Wednesday 19 February 2025
General Update
Sir,
I am pleased to provide this update to the Assembly on the work of the Committee and I'll start with our education transformation programme:
Progress on the construction programme continues, the enabling works for the build at Les Ozouets, notably the roadway on the site, is now in the final stages.
The tender process for Phase 1 of the build has resulted in an affordable scheme that meets our quality requirements and we are delighted to be on the cusp of finalising this 2-phase tender process which has been subject to robust and positive independent quality assurance. The build cannot come quickly enough, because buildings at both Les Coutanchez and Delancey have again suffered due to winter storms. We absolutely need to provide learning environments that match our and our learners' high aspirations.
There is also continued investment at Les Varendes High School, to ensure that it remains a valuable asset for our island for years to come.
The roll out of additional digital devices for learners continues, supported by training and development for educators, and the transition to the new operating model for the Secondary School Partnership, both of which are important aspects of this education transformation journey.
Sir, we cannot, and must not, ignore the financial challenges that we as a government must overcome, but also must not lose sight of the things that we hold dear. The things that matter to our community and make our islands so uniquely special.
We all recognise the significance of this year's 80th anniversary of Liberation Day. Planning is well underway, and going well, for a wide range of commemorations and celebrations. Sir, when we surveyed islanders, they told us they would like to see some of the traditions of the Liberation Days of yesteryear, and we want to provide something for everyone as the community comes together to mark this significant milestone.
The focus will be on St Peter Port, with the seafront closed for the day and entertainment on each pier; in Market Square; on the Albany; and at Castle Cornet.
We have a full programme of events, on and around the 9 th May, including a Liberation Concert at Beau Sejour with local and visiting performers, the traditional parade followed by a service at the Town Church, visiting military and a large cavalcade featuring vehicles, floats and walking participants - all contributing to this important anniversary.
Parts of the event will be live-streamed to make the day as accessible as possible, and grants have been made available to parishes who want to hold their own celebrations. St Pierre du Bois is hosting an event at L'Eree on the 9 th May and St Peter Port will be joining in with the celebrations in town. St Martin's, St Andrews and Vale are all hosting events on the 10 th May, so we hope there truly will be something for everyone.
All of this is made possible through the support of volunteers, and we are working with the Association of Guernsey Charites to encourage people to get involved. Through you Sir, and building on the legacy of the herculean volunteering efforts of our community when we hosted the Island Games, I encourage people to think about whether they might be able to spare some of their time on the day, helping to make the events run smoothly. We are fortunate having secured £30,000 of sponsorship and other offers of help and assistance, but further sponsorship opportunities are available. We are pleased once again that with this support, hampers will be available to care homes, Age Concern and individual islanders.
There are several legacy projects for this 80 th anniversary including gifts for school children, a blue plaque to the Guernsey Active Secret Press, and the recording for posterity of wartime memories through the Island Memories Project between Guernsey Museums and the BBC.
Alongside our own celebrations, the Community is invited to help celebrate the 80 th anniversary of VE day, as we participate in the beacon lighting taking place throughout the UK, and overseas.
Sir, thinking of things we hold dear, I know many of us have an emotional attachment to Beau Sejour, and it is heartening to see that the Centre continues to bounce-back from the impact of the pandemic, with an improving expenditure recovery rate of over 80%.
There has been significant engagement with the community, including users of Beau Sejour's various facilities, non-users, and staff, all of which is contributing to the centre's Sustainability Review which is nearing completion.
The findings are soon to be seen by Committee, but early feedback highlights that Beau Sejour continues to mean many things to many people and the need for us to take a long-term view when considering the options. The Committee will then report back to the Policy & Resources Committee, including a needs analysis, an understanding of the Centre's social value and current usage data, all of which informing expected next steps.
Sir, whatever direction the review takes us in, the reality remains that the island's core sport and leisure assets are in need of investment. Beau Sejour is approaching its 50 th birthday next year, and the Footes Lane Grandstand is approaching 25 years old.
And we must question how much social value do these facilities provide the community, whether can we afford to invest, or perhaps, more importantly, whether we can afford not to?
Alongside this we continue to deliver the Active8 Plan for Sport through the support of - and valued partnership with - the Guernsey Sports Commission and the Health Improvement Commission, although we recognise that within the current financial landscape the surety of adequate funding for the remaining five years of Active8 is in the balance.
We welcome the recent publication of the GSC's 2024 Annual Review, where its achievements in relation to Active8 and other workstreams were outlined. This included the issuing of over 160 sports vouchers to enable children and young people access to extra-curricular sports; 51 SportsMark Accredited Member Sports and Clubs - which ensures sports clubs have appropriate safeguarding measures; and over 8,500 experiences offered to students with more complex needs or specific requirements.
Sir, building on my previous update in October last year, I am pleased to report that, overall, staffing remains positive. Our Island-Wide Teaching team continues to add stability to the workforce, ensuring we can provide high quality cover for short- and longer-term absences. A teacher recruitment campaign began in January, designed to raise the profile of the States of Guernsey as an employer of choice within the sector and keep our education service 'front of mind' for potential applicants when they see vacancies being advertised. Analytics tell us that this campaign reached over 2 million people and resulted in nearly 5,000 clicks to the Education microsite. We know from last years' recruitment cycle that this type of profile serves us, and more importantly our learners, well, as we see more applications from more high-quality applicants as a result.
Through you Sir, along with my fellow Committee members I am grateful for the Assembly's strong support for our education governance proposals just two weeks ago. The three key areas identified in the Policy Letter are already being actively pursued and alongside this, professionals in the Law Officers' Chambers are beginning to draft the legislative changes necessary to bring into effect the decisions of the States.
We also continue to build on the excellent foundations of our Interim Governance Boards, with almost fifty new education governors being trained and inducted into this new world of more professional governance, which will bring with it clear responsibilities and the tools to drive continuous improvement across the States' education system.
Sir, we will hand over to the next States a mechanism for genuine cross-committee and cross-service collaboration that will ensure detailed analysis of what can and should be devolved and delegated to schools via the EDDIAC; giving them access to some of the features of autonomy that are seen in successful schools and FE/adult learning institutions locally and nationally. We also continue to engage in positive and constructive collaboration with the Diocese of Portsmouth.
Another area where collaboration is supporting improvements in our education system and improving outcomes for learners is the cross-Committee work via the SEND Alliance, and participation in its political oversight group, which is ably Chaired by the Committee's Vice-President. The Committee is key in driving forward this work and we are already seeing the positive impact of joined-up approaches across HSC, ESC and ESS, being supported by P&RC. This includes the introduction of the Early Years speech and language integration, and other pilot projects which will support and improve services for children and young people. We are grateful for the participation of colleagues on these Committees.
For the youngest children in our community, we continue to strengthen early literacy, rolling out the free training and resources of the early years Super Sounds programme. Practitioners are being trained to deliver high quality simple stories, songs and games supporting the progression of key skills in language and literacy.
The programme complements the Language for Life programme and Sign-along training to ensure children have a strong foundation in the skills and knowledge needed to take with them into school for their phonics programme starting in Reception Year.
In September last year, the Committee's High Quality Inclusive Practice Essentials Guide was launched to all staff alongside the new Additional Learning Needs Code of Practice. Sir, I'm pleased to report that, to complement this, Early Years High Quality Inclusive Practice Guidance has been published, and training has commenced, looking at best practice to ensure all children are engaged and able to access their early childhood education. This Guidance brings together advice and best practice from across education and health. Another example of collaborative working. We know that if we get these building blocks in place at the very outset of the learning journey, we set children up to join school with confidence and the ability to access the full extent of the curriculum.
Furthermore to support the sector, an Early Years Inclusion Resource Library has been set up to enable the island's private Early Years providers to borrow resources and, in some cases, trial enabling children to access resources supporting their learning and development and which supports the leaders and managers of this provision to then invest with confidence when purchasing materials to support the development of pre-schoolers.
Following the success of previous years, we have our 5th Joyous Childhood Conference booked for September 6th, with another Joyous Childhood Parent/Carer event planned for January next year 2026.
Moving up through the age groups, we remain committed to improving the educational experience of our students. Following a review, the transition from primary to secondary school has been strengthened further this year ensuring a consistent model is in place for all those moving between Years 6 and 7, including those moving to and from the Grant-Aided Colleges.
The Guernsey Institute continues building its relationship with colleges in both Jersey and Isle of Man and was delighted to host, last week, the inter-island skills competition for apprentices. This event, which some colleagues here today attended, showcases the value of collaboration.
Finally, Sir, I am grateful to Members who came to our presentation yesterday to start to unpack the Policy Letter published this week on the future funding arrangements for the Colleges. Through you Sir, I'm sorry the gremlins prevented others from joining us on-line. Rest assured there will be more opportunities to hear from us as we explore this sensitive subject in a measured and considerate way, ahead of debate next month.