28 pop-up summer schools planned for Northumberland to help children catch up - and a call for retired teachers to help

There will be 28 pop-up summer schools in Northumberland this year, while the council will also call for new and former teachers to help support young people.
Picture c/o PixabayPicture c/o Pixabay
Picture c/o Pixabay

The proposals were revealed at a meeting of Northumberland County Council’s cabinet on Tuesday June 23 to discuss coronavirus recovery plans.

Coun Wayne Daley, the cabinet member for children’s services, said: “Let me tell you how Northumberland is ahead of the game and something residents should be proud of.

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“As soon as the DfE (Department for Education) gives us the green light, we will be ready with our teaching taskforce appeal.

“In the same way the NHS asked former staff to return to help in the fight against coronavirus, we will be calling on former teachers and NQTs (newly-qualified teachers) to come forward to help our young people recover from the learning loss. We can do this thanks to the £1billion fund allocated by the Government.”

He also announced the 28 pop-up sites over the summer holidays as another measure to tackle learning loss. They will be delivered as part of a partnership with the Newcastle United Foundation to ‘ensure our children get Premier League learning support’.

Locations for these are set to include Alnwick, Ashington, Bedlington, Berwick, Blyth, Choppington, Cramlington, Hadston, Hexham, Shilbottle, Lynemouth, Newbiggin and Prudhoe, but the full details are expected shortly.

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Coun Daley added: “I’m passionate that every single young person absolutely thrives under our administration.”

Longer-term plans to help education in Northumberland recover from the effects of the pandemic include taking forward plans for an Education Challenge for the North of Tyne area (as has taken place in London and Manchester), supporting schools to develop a recovery curriculum, and continuing to invest in new schools; projects in Berwick, Haydon Bridge, Hexham, Ponteland and Seaton Valley are currently at various stages of the process.

Earlier in the meeting, Coun Daley said: “Our schools, alternative providers and transport providers have worked fantastically alongside our own education service to ensure places for children of key workers and vulnerable children, achieving some of the highest attendance figures across the North East, with just under 52,000 pupil attendances during the first 10 weeks of the lockdown.

“I think we’ve had an average of 145 schools open during the period which is just fantastic and a testament to the dedication of teachers, headteachers and all the support staff.

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“Our education service continues to work closely with schools to support them to make the adjustments needed as more pupils return to school.”

The council’s director of education, Dean Jackson, revealed on Monday June 22 that there had been a 30% increase in the number of children in Northumberland schools and settings compared to the Monday before, with just under 8,000 pupils attending 165 open establishments.

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