Agenda and minutes

(i) To note the resignation of Mr N Utton-Group 3-Teacher Associations

(ii) To note the appointment of Deepinder Kaur Gill, Sikh representative on

 Group 1.

(iii) To note the composition of Group 4 – Local Authority:-

       Nominees of Conservative Group :- Mr S Manion and Mr M Northey

       Nominee of Labour Group :- Mr T Maddison

       Nominee of UKIP:- Mr J Elenor

To note the resignation of Mrs S Clark ( Group 1)-United Reformed Church.

To welcome Deepinder Kaur Gill ( Sikh representative) to her first meeting  of SACRE and sincerely thank the Sikh community for their kind welcome and hospitality in hosting the meeting at the Gurdwara. Members were provided with two leaflets:- a Visitors Guide and The Khalsa of Guru Sahiban: a perspective on 1699 and Vaisakhi.

 Miss S Lacon

It was reported Miss Lacon had badly broken her leg and members expressed their best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Minutes -7 March 2013

Matters Arising

The minutes of the meeting held on 7 March 2013 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman, subject to the deletion of Miss J Webb from the recorded membership.

It was noted the Budget had been set at £5250.00 for 2013/14, an increase of £250, despite the previous underspend of 40%.

It was noted the NASACRE AGM had incurred a fee, but unfortunately Kent had been unable to send any representatives.

Members debated possible uses for any excess funds which included:-

the proposed Youth SACRE, materials for Early Years Teachers (training with Gill Vasey-Expert/Trainer), SACRE members expenses for attendance as speakers in schools, promote use of the Agreed Syllabus, contribution towards £475 fee for Quality Mark (Possible £100 subsidy for Primary sector).

Mr Foster advised he had submitted proposals through the KCC Education Leaning and Skills Division to offer training courses for primary and secondary

Teachers in east, mid and west Kent in both the autumn and the spring. The cost was expected to be £80 half day and £120 full day. Mr Foster hoped to enlist the assistance of the Advanced Skills Teachers in delivering the training-but the future of their role was uncertain. He hoped SACRE members would help promote the courses.

Mrs Corbyn and Mrs Martin agreed to advise Mr Foster details of all the church school training courses they were running.

Mrs Martin had presented the latest Development Plan to members and highlighted objectives which had or had not been achieved. In particular she raised:- the issue of how Mr Foster would best use his allocation of 25 days SACRE work from April 2013 to March 2014 :the need to adjust the Plan to indicate some of the targets for January to March 2013 had not been met: the lack of visits and provision of a written report resulting  from the schools due to be visited following the SACRE Survey: the outcome of the Westhill application.

Mr Foster reported between September 2012 and March 2013 Ofsted had inspected 142 Kent schools and he had looked at about 1/3 of the reports to date. Finding the subject matter he required varied in each report as to how it could be identified and it was a laborious task. Mr Tyson suggested reading on line.

Mr Foster had appended to the Minutes the responses from the 99 Primary schools who had completed the SACRE Survey on RE and Collective Worship, it was noted he had completed visits to 2 of the 6 primary schools and 1 of the 3 secondary schools he was scheduled to visit. He reiterated it was not a realistic target for him to contact all schools indicating either non-compliance or a failure to complete the Survey. He advised there were 600+ Kent schools, and was reminded by Mrs Martin that 200 Church schools are subject to Section 48 inspection and therefore the survey had instructed them not to complete some answers.

Mr Foster’s target had fallen behind due to the cancellation of a number of meetings with Mrs Rogers, which had wasted his time, and the need to work with the 4 School Improvement Advisors, one had responded to date.  Mr Foster had shared the issue of non-compliance in Collective Worship and the low completion rate of the survey with Mrs Rogers. Mr Manion and Mr Foster agreed to report to Mr Leeson, Mr Gough and the Education Cabinet Committee (of which Mr Manion is now a member) including reference to Ofsted’s lack of inspection in SMSC development Members agreed this approach would carry more weight and raise the profile of SACRE.

Mr Foster had already passed a significant amount of information to the L.A. He would continue to work on the findings until the end of term and then submit to the L.A. and circulate information to SACRE members.

Mrs Martin asked for an update to record on the Development Plan regarding the promotion of the ‘Gathering Together’ document and Mr Foster stated this appeared as a PDF on the webpage. The Governors briefing paper had been submitted to Linda Lissimore-Governor support manager and she had arranged for it to appear in the Autumn edition of “The Governor.”

Debate ensued about the status of Academies and the requirement to teach RE and whether SACRE are in a position to challenge non-compliance in Academies. It was noted  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

Mr Tyson reported that the date for the inaugural meeting of the Kent Youth SACRE had been booked for Wednesday 16 October 2013 at County Hall, Maidstone between 2-5pm.Including light refreshments.

The purpose of the meeting was to gain a student voice to assist in the development of the RE curriculum across Kent.

There would be 4 main Agenda items:-

An Introduction to the purpose of SACRE

Why RE is Important-a student perspective

What RE has helped me to understand and achieve

What helps students learn and make progress in RE.

It was agreed that after minor amendment, a letter of invitation would be sent by the end of the week.The letter would be signed by Mr Manion on member headed paper to all SACRE members and secondary schools in Kent, inviting students (year 10 or above) plus a teacher. It was invisaged the Youth SACRE would continue to meet at least twice a year.

Mr Foster advised that now the date had been agreed he would invite a member of the Kent Youth County Council to Chair the meeting. Mrs Wigg confirmed Borden grammar school would participate and she would email Mr Tyson, Ms Burke said Mayfield grammar would also identify students to attend. The Clerk asked about any further administration and Mr Tyson agreed to draw up an action Plan to inform participants of their role.

RE Quality Mark

Miss Pope reported she had taken part in the pilot and Highworth grammar school had been awarded the Gold standard. She was listed as a Gold award holder on the official website www.reqm.org. Miss Pope had submitted a detailed application evidencing 5 areas and the assessor had been Mrs Martin.

The certificate and logo was valid for 3 years and the application fee was £475, which Miss Pope felt could be a deterrent. Mrs Martin advised primary schools could apply for financial assistance through the REC wedsite.

Mrs Martin advised it was non profit making, the assessors fee being £150.

Mrs Martin, Mrs Corbyn and Mr Viner were appointed assessors, but had only dealt with Highworth school in Kent.

Westhill Awards

Mr Foster had submitted an on-time application to NASACRE, applying for funds of up to £4k towards the forthcoming Youth SACRE.

The following SACRE’s had been successful in the 2013/14 Awards:-Bristol, Durham and S.Tyneside, Luton, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Redbridge.

REC Draft Programme of Study for Key Stages 1-3

Mr Foster would respond to the REC by the deadline of 5 July and asked members individually to respond to the REC if they needed clarification or had points to raise about the draft document.

NATRE Survey

Mr Foster would circulate to members

SACRE

Tues.19November 2013-Darent,County Hall, Maidstone-Member Presentation Mrs J Grant (Baha’i)

Wed. 5 March 2014-County Hall, Maidstone

June. 2014-Outside venue and date tbc

Tues. 25 November 2014-County Hall, Maidstone

Briefings at Oakwood House,Maidstone

Mon. 21 October 2013

Mon. 3 February 2014

Mon. 12 May 2014

Mon. 13 October 2014

All meetings commence at 9.30am