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There is no summary of this meeting yet. Summaries are written once the council publishes the minutes, which are its official record of what a meeting decided. They usually appear a few weeks after the meeting.
1.1 Apologies were received from Councillor Cowles, Councillor Price, Councillor Tew and Victoria Horlor.
2.1 Members made the following declarations of personal interest with regards to agenda item 5: • Councillor Janet Jones – Governor at Blaenavon Heritage VC Primary School. • Councillor Jayne Watkins – Friend works at SRS. • Councillor Rose Seabourne – Son works at SRS. • Councillor Lucy Williams – Governor at Pontnewydd Primary School and Woodlands Community Primary School.
3.1 The minutes of the meeting held on 27th June 2023 were confirmed as an accurate record. 3.2 Councillor Janet Jones abstained from voting as she was unable to attend the previous meeting.
5.1 The HoL&A gave a brief introduction to the report, highlighting the following areas: • The actions taken by the local authority (LA) in supporting the schools to deliver effective digital learning. • The partnership approach taken between the LA, schools, Shared Resources Services (SRS) and the Education Achievement Service (EAS) to enable effective digital learning opportunities for pupils. 5.2 Following Members’ questions and comments, the following main points were made: · ACD - Schools would be supported with the skills necessary to monitor pupils’ digital skill progression. Learner progression could be seen via digital portfolios and staff would be provided with competency framework in order to assess this. Schools would be encouraged to undertake the leadership program to support them further. • ACD - Support was provided on three levels, universal support, targeted support due to recommendations and specially tailored support. School improvement partners could also attend schools to identify the support needed. It was felt that there was currently a good uptake of support and professional programs and a lot of time had been spent ensuring all stakeholders have the chance to develop their digital skills. There had also been strategies offered to target all stakeholders to promote shared understanding which was explained as a robust offer of support. Whilst this had been offered to all Torfaen schools, only Abersychan Comprehensive School had requested this currently. • HoL&A - Professional learning for staff was deemed critical to enable blended learning. This would help staff feel confident in delivering online sessions and this in turn would more successfully engage children. Infrastructure within the home was another concern through Covid-19 but it was explained that Hwb was a world leading platform that was provided to all staff and pupils at no cost. • AD - Online learning was not to replace face to face teaching but it did allow training and support to be provided at a larger scale. • HoSM – As an outcome of Covid-19 there were now practices in place to provide technology more safely to children at home. · HoL&A – The headteachers were the sole group consulted prior to the digital strategy being drafted, but it was uncertain whether each headteacher subsequently sought input from additional faculty members, pupils or governing bodies. · HoL&A – The £1.5 million investment figure was a mirror match of the investment supplied by Welsh Government. Schools would be asked to demonstrate meeting the commitments listed within the report before any funding could be provided. It was acknowledged that sustainability needed to be a consideration in this strategy and schools would be asked to think carefully regarding what provision they realistically needed. · HoSM – As a part of the Service Level Agreement already in place between schools and SRS, schools were expected to contribute funds towards infrastructure and equipment refreshes. The equipment currently in place had approximately twice as long lifespans than previous equipment which also helped with sustainability. · DCoO – There had been auditing undertaken of the strategy which had been given the outcome of full assurance. · HoL&A– The future was being considered with a full refresh to take place in 2030 which would be 10 years from the previous full refresh. · HoSM – Challenges related to the infrastructure of older buildings necessitated a bigger proportion of the available funding than some of the newer buildings, but this ensured equal conditions across all schools. · HoSM- Welsh Government had set a procurement fund on a national level. This gave a better value for equipment and devices with extended warranty which meant that schools were unlikely to try and procure equipment themselves. · HoL&A – The implementation of this strategy aligned with the government's vision for an engaging curriculum designed to inspire children to attend school. · DoE – The strategy would be useful in the respect of unexpected school closures. School expulsions had started to be explored but there was no specific data to be shared currently. Online learning had also been a consideration for those struggling to attend school but this was a piece of work currently within infancy stages. · ACD - As well as support provided directly by the EAS, teachers would also be directed to outside organisations to develop their skills such as “Technocamps” which provides support for coding. · HoSM – Teachers were encouraged to use a mapping tool to keep track of their digital learning and skills but there was no specific audit for staff. · HoL&A – As a part of the school commitments in order to receive funding, it would need to be demonstrated that learning opportunities from outside organisations were undertaken. · DoE – Pupil’s access to equipment was a core piece of work that was undertaken during Covid and these practices were now embedded. SRS would support any pupil need for equipment where necessary but ultimately this was managed at a school level. · HoSM – Funding for home equipment had now been stopped, but there had been instances where schools had taken on this financial responsibility. · ACD – Hwb contained a number of comprehensive videos and guides that were accessible for parents that would help them improve their digital skills. Hwb also contained a “keeping them safe” portal for parents that promoted and explained internet safety. The 360 safe audit tool which required schools to self-evaluate their safety procedures included a section that required schools to engage with parents on internet safety. · DoE – There was a member’s seminar to take place on Monday 18th September 2023 surrounding a new repository system that had been set up via the Hwb and further Hwb training could be explored for governors and members. · HoA&L – The new digital strategy would facilitate collaboration between Welsh and English medium schools by removing geographical barriers, which would both promote and allow the Welsh language to be shared. · ACD – Digital technology had allowed learners to be far more creative with their language learning, thus improving their language skills. · HoSM – Leasing contracts for equipment were still available but there had been a move away from these as they tended to be expensive and typically not good value for money. · HoSM- The current disposal policy does not come at a cost to schools. All equipment that is disposed of is recycled to the maximum extent, therefore, only a small number of parts or equipment is disposed of. · DCoO – Equipment would be sold back into the community where appropriate. · HoSM – All schools are worked with to ensure that safety procedures are being adhered to. · DCoO – All devices were all monitored by third party in case of any unusual traffic. Devices could be remotely killed or wiped. · DoE – PLASC was explained to be funding that was calculated on a pupil count. · HoL&A - The outcome of each of the missions within the report would be reviewed periodically and all improvement would be reflected in the Estyn inspection. · ACD – The impact of the strategy would be monitored immediately, in 3 months and then again at 12 months. There would also be monthly meetings held between EAS and the Local Authority. · ACD – Schools occasionally access digital learning from sources other than EAS due to a specialist need, such as programming or film and media. · AD – Schools have the prerogative to choose which training providers they engage with. However, EAS is a comprehensive service and comes at no extra cost to schools. · HoL&A – It was unsure if the EAS was part of the ICT steering group prior to Sean Powell taking the role of Assistant Curriculum Director, however, EAS were now part of strategic partnership meetings, network meetings for schools and regional meetings where Welsh Government were also in attendance. · HoSM - Due to the Service Level Agreement currently in place between SRS and schools it was not felt that there would be any further demand or cost to schools as a result of this strategy. However, some schools had chosen to hire a technician through SRS rather than hiring themselves, which did include a further cost. This was not mandatory but it was helpful to ensure continuity across the borough. · HoL&A - Currently 100% of schools are engaged with the Hwb. While schools can explore other platforms, there has been a strong emphasis on prioritizing Hwb as the primary choice. · ACD – Hwb serves as a comprehensive platform. In instances where there are gaps in provision from the Hwb, Welsh Government were receptive and willing to fill these gaps. · HoL&A – All schools were being encouraged to add digital skills to their Monitoring, Evaluation and Review cycle. This was also part of the framework used by Estyn for inspections. · HoL&A – The digital strategy would be delivered equally to all schools and the Hwb was provided both through English and Welsh medium. · HoL&A – Schools were able to build their own website for free via the Hwb. There was currently no corporate template for school websites, but there was an accessibility requirement that all school websites were expected to meet. 5.3 The Chair and Committee praised officers, the EAS and SRS for their strong working relationships and they were thanked for their contributions prior to leaving the meeting. 5.4 Recommendations On completion of their scrutiny activity, the Committee concluded by offering the following comments and recommendations for consideration: Recommendation 1 – Members requested that officers explore how blended learning, and the Digital Education Strategy, can be utilised in order to support schools and pupils during periods of school exclusions. Recommendation 2 – Members recommended close monitoring of the outcomes of the 3 missions within the Digital Education Strategy and requested that annual updates be provided to members of the committee. Recommendation 3 – Members recommended that the EAS offer training for using the Hwb to all school governors within Torfaen and that online safety training be shared with all parents / guardians. Recommendation 4 – Members were pleased that digital support for families, in terms of Wi-Fi dongles, was still available to those who required them, and recommended that schools were encouraged to communicate this with parents / guardians. Recommendation 5 – Members recommended that Members’ Seminars be held by the EAS in order to enhance understanding of the Hwb and school data. Recommendation 6 - Members welcomed the fact that most schools had built the application of digital skills into their school’s Monitoring, Evaluation and Review (MER) cycle and recommended that all schools were encouraged to do this. Recommendation 7 - Members requested an update, at the appropriate time, in terms of the impact that the Digital Education Strategy was having in terms of contributing to a thriving Welsh language. Recommendation 8 - Members noted that schools were deterred from using the Hwb platform for their school websites due to issues around Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) and recommended that reducing these barriers be explored, as it could prove cost effective for school budgets.
6.1 The date of the next meeting was noted. 6.2 The meeting ended at 11.59am
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