Bid to improve school loos

Dirty or inadequate school toilets mean that many pupils are resisting the call of nature, according to the British Cleaning Council (BCC).

Pupils may avoid using toilets if they aren’t sufficiently private, or because they fear bullies who loiter there.

As a result some children are avoiding having a drink which can lead to dehydration and kidney problems. Others are having "accidents" because they don't want to have to use the toilet.

The ‘Bog Standard’ campaign has been launched to raise standards of school toilets.

“It’s been brought to our attention that clean, safe, equipped and accessible toilets are becoming high on children`s wish lists - but many UK schools are failing to provide this, said Steve Wright, Chairman of the BCC.

“Children are just as entitled as adults to clean toilet facilities; poor hygiene in loos can lead to increased infections such as bacterial diarrhoea and Hepatitis A.”

Small schools "under threat"

Hundreds of small schools around the country are being threatened with closure, the National Association of Small Schools has warned.

Between 100 and 300 schools in England and Wales are affected, despite some of them achieving very good results.

Most have fewer than 90 pupils.

There were protests in Shropshire after it was announced that 22 primary schools were to merge or close.

In the Isle of Wight primary 23 schools have been earmarked for closure – all in the top 10 per cent of national performance.

Falling pupil numbers and the pressure to meet government targets for services have been blamed.

There are around 2000 schools nationally with fewer than 100 pupils on the roll.

Behaviour impact of healthy lunches

Eating healthy lunches can sometimes cause children to behave more boisterously, new research has found.

Six primary schools in Sheffield were studied, and it was found that children who ate lunches high in fruit and vegetables were nearly four times more likely to be disruptive when working with other pupils.

However, in teacher-led activities pupils were over five times more likely to display alert and focussed behaviour when they had eaten more healthily.

The research, produced by the School Food Trust, is the first time that improvements in learning behaviour has been studied in relation to nutrition and dining facilities.

Mental health training for schools

A pilot project aimed at improving the service offered to children with mental health problems will begin in 25 local authority areas in April.

Funding of £60million will be used to pay for support such as school staff with mental health expertise, training and therapists.

Schools will work with the local authority and the Primary Care Trust to develop a more coordinated approach to helping children affected and their families.

The primary schools involved will all be associated with secondary schools that have chosen to be part of the pilot project.

The 25 local authorities are: Luton, Norfolk, Suffolk, Leicester City, Lincolnshire, Hackney, Merton, Southwark, Gateshead, Northumberland, Sunderland, Blackburn and Darwen, Blackpool, Bury, Brighton and Hove, Kent, Reading, Leeds, North East Lincolnshire, Coventry, Shropshire, Wolverhampton, Gloucestershire, Swindon and Cornwall.

Children's growing computer use

A quarter of five and six-year-olds have their own laptop or computer, according to research commissioned by the Guardian newspaper.

The study found that increasing numbers of children were using the internet, particularly younger children. Communicating with friends, through instant messaging or via social networking sites such as Bebo, was the biggest reason for using the net.

Children as young as eight were found to be signing up to social networking sites, sometimes using fake ages to get round minimum age safeguards.

Playing games was the second most popular reason for children being on the computer, followed by looking for information for schoolwork in third place.

Watching television was also found to have become more popular amongst children, and reading for pleasure less so, with young children in particular tuning in before going to school.

Five hundred and fifty primary school children were interviewed as part of the research, out of a total of 1,147 children aged below 17 from England, Scotland and Wales.

The survey was carried out by Childwise, a market research company.

Schools should teach personal finance

Personal finance education should be part of the school curriculum, according to a survey of teachers and parents.

Ninety-three per cent of those questioned said the topic should be taught in schools, and as a subject it was ranked sixth in importance after English, maths, science, languages and history.

Teaching personal finance is currently not compulsory, and just 4 per cent of teachers questioned regularly taught it.

As part of the research, conducted by the Association of investment Companies, 771 primary and secondary school teachers, and 613 parents with children below the age of 16 were questioned online.

School reports to go online

REGULAR electronic updates on children’s progress at school are to be sent to parents, as part of government plans to overhaul the traditional school report.

Parents should be able to access frequently updated, secure online information about their child’s achievement, progress, attendance and behaviour.

Communications may also be carried out via text message, school intranet or by video-conferencing.

All primary schools will be expected to have implemented ‘real-time reporting’ by 2012, two years after the target for secondary schools.

The plans were announced by Schools Minister Jim Knight at the educational technology trade show, BETT 2008.

Funding of £30 million was also announced to help low income families buy home computers and get broadband internet access to help with children’s school work.

Praise for Scottish meals progress

Primary schools in Scotland have made good progress in getting pupils to eat more healthily, but obesity is still rising according to school inspectors.

In most schools the presentation of meals has improved and healthy snacks such as fruit are more widely available, says the report from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education.

Despite the success of the scheme for primary pupils, inspectors noted that childhood obesity rates in Scotland were still rising and urged the government to act with more urgency.

Between 2005 and 2007 165 primary schools were visited to evaluate the success of the Hungry for Success initiative. The scheme was launched by the Scottish Executive in 2003 to improve the health of children.

Hungry for Success – Further Food for Thought

Refuges for runaway children

Children who run away from home are to be given better protection, including a national network of safe places providing overnight shelter.

Guidance for local authorities about how to help runaways, and the introduction of specially trained police and council workers have also been proposed by the government.

At present, there are just nine refuge beds in the UK, according to the Children’s Society, who have campaigned for better provision for runaways.

School starting age to be reviewed

Summer-born children could soon be able to start school up to a year later than autumn-born children.

The government has asked former Ofsted chief Sir Jim Rose to look at the options for a more flexibile school start date for children as part of a wholesale review of the primary curriculum.

Parents of children born later in the school year could decide to delay the first day of school until they felt their child was ready.

The review will also be looking at whether the curriculum is too prescriptive, making it difficult to meet the needs of children who are struggling to keep up and those who need more challenges.

Balls wants advice on how to introduce languages as a compulsory subject at Key Stage two in a way that is manageable for schools.

As well as reading, writing and numeracy, personal development should be central to the primary curriculum, says the letter.

Read Ed Balls’ letter to Sir Jim Rose

http://www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/pnattach/20080003/1.pdf

ICT training for TAs "lagging behind" - Ofsted

Teaching assistants’ and teachers’ training is not keeping pace with changing ICT resources in schools, Ofsted has warned.

As a resoult the resources are not being used to their full potential.

A sample inspection found that in most schools there were not enough opportunities for children to build on their knowledge and skills in ICT.

“Great strides” were evident in the foundation stage and at key stage 1 in helping pupils to be more independent and creative with ICT, but at key stage 2 there wasn’t enough challenge for the most able.

ICT in primary and secondary schools. Ofsted’s findings 2005/7

Boost for language teaching

Language lessons in primary schools are to be boosted by funding worth £35 million this year, the government has announced.

The money will pay for specialist teachers, training and teaching resources, and represents an increase of £5 million on 2007 funding levels.

It will also cover joint working between schools to support the transition between primary and secondary school.

Languages will become a compulsory part of the curriculum for seven to 11-year-olds in 2010.

Primary school hosts funeral

A funeral was held in a Leicestershire primary school on Friday, the first time that such an event is believed to have happened in England.

The coffin was brought through the main school entrance at Samworth Enterprise Academy which is shared with a church, incorporated within the school building. they both share a main entrance.

The school, backed by the Church of England and a Leicester businessman, opened in September. Pupils at are aged between three and 12 years and were in lessons when the funeral took place.

Parents were reported to have mixed reactions to the event.

Resources for reading year

Schools have been urged to take part in the 2008 National Year of Reading.

Schools Secretary Ed Balls called for every school to become involved in events and activities running throughout the year to promote and celebrate reading.

The importance of reading a bedtime story to children each night and the positive impact it has on development was highlighted, and parents were called upon to make it a regular habit.

"Reading can bring fun to [children’s] lives, feed their imagination, and develop their curiosity about the world," Mr Balls said.

To find out more visit the website at: http://www.yearofreading.org.uk/