Richmond Borough Schools Chat 9

[ChrisSquire2]

This thread follows on from Richmond Borough Schools Chat 8 starting February 2016.
News and opinions on all the changes to schools in Richmond borough.

See also:

Richmond Borough Schools Chat 7 starting May 2015

Links to earlier threads (1-6), starting in February 2011

@goddessnic - our first choice is Orleans and we were 35th on the list so wasn't expecting our ds to get in (at this stage anyway) - not sure how far down the list it has gone but apparently it went to almost 70 by the end of the summer last year but only around 20 the year before (that is before RuT opened though and it is proving a very popular school but just a bit too far for us).

@Dramaqueen40 we got a place too! We were 28. I wonder how far it’s gone, I have friends at 56 and 57!

@goddessnic I think the second round offers went as far as around 40.

@DDqueen40 so it will go down quite a lot by the summer I expect. My sons best friend is at 56 so it would be lovely if he gets in too.

Gender pay gap reporting (this has appeared in the Guardian but worth highlighting).

Academies Entetprise Trust
Achieving for Children
Richmond upon Thames College
Lady Eleanor Holles

Must be lots of trusts yet to report - I think there’s only a week left. The AET chain should be thoroughly ashamed.

Every Child, Every Day Academy Trust - that’s actually Grey Cout School along with Hollyfield School. Bit of a gap considering the CEO is a woman!

Richmond Council

Sorry, last link goes to wrong data and looks much worse than it is!

Richmond Council

Goodness, those are fascinating.

I know experienced teachers who find that they are competing in interviews with younger cheaper teachers and struggling to land jobs they would normally expect to get because they are too expensive for cash strapped Schools. It is if anything worse in areas outside London where there are always plenty of applicants for jobs. .

Guardian report is here. Women not getting promoted, or working as part-time support staff, while well paid men dominate senior management, especially in chains which have not given value for money.

I had a doorstep visit from a (very nice) council candidate at the weekend, who said that St Mary's CofE school in St Margarets is going to a four and a half day week. I can't see anything about it on their website. Does anyone know if it is true, and if any other local schools are considering this?

It is fairly common I know in parts of Scotland, but I have not heard of it around here.

Their website still says 3.30pm finish every day for juniors. And info on after school clubs has something on every day after that. Not saying they aren’t strapped for cash or anything but isn’t the PFI deal a factor as well as the general funding cuts?

I heard about a school in Isleworth www.standard.co.uk/news/london/london-primary-school-to-become-first-in-uk-to-cut-working-week-to-fourandahalf-days-a3753741.html consulting on a 4.5 day week. They were heavily criticised for having the discussion let alone going ahead with it.
If they are to do this it is a sign of the troubling times we are in so far as education is concerned. Sadly the academisation-privatisation project has not worked. Its initial intentions were sound, supporting under-performing schools. Then Heads and Governing Bodies were conned into thinking the move to an academy would save schools money for use on staffing, resources, etc. Instead, a huge industry of 3rd-Party Education suppliers have emerged selling schools solutions for all the new responsibilities placed on schools. A school can often be paying hundreds of thousands of pounds to external suppliers - auditors, recruitment costs, after-school education for sport, extra english and maths, the list just goes on. It is just a mess. Mc-Education... utter disgrace what the powers that be are doing!!

McEducation indeed! The Guardian has an illuminating interactive page that shows at what point in the year women start working for free compared to their male colleagues. It’s the equivalent of the whole Christmas term at AET. The service offered under local authorities was often better and more efficient (not to mention more accountable) than the quasi-private academy chain system - we can’t afford to be paying more for unfairness and mediocrity.

Ah, that must be the St. Mary's she meant. The whole funding situation is dire, and heartbreaking.

Things are really out of hand when hundreds of parents are all suddenly having to find and pay for childcare on a Friday afternoon so they can carry on working. I am surprised to hear that there are no compulsory minimum number of hours per week and minimum break times for school children. Would have thought that was especially important if you allow academies and religious groups to run schools independent of local authorities. I am always surprised to see Turing House children coming out at 3pm which seems like practically a half day every day! We used to finish secondary school at 4pm - although I know it's usually earlier now have secondary school children gradually lost several hours a week over the last few decades!?

Turing start early, in school by 8.20, and have a shorter lunch, so actually I imagine have the same lesson time as others. I quite like the differing finishing times, makes after school activities simpler and less clogged up buses! Agree though that a half day for primary is a very sad state of affairs and must make a difference to what the children can learn.

They're all staggered aren't they? Waldegrave finish at 2.40pm on three days a week and 3.25pm on the other two.

I don't get how going to 4.5 days saves money unless you change all the staff contracts to reduce their hours. Is that what that Isleworth school is planning to do? It might be attractive for staff who want to work less hours, but if they're struggling to make ends meet they're not going to stick around for long.

I think the idea is that the teachers use that half a day for all non teaching things, so they can cut out all the "extra" staff who are currently paid to cover lessons for the usual class teachers. I saw a very good news item on it some weeks back, from a really quite distressed head teacher, and believe that was what she was saying.

Provider announced for the new secondary school in Mortlake at the Stag Brewery site - www.richmond.gov.uk/council/news/press_office/older_news/april_2018/stag_brewery_secondary_school They already have 4 schools in LB Hounslow.

Primary School offers day 2018 21 April 2018 - 98% of in-borough applicants have been offered a place at one of their first three preferred primary schools. On 16 April, Richmond Council made the initial allocation of Reception class offers for this September. This year, 2,174 pupils applied for a place - compared with 2,363 last year.

88% will be offered a place at their first preference primary school, compared to last year’s figure of 84% and 2016’s figure of 83%. Currently there are no children without an offer of a primary school place, compared to last year when 34 children were without an initial offer (all were made offers within weeks).

St Margaret’s Community Newsletter & LBRuT presser.

Ofsted busy locally.
Turing House have now had their inspection and Twickenham School were inspected yesterday and today.