Hampshire County Council
Councillors:
78
Wards:
76
Committees:
50
Meetings (2025):
163
Meetings (2024):
156
Meeting
Education Advisory Panel - Hampshire
Meeting Times
Scheduled Time
Start:
Wednesday, 30th March 2022
10:00 AM
Wednesday, 30th March 2022
10:00 AM
End:
Wednesday, 30th March 2022
2:00 PM
Wednesday, 30th March 2022
2:00 PM
Actual Time
Started:
Wednesday, 30th March 2022
12:00 AM
Wednesday, 30th March 2022
12:00 AM
Finished:
Wednesday, 30th March 2022
12:00 AM
Wednesday, 30th March 2022
12:00 AM
Meeting Status
Status:
Confirmed
Confirmed
Date:
30 Mar 2022
30 Mar 2022
Location:
Wellington Room, EII Court, The Castle, Winchester
Wellington Room, EII Court, The Castle, Winchester
Meeting Attendees
Independent Group Deputy
Co-opted Member
Dawn Casson
Hampshire Primary Schools
Apologies
Co-opted Member
Chris Anders
Hampshire Secondary Schools
Expected
Co-opted Member
Justin Innes
Hampshire Special Schools
Apologies
Co-opted Member
Catherine Hobbs
Catholic Church
Absent
Co-opted Member
Jeff Williams
Church of England
Apologies
Co-opted Member
Georgina Mulhall
Hampshire Teacher's Liaison Panel
Present, as expected
Co-opted Member
Ian Potter
Hampshire Teacher's Liaison Panel
Apologies
Agenda
1
Apologies for absence
To receive any apologies for absence received.
Minutes
Apologies have been received from;
Cllr Chadd Cllr North Dawn Casson (Primary Schools) Justin Innes (Special Schools) Jeff Williams, Church of England Ian Potter (Hampshire Teacher's Liaison Panel)
Cllr Huggins is attending as the Conservative Deputy.
Cllr Chadd Cllr North Dawn Casson (Primary Schools) Justin Innes (Special Schools) Jeff Williams, Church of England Ian Potter (Hampshire Teacher's Liaison Panel)
Cllr Huggins is attending as the Conservative Deputy.
2
Declarations of interest
All Members who believe they have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting must declare that interest and, having regard to Part 3 Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members’ Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter is discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code. Furthermore all Members with a Personal Interest in a matter being considered at the meeting should consider, having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 4 of the Code, whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 5 of the Code, consider whether it is appropriate to leave the meeting while the matter is discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.
Minutes
Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter considered at the meeting they must declare that interest at the time of the relevant debate and, having regard to the circumstances described in Part 3, Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members' Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code. Furthermore Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Non-Pecuniary interest in a matter being considered at the meeting they considered whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 2 of the Code, considered whether it was appropriate to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.
3
Minutes of previous meeting
To confirm the minutes of the previous meeting
Attachments:
- Document Minutes 25112021 22 Mar 2022
Minutes
The minutes of the last meeting were reviewed and agreed.
4
Deputations
To receive any deputations notified under Standing Order 12.
Minutes
No deputations were received.
5
Chairman's Announcements
To receive any announcements the Chairman may wish to make.
Minutes
The Chairman had no announcements they wished to make.
6
Mental Health Support Teams in Schools
To receive a presentation from the Director of Children’s Services providing an update on the introduction of Mental Health Support Teams in schools.
Minutes
With the agreement of the Chairman, this item was deferred to a later date.
7
Promoting Racial Equality in Schools
To receive a presentation from the Director of Children’s Services providing an update on the departments actions to promote racial equality in schools.
Attachments:
- Document Promoting Racial Equality in Schools Presentation 22 Mar 2022
Minutes
The panel received a presentation from the Director of Children’s Services providing an overview on how the department promoted racial equality in schools.
The panel heard that an inquiry into the experiences of the BAME community in Basingstoke was undertaken in June 2020, which noted that schools were often described as ‘weak’ in their handling of racist abuse. There was also instances of schools dismissing verbal abuse, lower expectations and assumptions of students based on race and needing to improve teaching of Black history.
Due to the above the Basingstoke & Deane Inclusion and Diversity Partnership was formed with the aim of improving school’s focus on equality and diversity. This would provide people with a place they genuinely feel they belong and as a result, provide a strong and positive sense of self.
The panel noted the actions already taken by the Partnership, and the importance place on ‘Allyship’. The Panel received an overview of the impact so far of the partnerships and the actions to be take in the future to support schools.
In response to questions members heard that:
· There is support in place for Russian members of staff in Hampshire schools in case of any abuse, however it is difficult to identify those who have changed their nationality to British. It was noted that there is a relatively small number of affected individuals and anyone from local countries may also be at risk.
· There are concerns surrounding schools providing ‘nil’ reports on their annual reports.
· That there are many incidents involving younger children acting naively, in which education is provided to allow them to understand the impact of their words and actions.
· There is the need for careful consideration of suitable language when discussing issues of equality, equity and diversity.
· There is a focus on making recruitment more representative of Hampshire and consideration of different backgrounds in various educational systems with their different styles and acronyms etc.
· There has been good engagement with schools generally, but there is still work to be done to make this universal.
· There is a focus on ensuring the curriculum’s content is representative and does not reinforce issues, educating young people to live alongside individuals from all backgrounds.
RESOLVED: That the Education Advisory Panel note the presentation on promoting racial equality in Hampshire's schools.
The panel heard that an inquiry into the experiences of the BAME community in Basingstoke was undertaken in June 2020, which noted that schools were often described as ‘weak’ in their handling of racist abuse. There was also instances of schools dismissing verbal abuse, lower expectations and assumptions of students based on race and needing to improve teaching of Black history.
Due to the above the Basingstoke & Deane Inclusion and Diversity Partnership was formed with the aim of improving school’s focus on equality and diversity. This would provide people with a place they genuinely feel they belong and as a result, provide a strong and positive sense of self.
The panel noted the actions already taken by the Partnership, and the importance place on ‘Allyship’. The Panel received an overview of the impact so far of the partnerships and the actions to be take in the future to support schools.
In response to questions members heard that:
· There is support in place for Russian members of staff in Hampshire schools in case of any abuse, however it is difficult to identify those who have changed their nationality to British. It was noted that there is a relatively small number of affected individuals and anyone from local countries may also be at risk.
· There are concerns surrounding schools providing ‘nil’ reports on their annual reports.
· That there are many incidents involving younger children acting naively, in which education is provided to allow them to understand the impact of their words and actions.
· There is the need for careful consideration of suitable language when discussing issues of equality, equity and diversity.
· There is a focus on making recruitment more representative of Hampshire and consideration of different backgrounds in various educational systems with their different styles and acronyms etc.
· There has been good engagement with schools generally, but there is still work to be done to make this universal.
· There is a focus on ensuring the curriculum’s content is representative and does not reinforce issues, educating young people to live alongside individuals from all backgrounds.
RESOLVED: That the Education Advisory Panel note the presentation on promoting racial equality in Hampshire's schools.
8
Peer on Peer Abuse
To receive a presentation from the Director of Children’s Services providing an overview of the departments initiatives to prevent peer on peer abuse in schools.
Attachments:
- Document Peer on Peer Abuse Report 22 Mar 2022
- Document Peer on Peer Abuse Presentation 22 Mar 2022
Minutes
The panel received a presentation from the Director of Children’s Services providing an overview on how the department responded to peer on peer abuse in Hampshire’s schools.
The panel noted the analysis of the information gathered on the ‘Everyone’s Invited’ website which provided a spotlight on the experiences of children and young people both in school and in wider society. The included the strong and rapid response from Children’s Services, the good multi-agency response and engagement from schools and colleges and the importance of hearing the voice of the child in understanding their experiences.
The panel received an overview of the training, resources and other support available to professionals dealing with these issues. This included a school based learning and development exercise involving a good practise review of eight secondary schools, later expanding to a further twenty.
The panel noted the main issues facing the school in relation to peer on peer abuse included the normalisation of behaviour, attitudes and words and the gap between young people and school staff’s perceptions. There is also an issue in relation to education settings under reporting issues and not providing a fully inclusive culture which embraces diversity.
In response to questions members heard that:
· Staff are not always confident with particular aspects of these issues, such as child exploitation.
· There is an ever stronger link between Children’s Services and mental health services.
· The profile of inclusion and diversity is being raised in relation to recruitment and retention.
· There is a difficulty in getting the culture right in order to allow reporting while working restoratively on elements such as toxic masculinity.
RESOLVED: That the Education Advisory Panel note the presentation on peer on peer abuse in Hampshire's schools.
The panel noted the analysis of the information gathered on the ‘Everyone’s Invited’ website which provided a spotlight on the experiences of children and young people both in school and in wider society. The included the strong and rapid response from Children’s Services, the good multi-agency response and engagement from schools and colleges and the importance of hearing the voice of the child in understanding their experiences.
The panel received an overview of the training, resources and other support available to professionals dealing with these issues. This included a school based learning and development exercise involving a good practise review of eight secondary schools, later expanding to a further twenty.
The panel noted the main issues facing the school in relation to peer on peer abuse included the normalisation of behaviour, attitudes and words and the gap between young people and school staff’s perceptions. There is also an issue in relation to education settings under reporting issues and not providing a fully inclusive culture which embraces diversity.
In response to questions members heard that:
· Staff are not always confident with particular aspects of these issues, such as child exploitation.
· There is an ever stronger link between Children’s Services and mental health services.
· The profile of inclusion and diversity is being raised in relation to recruitment and retention.
· There is a difficulty in getting the culture right in order to allow reporting while working restoratively on elements such as toxic masculinity.
RESOLVED: That the Education Advisory Panel note the presentation on peer on peer abuse in Hampshire's schools.
Previous Meetings
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