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Peckham Primary is off special measures

Staff and pupils at St Mary Magdalene Primary School were celebrating this week after being taken off Special Measures.

Inspectors from the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) visited the school in October 2003 and have just released a report commending the school for its improvements.

Mary Keeble, who has been headteacher at the Peckham school since September 2002 said: “I feel privileged to have such a hard working team of staff and governors, parents and carers who are committed to working to provide the best for the children at the school”.

St Mary’s was placed on Special Measures in May 2001.  After the latest visit, inspectors said standards had risen in Key Stage 1 and 2 and that pupils’ behaviour had improved.  They said the quality of teaching was better and that the headteacher and her deputy provided strong leadership. 

Inspectors said the progress made to bring the school out of special measures formed a solid foundation for the school to continue to improve.  They said staff should continue to improve.  They said staff should continue to raise standards in English and Maths, particularly at Key Stage 1 and 2 and in Science.  They said staff should review the provision for pupils with English as an additional language and those from minority ethnic groups.  And they should build on the previous learning of pupils with special educational needs.  (Southwark News – 29/1/04)

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Schools Minister joins in business class at Aylwin

In an unusual reversal of roles, the Under Secretary of State for Education, Stephen Twigg, and Alywin Girls’ School Headteacher Catherine Loxton, joined in a business studies class recently, listening to a presentation by four girls on how to run a profitable ‘E-business’.

The girls gave a power point presentation covering sales, marketing, distribution and finance.  They gave the Minister detailed cash flow and profit forecasts.

During his visit to the Bermondsey secondary school, Mr Twigg also visited modern language and performing arts lessons, as well as meeting staff, pupils and business mentors from the Financial Times and Pricewaterhouse Coopers.

Danielle Scott Haughton, Loredana Campisi Green, Fabienne Zoucouba and Nichole Griffith, were excited and proud of their opportunity to present their proposals.

“It is usually us who are being taught”, said Danielle. “On this occasion, we delivered the lecture!”  (Southwark News – 29/1/04)

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Walworth’s Classroom Heroes

The hard work and dedication of teaching assistants often go unrecognised.  Walworth School’s teaching assistants are recruited from the local community and include parents of pupils at the school.  Here’s how two of them (Hazel Hensman and Lisa Cave) contribute each day to raising the achievement of Southwark’s children.

Lesson 1 Special Educational Needs

“I’m working with a pupil on a computer reading program “Successmaker”.  He can find reading very difficult but with encouragement from me, and a lot of computer magic, miracles happen.  Three pages of writing completed on top of all the computer interaction.  At the end of the lesson he doesn’t want to stop.  I nearly fall off my chair.” (Hazel)

Lesson 2 English

“We’re reading a novel set in South Africa.  I’m sitting with Robert, whose knowledge of South Africa is impressive and his vocabulary is getting richer, with a few suggestions from me.  He’s really proud of his contributions in class and I give him lots of praise.  The lesson ends.  “Didn’t that go quick, Miss? I was enjoying that.”  Another satisfied customer and it’s only break-time.” (Hazel)

Lesson 3 History

“Today it’s the Black Death.  No, that’s not how I feel but the History teacher is so graphic I do feel a bit queasy.  Ever since 1348 pupils have loved the gore and horror of the plague (except those who had it I guess).  I go around the class helping pupils and marking their work about how the rats passed on the disease to humans.  I enjoy this, as the pupils see that I’m just as influential as the teacher.  A red pen is certainly mightier than the sword!  Miss gets her big, black rat out from a cupboard and everyone wants to touch it.  Good job it’s plastic!  She thinks rats are unjustly blamed for lots of bad things.  I’m not so sure.”  (Hazel)

Lesson 4 Geography

A debate on our pollution of the environment.  I’ve spoken to the teacher and suggested we film it.  She’s agreed so I’m Steven Spielberg for an hour.  Pupils respond well as this has made the debate seem more real and again I feel I’m an important partner in their learning.  One child suddenly disrupts the debate so I turn the camera on him.  Caught on candid camera, he soon settles down again.  (Lisa)

Lunchtime

An international crisis!  A boy newly arrived from Afghanistan with virtually no English has lost an expensive electronic dictionary that converts Farsi to English at the flick of a switch.  It’s a life-support system to him.  He claims that two girls have flushed it down the loo!  After prolonged interrogations and a search of the toilets, we discover that it was in his bag all the time.  Afghan smiles and London frowns but a potential second Afghan War averted.  (Hazel)

Period 5  Personal Social & Health Education

The Brook Advisory Clinic are in to talk about puberty.  One boy has an issue about his weight and is sometimes teased.  I come up with a strategy.  I tell him every time someone gives him a look or a stupid remark we’ll share the worry because they’re cussing me too.  He’s happy, the teasing stops and together we make it through to the end of the day unscathed.  In my years of being a Teaching Assistant two important things I’ve learnt are to be thankful for the positive things and not to dwell on the negative.  Today, thankfully, has been pretty positive.  I’ve made a difference!  (Lisa)   (Southwark News – 29/1/04)

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Language Success at Sacred Heart

Sacred Heart RC Secondary School, in Camberwell, has just completed work on its new state of the art multi-media languages laboratory.  The complete renovation of the language department’s facilities at the school follows its successful bid to become a specialist languages college, in partnership with Notre Dame Secondary School.

Specialist schools receive extra funding for particular subject areas, once they successfully complete an application for specialist status to the government.  They also need to have a proven track record of strength in their specialist subject area.

“We had to submit a detailed 4-year plan to the government with clear targets, showing how we would improve achievement across the whole curriculum,” said Nigel Williams, Head of Languages at Sacred Heart School.  He added, “An important part of the plan was to include a clear commitment to working with the local community, with primary schools and 6th form colleges.  We are already beginning to do this and it’s something we will continue to do in the future.”

Sacred Heart is strengthening its links with local primary schools, and forging new ones.  In the summer term a teacher from the school will teach French to year 5 and 6 children at nearby St. Joseph’s Primary and similar links are planned with Dulwich Hamlet Primary School.

The school’s existing links with St Francis Xavier 6th Form College in Clapham are to be extended to include mutual student visits and an A Level bridging course for GCSE pupils at Sacred Heart.  The school will also be working with the nearby City Learning Centre, with plans to offer Portuguese language courses.  There are plans to extend the courses to include Yoruba and other community languages.

The school has begun a partnership with a French school, College Marengo, based in Toulouse.  Nigel Williams has just come back from an international conference in Paris where he met with teachers from the school.  Both schools will work together to encourage pupil exchanges and collaboration on international projects, and there is great excitement for the future on both sides of the partnership.

Nigel Williams is especially excited about the new interactive languages laboratory that has, “the most up to date technology available.”  Pupils have full access to the internet and satellite TV.  There is a focus on visual technology as well as audio and teachers are also able to digitise video and audio cassettes for the pupils to access at the click of a mouse.

The strength of languages at Sacred Heart School is evident in its results.  For example, the 2004 GCSE A*-C pass rate for French was 65%, considerably above the national average.  Pupils at Sacred Heart are also able to study two foreign languages at GCSE.  There are currently three languages on offer at Sacred Heart, (French, Spanish and Italian) with a fourth (German) to start in September 2004.

Although languages play a significant role in the school’s curriculum, Nigel Williams is keen to stress that this is not at the expense of other subjects, “Our key aim is to impact academic achievement and results across all subject areas, not just in languages.  We also want to provide effective partnerships with other schools and the wider community, both locally and internationally too.”

“We hope to open our pupils’ eyes to what is going on in other countries and provide skills that will increase their life experiences, opportunities for travel, or even consider job opportunities abroad.”

To celebrate the school’s new status, there will be a joint International Mass with Notre Dame School at St George’s RC Cathedral in March and an International Evening at the school.  (Southwark News – 29/1/04)

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Dover Street Tree Planting

The charity Trees for London have been working in partnership with Southwark Council on a project aimed at bringing colour and beauty to the Great Dover Street area in Borough.  The Great Dover Street Greening Project was launched last Monday, with a number of Dawn Redwood trees being planted along Bartholomew Street.  Simon Hughes MP joined school children from St Saviour’s and St Olave’s Secondary School to help plant the trees. 

Pupils have undertaken workshops with Trees for London’s educationalist Dragana Rakas about the importance of trees in the urban environment and have helped choose the majestic Dawn Redwood trees for outside their school.  The projects aims to green the streets, housing estates and schools within the Great Dover Street area, defined by the area bound by Harper Rd, New Kent Rd, Tower Bridge Road, Snowfields / Newcomen St, and Borough High Street.    (Southwark News – 29/1/04) 

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Road Protest

Angry mums have closed a road outside a Peckham school, concerned that traffic was endangering children’s lives. 

The parents have prevented traffic entering Longhope Close near Gloucester Primary, since last Wednesday, due to building work forcing children to walk in the road unprotected. 

Sharroll Kent, one of the mums who keeps the picket twice a day, said: “It’s usually bad with two lanes of traffic squeezing between parked cars, but since the building works have started it has become impossible.  The pavement is closed and so the kids were forced to pick their way through traffic jams”.

The mums say that there were three near misses last week and that “enough was enough”.

Headteacher Bob Worth said: ”The mums have got everyone’s full support.  I’ve not heard a single complaint because it’s much safer for the children.  We need to make it permanent and official rather than having to rely on parents – that’s not how it should be”.

A dozen mothers have been involved in blocking the no-through road, whilst 350 have signed a petition demanding that the pedestrianisation be made permanent.

Construction work will be going on for another 35 weeks but Sharroll Kent insists she, for one, will be staying put.  “If it takes 35 weeks – my kid’s life is worth more than that”, she said.

A spokeswoman for the council said that a school’s safety officer had been put in contact with the school to address the traffic problems.  (Southwark News – 22/1/04)

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Elephant could be in line for two new academies

Southwark Council has announced that a brand new city academy will lie at the centre of Elephant and Castle’s regeneration.

Discussions are under way with the government as to whether the site of the old leisure center, by the Tabernacle Church, will become an additional school, or the site for a re-located Geoffrey Chaucer.

“We want to see a flagship new school right at the heart of Elephant and Castle”, said Southwark Council leader Nick Stanton.  “It will put flesh on the bones of what we have been saying about Elephant and Castle regeneration being for the benefit of local residents”.

£100 million has been earmarked for Southwark schools as part of the government’s London Challenge Initiative.  Southwark are at present in negotiations with the Department for Education and Skills [DFES] to give Geoffrey Chaucer City Academy status, either on its existing site or the new Elephant site.

London Challenge said that there was potential for a brand new school in Southwark, which has been underlined by Elephant Links, the council’s regeneration agency, announcing plans for a new 1,200 pupil academy at January’s planning committee.

Elephant Link’s Chris Horn said, following discussions with the DFES: “It is pretty clear that they are keen to finance another school in the area”.

With another 4,200 new homes planned for the Elephant regeneration scheme an Elephant Link’s spokeswoman said that the population would “substantially increase”, making extra schooling provision necessary for the area’s sustainability.

“Southwark school kids are as bright and talented as any other kids in the country but they do have it harder”, said Mr Horn. “Southwark should be providing full range-euro-bond dealers, chefs and teachers”.

In addition to delivering over £30 million in extra funding, City Academy status would cut the school loose from local authority control, allowing it to make its own financial choices and develop a unique curriculum partnership with industry and universities. 

It has been speculated that local media Harmsworth may be in talks with Geoffrey Chaucer over becoming sponsors of their new academy.

 Cllr Stanton says that the new academy has the “potential for links” with local universities.  “Students would be able to use facilities, possibly share some teaching and get kids, from families who have never been to university, to really think about going”.

An announcement will be made in February as to whether the council will pursue the two school option or a relocated Geoffrey Chaucer.  (Southwark News – 22/1/04)

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Praise for after school services

Southwark’s play and after school services have received a positive assessment from the Audit Commission, which found that services were ‘good’, and worthy of a two star rating, out of a possible three.

The Commission’s report, published last week, praised the service for its ‘extensive provision of after school clubs provided both by the council and by voluntary organisations’, and noted that parents, children and other stakeholders, “trust, value and are well satisfied with the services on offer”.

The “adventure play” service, which has increased the number of visits to it a year from 80,000 to 120,000 in four years was singled out for praise.  It includes a mobile service consisting of facilities such as a bouncy castle and sport and play equipment.  Sessions are held throughout the borough in open spaces and on housing estates.  New quality and safety standards in park and housing play areas and an expansion of after school clubs from 18 to 31 in four years was also praised.

The report praised the “high level of commitment from councilors and service staff”, management experience and a strong track record of securing funding to support development.  Yet it added that there remained a poor understanding of the costs of particular projects, “and of the relative performance of different clubs and playgrounds”, while a future financial strategy for the service had not been set out clearly enough.

A number of recommendations were made, including that the council compile inspection reports, to work out the overall cost of the service, and costs for individual services, and review arrangements for setting fees.

Executive Member for Education and Culture, Cllr Bob Skelly, said: “This is an exciting time for our play and after school service which is going from strength to strength.  The star rating recognizes the success and hard work of the staff and the plans we have for the future”.

“This report shows that the after school service is using money invested by the Labour Government, to make a real change to education of kids in Southwark”, said Labour education spokesman Cllr Robert Smeath.  “The staff are to be congratulated on their hard work.  Lib Dem executive need to take notice of the report’s finding that better financial control is needed, and I call on them to tell us how they will ensure that future money is not wasted, but targeted to raising standards even more”.  (Southwark News – 22/1/04)

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A continuing success story at St. Joseph’s

Mr Macauley has been Headteacher of St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Primary School in George Row, Bermondsey for the last seven years.  During that time the school has seen a dramatic change from a school in special measures to a beacon school with excellent results.

Headteacher Mr Macauley is clear about what has brought about these improvements, “Everyone at the school is focused on high achievement, each pupil fulfilling their own potential.  This includes all the staff and pupils, support staff, parents and governors, and this commitment to high standards is borne out in our results, which are above the national average”.

As well as the commitment to academic achievement, the school is very keen to offer the pupils as broad a curriculum as possible.  This is achieved by introducing interesting and enjoyable ways to support the teaching and learning.  For example, year 3 and 4 pupils are supplementing their Tudor studies with visits to Hampton Court Palace and learning Tudor dance in their PE lessons.

Links with outside organisations such as the English national opera and the Globe Theatre provide an opportunity for the pupils to enrich their learning experiences by interacting with different people and visiting new places.  This type of learning, which is now being encouraged by the government, has been a focus of teaching at St Joseph’s RC Primary for a number of years.

Last term pupils took part in a ten-week after-school club, in conjunction with the English National Opera, which led to a performance for parents at the school.  Such was the success of the course that the ENO and the school have agreed that the partnership will continue into this year.

St. Joseph’s is at the forefront of the implementation of ICT in schools.  The school is in the process of a major ICT infrastructure update.  Most classrooms are fitted with interactive whiteboards and ICT is fully integrated into the work of all classes.  As well as computers in each classroom, there is a fully updated ICT suite that supports the teaching across the curriculum from the nursery through to year 6. 

The school’s external environment is also set to change.  The school is to embark upon a building programme that will provide a new block of classrooms and increase the size of existing classrooms.  These developments will provide the pupils with more space and better facilities.

The school has just welcomed its second intake of reception class and Headteacher, Mr Macauley is encouraged by how well they are doing, “They have settled remarkably quickly and are already very much part of the school”.  (Southwark News – 22/1/04)

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Working together at Bredinghurst

Bredinghurst school lies within a large site in Nunhead, next to Peckham Rye in the southeast of the borough.  The school can provide education for up to 51 boys between years 7 and 11, who experience a number of social, emotional or behavioural difficulties.  Among the pupil population, there are 16 boys who live in accommodation on site.

Headteacher, Jane Anderson has been at the school for 14 years.  Initially joining as a CDT teacher, Jane served as deputy head and was appointed Headteacher in 1996.  Jane recalled how she knew that Bredinghurst was the right school for her when she made her first informal visit to the school all those years ago.

“It’s really about the kids.  I immediately struck up a relationship with them when I visited and thought that I could play my part to make an impact on their lives and the opportunities they were given”.  It’s a commitment that is as strong today as it was back then.

From the beginning Jane was keen to build a collaborative partnership between the staff and pupils at the school.  The students were instrumental in the creation of the school uniform, designing the school badge and tie, and more recently agreeing the designs for the school cap and fleece top.

Student participation extends to involvement in the decisions that affect the school as a whole.  Every year there is an extensive consultation process, leading to the election of the Student council reps, the head boy and the Heads of the individual house groups.  This includes the nomination process, speeches from candidates, a secret ballot and eventually a live count in front of parents, family and friends at the summer parents evening buffet.

Last term 10 pupils from Years 9 and 10 were responsible for planning their own overnight trip from the school to the Margaret Macmillan Outdoor Centre in Wrotham, Kent.  The planning included learning map and compass reading skills, organising the costs and timetables for the train journey, as well as, choosing the menus for all their meals.

“Although it took us a while to get there, the boys were absolutely elated when we finally arrived” said Deputy Headteacher, Daryl Raeburn, who accompanied the boys on the trip.

Once at the centre, the boys had the opportunity to take part in various outdoor activities including rock-climbing, abseiling, archery and night walking.  It was a particularly successful trip because the pupils had arranged it themselves.  They now hope to plan an even more challenging trip later in the year.

One of the school’s successes has been the significant improvement in pupil achievement in recent years.  In years 10 and 11, the traditional “drop–off” in attainment, particularly seen in boys, has been addressed.  With a combination of vocational and academic learning and links with other learning organisations such as Lambeth College, 80% of last year’s leavers are now in college.

It is testament to the hard work of the staff at Bredinghurst, working in partnership with the pupils, that so many pupils now go on to further education.  A few years ago a similar percentage of boys leaving Bredinghurst would find themselves in Young Offenders Institutes once they left the school.  Today, Jane and the staff welcome back increasing numbers of ex-pupils to revisit the school, most of who comment on how much it has improved since they were students.  They comment particularly on the environment, which is graffiti and damage free. (Southwark News – 22/1/04)

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Alternative education with visitor attractions

Being at school can seem pretty boring at times, learning multiplication tables, spelling tests, essays and sometimes, if you’ve accidentally nodded off in class – lines!  To combat the potential boredom factor associated with learning there are many innovative and constructive projects taking place to enliven the experience for children, young people and other members of the local community.

The PLP has recently agreed to support two exciting new projects which fit within the PLP Education and Citizenship programme.  Education and Citizenship is on of the PLP’s core programme themes; the others being Environment and Infrastructure and Basic Skills and Business development.  The boundary for supporting Education and Citizenship projects stretches to a wider area than the PLP core area; it includes South Bermondsey, Wapping and Shadwell.

The new projects to be supported by the PLP will be undertaken by two key visitor attractions in the Pool of London, the Design Museum in Butlers Wharf and Historic Royal Palaces at the Tower of London.  (Southwark News – 22/1/04)

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Design and Technology

Many Southwark News readers may remember when learning design and Technology at school – although it was probably known by a different name! – involved making strange plastic shapes to hang off keyrings or drawing bowls of fruit or flowers.

The Design Museum see things a different way.  Their Design and Technology in Primary Schools project (D&T) uses their museum exhibitions as a basis for teaching creative skills with a hands on approach.

The D&T project focuses on Key Stage 2 pupils.  It begins by having the D&T teachers from 12 primary schools in the PLP wider area visit the museum and then learn about the exhibition that the children will focus on.  In the first instance the project will be based on ‘The History of Modern design in the Home’ exhibition, a subject that the children will be able to relate to.  A selected teacher from each school is then invited to attend a special seminar on teaching D&T and there they will pick up new ideas to increase enthusiasm for the subject in their pupils as well as themselves.

After this specialist training the pupils have a free visit to the museum and are provided with activity sheets which relate to the National Curriculum.

The beauty of this project is that it doesn’t end when the pupils walk out of the museum.  The Design Museum education team provide classroom teaching resources so the project work can be continued back at school.  After lots of hard work and creativity the pupils have a chance of inviting a parent or guardian to the museum’s Education Centre to see their work exhibited.  The children are also encouraged to show their guests around the exhibition they have based their work on.

“The Design Museum is thrilled to have the support of the PLP especially as this two year commitment will help the museum to develop our primary school programme and therefore to widen and increase our D&T provision for children and teachers alike in the borough” says Maggie Prendergast, head of development.  (Southwark News – 22/1/04)

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Art, drama and music

To coincide with the completion of the Tower Environs Scheme (TES) this summer and the opening of the new Life-Long Learning Centre at the Tower of London, Historic Royal Palaces (HRP) have launched a new project to promote the personal and social development of members of the local community.

Working with community groups from Tower Hamlets and Southwark, a variety of professional artists including a storyteller, drama practitioner, film and sound artist and visual artist will run a series of focused learning opportunities which will take place in the prestigious and historic Tower of London.

Through a series of workshops the participants will produce high quality work in a range of different media such as painting, sculpture, drama and music.  All the work will be based around a singular scheme.

Nikki Lindsey, HRP Outreach and Community Involvement Manager says, “The first theme we will be exploring is ‘Castles and Palaces’.  There will be various topics within this theme for the artists to cover such as castle building, family portraits and banqueting.”  The artists will introduce new ideas and issues whilst relating it to subjects the participants are familiar with.  The final work will be presented at the opening of the Life-Long Learning Centre as an exhibition and performance events, depending on the work produced.

“We believe it is important for HRP and the Royal Armouries, based at the Tower, to have a positive and active relationship with the local community.  The new Centre will provide a fantastic learning environment for all ages” comments Nikki.

Linda Houston, PLP Director says that Education and Citizenship projects have a real place in today’s teaching methods, “Education and Citizenship projects are a valuable way of increasing not only educational attainment but also and perhaps more importantly, increasing people’s self-confidence and developing skills which will be useful in everyday life as well as the world of work.”

If you would like more information on these and other PLP Education and Citizenship projects visit the Pool of London website.  http://www.pooloflondon.co.uk/ (Southwark News – 22/1/04)

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Bermondsey’s Galleywall Primary saved from Closure

By Chris Mullany

After months of campaigning, parents, pupils, teachers and governors at Bermondsey’s Galleywall Primary have received the news they have been hoping for – the school is not to be closed down.

At Tuesday evening’s council Executive meeting, which was packed with Galleywall campaigners, Chair of Governors Julie Harper made an impassioned appeal to councillors, calling for the struggling school to be spared.

Dismissing arguments from Southwark’s interim education partner, CEA, that the school should be closed down, Ms Harper said a closure could not be justified on educational grounds, as it would lead to larger class sizes in the area.  And, following questioning by Executive members, some of whom were clearly troubled by the prospect of closure, Ms Harper pointed out that, in addition to relocating 215 pupils, places would have to be found for 70 nursery pupils in the surrounding area, which had not been considered in council officers’ reports.  With the right support and investment, she insisted, the school could come off special measures and the backing it had from the local community was evident from the numbers who had turned up to the meeting.  Arguments that the school had struggled to retain staff and pupils could be countered by looking at the lack of funding to recruit, as well as by the absence of a pledge on the school’s future, it was argued.

Ann Goss, of the National Union of Teachers, also appealed to keep the school open, asking whether loyal staff, who had battled to keep Galleywall going, would have to re-apply for their jobs if the school was closed and fresh started.  It would be ‘deeply ironic’, she said, if the school was to be closed after years of ‘appalling levels of mis-management.’

Officers argued that Galleywall had a ‘unique combination’ of problems, including standards, staff retention, and the need for work on the old school building.

After a half hour recess, the Executive made a number of crucial amendments to the proposals that will not be consulted on for six weeks.  Most importantly, none of the options is for the school to close, without an immediate replacement being provided.

The first option is to close, then immediately ‘fresh start’ the school.  The second and third options are to hand back delegated powers – one with extra revenue, the other without.  With little to no budget to recruit over the past three years, the school would effectively wither without extra revenue, but Council Leader Nick Stanton confirmed to the ‘News’ on Wednesday that the third option, while still included, was not a likely starter, given the strength of feeling evident from the deputation. 

The final option would be to look for a patch of land in the surrounding area, and look to build a brand new primary.  Galleywall would then transfer to the new site, and Cllr Stanton confirmed that, under such a scenario, there would not be a time lag between the closure of the old school and the opening of the new, rather that it would be an immediate transfer. 

The decision was welcomed by local MP Simon Hughes, who said:  “I pay tribute, both to the school community for their commitment and to the council for their commitment to the school.  We now have to get the best option for the future, which is both realistic and delivers the best chance of improved standards as quickly as possible.  Galleywall pupils have been badly let down over several years – hopefully this year things can really now turn the corner.”

The executive will met again in six weeks’ time, to consider the results of the consultation.  (Southwark News – 15.1.04)

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GCSEs Up as Schools Improve

By Kevin Quinn

Official results published by the government today, Thursday January 15, shows a steady improvement in most of Southwark’s secondary schools with 40 per cent of pupils achieving five or more A-C grades at GCSE.

Education attainment in the borough has continued to rise over the past three years, from an A-C pass rate of 33 per cent in 2001/02 to 40 per cent in 2003/4. 

Five of the twelve secondary schools in the borough have exceeded the national average pass rate of 52.9 per cent.  Once again the church schools came out top.  Notre Dame and Sacred Heart achieved the highest scores in the borough with 73 per cent.  Sacred Heart in Camberwell jumped up seventeen per cent on the previous year’s results, the highest in the borough.  Walworth had the lowest pass rate of eighteen per cent, a four per cent drop on the previous year yet it scored better under the Government’s new Value Added (VA) score, at fifth highest in the borough.  VA results are calculated by level of attainment pupils achieve between tests taken at fourteen and GCSE to better see how far they have improved while at school. 

Southwark ranks in fourth position nationally under the VA scores, with the top VA score of 106.1% going to Geoffrey Chaucer College which had the third lowest pass rate in the borough.

Cllr Nick Stanton, Leader of Southwark Council, said: “Headteachers and school staff in Southwark work hard in particularly challenging circumstances, so I’m glad to see a steady improvement on last year’s results.  Particular praise must go to Notre Dame, Sacred Heart and Geoffrey Chaucer school.

“The borough’s value added scores help us to see the consistent improvement across the board, at an important time in a young person’s educational life.  But we are not complacent.  There is still a lot of work to be done in bringing all schools across the borough above the national average pass rate, and the council is committed to achieving this.”

Simon Jenkin, Director of Schools Services (Cambridge Education Associates), said: “Value added is a new concept which demonstrates how well Southwark schools are doing, and it is particularly pleasing to see some of our schools at the top of the national value added table.  But there is still a lot of work to be done, and we must build on this year’s success for the future of education in Southwark.”  (Southwark News – 15.1.04)

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Former Elephant and Castle Pupil in £400,000 Book Deal

By Anthony Phillips and Euan Denholm

An eighteen-year-old ex-student of an Elephant and Castle school has signed a £400,000 deal for her first novel.

Helen Oyeyemi signed the deal for two books, while she wrote her novel The Icarus Girl as she was in the sixth form at Notre Dame School in St George’s Road.

Oyeyemi, now a first year student at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, has signed the contract with Bloomsbury, which publishes the Harry Potter books, by JK Rowling.

The Icarus Girls is about an eight-year-old child genius, called Jessamy, who, during a visit to relatives in Nigeria, meets a new friend called Tilly Tilly, who only she can see.  Oyeyemi, whose father is a teacher and mother is a trainee driver on the London Underground, said she began writing at the age of seven.  She added that she would like to become a literary agent. 

Jenny Williams, Helen’s English teacher at Notre Dame, said that she was “always very impressive right from the very beginning.  It was very rewarding to teach her.

“She’d always have a different book in her pocket.  Helen would ask if I could get a special book into the library and I’d always do that because I knew they’d be read.  We are absolutely delighted for her.” 

“Helen’s writing was never stereotypical but would always have an unusual angle,” said her form teacher Caroline Arrow-Smith.  (Southwark News – 15.1.04)

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Peckham headteacher sacked for misconduct

A Peckham primary headteacher has been fired for gross misconduct, over a year after he was first suspended.

In December 2002, John Mann, head of Peckham’s Gloucester Grove, was suspended, pending an inquiry into allegations of financial irregularities.  His personal assistant was also understood to have been suspended.

Mr Mann made national headlines in 2001 after he travelled to Eastern Europe to recruit new teachers.  He told the ‘News’ he had led a team to Bulgaria and Russia, sifting through 600 applications from hopeful teachers, including a chemistry professor from St Petersburg University, a fully-trained cosmonaut, an arctic explorer and even a KGB agent.  The search in Eastern Europe came after three failed attempts to recruit in England, and it was hoped that Mr Mann and his new team would turn around the school’s fortunes.

Following his suspension, Mr Mann remained on extended sick leave, and then tendered his resignation before the inquiry got underway towards the end of last year.  The hearing resulted in his dismissal, in spite of his earlier resignation.

Commenting on the findings, a council spokeswoman said: “The result of the inquiry led to a disciplinary hearing in accordance with the school’s procedures.  The outcome of the hearing has led to Mr Mann’s dismissal for gross misconduct effective from December 17.  Mr Mann tendered his resignation of his post as headteacher and this became effective on December 31, 2003.”  (Southwark News – 8/1/04).

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Will Bermondsey primary finally get the help it needs?

Southwark Council confirmed this week that it will consider a range of options for a struggling Bermondsey primary, including making a bid for Government funding in order to create a new school in 2007.

Before Christmas, the ‘News’ revealed that the council’s Executive had decided to consider both the new school option, as well as one to ‘fresh start’ it immediately, in the face of sustained pressure from parents, teachers, pupils and governors to keep Galleywall primary open.  The Executive had been due to consider the future of the school at a meeting on December 16 last year, whilst its interim private education partner, CEA, had compiled a report, recommending the closure of the school.

CEA had argued that surrounding schools could accommodate any pupils, should the school close, while parents were taking their children out of the school.  The report stated that the school had struggled to retain staff and the current uncertainty over its future meant that this problem was likely to get worse.  For the same reason, there was little hope of recruiting a permanent head teacher to lead the school out of special measures.

But Chair of Governors Julie Harper has continued to argue that the school can recover, if given the proper support and investment.  Galleywall was placed under the direct control of Southwark’s former education partner, WS Atkins, but still slipped into special measures after the last Ofsted inspection in March 2003.  In addition, the school has run up close to half a million pounds of debt, while the Atkins officer with control over the school was suspended.  The council is still at loggerheads with Atkins over who is responsible for the debt. 

The financial question mark, as well as the age and condition of the school, led parents and teachers to fear that the council would opt to close it, and sell off the land.  Opposition Labour education spokesman Cllr Andy Simmons claimed in December that a council officer had told him the value of the land Galleywall sits on had already been calculated, although this has been vigorously denied by the council.  As for recruiting a permanent head, governors say there has been little effort made in this regard. 

But with no investment forthcoming, and with no clear vision for the school’s future, anxious parents have continued to remove their children from Galleywall, which has helped strengthen the case for its closure.  Yet the political implications of allowing a struggling school to close – in what is the Lib Dem administration’s heartland – may have started to sink in, a senior source told the ‘News’ this week.

North Southwark & Bermondsey MP Simon Hughes said last year that he would like to see the Atkins debt ringfenced, and the option of fresh start considered, while Education Executive Cllr Bob Skelly said any decision about the school should be based purely on educational factors.

On Tuesday, the council sated that the Executive would now meet on January 13, looking at three potential solutions.  The first of these is for a £4.5 million investment, over £3 million of which would have to come from council coffers, for an immediate fresh start of the school.  Around £1.5 million of this would be needed to address immediate structural issues. 

The second option for the school is for the school to close at the end of the academic year, in August, with the site retained for a possible fresh start in September 2007.  The council maintains that, as things stand, there are enough school places in nearby primaries to accommodate all of Galleywall’s pupils.  But with a number of major regeneration schemes on the horizon, including Bermondsey Spa, the need for primary places is expected to grow, and the new school in 2007 could meet part of this demand.  If this option were pursued, the authority could make a case to the Government for funding, if it could demonstrate the need for extra primary places. 

The final option is for the school to be kept open, with the delegated powers handed back to the governing body.  But with falling pupil numbers, the report warns that staff redundancies would be likely, as the budget allocated to the school would fall in line with falling attendance.

Council leader Nick Stanton, commented: “We are faced with a difficult situation here – Galleywall is in trouble and we are duty bound to ensure that the children who go there receive the standard of education they are entitled to.  The school is in special measures but there are other issues for us to consider as well.  For example, its results are not good and there is no evidence that standards are improving.  We would not be doing our duty if we didn’t step in and address the situation in some way.”

Simon Hughes MP said he would be visiting the school this Friday, and added: “This is a good positive step forward.  I shall talk through the options with the school community on Friday and hope now we can get the best result for the best education of the young people of Galleywall today and the young people of Rotherhithe tomorrow.”

Simon Jenkin, Director of School Services, commented: “If the Executive decides to initiate consultation we’ll be talking to parents and teachers at Galleywall as well as those in nearby schools who may be affected by any of the options.  The consultation will be carried out over six weeks.

“We’d expect to bring another report outlining the results of that consultation to the Executive in March.”

But Chair of Governors Julie Harper said the school was likely to argue at next Tuesday’s meeting that, while some form of fresh start was needed, it did not necessarily have to cost such a vast amount as had been proposed.

And Cllr Simmons said he considered the report ‘cynical’.  “It looks very much as if a decision has already been taken,” he said.  “The school shouldn’t have been left to get into this situation.  I also have real issues with some of the figures in the report.”  (Southwark News – 8/1/04).

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