A report from the UCL Institute of Education was published this week with the media headline, ‘Education reforms causing greater inequality in schools, major study finds’. The research found that ‘support for the most vulnerable children is reducing, with a tendency for these pupils to become more concentrated in certain schools’. Without sounding too controversial, the report reminded me of the unique conditions and collaboration that exist in Camden, where the focus is on all pupils in our schools. I am pleased to say, I have spent my week with a lot of teachers who break down the barriers to learning and provide that authentic equality for all. The report, Hierarchy, Markets and Networks by Toby Greany and Rob Higham is attached at the bottom of the blog.

On Wednesday, Swiss Cottage School hosted a wonderful event for teachers – Celebrating Success, Celebrating Teachers 2018 brought together NQT’s, RQT’s and Camden Headteachers and education colleagues to celebrate and congratulate the work that teachers across the borough have achieved this year. We were lucky to have Global Teacher of the Year Andria Zaffirakou open the evening, Andria is an inspiring teacher (like many I meet) who speaks with passion and precision. I was taken with her high moral integrity and no excuses acceptable mantra. The passion and loyalty she has for her profession and, her subject is infectious and she most certainly left the room with us all feeling both humbled but energised too.

I had the pleasure of introducing and opening the SEND conference on Thursday, where a group of SENCOs, School Leaders and subject leads came together to consider and learn how technology can assist teaching but also student access to the curriculum itself. The keynote was led by two renowned experts, Carol Allen and John Galloway, who set the scene for the morning and challenged our thinking about effective use of technology. There is always the risk of technology for pupils with SEND either gathering dust in a cupboard or being over used; as with all things, SEND one size does not fit all, so the aim of the workshops was to help provide the skills and knowledge to design a bespoke approach for all of the pupils that teachers work with.

Finally, I attended the end of year Primary Maths Hub event at Eleanor Palmer on Monday where each of the four joint practice development groups shared their findings. It was a room full of lead practitioners and teachers eager to share the learning and an appetite to apply the learning from the JPDGs. Each JPDG captured the learning and findings in a short briefing paper-outlining the focus of the research group with an area to investigate. The learning and methodology were stunning.

So, as I reflect back on my week, I feel assured and proud that teachers in Camden break new ground, learn and collaborate with each other and celebrate their findings. Thank you.

Jon Abbey

Managing Director, Camden Learning

Click here to download