Comenius Regio Partnerships ‘A powerful collaborative force through which to tackle a diverse range of issues with social as well as educational implications’ Local Government Association Yvette Fox Funded by:

WHAT IS COMENIUS? “We are all citizens of one world, we are all of one blood” Jan Amos Comenius ( ) Comenius provides funding for: Multilateral and bilateral school or college partnerships In-service training Language learning Job shadowing Hosting an intending teacher as an assistant Comenius Regio (for LAs) Preparatory Visits Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships Overview Why we got involved First round application statistics – 2009 Our project Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships Why get involved? To benefit from practices in another country School improvement Closer ties, relationships with another area of Europe/strengthens the European dimension in schools and community (police, youth centres, library or museum) Provides learning experiences to teachers, pupils and other involved in school education Wider impact than a school to school link. Reaches every school and every child in the area. Funded by:

Participating Countries EU Belgium Denmark Germany Greece Spain France Ireland Italy Luxembourg Liechtenstein Norway Iceland UK Czech Republic Estonia Hungary Latvia Lithuania Poland Slovakia Romania Netherlands Austria Portugal Finland Sweden Slovenia Cyprus Malta Bulgaria EFTA Associated Turkey, Croatia, Switzerland and possibly others for 2012 Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships What was in it for us? We were doing a great deal of European linking work already We could combine existing activities in Town Twinning or other European educational programmes but formalise them as part of the wider 2 year Regio partnership It helped us reach some of the regional or national priorities/targets regarding internationalism or in terms of raising standards It is a long term initiative not a short term fix. Helped us plan ahead. Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships My role as Project Manager Yvette Fox Experienced Primary teacher Teaching and Learning Consultant (Multicultural Education and Global Citizenship) School Improvement Service East Riding of Yorkshire Council Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships Municipality or Local Authority Schools (minimum 1) Partner organisation My first steps in the UK identify key themes to address develop a local Comenius Regio partnership Know what it was I wanted to achieve and how Funded by:

Beverley Lemgo Town Twinning Association East Riding of Yorkshire Council School Improvement Service Keldmarsh Primary School Molescroft Primary School University of Hull WISE (Wilberforce Institute for the Study of Slavery and Emancipation) Key theme; Community Cohesion Comenius Regio Partnerships Sharing Resources for Innovation and Cohesion ShRINC Funded by:

Second step: find a European partner, establish aims and objectives, develop a structured work programme, assess impact and outcomes Town Twinning Association East Riding of Yorkshire Council Keldmarsh Molescroft University of Hull Town Twinning Association Kreiss Lippe Municipality Sudschule Lemgo Lemgo Museums Funded by:

Third step: dissemination of results and sustainability Dissemination of results Municipality or Local Authority Schools (minimum 1) Partner organisation Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships Eligible Partners and Regional Partnerships Each partner region must include: The local or regional authority (lead) At least one school – to pilot work (it is not feasible to include all the schools in the region) At least one ‘other’ partner (which will be able to make a significant contribution to the project) UK – the types of eligible institutions to lead a Comenius Regio partnership have been identified as the following: County Councils and Unitary Authorities (England), Local Authority (Scotland), Local Education Authority (Wales), Education and Library Boards (Northern Ireland) Ministry of Justice (or equivalent across UK) Service Children’s Agency (for British Forces’ Schools in LLP countries) Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships Types of ‘other’ partner could be: National public organisations, e.g: curriculum authorities, teacher development agencies, learning and skills councils, youth justice agencies Local public organisations, e.g: city councils, local authority departments of youth, employments, health etc, police service, fire and rescue service, teacher training institutions, youth/sports clubs, libraries, museums Independent national/local organisations, e.g: Equality/human rights commissions, trade unions, ombudsmen services, professional association/advisory boards, universities, think tanks, charities, parents’/pupils’ associations, community groups Commercial organisations, e.g: chambers of commerce, consultancy/training organisations, business support organisations, other companies Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships The work programme and the types of eligible Activities: Project meetings between institutions involved in the partnership Job shadowing/Exchanges of staff involved in school education Action research, small studies Exchanges of experience and good practice with partner regions Conferences, seminars and workshops Awareness raising campaigns Co-operation with other projects in related subject areas Creation of training materials/tools Dissemination of project experiences and outcomes. Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships Funding: 2 components – per partner region (2009 figures) A lump sum for mobility (i.e. number of trips you will make), from a minimum of 4 (€4k), 8 (€8k), 12 (€10k) or a maximum of 24 (€20k) Real costs for additional project costs (maximum €25k) Grants cover costs related to mobility (travel), the implementation of project activities and the dissemination of results. Maximum overall funding €45k per region. Every participating country has its own different budget for this programme. Funded by:

Regio Partnerships – 2009 Applications Received UK All Regions Total Received 53 Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships Most active partner countries linked to UK: Spain – 11 projects Poland – 8 projects Germany – 6 projects France – 4 projects Sweden – 4 projects Greece, Turkey, Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Italy, Romania, Austria, Netherlands (max 2) No activity with Portugal, Iceland, Estonia, Latvia, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Czech Republic, Slovak Republic, Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovenia – more interest was in Funded by:

Regio Partnerships – 2009 Funding Requested by UK Regions Total Requested €1,962,403 Funded by:

Foreign language teaching and learning 15 European citizenship and European Dimension 6 New technologies/ICT 5 Social integration/exclusion 5 Artistic education 4 Basic skills 4 Environment/sustainable development 4 Inclusive approaches3 Quality and evaluation of education3 Violence at school - peace education3 Comparing education systems2 Educational institution management2 Learning opportunities for people at the risk of social marginalisation2 Cultural heritage, Career guidance & counselling, Intercultural education, Physical education, Methods to increase pupil motivation, History and social science, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Development of common training contents and concepts 1 Comenius Regio Partnerships 2009 deadline themes Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships UK Project products; Pupil census Lemerley passport ‘My Life in a Box’ ‘My Town in a Box’ Lesson resources Migration report Virtual World ‘Lemerley’ Funded by:

Comenius Regio Partnerships Exit strategy: Continued school contacts (Beverley and across the Humber..) Use existing European contacts Town Twinning links New partners Potentially a schools ‘Comenius’ project -see Ray Kirtley handout Seek additional funding and partnerships opportunities – see RK handout Funded by:

Project website (under construction) Project Virtual World (under construction)