Round Up

There haven't been any posts on here for a while, so here's a round up of recent reports in the early years sector:

The government has announced plans to make it a legal duty for themselves and local authorities to eradicate child poverty by 2020. To achieve this they have published a Child Poverty Bill which sets out how this aim should be achieved. The full text of the bill is available from this link, while a 7 page overview can be obtained by clicking here.

The government has also moved to tighten the regulations on home education, by forcing parents who choose to educate their child in this way to register with local authorities and undergo inspections. The plans are outlined in Graham Badman's Review of Elective Home Education in England, with all the report's recommendations being accepted by the government.

The NSPCC has published Breaking the Wall of Silence, which is a detailed investigation into practitioners' experiences of dealing with children who have been trafficked. A summary version is also available.

Supporting Young Carers

A new report from Ofsted has concluded that children who have caring responsibilities are often "unidentified, unsupported and without a voice." Research for the study was carried out in November and December last year, with 50 young carers who were responsible for either disabled parents or siblings being interviewed.

The full report - Supporting Young Carers: Identifying, Assessing and Meeting the Needs of Young Carers and their Families - can be downloaded in either Word or PDF format from this link. For an insight into the life of a young carer, take a look at this BBC article.

School Leadership

The DCSF has just published The Impact of School Leadership on Pupil Outcomes. This is a lengthy report which reports on a three year study carried out in conjunction with the National College of School Leadership, to establish the links that exist between school leadership and pupil's attendance, attainment and behaviour.

We're Still Here!

A number of students have asked in recent days whether the library is open during the summer. The answer, as in other years, is yes! From the week beginning 29th June, the opening hours will be as follows:

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 7pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Sat/Sun Closed

Please also note that from next week, any books which you take out will be due back at the beginning of October.

Creative Summer

The Guardian is launching a new series entitled Creative Summer, which will explore how teachers, teaching assistants and pupils are finding new and different ways to learn in the classroom. The series begins today with 'Deckchairs Don't Fly', in which poet John Hegley shares some of his tips for engaging with a young audience. Readers are also invited to share their contributions, while all creativity-related features from the Guardian can be accessed from this link.

The blog has already addressed the subject of creativity on a number of previous occasions. To view all previous relevant posts with information about useful websites, reports and TV programmes, just look at the 'Hot Topics' menu in the right-hand column and click on the 'Creativity' link.