Schools weekly newsletter
Friday 17 April 2015
Contents

Reception baselines assessment

Managing resources in times of austerity

Health and wellbeing: drop-in session
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Teacher visits to the new York archives: change of date for primary teachers

Save the Children’s Den Day
Reception baselines assessment
The DfE has announced that it will only use the outcomes from the reception baseline to
develop a cohort measure of progress. The reception baseline will not be used to track
individual pupil progress.
The reception baseline should not affect the nature of provision in early years and it is not
intended to be used to hold early years providers to account; it is a base to measure progress
for primary schools. A progress measure is important to celebrate the work done by schools
with more challenging intakes and recognises the vital work on narrowing the gap that takes
place in reception and key stage 1. Information on GOV.UK is being updated to reflect this.
If you have any further questions regarding the reception baseline, please contact the DfE
national enquiry line on 0370 000 2288, or go to www.gov.uk/reception-baseline-assessmentguide-to-signing-up-your-school.
Managing resources in times of austerity
The School Business Support Service is running two sessions for primary schools, on Friday 8
May and Thursday 14 May (both 9.30–12.00), looking at exploring the use of resources as
funding remains static and costs increase. These sessions are for headteachers, and schools are
invited to send one senior leader (eg deputy headteacher or business/finance manager) as well.
Places are free for schools that buy into SBSS at the entry level or above, and cost £60 for other
schools. Please choose the session you would like to attend and book your place through WDU.
Linda Brook / linda.brook@york.gov.uk / 01904 554574
Health and wellbeing: drop-in session
Do you have questions about the new Occupational health provider or the Employee Assistance
Programme (EAP)? Do you understand how the service links with HR Attendance policy, and
would you like the opportunity to talk in confidence to a member of the Occupational Health
team or HR? We are organising a drop-in session for headteachers on health and wellbeing,
occupational health and HR, on Tuesday 28 April from 12.30 to 1.30 (before the headteachers
briefing).
Joy Holmes / joy.holmes@york.gov.uk / 01904 554233
Teacher visits to the new York archives: change of date for primary teachers
As part of the Heritage Lottery funded York: Gateway to History, the new York archives are
running ‘Archive Twilight Zones 2015’ this month aimed at teachers who would like to use
archive and local history resources to enhance and enrich their teaching.
Wednesday 22 April, 17.00–18.30: EYFS, KS1 and KS2 (Please note change of date from 14 April)
Monday 20 April, 17.00–18.30: KS3, KS4 and KS5
These sessions are FREE, with refreshments included and (teachers’ own!) children welcome, but
booking is essential. For more details, see www.york.gov.uk/downloads/file/17614/.
Allison Freeman / allison.freeman@exploreyork.org.uk / 01904 553879
Save the Children’s Den Day
Save the Children is calling on UK schools to ‘build a better world’ with the launch of an exciting
new fundraising initiative – ‘Den Day’. Launching on 29 May and running until 6 June, Save the
Children’s Den Day invites schools to pick a date and hold a day of den
building fun with pupils getting sponsored to take part.
Aimed at educating pupils about the issues faced by children around
the world who lack secure housing, Den Day will take pupils on an
adventure while raising money to give children a safe, warm place to
sleep. The campaign provides schools with a creative way to teach global issues whilst inspiring
and empowering young people to raise money to help children across the globe.
Schools can sign up at denday.org to access useful resources to help plan a learning adventure
that’s as much fun for teachers as it is for pupils. The flexible teaching plans can be shaped to
suit pupils of all ages and can contribute to many areas of the curriculum, encouraging creativity
and teamwork. Whether schools plan a day with a difference or an overnight stay, it’s sure to be
a lesson that students will never forget.
Find out more at denday.org.