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NEWS • VIEWS • INFORMATION • ADVICE





The NASUWT is campaigning to safeguard teachers as plans for a major shake-up of the schools’ estate are laid in Northern Ireland.



Rationalisation plans begin



Changing demographics and the bleak economic outlook have led to the announcement of a major programme of school rationalisation, which is likely to lead to closures and amalgamations of many schools across Northern Ireland, with the attendant threat of staff redundancies.



The NASUWT has pressed Education Minister John O’Dowd to safeguard teachers’ jobs and has highlighted the risk of a ‘brain drain’ if talented and skilled teachers are lost to the profession.



NASUWT members are currently engaged in industrial action to protect jobs and maintaining a determined stand through this action will become increasingly important as the rationalisation plans take shape.



With the continued delay in implementing the Education and Skills Authority (ESA), Mr O’Dowd has asked the Education and Library Boards (ELBs) to draw up area plans outlining their vision for a sustainable network of schools.



All sectors from primary through to sixth-form provision will be included in the exercise, including special education.



The ELBs are being urged to consider greater sharing of services and cooperation between schools, including the collocation of mainstream and special schools on the same site.



Blueprints are due to be completed by Summer 2012 and, given the serious implications for all teachers in Northern Ireland, the NASUWT will be seeking to be fully engaged with the planning process in order to safeguard teachers’ jobs.



Plans will have to be approved by the Department of Education and will be subject to public consultation before being given the go-ahead.





GOVERNORS’ ASBESTOS LIABILITY



The welfare of staff and pupils at schools will be put at risk, the NASUWT has warned, if plans to transfer responsibility for managing asbestos to school governors go ahead.



The Department for Education (DfE) is proposing to transfer legal responsibility for the health and safety of pupils and school staff from local authorities to governing bodies.



School governors do not have the specialist knowledge and resources to fulfil their responsibilities in terms of managing hazards such as asbestos, Chris Keates, General Secretary of the NASUWT, has warned, adding that the plan could also deter many people from becoming governors.



NASUWT believes this is yet another reckless, ideologically driven proposal from the DfE, which will put the welfare and wellbeing of pupils and staff at risk.



Not only does evidence show that most governing bodies lack the expertise to manage the legislative provisions, but also no governing body would willingly take on the potential huge financial liability this responsibility entails.



Visit www.nasuwt.org.uk/Asbestos





Send My Friend to School



This year, Send My Friend to School is inviting UK pupils to ‘go for gold’ by taking part in its special Olympic-themed campaign.



2012 is Olympic year, offering athletes from every country the chance to test their abilities in hundreds of sporting events. Every child should have the opportunity to achieve all that they can, and education is the key to that. World leaders promised that they would work together to make sure all children get an education by 2015 and the great global education race got off to a brilliant start. Millions of children in Africa, Asia and Latin America went to school for the first time. But, like a marathon runner, the great global education race has ‘hit a wall’. The number of children out of school has stayed stubbornly at 67 million for two years now, with only three years of the race left. Some countries are making more progress than others… Burundi is one of the winning countries since they reduced the out-of-school population by 98%; there are now only about 10,000 children in the whole of Burundi who don’t go to school compared to 660,000 in 2000.



Nigeria is still struggling right at the back as they have the largest number of children still waiting for a chance to go to school.



Ummi [above] is one of 8.8 million children in Nigeria still waiting for a chance to go to school. Ummi spends her days selling spaghetti at a market but would love to join her friends and go to school. Now is the time to use energy created when the world visits London for the Olympics to remind world leaders of their promise and urge them to ‘go for gold’. Our Olympics-themed 2012 campaign will include a range of creative learning, campaigning and fun activities to engage the whole school during the Summer term of 2012.



Sign up now and we will send you a free schools pack next term, with everything you need to take part.



www.sendmyfriend.org