I visited the Hive provision this week. I was impressed by the intensive work being undertaken there to support and reengage Year 11 pupils with learning. No doubt we can all think of times when it has been challenging to re-engage young people who decide that learning is not for them, or who are struggling to access activities, and how difficult this can be for teachers to manage. On Thursday I was invited to attend the Special School Headteacher meeting. We are fortunate to have such a high quality of specialist provision in Camden, but with the increasing level of SEN need filtering through the school system, there is an associated increased pressure on schools to adapt and resource their curriculum offer to ensure that pupils with high levels of need can access it. This is something that is felt more keenly by some Camden schools than others but is a continued pressure on school resources at a time when those resources are limited. The word differentiation has become increasingly less used. The Early Career Framework, alongside recent Ofsted guidance, has emphasised the difference between differentiating and adaptive teaching, as a term that better describes the process of ensuring that pupils with SEND are taught well so they receive their full curriculum entitlement. In his EEF blog ‘Moving from differentiation to adaptive teaching’, John Eaton explains the difference and also helpfully references the NASEN publication ‘Differentiation – Why and How?’. There will always be pupils who need and benefit from different resources, teaching materials and strategies to access their learning but the training and development of teachers, high quality teaching and careful tracking of pupils continue to be key here. There are SEND items on the agenda, either in the main meeting or the Headteacher only sessions at both our Primary and Secondary Headteacher meetings in the next two weeks, I hope that you are able to join us and take the opportunity to share and learn from each other.

We have reached the end of the 9th full week of the Autumn term, and you will no doubt have seen the additional Bank Holiday that has been added to calendars on the 8th May. The STA have promised to update guidance for Key Stage 2 assessments to incorporate the change in Year 6 exam schedule this will bring. We will of course share any updates.

I hope you have plans for the weekend that give you the time and space to relax and unwind. Thank you for everything that you do.

Best wishes

Stephen Hall

Chief Executive Officer, Camden Learning