Welcome to Linslade School! Parents’ Forum 27 November 2017

Tonight’s agenda. Welcome and Introductions The concept of Parents’ Forums Protocols Updates on agenda items from 14 June 2017 Issues for discussion Next steps Date of the next forum

What is a Parents’ Forum? A group of parents and carers who meet once a term to discuss school-related issues. A Parents’ Forum provides a valuable way to listen to the ideas and concerns of families and seek their views, helping to make sure the needs of children and their families are met. Meetings led by school staff and governors, usually by the Headteacher and the Chair of Governors. A genuine opportunity for open discussion according to a pre-published agenda.

Why hold a Parents’ Forum? Regular, open communication and consultation with parents and carers are important elements in informing school improvement. This is another mechanism through which parents and carers can feed into the life and development of our school.

Sharing information. Parents and carers are encouraged to share information from Parents’ Forums with parents and carers of other children. We now have all of our recent Parents’ Forum Meetings documented on our website.

Protocols for The Parents’ Forum. Agenda items should be tabled before the forum The agenda for each meeting will be published in the school’s newsletter. Parents & carers will be asked to register their interest in attending the next forum via parentsforum@linsladeac.co.uk Please note that all issues, whether you raise them yourself or on behalf of other parents/carers, should be general issues, not related to a specific child, teacher or incident. If you have specific concerns about your child your first point of contact should always be their form teacher/ head of year or the subject leader/head of department.

Issues for discussion. Updates on discussion topics at the last forum (June 2017): Resilience Feedback from previous meetings and planning for 2017 – 18. 2. Tonight’s agenda items CLT The school’s values’ status

Agenda item 2: Proposal to join the Chiltern Learning Trust

Agenda item 1: Updates and planning for 2017 - 18 Curriculum Times of the day Assemblies and PSHE Consultation Evenings and the timings of reports Show My Homework Online booking system for Consultation Evenings Introduction of a progress measure

Agenda item 3: Resilience Flexible thinking Optimism Coping with challenge Self esteem Empathy/awareness and control of emotions Learning to learn from mistakes

Agenda item 3: Resilience Staff training First two days of term – this is the next step on from growth mindset. Through PSHE Through timetabled lessons Through extra curricular activities To what extent should families be involved?

Well done Mrs Mead!

Agenda item 3: Resilience How can families help their children to develop resilience?

Agenda item 4: The school’s Values’ Education Status Appreciation Individuality Neighbourliness Aspiration Peacefulness Co-operation Perseverance Joyfulness Respect Friendliness Honesty Responsibility Fairness Trust

Audit Conclusion   We are pleased to award Linslade School the IVET Quality Mark for Values based Education for the third time. The assessors were welcomed into the school and could immediately feel the spirit of Values throughout. The Headteacher is a driving force for Values and compares the school’s Values to ‘the writing through a stick of rock! They are deeply embedded and running through everything. They are not just the cherry on top!’   Suggestions for Next Steps: Reflection – build personal reflection time into the school timetable to support well-being and mental health of children. Consider how to develop reflection for learning used in school into quiet reflection time. Reflection/mindfulness is seen as an important element to generate well-being and positive thinking with children. It can be introduced in class time with ‘just a minute’ of quiet reflection and then develop further into assemblies. Governors – Governors to communicate the importance of Values to the parents through the school’s newsletter and website, including celebrating the things they see on their visits that demonstrate the school’s passion for Values. Refreshing the understanding and knowledge of staff – Review the Values training and induction that is in place for all staff and Governors. Induction/Refresher training on Values could benefit the whole staff, especially in light of new aspects of VbE, especially the Inner Curriculum and Resilience (Neil and Jane Hawkes). Other points to look into:   Investigate the Resilience Survey –  Consider looking into membership of VbE for other resources and training. Details can be found on the website www.valuesbasededucation.com

Tonight’s agenda - recap. Welcome and Introductions The concept of Parents’ Forums Protocols Updates on agenda items from June 2017 Issues for discussion Next steps Date of the next forum: Dates and times of the next Parents’ Forum: Tuesday 20 February 2018