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Robs Weekly Round Up 02 February 2024
Robs Weekly Round Up
02 February 2024
Dear colleagues,
I’d like to start this week by addressing some of the recent sensationalist media coverage of issues linked to some of our schools in Barry.
I know very well that working in a school has its challenges and that some of the children and young people need different forms of support in order for them to be able to engage with education and set themselves up for life after school. However, I also know that our schools are safe and supportive environments where our colleagues work exceptionally hard day in and day out to help our pupils achieve.
I certainly do not recognise the picture that some have tried to paint of our schools and the pupils who attend them. Our schools are a force for good in our communities. Every pupil’s life in enhanced by attending and the standard of both educational and pastoral support on offer is first class.
Our school staff have countless interactions with pupils every day and I know that in all of these their top priority is always their students’ wellbeing. Perhaps the best way I can demonstrate this is by sharing some feedback that was passed to me this week from a parent whose child has been receiving some additional support. I have edited slightly so as not to share any personal details but the impact of the work of our school staff is still clear to see.
“You are life changers. This sounds dramatic but it isn’t. The change in my child and this family is staggering. Firstly, I now have a child who generally wants to go to school! I was beginning to wonder if I would ever see that again. And who actually engages with staff and other children and even does some school work!!!
“I also have a child who the majority of the time is calm and happy. And he actually engages in conversations about school and more importantly about his emotions and behaviour. Now I know we have a long way to go but a few months ago it would have been impossible to get that engagement.
“Our whole family is calmer, my other child is happy and they get on better. And I’m a different person! I know we will have ups and downs. But for now I’m struggling to put into words how amazed I am at the progress. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.”
This feedback shows that we should never lose sight of those people we work to support and the impact that our work has on their lives. I’d like to thank all of our school staff for their work and for continuing to rise above the online chatter and put pupils first. Diolch yn fawr pawb. You are life changers.
In another example of our teams seeking to support children and young people a number of colleagues took part in a very successful Early Years Integration and Transformation Programme Matrix Event in Cardiff on Wednesday.
Largely developed and led by our teams in the Vale, the event brought together practitioners from across Cardiff and the Vale to review work to date on the Pathfinders programme. Throughout the day they worked to assess how our early years services are performing and identify how we could provide a more coherent approach to delivering support for young children and families.
I’d like to give thanks to all those who represented the Vale at the event and in particular to Emma Ford, our Early Years Pathfinder Project Manager, who organised all aspects of the event from our side. It is a vitally important area of our work and your input will make a real difference in determining what’s next for regional Early Years Services development.
Integrated planning will be a key aspect of the next stage of our Reshaping Services transformation programme. After some of his colleagues, joined SLT last week as part of our planning for this work it was very nice to see the new Future Generations Commissioner, Derek Walker, reference our work in his latest newsletter.
The Commission talked about how the Vale “maintains their ongoing work to reshape the way in which services are delivered, ensuring they operate as efficiently as possible, while also investigating creative ways to best serve our residents.” This is a very neat summary of what we are working to achieve and to see it being recognised nationally is a reminder that Team Vale is once again at the forefront of change in the public sector.
Working with the community to deliver services is one of the ways in which we have already had much success in changing how we work. Following on from discussing the excellent service provided by our libraries in my message last week I was very pleased to hear from another of the libraries team, Paul Gauci, who has been doing great work to support the Vale’s community libraries. Run by volunteers and supported by the Council, the community libraries are a great example of transformation.
Phil shared with me some information about an art group he established with one of the volunteers at Dinas Powys Community Library. The project led to exhibition spaces being established at Dinas Powys and Rhoose libraries. The latest in a series of displays, this one by a young artist Euan Balman who goes by the name BUG, opens today. It was great to hear more about a facility that is clearly rooted in its community and I would recommend anyone passing the library to take the opportunity to call in and take a look. Thanks again Phil for sharing this with me and thanks to all of the volunteers and peripatetic staff who make the community libraries such a success.
Finally, February is LGBTQ+ History Month and as always will be supporting and celebrating this across the Council. Recognising the month is one of the ways in which as a Council we show we are committed to understanding, respecting, and celebrating the diversity of the LGBT+ Community. The theme for this year is Medicine - #UnderTheScope. This is an acknowledgement of the contributions of the LGBT+ community to the field of medicine. It will also highlight the LGBT+ community’s experience in receiving healthcare treatment. You can find out more about what is happened across the Council on StaffNet and if you’d like to know how to get more involved just get in touch with the GLAM network.
Thanks as always to you all for your hard work this week. Diolch yn fawr pawb.
Rob.