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Julia urges schools to nominate their PAs


by Pete Henshaw How to enter


The SecEd Headteacher’s PA of the Year Awards 2010 are supported by Unison and are open to every UK secondary and middle school, state, special or independent. All you need to do is write a testimonial of 500 to 700 words


The reigning SecEd Headteacher’s PA of the Year, has urged school leaders across the UK to enter their PAs in this year’s awards. Julia Marks scooped the Gold


Award at last year’s ceremony after our judges were wowed by the commitment and dedication she showed to her school when it was facing closure. In his nomination, Tim Mitchell,


head at Dayncourt School in Nottingham, explained that it was Julia who stood strong and helped rally him and his staff when the local authority began consulting on closure. The school had a “very signifi-


cant deficit budget, a dramatically falling student population and a crumbling school estate”, but Julia refused to give up. In his nominaton, Mr Mitchell


explained: “She kept the faith – even when my own was on the wane. Julia poked, prodded, chivvied and chided. She kept me focused and on track. She believed.” In July 2009, the school’s future


was secured after the council with- drew the threat of closure. Mr Mitchell added: “That we are here today, with our local authority hav- ing withdrawn the threat of closure, is more to do with Julia than any one individual elsewhere within the school establishment.” This week, speaking to SecEd, Julia said that winning the PA title


Who’s next? Julia Marks (centre), shortly after receiving her 2009 PA of the Year award, celebrates with her headteacher Tim Mitchell and 2008 champion Pam Waters


was “unbelievable” and urged headteachers everywhere to recog- nise and celebrate the work of their PAs by submitting a nomination. She said: “I didn’t think for one


minute that I would win, it was such an honour. I believe that if your headteacher goes to the trouble of nominating you – that means you are his PA of the year – and that makes everyone nominated a winner. “When I won, the reaction at


school was lovely – lots of con- gratulations, emails from past col- leagues, messages from parents and


MP slams ‘namby- pamby’ attitude to sex education in schools


A Welsh MP has introduced a new education Bill which aims to make classroom sex education compulsory in England. Rhondda MP Chris Bryant


says schools need to change their “namby-pamby” attitude towards sex education in order to cut the number of teenage pregnancies. He introduced the Sex and


Relationships Education Bill in the Commons last week, although if it became law, it would only apply in England. Sex education is on the cur-


St Jude’s Church, Dulwich Road Herne Hill, London SE24 0PB www.markallengroup.com


riculum in Wales, although Mr Bryant says the service across the UK is “patchy”. Teenage pregnancy rates in the


UK are five times higher than in the Netherlands, three times as high as in France, and twice as high as Germany. Mr Bryant said: “Teenage


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ISSN 1479-7704


pregnancy rates rose under Margaret Thatcher, and the Labour government tried to bring them down, but we didn’t suc- ceed, and I think that’s because we were never really serious about sex and relationships edu- cation. The teenage pregnancy map is a map of deprivation. We need to stop being so namby- pamby about this.”


He said youngsters often


have their first sexual experience “before they have had any educa- tion about it”. “We should be saying to


youngsters, don’t deliberately get pregnant as a sort of career move, which as the Joseph Rowntree Foundation says is undoubtedly what some girls do. Don’t let the conclusion in your head be ‘I can afford a baby because the state will provide for me’.” In Wales, all maintained sec-


ondary schools must provide sex education and special schools must provide sex education for all registered pupils at the school who are provided with secondary education. According to the Welsh


Assembly government, local edu- cation authorities, governing bod- ies and headteachers must make sure that “any sex education is provided in a way that encourages pupils to consider morals and the value of family life”. Mr Bryant’s new Bill would


allow individual parents to retain their right to withdraw children from lessons. Tory MP Therese Coffey said it should be for par- ents to decide how to provide sex and relationships education to their children.


Challenge: ATL president Andy Brown (left) and general secretary Dr Mary Bousted held informal discussions with education minister Michael Gove at a reception last week


Brown vs Gove as ATL welcomes schools chief


The new president of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) has challenged the government to address the “fundamental contra- dictions” in its education policies. Andy Brown, who is on leave


from Ballymena Academy in County Antrim where he is head of drama and theatre studies, told an audience of educationalists – includ- ing secretary of state Michael Gove – that his union is “baffled “ by the coalition’s approach to schools. “You say you want less gov-


ernment control and greater local autonomy at school level. This is, apparently, what free schools and academies are about. And yet, on the other hand, you want to return to a traditional form of teaching and


2


a traditional, subject-based national curriculum,” he said. “We want to know why your


principles of independence and choice seem to be applied to some areas of your policies and not oth- ers. Why do they apply to types of schools, but not to what goes on in them such as what and how teach- ers teach?” Mr Brown was educated at


Ballycastle High School in County Antrim and then Stranmillis University College in Belfast, where he did a BEd in drama and English. He has been teaching at Ballymena since 1993, and has also been an executive member of ATL since 1999. He became national president


of the union on September 1 after serving three years as its Northern Ireland president. Elsewhere in his inaugural


national president’s address, Mr Brown voiced concerns about gov- ernment policies that could, he says, increase segregation and education inequality. “The secretary of state has said


that all schools – state, academy and free schools – will have to abide by the admissions code. That’s fine, but who is going to enforce it? “If not the local authority, then


who? We need to be told, because if the code is not enforced it will not be followed and the social divi- sion in school intakes will only get worse,” he said.


SecEd • September 16 2010


contacts within our local commu- nity,” she added. And after the turmoil of the


threatened closure, starting yet another school year at Dayncourt this month brought a feeling of sat- isfaction for our champion. “The start of any new school


year is always incredibly busy and this one has been no exception. It is wonderful that the school is now secure and we can concen- trate on our partnership with a local college which will see us providing exceptional education- al provision, both academic and


explaining to us why your PA is vital to your school and its community – it really is as simple as that. Our judging panel includes SecEd editor Pete Henshaw, deputy edi-


tor Dave Taylor, and former PA of the Year champions. We always looks for evidence of a PA’s dedication and loyalty


to their role, as well as evidence of the impact that they have on the school’s systems and operations. We look for the impact PAs have with the teaching and support staff in the school, as well as with the students. We want to hear about PAs who take on duties above and beyond


their job specification, but also about those who have revolutionised the traditional PA role within a school and fulfil this role with excellence. There are no hard and fast criteria, what often makes a successful


nomination is the way that a headteacher describes the impact of their PA – the personal impact or the honest description of how much their PA really does to support them in their working lives. The deadline for nominations is Monday, November 1, 2010,


although we advise you to get them in as soon as you can. For further guidance, if you have any queries, or to submit nominations, email pete.h@markallengroup.com. You can also send your nominations to SecEd PA of the Year, St


Jude’s Church, Dulwich Road, Herne Hill, London, SE24 0PB. Please include with all nominations your PA’s name, school, your


name, contact email and telephone number. Every nomination will be acknowledged via email, so if you intend


to keep it a secret from your PA, supply a private telephone number or email address accordingly. Gold, silver and bronze awards will be made to the top three entries,


with prizes also being presented to a number of highly commended PAs and around 20 to 25 finalists.


vocational, for the young people in the area.” Mr Mitchell echoed Julia’s call


for nominations. He told us: “How often do you say thank you? One of the best things I did last year was to recognise the contribution of a person who always puts the needs of the school ahead of their own.


“SecEd gave me the opportunity


to acknowledge the contribution of one of the most valued members of staff in our school. I would whole- heartedly recommend colleagues to reflect upon the ability of their PA to ensure that even the impossible is achieved ahead of schedule – mine saved our school!”


Photo: Duncan Nicol Robertson


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