Welcome back, hope you all had a restful and enjoyable half term break.

On Wednesday evening, I attended a Somali Leaders meeting in the Council Chambers, with members of the Somali community, the Leader, Chief Executive and Lead member. We reviewed progress to date following the previous meeting and then split into groups to look at themes identified for further scrutiny. These included identity, harnessing positive messages, mental health and the youth justice system with the most recurring theme being education. The education lines of enquiry included were: after school schemes, increased number of Somali staff, trauma informed practice, realising assets, governors and of course exclusions. At the next meeting, there will be a deep dive, scrutinising some of those themes in more detail so that we can consider next steps and proposals to strengthen working together.

On Thursday and Friday, I joined Christine Gilbert and my counterpart from Sheffield to undertake a peer review of Birmingham Education Partnership (BEP), focusing on outcomes, the impact and reach of the strategic plan and how sustainable the business model is going forward. As ever, the peer review was an intensive and thought provoking two days, it is always a privilege considering an alternative education partnership and having the opportunity to consider a different context both in terms of size and in terms of shape. It is an ideal opportunity to reflect on what we do well in Camden, but also consider the learning and good practice that exists in other parts of the country.

A reminder that the Camden Learning Deputy and Assistant Headteachers Conference will be taking place on 14/15 November in the lovely Harbour Inn Hotel in Brighton. It promises to be an engaging and thought provoking couple of days with speakers including: Dr Andy Cope, Professor Sonia Blandford and Becky Allen. It would be marvellous if Deputy and Assistant Headteachers could prioritise this event, as it is a valuable opportunity for self-reflection as well as the chance to engage with other leaders from across Camden.

Jon Abbey

Managing Director, Camden Learning

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