Skip to content

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Committee Room 4, Town Hall, Upper Street, N1 2UD. View directions

Contact: Jonathan Moore  0207 527 3308

Items
No. Item

45.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Woodbyrne.

 

It was also noted that Councillor Caluori, the Executive Member for Children, Young People and Families, had submitted apologies for absence.

46.

Declarations of Interest

If you have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest* in an item of business:

§  if it is not yet on the council’s register, you must declare both the existence and details of it at the start of the meeting or when it becomes apparent;

§  you may choose to declare a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest that is already in the register in the interests of openness and transparency. 

In both the above cases, you must leave the room without participating in discussion of the item.

 

If you have a personal interest in an item of business and you intend to speak or vote on the item you must declare both the existence and details of it at the start of the meeting or when it becomes apparent but you may participate in the discussion and vote on the item.

 

*(a) Employment, etc - Any employment, office, trade, profession or vocation carried on for profit or gain.

(b)  Sponsorship - Any payment or other financial benefit in respect of your expenses in carrying out duties as a member, or of your election; including from a trade union.

(c) Contracts - Any current contract for goods, services or works, between you or your partner (or a body in which one of you has a beneficial interest) and the council.

(d) Land - Any beneficial interest in land which is within the council’s area.

(e) Licences- Any licence to occupy land in the council’s area for a month or longer.

(f)   Corporate tenancies - Any tenancy between the council and a body in which you or your partner have a beneficial interest.

 (g) Securities - Any beneficial interest in securities of a body which has a place of business or land in the council’s area, if the total nominal value of the securities exceeds £25,000 or one hundredth of the total issued share capital of that body or of any one class of its issued share capital. 

 

This applies to all members present at the meeting.

Minutes:

None.

47.

Declaration of Substitute Members

Minutes:

None.

48.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 90 KB

Minutes:

RESOLVED:

 

That the minutes of the meeting held on 18 October 2018 be agreed as a correct record and the Chair be authorised to sign them.

49.

Chair's Report

Minutes:

The Chair advised that Committee members had visited the New River College Pupil Referral Unit to meet with staff and pupils and to hear their views on exclusion and related matters. The Chair thanked the staff and students for being open and honest, commenting that it was a productive visit.

 

50.

Items for Call In (if any)

Minutes:

None.

51.

Public Questions

For members of the public to ask questions relating to any subject on the meeting agenda under Procedure Rule 70.5. Alternatively, the Chair may opt to accept questions from the public during the discussion on each agenda item.

Minutes:

None.

52.

Permanent and fixed period exclusion from school - Witness Evidence pdf icon PDF 71 KB

a)    Evidence from Head Teachers

b)    Briefing note – Government review of Exclusion and Alternative Provision

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received evidence from three head teachers on their approaches to permanent and fixed period exclusion from school.

 

a)    Patrick Mildren, Head Teacher, Canonbury Primary School

The following main points were noted in the discussion:

 

·         Canonbury Primary School was a two-form entry school with 471 pupils, including the Nursery School. The school had a low rate of permanent exclusion. Fixed term exclusions were issued on occasion.

·         Exclusion was used as a last resort in instances when the safety of the school was compromised. Fixed term exclusions could be given for one, two, or three days, and all pupils underwent a period of reintegration on their return to school. Mr Mildren commented that it was important to work with both pupils and their parents on pupil behaviour issues.

·         It was noted that many pupils have emotional and social needs and schools need to be mindful of this when addressing behaviour issues.

·         It was commented that excluded pupils tended to have high levels of need. Pupils with emotional needs may resort to physical violence or verbal abuse if they are in a heightened state. 

·         Canonbury School made use of the outreach service offered by New River College and thought that this was very effective in helping to prevent exclusions. The outreach support service assisted the school in developing support and interventions for pupils at risk of exclusion; it was commented that this benefitted both pupils and teachers.

·         Some pupils at risk of exclusion had temporary placements at New River College, attending for two days a week. These pupils typically had a long history of challenging behavioural issues. These pupils were in Years 5 and 6; it was commented that behavioural needs tended to escalate for pupils aged 10 to 11.

·         Mr Mildren believed that primary school children with high levels of need could be better supported by having access to different learning environments in school. It could be challenging to keep some pupils with social, emotional and behavioural needs in the classroom, however it was thought that these pupils would benefit from a “nurture hub” within the school where they could learn in a different environment with more intensive support from school staff. This could provide opportunities not available in the classroom, for example, pupils could learn through play, or make use of other techniques not able to be implemented for a whole class. It was acknowledged that schools had limited resources to provide such a space, however it was thought that providing a variety of learning environments within school would help to keep pupils with high levels of need in mainstream education.

·         Mr Mildren emphasised the importance of early intervention and providing the right support to pupils at the right time. It was thought that providing support to pupils with additional social, emotional and behavioural needs from a younger age would help to minimise the development of severe behavioural issues and would support young people in preparing for secondary school. Canonbury Primary School was aware that some former pupils  ...  view the full minutes text for item 52.

53.

Executive Member Update and Questions pdf icon PDF 39 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

As Councillor Caluori was not present, it was advised that any questions from committee members would be responded to in writing.

54.

Work Programme pdf icon PDF 47 KB

Minutes:

Noted.