Handsam Reminders
In the hustle and bustle of other responsibilities, you may have overlooked some articles from Compliance Matters Issue 36. Below are some of the things making the news in the world of compliance in autumn 2022.
How Can Schools Ensure that Governors are ‘Ofsted Ready’ at All Times?
The most effective way of preparing governors for an inspection is to engage them in posing key ‘exploratory’ questions to school leaders about the quality of educational provision on an ongoing basis and as an integral part of their role, rather than just when the Ofsted phone call is taken. School leaders should also ensure that governors are also conversant with the evaluation tools that are in use at the school which inform its own judgements about the quality of provision.
IICSA and Mandatory Reporting
Many countries already have mandatory reporting legislation – including Ireland, France, Canada and certain states in Australia – and studies in such countries show that the legislation increased the number of reports of suspected and known child sexual abuse. In Western Australia for example, the mean number of reports of child sexual abuse per annum increased from 662 to 2,448 after introducing mandatory reporting laws.
The participants at the IICSA’s seminars commented that, under the current regime for reporting, many people are unsure of their reporting duties and the steps they need to take if they only have slight suspicions or have noticed something is “off” for a child.
Teen Vaping
Vaping refers to the act of inhaling and exhaling the aerosol, or vapour, created by a vaping device. A vaping device includes a mouthpiece, a battery, a heating component, and a cartridge that contains the e-liquid or e-juice. The e-liquid contains the drug being inhaled—either nicotine or THC, the psychoactive chemical in marijuana, combined with flavourings and other chemicals.
The battery in the vaping device powers the heating component, which heats up the e-liquid, also known as vape juice. As a result, the device produces water vapour. Users inhale this vapour into their lungs. Types of vaping devices include the following:
- E-cigarettes, which resemble traditional cigarettes—also called e-cigs, hookah pens, vape pens, or ENDS (electronic nicotine delivery systems);
- Advanced personal vaporizers (also known as “mods”), customized by the user; and
- Vape pens, which look like large fountain pens.
Animals in Schools
In a recent incident in Flintshire, a pupil’s pet cat managed to sneak onto school grounds and have its photograph taken on school photo day.
The owner of Ziggy the cat, Emma Roberts, said he visits the school daily to attend other school events, such as assemblies, and to visit other pupils and members of staff. The feline is frequently found roaming around classrooms and relaxing on the school grounds.
Headteacher Mark Biltcliffe said it is "impossible" to keep Ziggy off the school grounds so they have ended up embracing him as part of the school instead. He even joked that Ziggy's attendance record is an "example to the other children".
In light of this incident, Handsam would like to remind schools and academies of the benefits of having animals in schools, and supply some ideas for how this can be done.
New Curriculum Contractors Handsam E-training Course
The new e-Training Centre module on Curriculum Contractors is now live.
This course outlines everything you need to know about curriculum contractors for staff who manage or book non-employee staff to deliver activities that are non-construction based.
It is most likely that your school already contracts multiple external experts who are not actually staff members, for example music tutors, minibus drivers and school nurses. The course provides information about the employment, management and ongoing evaluation of contracted staff like this.
HSE Inspection of Radioactive Sources
Handsam would like to remind organisations that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) will be conducting health and safety inspections on the safe management of radioactive sources in school science.
The HSE plans to visit around 90 schools, undertaken mostly this autumn term. In collaboration with CLEAPSS, HSE agreed that where school employers choose CLEAPSS Guide L93 this is sufficient to meet the requirements of the Ionising Radiations Regulations (IRR17).