategy to drive sales and attract students and staff to use your catering service. Typical promotions include health for life, street food on tour, limited time offers and star buys. A website and/or apps would need to be developed to promote the catering service to parents as well as staff and students.

The three areas highlighted are

not a definite list of considerations but are designed to aid the thought process on whether to move away from an existing outsourced catering service to an inhouse delivery.

experience in the education sector and will be able to provide references. They will know the marketplace and will be able to run a process which is compliant with the Public Contracts Regulations.

Alternative outsourcing options Bringing your catering resource inhouse may be the best route for your organisation but it is also worth considering an alternative outsourced supplier if your contract is due to be renewed. There are established outsourced catering framework agreements, also known as deals, which you can use to source an alternative supplier. Deals are designed to save you time and money whilst giving you access to fully-vetted suppliers who will be able to run the catering service for you based on your new requirements.

Catering is one of the most complicated areas of procurement so if you do not have the procurement experience inhouse, it would be worth considering a procurement consultancy with catering experience to run the process for you. A good procurement consultant will have

CPL Group Crescent Purchasing Consortium and Tenet Education Services are not-for-profit organisations which are part of CPL Group, an education owned charity that gives back to the sector through funding and support.

Tenet has a wealth of expertise in procuring catering contractors on behalf of education institutions and a team of catering consultants on hand to offer expert advice. CPC has a complete range of framework agreements which are designed for the education sector, including a comprehensive outsourced catering services agreement. L

Catering Procurement

whether your institution has existing employees with expertise in catering or the capacity to manage the contract.

FURTHER INFORMATION www.tenetservices.com/ catering-consultancy www.thecpc.ac.uk www.cpl.group

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Advertisement Feature Written by Dr Leila Walker, Chief Product Officer, Persona Education

Life skills: the missing link to wellbeing Are we at risk of labelling too many students with mental health issues, when in fact boosting wellbeing by developing life skills would be the answer for most? Dr Leila Walker, Chief Product Officer at Persona Education, examines the issue

A socio-emotional crisis made worse Even before COVID-19, wellbeing among UK children fell sharply from age 12, and was 21 per cent lower at 16 than at age 8, overall, and as high as 26 per cent lower among girls. Loss of agency among teenagers was rising and the UK came bottom out of the 37 OECD countries on pupil life satisfaction.

On top of this, for months now the Coronavirus pandemic has been wreaking further damage on wellbeing for many students. In August 2020 the OECD warned about the potential disruption caused by the shift to blended learning – this disruption has now become the reality for much of the UK. The decade long call for more mental health provision has been answered Mental health funding in England has received a £1.6 billion boost compared with three years ago, according to NHS England. Mental health charities continue to ask for additional funding via schools, as genuine concern grows on the long term impact of COVID-19 and missed schooling for our younger generations.

Emma Thomas, CEO of the children’s wellbeing and mental health charity YoungMinds, has called for “a ring-fenced Resilience Fund, which would ensure schools could commission the mental health and wellbeing support that young people need.

This could include commissioning in-school counselling services, working with local charities, bringing in extra staff to provide

pastoral support, commissioning digital services or prioritising staff wellbeing.”

Wellbeing and mental health This is all well and good, however, are we at risk of labelling too many students with mental health issues, when in fact boosting wellbeing by developing life skills would be the answer for most? Many of the socio-emotional issues facing young people are symptomatic of the lack of life skills teaching in many of our schools and colleges. Today we are faced with a pandemic, but – make no mistake – tomorrow will bring new challenges.

In the words of Shonogh Pilgrim, head teacher at Ansford Academy, where a passion for equipping students with the skills to make a success of their lives is central to the school ethos: “Kids have become more aware that they may not be well, and sometimes things that are actually quite normal have become medical issues, particularly around anxiety.”

For students who are not suffering from a clinical mental health condition, a balanced curriculum that includes key social and emotional life skills, which are proven to boost wellbeing, is what is needed.

Clear evidence that developing life skills improves wellbeing In 2020, the Centre for Education & Youth released findings from a two year meta research study that uncovered robust evidence of causal links between the development of life skills and emotional wellbeing.

However, these very same life skills – which are also frequently reported as lacking in the workforce, for example by Big Education’s Rethinking Assessment – continue to be overlooked in our approach to educating young people today, and tellingly, assessing them.

A life skills paradigm shift is needed The OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) has devised assessments that measure problem solving, creativity, and socio-emotional learning, rather than focusing on subject disciplines. The methodology behind these assessments could be used in UK schools to measure and assign value to life skills.

But we need to go further. A paradigm shift across research, policy and practice to differentiate between mental health and general wellbeing is required. Rather than using the same dedicated and expensive resources to ‘treat’ young people who either have genuine mental health issues or simply lower levels of wellbeing, we must recognise and manage these two groups quite separately.

Mental health provision is of course required to support those who are not able to manage their wellbeing by developing socio-emotional life skills, even when given access to the right teaching and tools. However, the majority who are reacting to unexpected events, stressful situations or life challenges such as exams and interviews, within the normal range of responses, need to be equipped with those life skills in school.

Both curriculum time spent and the assessment of life skills development, must be central to school provision. If they are not, we risk repeating the mistakes of the last few decades: trying to devise a PSHE curriculum to support life skills and wellbeing, within a system working against that by rewarding subject discipline content over life skills taught in nonassessed areas of the curriculum. L

About the author: Dr Leila Walker has been working in the education sector for 25 years.

An ex-teacher and pastoral deputy head, she is now a respected edtech and pedagogy thought leader, leading development of the personality insights life skills e-learning app Persona Life Skills, at the Bristol based edtech company Persona Education Ltd. FURTHER INFORMATION www.persona-life.com

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BUSINESS INFORMATION FOR DECISION MAKERS IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION | www.educationbusinessuk.net

The satellite call is over quickly as discussion isn’t needed; it’s time to run away – again.

Every time I’m on an expedition in Greenland with students we must scarper from something. Last time it was an inhabited bear den we had unwittingly camped too close to.

This time it’s a storm bearing down on us that might (did) go on for days. As the teacher on the expedition it’s (apparently) my job to tell the shattered team, who have been sledgehauling most of the day, that we’re walking through the night to get to safe ground.

Despite the cold and wet of the receding glacier we’re slumped on, I have a warm feeling inside as I’m certain we’re fulfilling what the Education Endowment Foundation suggests is the link between outdoor, adventurous activity and months of additional academic progress – high levels of physical and emotional challenge!

The ‘why’ Bohunt Education Trust (BET) is a multiacademy trust of eight comprehensive secondary schools - just over 10,000 students.

Our outdoor programme is a critical part of developing students who are gamechangers – which is the Trust’s vision.

The outdoor opportunities we provide, our drive to improve the biodiversity of our school sites and the networks of incredible people/

Self Jodie, who successfully completed her Bronze, Silver and Gold DofE Awards with BET, said: “The DofE award has given me so many things I am grateful for. It’s given me many challenges, opportunities and memories that I now treasure. I truly would have never believed it was possible for me to do this. It gave me an The ‘what’ overwhelming sense of accomplishment Both the internal and external components of and it’ll be one of those moments that our programme are designed to be progressive stays with me forever.” and together should normalise being outside: What Jodie doesn’t mention above is she something that isn’t as prevalent as perhaps has Cerebral Palsy and for the expeditions we think it is. If students participate in all used (and regularly broke) our off-road aspects of our programme, they will miss wheelchair. She also doesn’t mention that more than five weeks of standard curriculum whilst completing the three awards she time, as well as weekends and part of their walked further than she ever had in her life, holiday. We see that as a positive for learning. went over several Brecon Beacon summits (with her team of friends carrying the The ‘how’ wheelchair), advised councils in the Appropriately skilled staff with areas she walked on how they capacity is critical. BET employs could improve disabled access a head of outdoors to lead G et and, through publicity our outdoor classroom decision work in conjunction with and bushcraft work and makers National DofE, inspired a Duke of Edinburgh board s onother young people E (DofE) manager to lead o your our DofE Operating outdoo Authority. Each school is prope r programme has people responsible rly integ for the outdoor rated i organisations we draw our young people into mean they leave us more intrinsically motivated and able to change things for the better. In this article I outline what our programme involves, the benefits and some thoughts for those of you who are reviewing or starting your own outdoor programme.

Written by Phil Avery, director of education for Bohunt Education Trust

Phil Avery from Bohunt Education Trust argues an outdoor programme, led by holistic aims rather than performance measures, has the potential to help self, school and system

Outdoor Learning

Restoring lost connections with outdoor education

classroom and DofE, with administration support, as necessary. Some schools have additional leadership, for example a head of ecology, to ensure work being done outdoors is rigorous and links to the timetable. There is then an army of teachers, support staff and parents that lead groups through the various initiatives.

Schools believe this is important and so time is made for both staff and students. Selected students leave a rota of lessons to work on mental health interventions involving cooking, whittling and structured chat in the outdoor classrooms; three-week expeditions to remote locations leave a week or so before the end of term; and staff have additional frees to sharpen knives, sort tarpaulins and properly plan conservation efforts, in conjunction with national park rangers, for the school sites.

nto the school

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Outdoor Learning

 to try things they feared – she is a game-changer. The outdoors must be for all and BET, in its fight to make that reality, has fundraised over £50,000 to support the disadvantaged and vulnerable.

Comments from parents about the SEMH interventions and expeditions suggest they make a significant difference to young people; they talk of their child having changed for the better. Students tell us they feel happier, healthier and more refreshed having spent more time outdoors. Their comments are mirrored by our study of students during lockdown, in conjunction with ImpactEd, which shows a correlation between time outdoors and wellbeing.

In Johann Hari’s book, Lost Connections, he equates the rise of depression and anxiety with humanity’s lost connections, for example with nature, meaningful values, a meaningful future and other people. Sat on a stump, shielded by green walls, focused on your whittling and listening to the crackling fire whilst chatting to your tribe about conserving that part of the school site restores many of those connections and hints as to why the outdoors has such an impact. To enhance this effect, and make the space safe, we train our staff not only in safeguarding and mental health first aid, but also in techniques to enhance these therapeutic effects.

School An EEF Report on outdoor adventure learning in 2018, said: “Overall, studies of adventure learning interventions consistently show positive benefits for academic learning. On average, pupils who participate in adventure

learning interventions make approximately four additional months’ progress. There is also evidence of an impact on non-cognitive outcomes such as self-confidence.”

I was curious to see if the results of the Education Endowment Fund (EEF) report on Outdoor Learning were mirrored in one of our schools. The exam results in that school, in both 2018 and 2019, showed the same positive correlation. This is correlation, not necessarily causation, but the selfconfidence, teamwork skills and ability to persist that time in the outdoors develops, as well as the reduction in anxiety, could mean there is a causal connection.

System The benefits go wider than students and schools. For example, BET students have put over 10,000 volunteering hours put into our local communities.

They have made contributions to research

by CERN (on background radiation), the University of Lancaster (on how teams cope with extreme conditions) and ImpactEd (on the impacts of lockdown).

With rising mental health problems in children aged 5-16 (up five per cent to 16 per cent from 2017 according to an NHS report), 41 per cent of our UK species declining in abundance (2019 State of Nature report) and our continued underperformance in the PISA tests isn’t it time we changed what education is for? We argue that we should not only provide this as part of our educational offer, but value the skills, competencies and attitudes that come from time outdoors through our assessment system, which is one of the reasons BET is

supporting Rethinking Assessment, which seeks to support assessment change at age 16.

Five top tips Firstly, before you start or change a programme, collect baseline data so you can evaluate impact. We need more research to understand which initiatives have the most impact on which students.

Next, get decision makers on-board so your outdoor programme is properly integrated into the school. We got our headteachers to sign a Memorandum of Understanding promising time and training for staff, a budget and the involvement of key leaders.

Thirdly, don’t assume students will understand the benefits of the outdoors at first. Some students have no experience of walking off-road, seeing bulls in the wild, using a lighter or liking being tired and wet. To engage the students that will arguably benefit most we need to start small and build up.

Next, ensure your students have aims that are more than just completing the route or summiting the mountain. We find that photography, travel writing, vlogs, cultural exchanges and science research all help connect students to where they are, allowing them to take more from the experience.

Finally, safety comes before everything else. Be ambitious, ensure challenge, but be safe. There are risks and things won’t go to plan, but with the right expertise and support the risks should be manageable. L FURTHER INFORMATION www.bohunttrust.co.uk

Issue 26.1 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE

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Heart of England Training works with learners and employers to ensure all parties gain the greatest benefits With over 50 years of experience, Heart of England Training, offers schools a range of top-quality apprenticeships and courses.

As an existing staff member, you can gain additional qualifications in your industry and Higher Apprenticeships which are suitable for candidates aiming for a management role such as the School Business Professional Level 4.

When it comes to apprenticeships in the education sector, Heart of England Training works with many schools, academy trusts and local authorities to deliver apprenticeships in school specific areas as well as their traditional office and management-based qualifications.

This includes Teaching Assistant, Early Years Practitioners and many more.

Heart of England Training is also urging employers to take advantage of all the benefits of employing new apprentices while funding the process through the fantastic government incentives available. The Chancellor has announced extra incentives for employers to take on new apprentices. Available until March 31st, for an apprentice aged between 16 – 24, employers will receive £2,000, and for older apprentices, 25+ £1,500. These payments are in addition to the existing £1,000 paid for a 16 – 18-year-old.

The Apprenticeship Levy applies to any establishment paying a wage bill of more than £3 million per year, and requires them to pay 0.5% of their payroll each month as a levy tax, to be reinvested into their workforce in the form of Apprenticeship training.

Employers with a wage bill of less than £3 million will not be subject to the Apprenticeship Levy, but will be able to access funding for up to 10 employees with the government contributing 95% towards the cost of Apprenticeship training. Further if you employ fewer than 50 employees, the government will pay 100% of the apprenticeship training costs up to the funding band maximum for apprentices aged, 16 – 18 or 19 to 24 with an education, health and care plan provided by their local authority or has been in the care of their local authority For Levy and non-Levy payers alike, this scheme is a brilliant way of enabling

employers to gain from all the benefits of bringing apprentices into their organisation at minimum cost.

Heart of England Training is far more than a training provider, they work with their learners and employers every step of the way to ensure that all parties gain the greatest benefit from their training partnership.

Heart of England Training is looking to negotiate with local authorities, academy trusts and independent schools to discuss courses, like School Business Professional and many more, for your staff opportunities and CPD. To find out more about the Schools Portfolio, contact us below.

FURTHER INFORMATION www.hoet.co.uk 08000281576

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We currently face the perfect storm, a recruitment and retention crisis, a rigid outdated model of working patterns and a lot of potential bias or misinformation about what constitutes flexible working. In order to address this nationally, the DfE are rolling out their flexible working ambassador schools from Spring 2021, alongside a suite of leadership webinar resources to support schools and school leaders in helping to make informed and strategic choices about how they can utilise flexible working strategies to improve recruitment, retention, wellbeing and career development.

Updating our perceptions If we are to really embrace flexible working then many of us need to admit that a lot of our current perceptions, biases and assumptions regarding flex are probably outdated.

Flexible working is not just the preserve of those who are new parents or for those in a particular role or level of responsibility.

Having worked for 23 years in primary education and flexibly since 2004, including as assistant head, deputy head, MAT research and CPD lead, and in one of the first all-female Co Headships over ten years ago, I am a “veteran flexer” and can attest to the fact that it can and does work at every level within an organisation.

However, the pervasive narrative that it is somehow unworkable or unwieldy endures.

When we look outside education, we know that the statistics for how the workforce is structured is in stark contrast to our own.

Figures from the DfE show that only nine per cent of men in education work flexibly compared to 13 per cent in the wider world of work and for women the figure is even more startling, 26 per cent in education compared to 42 per cent outside. The rigid and outdated structures and arguments we uphold as to why we cannot accommodate more flexible working patterns therefore need a rethink if we are to offer our workforce the same benefits they can find outside education when trying to balance home and work commitments and progress in their careers. What we cannot do is to ignore the fact that the largest demographic to leave teaching after retirees are women age 31-40 and twinned with that, up to one in four

teachers leave within the first five years.

We are haemorrhaging talent and although flexible working may not be the panacea or silver bullet, it may well be a way in which to retain talent and expertise which would otherwise have left the building.

Understanding flexible working If we are to really grasp the flexi nettle then we need to understand what we mean by flexible working. Mandy Coalter, author of “Talent Architects” describes the basic flexi work principles as “Where, when and how much”. The DfE describes five models to include part time, jobshare, staggered hours, compressed hours and working from home.

Both approaches however highlight the fact that flex is not just for part time work. Alterations to working hours and patterns within a day/week and opportunities to work from home or off site are just as open to full time workers as our part time colleagues and can reap huge benefits in terms of staff morale, wellbeing and help to actively demonstrate positive professional trust in our colleagues.

Another benefit to flexible working is that it provides inherent flex in your organisation which a totally full time staff do not. What we have seen in recent months during the pandemic, and its impact on increased absence, is the exposed fragility of our staffing structures.

A larger squad of flexible workers has the ability to

Written by Emma Turner

Emma Turner explores the benefits of flexible working from the viewpoints of school leaders and teaching staff, and challenges traditional working practises and ‘part-time’ prejudice to promote more innovative and flexible ways of working

Flexible Working

Flipping the flexible working narrative

flex the workforce to meet the needs of the organisation. In my eight years of Co Headship I upped and downed my days depending on the needs of the school and my own commitments at home. In my current role as CPD and Research lead across a trust, I do exactly the same. What my employers get is a dynamic ability to respond to the needs of the organisation, and what I get is an ability to remain in a leadership role and to continue to contribute and progress in my career.

Buy in from the top We need to ensure that our school leaders and workforce see the benefits of innovative approaches within flex such as phased retirement, creation of new bodies of work with new job titles beyond the current narrow scope, additional time for study, and “multiflexing” or portfolio careers where colleagues work part time in one organisation but may have additional roles elsewhere which ultimately enrich their work in their current role due to cross pollination of skills, ideas and expertise. The world of flexible working offers so much in the way of opportunities for transforming our workforce into one which is not only an attractive option in practice but modern, agile and innovative in its thinking. So, let’s talk about flex. L FURTHER INFORMATION To learn more or order a copy of Let’s Talk About Flex: Flipping the flexible working narrative in education, by Emma Turner (priced at just £12), please click here.

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ENERGY

Hot water for schools with seventy per cent less CO2 Able to draw and transfer thermal energy from air, Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHP) under the right circumstances represent an efficient way to significantly reduce the carbon emissions of a building. Commercial hot water and heating specialist Adveco now extends its ASHP offering with the Adveco L70, a high capacity monobloc air-to-water heat pump.

Bill Sinclair, technical director, Adveco said: “In conjunction with Adveco’s bespoke application design, the L70 offers a comprehensive response for sustainable hybrid domestic hot water (DHW) and heating. Schools, colleges and universities planning new builds or refurbishment of existing building stock can gain highefficiency, low-emission, low cost to operate systems.”

Calibrated for the UK climate, the L70 operates with ambient temperatures of -20 to +35°C. When temperatures plummet, the L70 automatically provides built-in frost protection.

Achieving water temperatures up to 60°C, the L70 can be used to supply preheat for hybrid applications with regular hot water demand. The L70 will dramatically lower CO2 when analysed using the carbon intensity figures from the new SAP10. Compared to gas-fired systems the carbon emissions are reduced by around 70 per cent, when using the SCOP of 3.47 (Ecodesign reference design temperature of 2°C for the UK and water temperature at 55°C).

FURTHER INFORMATION enquiries@adveco.co 01252 551 540 www.adveco.co

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CLEANING

Addgard’s antibacterial and disinfectant multi-purpose wipe dispensers

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Addgards range of wipe dispensers are perfect for classroom environments.

They encourage good hand hygiene which helps prevent the spread of harmful germs and bacteria and will clean a messy desk in seconds.

Choose from a stand alone station with an inner bin or a smaller, wall mounted/ desk top dispenser.

The wet wipe dispensers come in a wide range of colours and finishes and the refillable wipes can be supplied in a biodegradable material. All Addgards wipes will clean and disinfect: furniture, computer screens, mouse, chairs, labs, woodwork, even gym areas and canteens.

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