Children’s Services Cabinet Member – minutes – 31 January 2009

89 (38) OFSTED INSPECTIONS – The Service Director Learning, Schools and Communities submitted a report on the outcome of Ofsted inspections at the following schools:

  • Althorpe and Keadby Primary School
  • Brumby Junior School
  • Enderby Road Infant School
  • Frodingham Infant School
  • Holme Valley Primary School
  • Saint Augustine Webster Catholic Primary School, and
  • The Darley Centre

The schools had been inspected as part of the routine Ofsted inspection cycle of schools. Full copies of the reports had been placed in the political group offices.

Resolved – (a) That approval be given to continue supporting improvements in the schools inspected above, and (b) that the Cabinet Member writes to the schools and makes suitable comments on the reports.

90 (39) SCHOOL GOVERNORS – INSTRUMENTS OF GOVERNMENT – The Service Director Children, Strategy and Partnerships submitted a report seeking approval for a new Instrument of Government to be effective from 1 September 2008.

North Axholme School was successful in being awarded specialist school status in the Summer term of 2008. On 4 November 2008 the governing body gave their approval to a new name for the school – North Axholme School, A Specialist Media Arts College.

The new Instrument of Government was appended to the report.

Resolved – That the new Instrument of Government for North Axholme School, to be effective from 1 September 2008, be approved.

91 (40) APPOINTMENT OF LOCAL AUTHORITY SCHOOL GOVERNORS – The Service Director Children, Strategy and Partnerships submitted a report seeking approval of the appointment of Local Education Authority (LEA) School Governors.

Resolved – (a) That the following persons be appointed LEA School Governors on the schools listed, subject to the relevant CRB checks:

Bottesford Infant Mrs C M Kupfers
Burton upon Stather Primary Mr J B McKenzie
Castledyke Primary Mr N Turner
Henderson Avenue Primary Mrs C Hall
Huntcliff Mr J Wigmore
New Holland CE/Methodist Primary Miss C R Wynn-Jackson

92 (41) CHILDREN’S CENTRE STAFFING – The Service Director Learning, Schools and Communities submitted a report seeking endorsement of the transfer of the full day care at West Street and Henderson Avenue Children’s Centres from an external provider to the management and accountability of the council.

It was a statutory requirement of the Department of Children, Schools and Families that phase 1 (based in areas of high need) Children’s Centres delivered sustainable day care 48 weeks per years between the hours of 8am and 6pm, Monday to Friday.

There had been a complex history around the delivery and management of childcare within the West Street and Henderson Avenue centres. Following the withdrawal in November 2006 of the Pre-School Learning Alliance, who had previously managed the centres on behalf of the council, both nurseries received sustainability funding due to the difficult circumstances they had encountered.

Since December 2006 the day care had been provided at both on the centres by North Lindsey College on a contract that ended in December 2008. To continue to deliver the service via an external provided had proved expensive, as the sustainability funding no longer formed part of the Surestart, Early Years and Childcare grant.

Following a review with the college it was identified that there was a need to secure and strengthen the nursery provision. It was proposed that the nurseries become an important part of the Children’s Centres and be run by the council.

Resolved – (a) That the creation and establishment of the posts required for the West Street and Henderson Avenue Children’s Centres to function to Ofsted regulatory standards, be endorsed, and (b) that the report be forwarded to the Corporate Services Cabinet Member for approval.

The following items contain exempt information as defined in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

93 (42) REGRADING ADMINSTRATIVE SUPPORT – PSYCHOLOGY AND SPECIALIST TEACHING TEAM – The Service Director Learning, Schools and Communities submitted a report seeking endorsement of the regrading of the post of Clerical Officer in the Psychology and Specialist Teaching Team.

In July 2008, the arrangements for mainstreaming the activities of the former Behaviour Improvement Team (BIP) were agreed with Head Teachers in the cluster. This involved the transfer of a Clerical Officer post from INSPIRE to the Psychology and Specialist Teaching Team, along with a range of duties that the post holder had been carrying out which were still needed to ensure continuation of the former BIP activities.

The transfer also required the post holder to take on additional duties in relation to a widened range of people requiring administrative support. The job description for the post had been revised to reflect the needs and responsibilities.

Resolved – (a) That the regrading outlined in paragraph 2.5 of the report be endorsed, and (b) that the report be forwarded to the Corporate Services Cabinet Member for approval.

Note: Reports are in Portable Document Format (PDF) and therefore require a suitable reader to view them. A reader can be downloaded free from the Adobe website (full instructions for downloading the reader are provided on the site).

Where there is no report this is because it is exempt, as it contains information which is considered to be of a confidential nature, as detailed in the Local Government (Access to Information) Act.