Parents Matter… · 02 School/settingactivities withparentsandcarers 04 StrengtheningFamilies...

02 School/setting activitieswith parents and carers

04 Strengthening FamiliesStrengthening Communities

09 Extended Service News

10-12 Information and Training

Issue 14 | September 2008

ParentsMatterFamilies take centre stagein October!

This year in Tower Hamlets we would liketo encourage schools / settings toorganise activities and events whichencourage families to share andcelebrate their skills and experiences.

If you would like to apply for £200 tosupport your Parent’s Week / FamilyLearning event / session, please contactShelly Rahman on 020 7364 [email protected]

Deadline for applications:Friday 26th September 2008

Family Learning FestivalOctober 2008

National Family Learning Week (FLW) is anannual awareness campaign which aims tohighlight the importance that families canhave in supporting each other's learning.

To celebrate 10 years of celebrations, FLWbecomes a whole month with the FamilyLearning Festival 2008.

2 Parents Matter Newsletter


Family fun dayat theTower of London!

Saturday 18th October 10-4pmWe would like families to join us for aday of fun at the ancient castle on yourdoorstep!

• Meet a costumed storyteller who’lllet you into some of the Tower’smany secrets!

• Join in with arts and craft activities inthe White Tower

• Try on Tudor costumes• Make a Tower badge• Do one of our fun family trails• Have fun in the interactive ‘hands-on

history’ exhibition

Tower Hamlets residents can get intothe Tower for just £1! Just show yourIdea Store card, Tower Hamlets Librarycard, or Tower Hamlets Leisure Servicescard, plus proof of name and address(e.g. a household bill).NB - children do not require proof ofname and address. Children must beaccompanied be an adult.

The ninth annual Parents’Week takes place 20th – 26thOctober

The two aims of this year's week are:

1. to offer practitioners working with parents andfamilies practical support to hold their own'listening event' with families to evaluate theirwork

2. to showcase how practitioners aresuccessfully supporting families across thecountry

Why not celebrate the work you do with familiesparents and carers within your setting ororganise a Parent Voice event, share ideas andexamine how you can be more effective?

Obtain a free practitioners guide fromwww.familyandparenting.org/keepupdated

Parent Pamper Days!

During Parents’ Week, the Parents’ Centre at SpelmanStreet will be organising Parent Pamper Days! Groupsessions will provide an opportunity for parents tolearn how to achieve soft, silky hands and feet withoutspending a fortune.

Sessions will take place:Tuesday 21st October: 9.30-11.30am and 1-3pmFriday 24th October: 9.30-11.30 am

Places are limited and sessions will need to be bookedin advance.

National Bookstart DayFriday 10th October

All seven Idea Stores and Libraries onFriday 10th October will be having specialpirate themed parties aimed at children from birth –four years and their parents and carers to celebrateBookstart and to promote sharing books as a family.

Why not contact your local idea Store or library toarrange to take parents and children to borrow somepicture books and take part in an activity?

Parent Voice event at St Luke’s Primary School

For more information about activities [email protected]

Canon Barnett Primary School

Parents and children from Canon Barnett went on a residential weekend to ArethusaAdventure Centre. Parents took part in a range of activities - from adventure walks,swimming and an evening bonfire on the beach to rock climbing, walking the highropes and archery. The weekend opened up a different type of communicationbetween parents and children and allowed them to bond and grow in theirrelationships with one another.

Lucy Andrew, Learning Mentor: Canon Barnett School LAP 1

"I liked everything about the weekend. My family could not believe that I climbed tothe top of the climbing wall - I'm too scared usually to even get in a car!" (Parent)

3Parents Matter Newsletter

September 2008 | Issue 14

School /setting activitieswith parents and carersGetting to know each other better!Residential breaks for families

Guardian AngelsPrimary School

A group of 10 parents and children spent aweekend at Bradwell Outdoors. Many of theparents had not previously had any contact witheach other but friendships were formed andcloser bonds developed between parents andchildren as a result of the weekend away. Thegroup are planning to spend time together in thesummer holidays!

One parent said, “I used come to the schoolwith my head down, pick my child and speak tono one but now this has changed. I now havemany friends at my child’s school”.

Yolande Joseph, Home School Support Worker,Guardian Angels LAP 5

Christ Church

Parents and children visited Gorsefield RuralStudy Centre just as the term was ending inJuly. Everyone was excited and some parentswere just a little nervous about travellingoutside of Tower Hamlets. The residentialprovided opportunities for parents and staff tolearn more about each other and everyoneenjoyed the space inside and outside thehouse, especially exploring the beautifulgrounds. Parents particularly enjoyed thecooking activities, sharing skills and tips forproducing healthy, tasty family meals.

Carol Rider, Christ Church LAP 2



Sewing at Seven Mills

Using funding from the extendedschools budget, Seven Mills set up asewing group for parents, taught byAnnie Chowdhury, an experiencedsewing teacher. Initially, almost fiftyparents expressed an interest inattending and because there is roomfor only fifteen people with machinesin our classroom we decided to holdtwo separate courses of 10 weekseach this academic year, and possiblymore next year in order to meet thedemand. Our first course has justfinished; the students have learnedhow to use and adapt patterns, andhave made salwar kameez. The nextcourse is just beginning, and we arehoping that once this has finishedboth sets of students will come to ourend of term assembly to model theircreations. After the summer holidayswe are hoping to start work on a wallhanging for the school.

Linda Williams, School-Home SupportWorker: Seven Mills LAP 8

Bring a Dad to School Day:St John’s Primary School

56 nervous looking dads, stepdads, uncles,brothers and grandads assembled at St. John’sPrimary School for ‘Bring a Dad to School Day’although it had been made very clear that theword ‘Dad’ included any male in the children’slives.

The Parental Involvement Co-ordinator, AlisonTicher, seized the opportunity to talk about howimportant the interest of dads, grandads etc. canbe for children’s educational and social well-being. The men were told that the schoolwanted to include more men in school activitiesand asked for feedback about what this mightlook like. Soon everyone was chatting andfeeling less nervous.

It was really exciting to see so many mengathered together at the school, which wasreflected in the smiles on the faces of children,teachers and ‘dads’. It was a really greatoccasion, everyone enjoyed it and the school haslots of ideas about how to move forward towardsmaking the school somewhere where everyonefeels they have a contribution to make.

Alison Ticher, Parental Involvement Co-ordinator,St John’s Primary School LAP 1



Sharing the TowerHamlets Model!

Tower Hamlets is just one of sixlocal authorities that have beenasked to participate in an actionresearch project, which is fundedby the DCSF until February 2009.The project aims to make a case topolicymakers and practitioners forthe benefits of effectiveengagement by schools inchildren's 'at home' learning anddevelopment. It also aims to givepractical examples of how this can beachieved.

The core of the project is an 'actionresearch' method and six differentexamples of well-established schemesfrom across England are being shared asauthorities pair-up on the basis of acommon focus or approach. TowerHamlets has been paired withNorthampton and two schools, KobiNazrul and Thomas Buxton Infants inTower Hamlets, have been identified byeach local authority to test the exchangeof practices at a local level.

Over the last two months, members ofthe Tower Hamlets Parental Engagementteam have been travelling toNorthampton in order to share theirexperience of developing appropriate,fun resources for families to use tosupport at-home learning and co-deliverthe Tower Hamlets model of curriculumfocussed workshops for parents withstaff in Northampton Schools.

This approach has been introduced inalmost all Tower Hamlets schools as partof the NRF projects which took place lastyear and over 2000 parents haveattended workshops.

For more information about the projector delivery of curriculum workshopscontact Laura [email protected] orvisit the learning at home- learning atschool website: www.learning-hs.org.uk

Working together getsgreat results!

Bow School and Central Foundation Girls School havejoined forces with the Lifelong Learning Service toprovide ESOL (English for Speakers of OtherLanguages) Entry 1 classes for parents. Parentsattended classes at Bow Boys School on Monday andTuesday morning. As part of the course they also visitedBow Idea Store, Bromley by Bow Centre and went on atrip to Central London to visit the British Museum,Regent’s Park and the Central London Mosque.

In September the parents will return to the school tostudy ESOL Entry 2 and staff plan to extend theprogramme and offer Maths and Computing courses forparents in a new building in Bow Boys School. CentralFoundation plans to deliver a women only gym classand a Strengthening Families Parenting Programme inOctober 2008.

For further information, contact Masum Ahmed at BowBoys School 020 8980 0118 or Ruba Talukdar at CentralFoundation – 020 8981 1131 ext 319.

English Martyrs

English Martyrs Primary School successfullyorganised a series of meetings and workshops forparents to find out how they can support their child’slearning and prepare for transition to Key Stage 1 orSecondary School.

School staff worked with members of the ParentalEngagement Team to organise two ParentInformation Point (PIP) transition meetings for Year 5and Year 1 parents, and curriculum focusedworkshops for Foundation Stage and Year 1 parents.

All sessions were supported by a PIP Market Placeand parents went home with a bag full ofinformation and leaflets on local services andactivities for families.

June Darby, English Martyrs LAP 3



Strengthening Families,Strengthening Communities

Strengthening FamiliesStrengthening CommunitiesAwards 2008

This month saw the graduation of parentswho completed the Pathfinder StrengtheningFamilies Strengthening Communities coursesover the past year. As more than 500 parentswere due to receive their awards, the eventwas divided into four sessions, two at theProfessional Development Centre and two atRich Mix. All four events were highlyprestigious, with a different V.I.P. asked topresent the certificates on each occasion.This included Kevan Collins, CorporateDirector of Children’s Services, CouncillorClair Hawkins, Lead Member for Children'sServices, Helen Jenner, Service Head, EarlyYears Children and Learning and CouncillorSalique, Mayor of the London Borough ofTower Hamlets.

There was an excellent turn-out from parents,many of whom brought family members tojoin in the celebration. For the children whocame, it was a great opportunity for them tosee the importance of their parents’achievement. At each ceremony, two parentsvolunteered to talk to the audience about theirown experience of the course. The sharing ofpersonal experiences proved one of the mostvaluable parts of the programme, and thiswas re-emphasised by the powerfulpresentations these parents made.

We look forward to seeing more parentscontinuing to achieve in StrengtheningFamilies Strengthening Communities, with therecognition so richly deserved.

For more information, contactAndy Simons or Tom Morrison 020 7364 1536.



Marner Primary School

At our school in the past we have organisedmany SFSC programmes for mothers but notcatered for fathers. However, as facilitators forSFSC we wanted to change this and put on acourse for them.

We started a coffee morning with one tastersession for them in April. At least 25 fatherscame and 16 registered. We have nine fathersattending every Tuesday, and they are allenjoying the sessions.

On Tuesday, 1st July, we all went on a boat tripfrom Greenwich to Westminster. We had awonderful day on the River Thames, enjoyingbeautiful weather and ended up eating burgers inWestminster before sailing back to Greenwich!

Our headteacher, Mary Todd, is alwayssupportive of the course and she comes once aterm to each group to share her experiences ofbeing a parent. Everyone enjoys listening toMary's down-to-earth talk on her role as amother, mixed with much joy and laughter.

''I enjoy coming to the group very much. I usedto just drop my kids at school and go homewithout talking to anyone, after being on thecourse I have made many friends.'' (Parent)

Ahsana Choudhury and Magni Sims,Home/School Liasion Officers, Marner SchoolLAP 6

Passport to Learning -Single Point of Access (SPA)

The aim of SPA is to provide front-endservices that are accessible to all worklesspeople and address the range of barrierspreventing them from moving intoemployment. This will be done by improvingthe delivery of employment support andrelated services; removing institutionalbarriers and working across organisationalboundaries to deliver a joined up service. InTower Hamlets the responsibility for theseprogrammes sits within the Access toEmployment Team and is delivered as partof the Skillsmatch Service.

Canon Barnett School

This term Canon BarnettSchool held the first of thePassport to Learning - SPAcourses for parents /carerslooking to develop theirskills for returning tolearning and employment.The Building Skills and Confidence coursewas held once a week for four weeks afteran initial taster session where parents hadthe opportunity to discuss what they wouldlike to gain from the course.

The course aims to supports parents tobecome more confident by identifying theirexisting skills and experiences and buildingupon their strengths through a range ofactivities, tasks and discussions.

All parents received a Passport to Learningworkbook to reflect and record their learningthroughout the course.

“This course has made me realise I do haveskills.” (Parent)

For further information, contactDenise [email protected] orphone 020 7364 0971



Extended Services

What is Extended Services?

Extended Services is all about supporting theachievement of all children and young people byoffering a range of support to their families through localschools and community centres. Through their localschool parents should be able to get advice andinformation on:• Affordable year-round childcare 8.00am-6.00pm for

children 5-11yrs• After school activities such as sports, arts or music

activities including homework clubs and studysupport

• Parenting support, from information about schoolsand study, to classes and programmes to supportparenting skills

• Access to specialist services such as counsellingservices, dieticians, etc.

• Access to schools resources such as sports centresand adult and family learning programmes

For more information Tel: 020 7364 6242

Boosting breakfast clubs –improving health - childcare

A unique partnership with Tower Hamlets Primary CareTrust has seen an extra investment of over £160,000going into breakfast clubs and healthy lifestyle activitiesacross schools in Tower Hamlets. Many of theseprogrammes will see children and parents learning,cooking, and getting fit together.

Want to get parents and children learning together?Why not run a healthy eating club?

From engagementto training toemployment –parents moving on

Extended Schools in TowerHamlets are improving avenuesto employment for parentsthrough partnering withSkillsmatch the job brokerageservice for Tower Hamlets. Aftera successful pilot last year inCubitt Town Infants School lastyear, schools across TowerHamlets will be offering a 10-week course for parents aimed atimproving their chances ofgetting a job. For moreinformation contact yourExtended Services Cluster Co-ordinator.

Do you offer services to parents?Why not tell other local schoolswhat you are offering.

Providing a safeplace to be for 11-14yr olds

Schools in Tower Hamlets arecelebrating a double success thismonth. From April 2009, childrenaged 11-14yrs will be offered out-of-school learning from4.00pm-6.00pm term time and upto six further weeks of activityduring the holidays. Moreinformation is available [email protected] from 1st September 2008.

Are parents asking you aboutthings to do for their children?Why not ask your clusterco-ordinator for information.



Which cluster am I in?

Tower Hamlets is split into eight Local Area Partnerships(LAPs). All schools are working in clusters made up ofpairs of LAPs. This mirrors other services in TowerHamlets which are moving to ‘localise’ what they do.

The LAP mapEach locality has an Extended Services Cluster Co-ordinator who works with schools, third sector andstatutory service providers (like the PCT and police) todeliver improved services to children, young people,their families and the community.

You can get in touch with your cluster co-ordinator at theaddresses below:Fiona Stokes LAPs 1&[email protected]

Shibbir Ahmed LAPs 3&[email protected]

Position currently vacant LAPs 5&6For enquiries, please [email protected]

Ben Williams LAPs 7&[email protected]

Parent supportco-ordinators –parenting support

Extended Services, in partnershipwith the Tower Hamlets ParentalEngagement team will be addingParent Support Co-ordinators (PSCs)into each of the Extended Servicesclusters. During the autumn term2008 each cluster will gain adedicated professional who will joinup and co-ordinate services forparents across schools in the cluster.PSCs will also develop localisedtraining and networkingopportunities for staff working withparents. Keep an eye on thisnewsletter for furtherannouncements.

Do you offer services to parents?Why not tell other local schoolswhat you are offering.

School healthgets a boost inTower Hamlets

Extra funding for school health hasbeen announced by Tower HamletsPrimary Care Trust. This should see ahealth professional in every primaryschool one day every two weeks andone day a week in every secondaryschool. More information is availablefrom [email protected]

Having an IMPACT

Extended Services in Tower Hamlets is continuing tohave an impact on the achievement of children andyoung people in Tower Hamlets. A review of last year’sactivities has shown that we now have 72% of ourschools fully extended with a view that this will rise to90% by September 2008. Key to this improvement hasbeen the move to commission services across clustersfor the next three years based on priorities drawn fromschools’ knowledge of the challenges their children,young people and families face.



Dates for Diary

Tuesday 23rd September 2008"Find Your Talent" pathfinder launch at the V&A Museum ofChildhood.

Wednesday 24th September 2008Engaging Parents in Education Conference, Central LondonFocus includes: engaging fathers and the importance of rolemodelsGetting parents "in the door" in areas of deprivation anddisengagementUsing ICT to bring engagement into the 21st centurywww.capitaconferences.co.uk 020 7808 5252

Friday 10th October 2008National Bookstart day with a pirate themewww.bookstart.co.uk

Thursday 6th NovemberLaunch of the "Wisdom of the Mothers" Traditional SomaliSongs for Children. 4-6 pm Professional Development CentreEnglish Street Contact shelly. [email protected] more information

Voluntary sector news

The WEA works inpartnership withcommunity andvoluntary organisations,schools, localauthorities and othergroups and are thelargest voluntary sectorprovider of adult education in the UK.They have delivered Family Learning inCulloden and Old Ford schools, ranESOL and IT in several schoolsincluding St Pauls, St Johns, ThomasBuxton and ran courses in CommunityInterpreting at St Johns School, theProfessional Development Centre andthe Ocean Children’s Centre. Theyhave also run training on “Interpretingin schools and early years settings” forbilingual classroom assistants.

Family Learning: Gail Dawson 02086772993 and 07968 703504 [email protected]: Nita Karia 0207 426 1975 and 07908796897 [email protected] :Sue Nicholas0207 473 1317 [email protected] Interpreting:Phyllis Acosta 07984 [email protected]

Journeys Children’sBereavement & LossService (CBLS)

Journeys support children and youngpeople to find a way through griefcaused by the death of someone theyknow, and other significant losses. Thisoften include working with parents andcarers to help them understand ways ofpositively supporting their childrenthrough traumatic times. Journeys isthe only service in Tower Hamletsaddressing bereavement and lossamong children and young people ages3-16 years of age.

www.journeys-cbls.org.uk

Find your talent

Tower Hamlets has been successful in bidding to be one ofthe 10 LAs/partnerships across England invited to take part inthe "Find Your Talent"- Five Hours of Culture three yearpathfinder. In conjunction with national and local partners, theFind Your Talent programme will give children and youngpeople in Tower Hamlets the chance to engage in a range ofhigh-quality cultural experiences for five hours a week both inand outside of school.

The key focus of the pathfinder will not be to create a mass ofnew activity but to create a consistent and strategic approachto developing a coherent cultural offer across the borough,including a complimentary family cultural offer to maximiseparental engagement. A well thought out cultural offer whichengages families from different communities will have amajor impact on promoting community cohesion and tacklingworklessness and poverty in Tower Hamlets.



Parents Advice Centre

The Parents Advice Centreprovides information, supportand advice to parents and carersof children with specialeducational needs, children atrisk of exclusion or excludedfrom school and childrenneeding a school place.

PAC drop-in adviceNo appointment needed, every Tuesday 9.30-3.30

Claim the Max (Welfare Benefits Advice)Every Monday from 9.30 to 12 noon.Appointment needed, please call the PAC

Educational Psychologist Advice for parents andcarersFirst Tuesday of every month, 9.30 to 11.30.7th October.Appointment needed, please call the PAC.

SEN Parents Support GroupAn open group for parents and carers of childrenwith special educational needs. Every Thursday 10to 12 noon at the PAC. All welcome, just drop in.

Choice Admissions AdviceAdvice and support for parents and carers lookingfor a Year 7 place for their child. Please contactRashmi Deb at PAC.Epilepsy Group:October 3rd 10 to 12 noon at the PACAll welcome, please drop in.

Events in the Autumn TermChoice Advice Sessions to help parents and carerscomplete the common application form and applyfor a year 7 place at Secondary School. These willbe arranged for October and publicised in East EndLife.

Meetings of the Bengali Parents Group, the SomaliParents Group, and the Dyslexia Group will also bearranged.

For more information on any of the above sessionsand events, please contact:

The Parents Advice Centre, 85 Harford Street,London E1 4PY. Tel: 020 7364 6489. [email protected]

Recommendedwebsites

National Year of Readingwww.yearofreading.org.uk

Booktimewww.booktime.pearson.com

Pound a Poemwww.poundapoem.co.uk

School–Home–Supportwww.schoolhomesupport.org.uk

Campaign for Learning(Family Learning Festival)www.campaign-for-learning.org.uk

National Academy for Parenting PractitionersNAPPwww.parentingacademy.org

New online resources for parentingpractitioners (fathers)www.parentingacademy.org/nappindex.aspx?page=fathers

Journeys Children’s Bereavement & LossService (CBLS)www.journeys-cbls.org.uk

Learning at home-learning at schoolwww.learning-hs.org.uk

OfSTED inspections

Congratulations to the following schools, whichhave been rated as good or outstanding in theirlatest OfSTED inspection:Primary:Kobi Nazrul (Good)Old Ford (Outstanding)St Pauls Whitechapel (Good)Secondary:Sir John Cass Foundation and Redcoat Church ofEngland (Outstanding)



Training ProgrammeFor school and setting staffdeveloping work with parentsFamily Learning Festival - Information SessionA practical session for school/setting staffplanning activities to celebrate Family LearningFestival . All attendees will receive a free familylearning information pack and ‘goodie bag’, therewill also be an opportunity to apply for funding tosupport your event.

Thursday 18th September 4.15-5.30 ParentsAdvice Centre Harford Street

Strengthening FamiliesStrengthening CommunitiesFacilitator workshopThursday 18th September 9.30 – 16.00

Community Interpreting CourseThis NOCN level 2/3 accredited course is for bi-lingual front-line, support staff and volunteersworking in schools, Children’s Centres and earlyyears settings.

Induction session:Thursday 25th September 9.30 – 12.00Course dates: 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd October 6th,13th, 20th, 27th November 4th, 11th December

Engaging Parents in MathsUsing a bead string in Year 1A practical session exploring ways to engageparents and support children’s at-home learningWednesday 15th October 4.15 – 5.30

Parent Information Point (PIP)Participants will be given information onplanning, preparing and facilitating a ParentInformation Point (PIP) sessionAll participants will be given a facilitators packThursday 16th October 9 -1

Supporting parents and the wider communityaccess extended services:Developing a Welcoming SchoolFirst impressions count!An opportunity to review current practice andaccess up to date information on extendedservices.Thursday 6th November 9.30 – 12.00

Engaging parents in supporting their child athome – Multiplication and Division in Years 3and 4A practical session exploring ways to engageparents and support children’s at-home learningAll participants will receive a resource pack totake back to their school/settingWednesday 12th November 4.15 – 5.30

Strengthening FamiliesStrengthening CommunitiesFacilitator workshopWednesday 12th November 9.30 -4.00

Engaging Parents in Reading at Key Stage 1‘Limas Red Hot Chill’A practical session exploring ways to engageparents and support children’s at-home learningAll participants will receive a resource pack totake back to their school/settingWednesday 26th November 4.15 – 5.30

If you would like to share any of your work please contact:Jill McGinley (Parental Engagement Advisor) on020 7364 4946 or [email protected]

For more information or to book your place onany of the above courses please contact:Husna Begum 020 7364 [email protected]

All courses are held at the ProfessionalDevelopment Centre, English Street E3unless stated otherwise.

Parents Matter… · 02 School/settingactivities withparentsandcarers 04 StrengtheningFamilies...

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