Education Bulletin - April 2019

Date updated: Tuesday 9th April 2019

In this month's edition:

Sex education in England: what does the government response to the RSE consultation tell us?
Sexual harassment in School
Knife Crime and Exclusions
Over a Barrel? Remember to read your T&Cs!
Church academy model articles – What’s changed?
Mediation: an olive branch for colleagues in conflict.

Sex education in England: what does the government response to the RSE consultation tell us?

The Department for Education has published its response to the consultation it held at the end of last year on relationships and sex education (RSE), relationships education and health education. All schools will have to teach these subjects from September 2020.

Sexual harassment in School

‘Perpetrators of sexual violence have been permitted to return to the same school as their victims’, according to recent news headlines. What responsibilities do educational establishments have towards the victims and alleged perpetrators?

Knife Crime and Exclusions

The correlation between knife crime and exclusions has attracted a good deal of comment. London Mayor Sadiq Khan, Shadow Policing Minister Louise Haigh, and other senior Labour politicians, have written to Theresa May, calling knife crime a national crisis. In their letter, Ministers (?) explain that knife crime is at its highest level since records began. Sadiq Khan believes that excluded children are at greater risk of becoming involved in knife crime, either as victims or perpetrators.

Over a Barrel? Remember to read your T&Cs!

One of the most frequent queries we receive relates to contractual disputes. Like all businesses, Academy Trusts regularly enter into contractual relationships with suppliers for a range of reasons – from IT to catering to sports. The terms and conditions which form part of the agreements between these parties are often taken as read, but Academy Trusts should be aware of some of the pitfalls so that they are not bound by unfavourable terms.

Church academy model articles – What’s changed

In response to updates in Department for Education (“DfE”) policy, legislation, and governance best-practice, new model articles for academy trusts containing Church of England academies have now been published. This article highlights some of the key amendments the updated models have introduced.

Mediation: an olive branch for colleagues in conflict.

Some conflict within the workplace can be positive, creating cultures that are open to challenging established thinking and allow healthy debate. Competition between groups can encourage creativity and increase productivity. However workforce's are becoming increasingly diverse with a multiplicity of views and values. This mix can cause conflict between individuals and groups.

Brief Alerts April 2019