C.E. Jottings

Re:Lease / Release (2) - updated/deflated

I wrote that the Development Trust that manages Paces Campus was expecting the revised terms of its lease to be put before the Cabinet of Sheffield City Council on 27 February 2008. The Manager had been led to believe, by Council officers with whom the Trust has been in negotiation for 3 years and 2 months, since the Cabinet first approved in principle the granting of the lease in January 2005, that everything was ready to go, that they were... Read more →

Rambling on about the value of education

Walk with me a while down an educational by-way. The Britain media, and politicians both national and local, are currently obsessed with parents who have sufficient interest in their children's education and upbringing as to be particular about the school their child should attend. Far from being praised or held up as exemplars to others who have less interest in their child, as one might expect, such parents are vilified. The popular term of abuse is "middle class". The other... Read more →

"Child Advocate" - a new profession?

We recently had a 'Child Advocate' attend an Annual Review of a child with a statement of special educational needs. I intend no reflection on the Child Advocate's performance of her duty by raising the following queries: 1) By what Statutory authority or under what Statutory regulation does a 'Child Advocate' attend an annual review? Nobody (except myself it seems) thought to ask this question. Perhaps everyone else knows the answer? 2) What training is necessary to become a 'Child... Read more →

Potential barriers

Through the Office for Disability Issues, the Government has announced plans "to transform the lives of disabled people, including extra funding for organisations that are run by disabled people". The ‘Independent Living Strategy’, a cross-government strategy which underlines the Government’s commitment to supporting disabled people to do the things non-disabled people take for granted, aims to increase choice and control for disabled people. The independent living strategy sits alongside such other strategic documents such as "Improving the Life Chances of... Read more →

A Prior Right? 60 years on.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights. United Nations. 1948. Article 26. (3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children. What on earth can this mean, if it does not mean that children should not be allocated to schools by lottery against their parents' wishes .... and, more to my concern, that parents such as Sandra Scattergood should not have to resort to ePetitions that "All Local Education Authorities should be... Read more →

A dysfunctional system - amazing parents

I commend to you two coincidentally related postings: the first, Andrew Sutton's comments prompted by the Tesco-sponsored award of "Mum of The Year" to Jo Baker-Watson founder of Megan Baker House, who was feted at 10 Downing Street .... "It is nice to live in a still sufficiently pluralistic society to have a Prime Minister with ultimate responsibility for creating such dysfunctional policy throwing open his residence to an independent commercial body honoring someone whose efforts are only really necessary... Read more →