Agenda item

Report attached

Trevor Cook, Assistant Director for Education Services presented the Admissions and Inclusions report to the Sub-Committee. This detailed an update for Members on the progress being made to improve School Admissions and Inclusions arrangements across Havering’s Schools, Academies and Alternative Provisions.

The Admissions and Inclusions Team was restructured in March 2019 and is divided into three areas, Early Years, Admissions and Inclusions.

·       Early Years

Coordinates the admissions of children ages 0-5 into early year’s provisions and schools/academies across Havering, and provides support for families accessing the early education entitlement and 30 hours.

·       Admissions

Coordinates the admissions of children ages 5-16 into schools/academies across Havering and provides support for parents during the application process and is responsible for administering and presenting school appeals and school transport for pupils without an Educational, Health and Care Plan.

·       Inclusions

Coordinates the Inclusions of children aged 5-16 into school/academies and alternative provisions to prevent exclusions where possible and offers alternative pathways to support pupils and set them back on track to achieve the best possible outcome from their education.

Central data bases are used to ensure children are tracked into a school place.  Reference to Cohort refers to those pupils entering Reception, Junior School or Secondary in September; these applications are part of a co-ordinated admissions round and are administered by the School Admissions & Inclusions Team. Applicant information is co-ordinated amongst all London Admission Authorities prior to the start of September. The law states this is compulsory for all Schools/Academies to participate in.

Outside of Cohort admissions the team also deal with In-Year applications.  These are usually made by parents who have moved into Havering and require a school place for their child and who wish their child to transfer between schools/academies. The team will discourage unnecessary moves but parents do have the right to apply.

Schools cannot refuse to admit a child on the basis of previous attendance, behaviour or attitude towards learning, amongst other reasons. Any Havering child who is out of school where there are no vacancies at any of the schools / academies applied for, will be offered an alternative place at the school closest to the child’s home with a vacancy.

The Local Authority has a statutory duty to provide pupils who have been Permanently Excluded (PEX) an education from day 6 of the PEX. The Team work with schools/academies to avoid PEX where possible and offer other alternative pathways to support pupils and set them back on track to achieve.

In addition, the Local Authority has a Statutory Duty to provide a Fair Access Protocol. This is managed by the Team who will assess the needs of the child in question to ensure the most appropriate available placement is secured as soon as possible. The Team will always seek to find an alternative placement and support to a child who is in danger of PEX and will fairly share the admission of vulnerable students across all schools.  Such admissions are allocated openly through a process which has the trust and confidence of all concerned. The progress of children subject to this procedure is monitored and successes are celebrated. There is partnership working with Alternative Provision (AP) providers, most notably the Olive AP Trust.

The Team operates a cross-borough Inclusion Gateway process that has been developed in collaboration with schools to incorporate a multi-disciplinary approach. This provides a single point of contact for all referrals where pupil’s needs are assessed to ensure the correct pathway is identified  at the point of need.

 The Team identifies Elective Home Education (EHE)and monitors EHE children.  It supports families by identifying schools and enabling parents to re-engage their children back into the education system if parents wish. Preparations for Positive Pathways for post 16 are supported.  There are currently around 200 EHE children in the Borough.

A Teacher is available to provide education to pupils who are in hospital, or who are leaving hospital and are not able to attend mainstream school. This is through the Hospital Education Support Service.  This is provided on a part time basis in Queens Hospital on the Tropical Lagoon Ward,

The Admissions & Inclusions Team also operates a traded service where “buy back” from schools/academies contributes towards the Team’s functions and provides alternative provision and services for pupils who are unable to engage or maintain their mainstream education.

There followed a discussion and Members were able to place questions.  In response the Sub-Committee elicited the following:

·       The admissions process operates through the London Inter Authority Admissions which operates Pan-London.  Most schools operate a distance criterion which enables Havering children to attend their nearest school if they wish even if that school is outside the Borough e.g. Barking and Dagenham.  The admissions criteria for each school will be applied fairly and impartially in each case.  There is no similar coordination with Essex Schools.

·       The Team work hard to identify fraudulent applications to ensure the process is lawful and fair.  Havering were the first Borough to initiate a prosecution against a parent for a fraudulent application.

·       The In-year Fair Access Protocol works to ensure schools with vacancies are protected so they do not become a “sink school” accommodating a disproportionate amount of children with difficult and challenging issues.  The Team can require a school to go over the Published Admissions Number (PAN) to ensure a school admits a fair share of vulnerable pupils.  Sometimes placements are made deliberately to facilitate a complete fresh start if in the best interests of the child.  The needs of the child are always at the forefront of any placement.

·       School exclusions, particularly PEX are topical in the media at present.  The number is published annually but the data is currently available for 2016-17.  SEN pupils are particularly vulnerable.  Havering is above average with PEX.  In the current academic year there have been 23 PEXs.  Schools identified as having a disproportionate number will be held to account and challenged.  There has been one School in the Borough that has PEX 5 children/young people.  Wherever possible, the Team will work hard to facilitate a managed move.  There are groups of schools that have become known for being very inclusive and these are celebrated.  There is an Inclusion Quality Mark in operation.

·       Recently the Team were placed on notice that a school was finding it hard to meet the needs of a particular child. As a result, a Head Teacher with skills and expertise to help in this was identified to  support the school in question.  The Team look to Head Teachers to put peer pressure on others to be more inclusive, working hard with children to address challenges and bring out their full potential.  There is a full range of support that can be offered including practice classrooms and other interventions that helps to share good practice.

·       It is hard to access successes in this area but there is some national research that can be brought to a future meeting for discussion.  The Sub-Committee indicated that looking at the most successful and effective processes would be helpful.

·       Success rates in Home Schooled children are monitored.  Parents that EHE are registered.  Olive AP Academy work hard to reintegrate children back into mainstream school but success rates can be varied.  Sensitive transitions will be made on a gradual basis making sure the time is right for the child involved and ensuring full support throughout.

·       Looked After Children (LAC) are a priority for admissions and the Virtual School assists with these. LAC are included in the Fair Access Protocol as a priority group.

·       Alternative Provision providers work in partnership with the Police and Safeguarding Teams.  Vulnerable children will not be placed into a more vulnerable position. AP providers are inspected by Ofsted.

·       Havering deal with post 16 education.  Young people in vulnerable circumstances will be a focus for the safeguarding team and a new partnership process of adolescent safeguarding will be launched in the autumn.

·       In the transition between Primary and Secondary Schools it is a challenge to do things well.  Sometimes this can be difficult in out of Borough placements for Havering children.  The Team are trying to build relationships with neighbouring boroughs.  They do have a duty to Havering residents.  Geographically things can differ including admission criteria.  Standard transition forms are currently being piloted and will be evaluated.

The Children and Learning Overview and Scrutiny Sub-Committee noted the report and agreed to follow up on issues raised in the Work Plan for the next municipal year.