Attendance and the Attendance Service
The attendance service seeks to address all aspects of absence from school in order to improve levels of attendance. The emphasis at casework level is placed on unauthorised absence from school including truancy patrols. Education welfare involvement in attendance includes:
- Timetabled liaison meetings with school staff to facilitate the exchange of information;
- Response to all referrals from schools or other agencies regarding absence;
- Setting targets with schools to reduce absence and improve attendance;
- Individual work with pupils whose attendance may be a problem;
- Work with families to advise them about, and support them with their parental responsibilities;
- Devise and implement strategies to improve attendance and punctuality;
- Attendance at school open days and parents evenings, where required;
- Joint work with the police with regard to truancy campaigns and orders;
- Liaison with the learning support service in respect of home tuition;
- Prosecution of parents who fail in their responsibility to ensure regular attendance at school, under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996 or seeking an Education Supervision Order under Section 36 of the Children Act 1989;
- Anti Social Behaviour Act 2003 - Issue Penalty Notices under Section 444 A & B Education Act 1996;
- Promotion of school attendance through regular press releases;
- Issuing of leaflets and letters to parents about attendance and holidays in term-time;
- Identification of, and work with, pupils at primary-secondary transition who are at risk of becoming disaffected;
- Development and implementation of new initiatives to raise attendance levels;
- Liaison with community wardens regarding truants in the town centre or other areas within the borough;
- Preparation and submission of reports to the Authority's Scrutiny and Review Panel regarding school attendance;
- Organise Truancy Sweeps in accordance with the DCSF timeframe.
Exclusion from School
The Education Welfare Service undertakes a number of responsibilities in relation to exclusions, including:
- Advice to parents, within three days of a permanent exclusion, of their rights and responsibilities;
- Attendance at governors discipline meetings as the Local Authority (LA) representative;
- Liaison with the Pupil Learning Centre and other agencies to secure appropriate support for pupils at risk of exclusion;
- Compilation of statistical data on fixed-term and permanent exclusions;
- Preparation and submission of reports to the Authority's Scrutiny and Review Panel regarding exclusion from school;
- Provision of advice to schools about excluded pupils and those in danger of exclusion;
- Training for governors on their role in discipline meetings;
- Work with individual young people to avoid permanent exclusion;
- Attendance at independent appeals as the LA representative.
Children in Need
There is a general duty for all staff within the service to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in need. More specific responsibilities exist in relation to child protection and children in public care within education. The Education Welfare Service is responsible for taking the lead role in this area of work, which includes child protection:
- Investigation and reporting to Part 8 Reviews on behalf of Children's Services;
- Facilitate training for designated child protection teachers;
- Provision of advice to schools on child protection issues;
- Identification and monitoring of pupils at risk, within the child protection procedures, and the decisions of any multi-disciplinary case conferences;
- Attend initial child protection conferences of children who are, or rising to, statutory school age;
- Joint responsibility between the Head of Education Welfare Service and Principal Personnel Officer for responding to allegations of professional abuse against teaching, non-teaching and support staff in education;
- Maintain a database of designated child protection teachers and the training undertaken.
Representation on the Quality Protects Management Group
- Identification and referral of families to NCH (National Children's Home) for parenting classes;
- Liaise with schools and Social Care regarding the Common Assessment Framework;
- Education Welfare Officers representation at Family Advice and Support Team Allocation Panel;
- Identification of, and support to, identified children in need;
- Attendance at, and support for, family group conferences;
- Advice and support to Social Care for Assessment under Sections 17 and 47 of the Children's Act 1989 and on the Authority's Fostering Panel.
Children in Public Care
- Raise schools awareness of the needs of children in public care;
- Senior Education Welfare Officer representation on Social Services resource panel;
- Maintain database of designated teachers for children in public care;
- Liaise with schools regarding the attendance and behaviour of children in public care;
- Attend reviews of children in public care;
- Liaise with children's homes and foster carers;
- Liaise with Social Care and the Quality and Advisory Service regarding educational outcomes for children in public care;
- Development of a policy for the education of children in public care;
- Working together with social work teams in relation to children in public care;
- Joint working with Social Care on the development and implementation of personal education plans;
- Support to children and families in order to avoid reception into care.
Service Provision to Schools
The service works in partnership with schools and there is a partnership level agreement, in order to ensure that the respective roles and responsibilities are clear. The service will, through its work on behalf of the Authority, and in partnership with schools endeavour to support school improvement in its widest sense.
Education Welfare Officers will visit all high schools and a number of primary schools on a weekly basis. The majority of primary schools will be visited on a needs led basis. The service responds to crisis situations as, and when, they arise. Link Education Welfare Officers will agree with individual schools a timetabled visiting pattern for liaison with relevant staff.
Education Welfare Officers are available to all school teachers for informal guidance and support on their regular timetabled visits to schools.
In addition to their regular timetabled visits to schools, Education Welfare Officers will be available to attend appropriate meetings in schools, including parents evenings and pastoral meetings.
The service will endeavour to respond to all initial referrals within five working days. Where a pupil has been permanently excluded, the response time is three working days from notification of the exclusion.
The service is committed to supporting school improvement through improving attendance and reducing disaffection amongst pupils.
The service, in discussion with head teachers, School Improvement partners, Quality and Advisory Service will set attendance targets and will agree the level of service provision.
Education Supervision Orders
The service is responsible for ensuring a nominated officer is available to fulfil the statutory responsibilities required when an Education Supervision Order is made. Nominated officers will be required to:
- Advise, assist and befriend children and young people who are, or may become, the subject of an Education Supervision Order;
- Develop and apply skills at supervising young people on voluntary or statutory orders;
- Encourage young people to access and take advantage of the educational opportunities available to them.
Special Educational Needs (SEN)
In order to assist the Authority in carrying out its responsibilities in respect of children who may have special educational needs, the service will:
- Ensure Education Welfare Officers are aware of the requirements of relevant legislation, together with the local Authority's policy and practice;
- Contribute to the assessment process, where the family are known to the service;
- Participate in SEN planning meetings in schools, where appropriate;
- Liaise with, and support parents and children throughout the assessment process and beyond, as required;
- Liaise with out-of-borough special schools regarding individual ongoing cases, where the Education Welfare Officer is the key worker;
- Provide Education Welfare Officer support to special schools in the Authority in relation to its operational objectives;
- To find out more about Special Educational Needs and support offered by Bury Metropolitan Borough Council please visit the Special Educational Needs webpage.
Elective Home Education
To ensure that pupils whose parents have indicated that they wish their child(ren) to be educated "other than at school" are receiving it appropriately, the service will:
- Monitor children and young people who are educated "other than at school";
- Liaise with the Authority's Quality and Advisory Service to ensure that an acceptable curriculum, that meets the needs of the child or young person, is developed and implemented by parents who choose to educate their children "other than at school";
- Maintain a register of pupils who are educated "other than at school".
Preventative and Support Services
To promote and/or support multi-disciplinary preventative and support services within the community, the service will endeavour to:
- Support community projects for families and young people;
- Support initiatives, which encourage families to acquire greater self-confidence, reliance and self-esteem, thus improving their quality of life;
- Be involved in activities, which promote educational achievement and social well being amongst young people;
- Promote inter-disciplinary approaches involving other services and agencies for the benefit of children, young people and families;
- In addition to its close working relationships with Social Care, in respect of children in need, the Education Welfare Service has a well-developed network of links with other agencies that support children and young people. Support, advice and assistance is provided to a range of organisations through working relationships with:
- The Youth Offending Team, where the Education Welfare Service has a member of staff deployed to assist in links between schools, the LA and individual young people who have offended;
- Representation on the Crime and Disorder Reduction Strategy Working Party;
- Representation on the Drug Action Team:
- Representation on the Authority's Domestic Violence Strategy Group;
- Liaison with Police in relation to truancy initiatives;
- Representation on the BEBD (Behaviour Emotional Social Difficulties Sub Group;
- Representation on the local Connexions Board and implementation sub-group;
- Representation on the Elective Home Education Panel to monitor educational provision for Key Stage 4 pupils educated "other than at school";
- Representation on the Bury Youth Group Mentoring Project;
- Representation on the Young Carers Group.
