HEALTHY SCHOOLS
Tackling teen pregnancy
After last
action, among other activities, in engaging students
and parents with teenage pregnancy issues, saw the
week’s focus
conception rate for women under-18 fall from 62 to 49
per 1,000 between 1998 and 2007. this reduction is one
of the largest in Greater Manchester, and is twice the
on the Healthy
national average decrease.
Rochdale’s teenage Pregnancy strategy was
Schools agenda
developed in partnership with the National Healthy
schools Programme, a government initiative promoting
nationwide, David Taylor
the link between health, behaviour and achievement,
with the aim of equipping young people with the skills
now looks at a specific
and knowledge they need to make informed life choices
and reach their full potential.
sue Hackett, Rochdale’s Healthy schools manager,
project taking place in
told SecEd: “We’ve found there’s an intrinsic link
between physical deprivation and poverty of aspirations
Rochdale that is helping to
which affects the way young people perceive their
sexual relationships and life choices.
tackle teenage pregnancy
“It’s a cycle whereby young people who have parents
who maybe aren’t working or have low expectations,
become teenage parents and bring children up in an
environment where they themselves don’t see the link
between their success in the future and whether they do
EDUCING tHE rate of teenage well at school.”
R
pregnancy is one of the key health Ms Hackett said that a few years ago they recognised
challenges facing people working the potential to draw on existing work taking place
with our children and young people in Rochdale schools through the Healthy schools
today. teenage parents are less likely Programme, to “develop opportunities to try and really
to complete their education, more get to grips with this issue”.
likely to be unemployed, and more she continued: “Healthy schools was really a call
likely to live in social deprivation – so how can schools to tackle some of these issues in a more consistent
help to raise aspirations? and structured way, to get the support of senior school
A decade ago, Rochdale’s teenage pregnancy rate management for sex and relationships education (sRE),
was significantly higher than the national average, but and to develop opportunities where sensitive issues can
by using a range of measures to help young people feel be discussed through trusting relationships between
more in control of their sexual behaviour, the area is young people, teachers and health professionals.”
seeing a reversal of that trend. students at Hollingworth Business and Enterprise
Rochdale Council, an authority which has achieved College in Rochdale have been among those benefiting
Beacon status for Healthy schools for its positive from this new focus on increasing healthier life
Union address: NASUWT
Intrusive code fails the profession
The NASUWT has
No coherent rationale has been offered for
changing the existing code. the GtCE claims that
launched a fierce
a wide consultation was conducted and that the vast
majority of respondents suggested additions to the
code and supported it. there is little evidence to
campaign against
support those claims.
Where there was dialogue with teachers, it is
the new Code of Practice
evident the focus was on a general discussion about
expectations on the teaching profession, rather than it
for teachers. Chris Keates
being made clear that the intention was to formulate
the development of a code, which if breached, could
prevent them from working again as a teacher.
states the union’s case
teachers are already held accountable through
performance management, a framework of
It Is usual for professions to have a regulatory body professional standards, a stringent accountability aspirations, and the school’s success at addressing these dads have not told their children “a lot” or “anything”
whose function is to uphold standards. Doctors have regime of inspection and performance league issues prove a strong case in point. about the issues.
the General Medical Council, lawyers have the Bar tables, local authority and other school-level A recent Ofsted report praised the school for its to help tackle this, parents and governors across
Council, and for teachers it’s the independent body performance reviews, school self-evaluation, in- ambitions to develop an “outstanding” programme of Rochdale were asked via surveys how and what they
– the General teaching Council. school accountability arrangements, and capability, sRE and stated that the school “continually strives to thought their children’s sRE lessons should cover,
Regulatory bodies operating effectively can raise discipline and safeguarding regulations. raise the aspiration and achievement of pupils, which is as well as being made more aware of the specialist
the importance and status of the profession in the From the end of next month, they will also now known to be a positive factor in helping young people health services available to children and young people
eyes of the public and indeed within the profession have a GtCE Code of Conduct and Practice which to avoid health risks”. locally.
itself. these bodies are never liked and loved, but strays into their personal lives, potentially increases Greater time and resources are now dedicated Ms Hackett continued: “Now parents are far more
they are by and large respected by those they are set the vulnerability of certain groups to bigotry and to sRE as part of Hollingworth’s PsHE education informed about what their children are learning, and
up to regulate. discrimination, and is littered with vague and pious curriculum. staff are supported with training, lesson teachers have the full support of parents, we’re really
Unfortunately, from its inception, the General statements which are open to abuse. plans, schemes of work, and input from external seeing the benefits of students learning how to build
teaching Council for England (GtCE) has never been With a raft of core values and principles health agencies, all of which has helped to build staff healthy relationships – not only with their peers,
able to command either public or professional respect. underpinned by sets of descriptors, it is quite simply confidence and has transformed the school’s delivery but also at school and home, which is also helping
this is largely as a result of its inability and a disproportionate response. teachers need this of key topics. to improve their aspirations, their attitudes towards
unwillingness from when it was first established to revised code like a hole in the head. Involvement with external organisations has also learning, their self-esteem, and emotional health.
focus on its core role. Instead it sought to present itself the GtCE is now set to spend over £250,000 of allowed staff to share resources and take part in the “Ultimately, Healthy schools has brought people
as representing the profession, despite the fact that it the registration fees paid by teachers on promoting continuous revision of the programme, through their and services working with young people closer together,
is a “teaching” council and not a “teachers” council. the code to the profession, despite only a few months involvement with PsHE and Citizenship Network and in Rochdale we’ve seen teenage pregnancy rates
It failed to recognise the limits of its role and ago seeking to increase the level of the fee paid meetings. reduced significantly because we’re raising young
interfered in matters affecting teachers’ contracts, by individual teachers – a move thwarted by the Meanwhile, siddal Moor, a comprehensive in people who are confident to negotiate their sexual
conditions of service, and deployment. secretary of state. Rochdale, has developed a course called Beliefs, Values relationships.”
Rather than regulating the profession, it conducted It is of course a reasonable expectation that teachers and Citizenship, which gives a dedicated three-hour All in all, the National Healthy schools Programme is
roadshows on “touchy feely” subjects beyond its should exhibit high standards of professionalism in space each year in the curriculum for discussions about helping Rochdale work towards long-term changes which
remit, dabbled in CPD, and duplicated work done by discharging their responsibilities. the overwhelming sex and relationships. the sessions are led by a trained are helping to break the cycle of teenage pregnancy, raise
other bodies, which in fact did it better. majority do just that. However, this flawed code learning mentor and school health practitioner and aspirations and attainment, but also help young people to
Although it’s fair to say that in recent years there does no service to the profession. supported by a senior management champion, who has live healthier, happier lives where they feel secure and
has been some reining back of these wide-ranging Already thousands of teachers have signed a the authority to implement strategic changes within the supported in making positive life choices.
activities, the result is that the majority of the petition against this code. the overwhelming response programme. Ms Hackett concluded: “We understand that schools
profession range between being totally indifferent to illustrates the strength of feeling on this issue. teaching Confidentiality levels are clearly understood, are dynamic institutions and changes in staff can make
the GtCE to detesting it. is a challenging job and teachers and headteachers allowing staff to generate open, honest discussions a difference to their sRE provision. Part of our success
For the most part, teachers ignore the GtCE, deserve a code which upholds professional standards where students have clear expectations about what they is in the willingness of our schools to embrace these
but their attention recently has been focused on it without belittling or intruding unnecessarily into their want to achieve. changes and take on board new ideas as young people,
due to the GtCE’s decision to revise its existing lives. the GtCE must take heed of the profession and Closely involving students and parents in developing staff and parents inform the curriculum and work
Code of Conduct and Practice, the standards by withdraw this vague, pious code. sRE has been a major key to the success of Rochdale. together. It’s still a work in progress, but we’ve taken
which judgements are made about whether teachers A national survey revealed that 84 per cent of young some significant steps forward.” SecEd
and headteachers can continue to be registered as • Chris Keates is the general secretary of the people believe that there would be fewer teenage
teachers and therefore work in state schools. NASUWT. Visit www.nasuwt.org.uk pregnancies if more parents talked about sex and
Further information
relationships, while one in three mums and two in three www.healthyschools.gov.uk
12 SecEd • September 17 2009
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