Agenda item - Annual Standards Report

Report of the Executive Director; Families, Children and Learning (Copy attached)

RESOLVED: That the Committee agreed –

1.    To note the report and support the focus across the City on improving outcomes for all children and young people, particularly those from the disadvantaged backgrounds.

2.    To note that there have been changes in the curriculum, assessment and benchmark measures for Key Stages 2 and 4 and for determining the performance of disadvantaged groups. This means that there is difficulty in establishing trends when not comparing like with like.

61.1    The Head of Education Standards and Achievement gave a brief overview of the Annual Standards Report, he noted there was consistent improvement and that attainment in the city in regards to Key Stage 2 was high. He noted that reading was very high even in regards to disadvantaged pupils, that there was room for improvement specifically at Key Stage 4. He gave a list of various efforts being implemented to address concerns, these included:

·         There were 12 premium reviews in progress in regards to Key Stage 2

·         Individual schools were being challenged and supported to receive the correct resources needed

·         Maths in primary was a program being implemented across Brighton and Hove

·         There was ongoing work with head teachers in regards to the peer challenge model

·         A second strategic school has been funded

·         Training and conferences have been taking place across the City.

61.2    The Head of Cardinal Newman School stated that he was delighted with the Ofsted report and praised the strong sense of partnership across the City. He stated that the move away from attainment was good and that there was a high level of trust between teachers and institutions. He emphasised avoidance of the concept of group think in regards to disadvantaged pupils and that efforts were being made to promote their individuality. He noted that adult assistant help identify students that are under achieving. He further noted that the success has been down to the quality of teaching and learning.

61.3    Councillor Brown stated that the greatest priority was for disadvantaged children. She enquired where Brighton and Hove lies in the national status, what support there was for ethnic minority groups and learning.

61.4    The Head of Education Standards and Achievement stated that disadvantaged pupils are broadly below national average and that equalities remained high on the agenda.

61.5    The Head of Cardinal Newman School stated it was interesting to see how pupils are being represented. He noted that Cardinal Newman have been working with a group of students to deliver self-esteem and that these particular groups were being elevated.

61.6    Adam Muirhead enquired if Gypsy Roman Travellers were counted amongst the disadvantaged by ethnicity.

61.7    The Head of Education Standards and Achievement confirmed that there is some data on this; he noted that sometimes Gypsy Roman Travellers were counted as disadvantaged by ethnicity.

61.8    The Chair requested that the data on Gypsy Roman Travellers be circulated.

61.9    The Head of Safer Communities stated that she could provide this data however it should be noted that numbers will be poor. She further noted that BHCC have case studies and details regarding any interventions that can be provided.

61.10  Councillor Wealls state that Progress 8 data supports disadvantaged groups and that Cardinal Newman scored well in this aspect. He expressed his concern regarding schools that scored low in regards to their performance in regards to disadvantaged groups and noted that Brighton Academy had a better score than Blatchington Mill, Dorothy Stringer, Varndean, Hove Park and Longhill.

61.11  The Head of Safer Communities stated that this was the biggest priority for BHCC and that different schools have improved in different ways. She noted that this did not indicate complacency.

61.12  The Head of Education Standards and Achievement stated that schools are being scrutinised and that this was an ongoing process.

61.13  Councillor Penn noted that white working class boys were being left behind and that this must be addressed. She noted that in a city of high levels of poverty, mental health issues and substance abuse issues it was notable that disadvantaged’s needs were not being met. She enquired, in regards to the Foundation Stage Profile, if BHCC area considerably worse at many levels including at the national level and if so how this was possible.

61.14  The Head of Education Standards and Achievement stated that this data is just the tip of the iceberg and that there were also some positive and negative trends across schools.

61.15  The Head of Safer Communities stated that the disadvantaged group was large and that on closer inspection the meta data revealed that there was progress within these groups.

61.16  The Head of Cardinal Newman School stated that in regards to the data, 4 students were out of disadvantaged groups which had depressed progress data for the rest of the result.

61.17  Councillor Taylor stated that one of the strategic objectives was to eliminate the gap on the disadvantaged; he enquired why scrutiny was not available on this.

61.18  The Chair stated that the reports were good when ready so that they could be discussed. He noted that things can change and that he was just trying to make sure all reports were brought in as soon as possible.

61.19  Martin Jones noted the disparity between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged; he noted that the situation could be getting worse. He further noted that the national average was not very good either and that aspirations should be higher. He stated that this information should be public and not private.

61.20  The Executive Director of Families Children and Learning stated that the way data is changing meant that you could not make clear distinctions. He noted the improvement on Children at Key Stage 2 in terms of attainment. He further noted the progress that has occurred since the beginning and further stated that most of the information referred to by Mr Johnson was in the public domain and not hidden. He confirmed that he was happy to make a report over 2 to 300 pages in length however for reasons of brevity, consolidation of information must be kept short.

61.21  Martin Johnson stated that the report at Committee was too short.

61.22  Councillor Phillips requested the appendices of information by provided at the pre-meet as this would be useful as reference for people.

61.23  The Executive Director of Families Children and Learning Ghoshal agreed to provide additional tables.

61.24  RESOLVED: That the Committee agreed –

1.    To note the report and support the focus across the City on improving outcomes for all children and young people, particularly those from the disadvantaged backgrounds.

2.    To note that there have been changes in the curriculum, assessment and benchmark measures for Key Stages 2 and 4 and for determining the performance of disadvantaged groups. This means that there is difficulty in establishing trends when not comparing like with like.