New figures show that disadvantaged children in my constituency are set to receive £1.4 million this year under the Coalition Government's new "Pupil Premium."
The Pupil Premium is a new policy promised by both the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats before the General Election last year. It is an extra lump sum of cash which follows every disadvantaged child and is received by schools, allowing them to provide additional support such as one-to-one tuition and extra pastoral care.
The Government has announced that in the year from April 2011, the Pupil Premium will be worth £430 for every pupil on Free School Meals, £430 for every looked-after child, and £200 for every child who has a parent in the Armed Services. This means that in the Brentford and Isleworth constituency this year 3,230 children overall will benefit from an extra £1,389,000.
This is good news for children in our area. The gap between the academic performance of children from deprived backgrounds and their peers is too wide and has been ignored for too long.
In the last month, reports estimate that a third of children in Brentford are living in poverty. The Pupil Premium will tackle this disparity head on, providing targeted funding for those who need it most. This could mean extra one-to-one tuition or more pastoral support.
In these tough times, the Pupil Premium will deliver a massive boost to the education of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable children locally.
Showing posts with label Schools. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Schools. Show all posts
Wednesday, 13 April 2011
Tuesday, 21 December 2010
Encouraging School Sports
The Secretary of State for Education, the Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, has announced more detail on the Coalition Government's new approach on school sports that will embed competitive sport in schools across the country and increase participation.
The Secretary of State said: "I want competitive sport to be at the centre of a truly rounded education that all schools offer but this must be led by schools and parents, not by top-down policies from Whitehall. It's time to ensure what was best in School Sport Partnerships around the country is fully embedded and move forward to a system where schools and partnerships are delivering on sports with competition at the heart."
The Coalition Government has confirmed that School Sports Partnerships will be paid for the full school year to the end of the summer term 2011, at a cost of £47 million. In addition, a further £65 million will be paid to enable every secondary school to release one PE teacher for a day a week in the school year 2011/12 and 2012/13 to work out of the classroom, encouraging greater take-up of sport and securing a fixture network for schools to increase the amount of intra- and inter-school competition.
Lottery funding will also be deployed to build a framework of competitions as part of the new School Games. All schools will be invited to compete against one another in district competitions, leading to county festivals and even the chance to appear in the first national finals in Spring 2012, with events at the Olympic Stadium.
I met recently with Alan Watkinson and Helen Ives, Partnership Development Managers from each of the two School Sports Partnerships in the Hounslow Borough, together with Rory Mawn, School Sport Coordinator and several of the pupils who are Young Ambassadors for sport across the Borough. Alan explained that the Hounslow Schoool Sports Partnerships rank in the top 10 in partnerships nationwide, both in terms of the number of hours of physical activity being undertaken and for quality of the leadership and volunteering skills for the Young Ambassadors.
I was very impressed with their enthusiasm for the programme. It's great to see the commitment of the Young Ambassadors involved in this programme. I am a strong believer in the value of all kinds of sport and the benefits it can bring not only to general health and wellbeing but also to academic achievement and teamworking skills.
I hope that the recent announcement by the Secretary of State for Education will ensure the continuation of the good work being undertaken in Hounslow to involve young people in sport. I look forward to hearing more about how our schools will get involved in the upcoming Schools Event to ensure a lasting sporting legacy from the Olympics in 2012.
The Secretary of State said: "I want competitive sport to be at the centre of a truly rounded education that all schools offer but this must be led by schools and parents, not by top-down policies from Whitehall. It's time to ensure what was best in School Sport Partnerships around the country is fully embedded and move forward to a system where schools and partnerships are delivering on sports with competition at the heart."
The Coalition Government has confirmed that School Sports Partnerships will be paid for the full school year to the end of the summer term 2011, at a cost of £47 million. In addition, a further £65 million will be paid to enable every secondary school to release one PE teacher for a day a week in the school year 2011/12 and 2012/13 to work out of the classroom, encouraging greater take-up of sport and securing a fixture network for schools to increase the amount of intra- and inter-school competition.
Lottery funding will also be deployed to build a framework of competitions as part of the new School Games. All schools will be invited to compete against one another in district competitions, leading to county festivals and even the chance to appear in the first national finals in Spring 2012, with events at the Olympic Stadium.
I met recently with Alan Watkinson and Helen Ives, Partnership Development Managers from each of the two School Sports Partnerships in the Hounslow Borough, together with Rory Mawn, School Sport Coordinator and several of the pupils who are Young Ambassadors for sport across the Borough. Alan explained that the Hounslow Schoool Sports Partnerships rank in the top 10 in partnerships nationwide, both in terms of the number of hours of physical activity being undertaken and for quality of the leadership and volunteering skills for the Young Ambassadors.
I was very impressed with their enthusiasm for the programme. It's great to see the commitment of the Young Ambassadors involved in this programme. I am a strong believer in the value of all kinds of sport and the benefits it can bring not only to general health and wellbeing but also to academic achievement and teamworking skills.
I hope that the recent announcement by the Secretary of State for Education will ensure the continuation of the good work being undertaken in Hounslow to involve young people in sport. I look forward to hearing more about how our schools will get involved in the upcoming Schools Event to ensure a lasting sporting legacy from the Olympics in 2012.
Monday, 13 December 2010
Speaking Out in Hounslow
I recently visited Hounslow Manor School to judge a public speaking competition for local schools. "Jack Petchey's 'Speak Out' Challenge!" run by SpeakersBank, part of the Speakers Trust charity, is the biggest public speaking event of its kind in the world. Initial rounds are taking place in over 550 schools across London and Essex.
Twelve secondary schools in Hounslow took part in this year's challenge, which involved 500 year 10 students, who all received a full day of training in public speaking and effective communication. The strongest pupil from each school was selected to go forward to a regional final of sixteen students speaking out passionately about issues important to them. Topics included Buses, Facebook, Beauty, Chocolate and the BNP.
Fifteen-year-old Fatima Mahmood from Cranford Community College won the top prize in the Hounslow final. Fatima's speech on her chosen subject, "Stereotyping Teenagers," won her an iPod Touch and a chance to go through to the grand final of the Speak Out Challenge in July 2011. The speech was described by SpeakersBank as "challenging and dramatic," calling on adults to put aside their prejudice and talk to teenagers to discover they are "humans with souls and feelings." I presented Fatima with her iPod and a trophy.
Second place was Leah Black from Hounslow Manor School, speaking on Parenting, and in third place was Ella Whidett from St Mark's Catholic School, who spoke on Prejudice.
It was a fantastic evening. The students were inspiring and so talented - a credit to themselves and their schools.
This initiative teaches young people the vital life skills of confidence in speaking in public and effective communication. This is crucial for so many situations later in life, from job interviews to every day in the working environment. Thanks to the "Speak Out Challenge" for giving students the opportunity to participate.
Sponsored by the Jack Petchey Foundation, and now in its fifth year, up to 20,000 young people are expected to compete for over £25,000 worth of prizes in this year's Grand Final of Jack Petchey's "Speak Out" Challenge.
Twelve secondary schools in Hounslow took part in this year's challenge, which involved 500 year 10 students, who all received a full day of training in public speaking and effective communication. The strongest pupil from each school was selected to go forward to a regional final of sixteen students speaking out passionately about issues important to them. Topics included Buses, Facebook, Beauty, Chocolate and the BNP.
Fifteen-year-old Fatima Mahmood from Cranford Community College won the top prize in the Hounslow final. Fatima's speech on her chosen subject, "Stereotyping Teenagers," won her an iPod Touch and a chance to go through to the grand final of the Speak Out Challenge in July 2011. The speech was described by SpeakersBank as "challenging and dramatic," calling on adults to put aside their prejudice and talk to teenagers to discover they are "humans with souls and feelings." I presented Fatima with her iPod and a trophy.
Second place was Leah Black from Hounslow Manor School, speaking on Parenting, and in third place was Ella Whidett from St Mark's Catholic School, who spoke on Prejudice.
It was a fantastic evening. The students were inspiring and so talented - a credit to themselves and their schools.
This initiative teaches young people the vital life skills of confidence in speaking in public and effective communication. This is crucial for so many situations later in life, from job interviews to every day in the working environment. Thanks to the "Speak Out Challenge" for giving students the opportunity to participate.
Sponsored by the Jack Petchey Foundation, and now in its fifth year, up to 20,000 young people are expected to compete for over £25,000 worth of prizes in this year's Grand Final of Jack Petchey's "Speak Out" Challenge.
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