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VISIT TO THE WALLINGFORD PARTNERSHIP BY MEMBERS OF THE COUNTY COUNCIL

WEDNESDAY 16 MARCH 2005

Minutes of the Plenary Session held at Wallingford School

Present:

Councillors:

Andrew Brown
Alan Bryden
Rob Evans
Margaret Ferriman
Anda Fitzgerald-O'Connor
Stephen Hayward
Brian Hodgson

Headteachers & teachers:

Adrian Cogill, Crowmarsh Gifford
Jennifer Forder, St John's
Roger Grant, Brightwell cum Sotwell
Heather Haigh, Cholsey
Linda Neely, Benson Infants & Juniors
Lee Ryman, Fir Tree Juniors
Frances Taylor, St Nicholas Infants’
Kevin Burrell, Wallingford
Ian Ferris, Wallingford

Learning & Culture

Judith Morris, Head of School Development Service (SDS)
John Evans, Link Adviser, SDS
Irene Kirkman, Partnership Adviser, SDS

The plenary session started with a presentation from the headteachers in the Wallingford Partnership of Schools. Frances Taylor, Headteacher of St Nicholas CE Infants’ school led the presentation which covered the curricular activities undertaken by the partnership. These activities included:

Gifted & Talented

• Challenge Award provision for able and gifted and talented children
• A Mathematics Day based on the Egyptians for the partnership students
• A Writing Day led by James Carter, a local poet and including students as young as Year 2
• An Art Day planned for summer 2005 led by Arthur Penn, working on a very large piece of fabric on the theme "Imagine". The finished artefact will be displayed in the Museum of Modern Art.

Issues raised:

Members asked if the fabric could also be displayed in the museums and galleries around Oxfordshire.

Sport & Physical Education

This presentation was led by Ian Ferris, Director of Sport at Wallingford School and supported by Kevin Burrell, Deputy Headteacher with responsibility for curriculum and learning.

Ian explained that Wallingford School achieved Sports College designation in 2004 and is using its specialist status to impact on the learning of students in the partnership. This is being undertaken by Harriet Thomas, PE coordinator through audit and support work in the primary schools. Harriet’s work includes:

• Dance inset
• Gymnastics
• Lunchtime supervisory training – focusing on the constructive use of the break time and developing the playground
• Tournaments
• Orienteering.

Wallingford Sports College contributes to the Government’s PSA target to provide two hours a week high quality sport/PE for 75% of all students. The Sports College functions as a hub for the sport of South Oxfordshire. There are plans to extend its activities next year to the Wheatley Park and Didcot partnerships. A partnership manager is devoted to achieving the PSA target and will work with seconded PE staff from the satellite secondary schools involved to attract further funding from the Lottery. In addition, each primary school will receive 12 days of inset funding. A total of £645k is being spent on staffing to achieve the aims of the project.

Issues raised:

Councillor Hodgson asked if the Sports College had any connection with Oxford United Football team. Ian Ferris replied that there are several famous footballers such as Wayne Rooney and David Beckham who provide important role models for boys so some linkage with Oxford United would be made. Councillor Bryden asked if bridge and chess were included as sports of the mind. Ian Ferris replied that Wallingford School already runs chess clubs. The major focus in sport is on developing healthy bodies. Fencing is used as a good example of a combination of body and mind activity.

Assessment for Learning (AfL)

Frances Taylor described the partnership developments in AfL which had started with an inset in January 2003 led by Dylan Wiliam. Three main aspects had been identified:

• Rich questioning
• Self and peer assessment
• Effective feedback.

She described how St Nicholas had successfully trialled elements with Foundation and KS1 children with the result that the children took their assessment skills with them into Fir Tree Junior School, and then on to Wallingford School.

A further partnership session on effective feedback was proposed for June.

Other related developments had included a session on learning styles with Trevor Hawes in October 2003.

Annual Partnership Events

These were:

• Music workshop for Year 2 pupils
• Science presentations
• Sports fixtures and tournaments.

Future plans

• A Partnership Learning Network focussing on embedding ICT in numeracy
• Provision of a joint ICT technician from Wallingford School
• Modern Foreign Languages – making use of existing expertise from Wallingford School
• Ideas on learning generated by the recent Headteachers’ Conference on Creative Leadership.

General issues raised

• Councillor Hodgson asked whether schools had sufficient funding to implement fully all the aspects of Workforce Remodelling. The headteachers replied that there were deep concerns about the introduction of planning, preparation and assessment time despite the additional 1% for primary school budgets. In addition Jenny Forder raised a concern about the government’s lack of funding of the upper pay scale.

• Action: Councillor Hodgson requested a note on Workforce Remodelling Funding in tine for the next Scrutiny meeting on 22 March 2005.
• Councillor Bryden asked whether support for Gifted & Talented children continued throughout the school year. Heather Haigh responded that her staff had used ideas generated by the ‘miniversaties’ and that all the schools kept registers of able children. They were frequently given challenging work in small groups. Roger Grant pointed out the multiplicity of new resources available.

Councillor Ferriman drew the session to a close by thanking the headteachers for the eloquence of their presentations and Wallingford School for the refreshments provided.

Judith Morris thanked the councillors for giving up their time to visit the schools in the Wallingford Partnership.

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