Newsletter
Welcome to this, the first, Dundee ‘Cost of the School Day’ Newsletter.
Each term we hope to produce a newsletter highlighting helpful resources and national articles supporting CoSD activities as well as showcasing successful practice from around our Early Year Centres, Primary and Secondary schools. But that will only happen if you tell us what you are doing. Please send articles to be included to fiona.low@dundeecity.gov.uk. In this edition we highlight news from Morgan Academy and Ardler Primary School.
School Plans for 2021/22
Cost of the School Day remains a city-wide priority and the actions undertaken by our schools is helping to address child poverty. The four statements of intent adopted in 2018 remain a focus and should feature in school planning.
• No child or young person in Dundee will start school without a breakfast
• No child in Dundee will miss out on their Primary 7 trip due to cost
• All children and young people in Dundee schools will have access to an affordable school uniform
• All schools will develop a Cost of the School Day action plan
CoSD Action Plans should be completed and returned to sheila.mchardy@dundeecity.gov.uk by 29th October.
External Link 'Cost of the School Day action plan template'
EQUALITIES PRESENTATION
During the in-service day at the start of term all school staff will have heard the annual Equalities briefing. The following two slides highlighting child poverty were included:
YSATTAIN FREE TRAVEL ON XPLORE BUSES
Secondary school pupils who are young carers, care-experienced or on the edges of care continue to be eligible for free travel on Xplore Dundee Buses as long as they participate in Dundee#YSAttain. Pupil Support Workers and CLD colleagues are able to give more information and will support those not yet signed up. To get the travel added to their Young Scot National Entitlement Card (NEC) young people should take their card to Xplore Dundee Travel Centre on Commercial Street in the centre of town. Tell staff they are part of the Young Scot Attain Project and they will add the travel entitlement to their card. Travel is valid until 31st October 2021.Currently the Travel Shop is opened: Mondays: 1000 to 1700 - Tuesdays: 1200 to 1700 - Wednesdays: closed - Thursdays: 1200 to 1700 - Fridays: 1000 to 1700 - Saturdays: 1000 to 1400
E-Module and Further Training
Have you completed the Cost of the School Day e-module? Staff are encouraged to work through the module available here: Course: COST OF THE SCHOOL DAY (DUNDEE) (cpag.org.uk)
E-Learning CPD
Later this session there will be an invite to join two Cost of the School Day professional learning sessions for practitioners working in Tayside schools. These sessions will be jointly hosted by CPAG and Education Scotland and will highlight successful practice across the TRIC. The provisional dates and times are: 4-5 pm on Tuesday 26 October and Tuesday 2 November but more information will be shared nearer the time.
CPAG are offering a suite of Benefits Training which may be of interest to staff who are in regular contact offering support to families.
Further information can be found here https://cpag.org.uk/scotland/training:
Morgan Matters
At the beginning of January we were conscious that those who needed access to period equality products may find this difficult. Although the school building was open, getting here to collect items might be challenging for some. We devised an on-line order form to try to address this. Read the rest of this news item by clicking here
Ardler Primary School Dundee Virtual Family Cooking Group.
Before Covid hit and schools closed the School and Family Development Worker at Ardler Primary ran cost effective cooking groups with families attending in the school building.
Parents and carers learned to make healthy meals and ingredients. When we were no longer able to deliver family learning in school we had to think of new ways to engage families in learning. Read the rest of the news item by clicking here.
