Working with Ramesys on a clear vision for ICT - Westminster City ...

WESTMINSTERLOCAL EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP NEWSLETTERISSUE 1 Summer Term 2009INSIDE...Welcometo the first issue of our newsletterAn introductionto BSF Page 2It gives me great pleasure to introduce thefirst newsletter from the Westminster LocalEducation Partnership (LEP).Darren GillGeneralManagerWestminsterLEPA Student’s viewPage 2Constructionprogress reportPage 3Its purpose is to provide you <strong>with</strong> a progressupdate on the Westminster Building Schoolsfor the Future (BSF) Programme so that we cankeep you informed of all the various activitiestaking place in schools across the City. We will beproducing a newsletter every school term so thatyou can chart our progress as the programmeevolves.The Westminster LEP was created in April 2007and its purpose is to ensure that the visionsof the secondary schools in Westminster arerealised. The LEP is made up of representativesfrom Westminster City Council, Bouygues UKwhich is building the schools and BuildingSchools for the Future Investments (BSFI), theinvestment arm of Partnerships for Schools (PfS).This structure is cost-effective and robust, butflexible in its ability to respond to the needs ofWestminster by utilising the relevant expertise asand when required. It is important to recognisethat each of the Supply Chain members isalready successfully delivering unique teachingenvironments in accordance <strong>with</strong> authority andschool visions elsewhere in the UK.The diagram below gives an indication of therange of organisations involved.In relation to the ICT, <strong>Ramesys</strong> is our deliverypartner and brings a wealth of Managed Serviceexpertise specifically in relation to the BSFmodel. At this stage of the programme - giventhat none of the schools are complete – themajority of the company’s work is currentlyfocusing on understanding each particularschool’s ICT vision and transforming that into aspecific ICT solution.Given the LEP’s excellent progress to date, Iam confident that each of the City’s ten schoolswill be delivered on time and will provide thetransformational learning environments that theGovernment’s BSF programme is designed toachieve.An introductionto <strong>Ramesys</strong> Page 4Issue 1, Summer Term 2009 1

Getting the bestfor our young peopleThe Building Schools for the Future Programme aims tocreate inspiring learning environments which will enablestudents to reach their full potential. In Westminsterwe are working <strong>with</strong> our schools to achieve resultsthat will both transform education and servethe local community for generations to come.A year since the establishment ofWestminster’s LEP, construction has beenprogressing well at St Marylebone School,Pimlico Academy and Westminster CitySchool. Results are already being feltby staff and pupils in newly redecoratedclassrooms and science labs at StMarylebone and Westminster City Schoolsand new buildings are also developingapace. Over the past twelve months wehave also been working hard to developNon-Sample School designs.Financial Closewas reached for StGeorge’s RC andSt Augustine’s CEHigh Schools on 22 nd May and has justbeen reached for The Grey Coat Hospital.Design work is in progress for College Parkand QEII Jubilee special schools and we arecurrently developing the new MarlboroughHill Campus. This will house QuintinKynaston, George Eliot Infant, George EliotJunior and Beachcroft schools and will beChris PicklesInterim Headof BSF & PCP,WestminsterCity Councildelivered using BSF and Primary CapitalProgramme (PCP) funding, as well as a£10 million Co-Location Fund grant.All of this work brings the long term benefitsof our BSF programme to pupils, staffand the community ever closer, improvingeducation in Westminster for the long term.by Rayhan Uddin, student atSt Augustine’s CE High SchoolBuilding Schools for the Future: A Student’s ViewAfter months of preparation, work on thehistoric venture that is Building Schoolsfor the Future has begun at St Augustine’s!This project will see a change in the wholeface of the school, <strong>with</strong> impressive newfacilities including a brand new sports hall,state of the art drama studio, dance halland garden.March 2009 marked the first phase ofvisible work. The new sports hall, set tobe built across the road from the school,is the first stage of the building process, tobe completed by as early asDecember 2009.Work will then begin on the refurbishmentof the two main buildings, and a newbuilding in the courtyard space betweenthem.While this happens, a temporary buildingwill be built in the main playground. Thereare fears that the shifting of classroomsseems like quite a hassle, and that movinginto the temporary building may affect thestudents’ learning. Ros Fearnside, BSFproject co-ordinator for the school says “Ihave seen in other schools that temporaryaccommodation is better than the originalclassrooms students have come from”.After the building works are complete,the final phase is work on the schoollandscape. The front playground is set togo green, <strong>with</strong> a grass surface so it willbecome more of a ‘picnic area’. Sports willbe played in the back playground, whichis to be refurbished <strong>with</strong> state of the artfacilities.All the plans so far seem to have comefrom those behind the scenes, but whenit comes to the finishing touches likecolours, textures, signage and ideas forlandscaping, it is then that the StudentVoice will be involved. After all, it is thestudents who will have to put up <strong>with</strong> allthose finishing touches on a daily basis!The project is set for completion in 2011.The school will become considerablybigger than at present. In the new Year 7of 2011, there will be a total of 150students, as opposed to 120 and six tutorgroups rather than five.The last time the school was rebuilt in1969, it was opened famously by theArchbishop of Canterbury, so who knowsthis time round, perhaps an ex-pupilsuch as Bradley Wiggins, or maybe evena big star like Leona Lewis might do thehonours. Whoever it is, the opening ofthe new school will mark the beginningof a new era for St. Augustine’s School,enriching the quality of education andenjoyment for students of today and ofthe future!20092JUNE• CLC Summer Conference (16th)• ICT Revised Specification complete Westminster City SchoolSt Marylebone (High Street)• Start of works phase 7 – Block C Second floor• Start of works phase 8 – Block B Second and Third floorSt Marylebone (Blandford Street)• New build internal trades & envelope works(March to September)The Grey Coat Hospital• Financial CloseJULY• Initial ICT managed service training,St Marylebone School, Pimlico AcademyPimlico Academy• Start ground works and structure for Phase 3(North Wing of new building)Westminster City School• Start of refurbishment works in main buildingSt Marylebone (High Street)• Start of works phase 9 – Block C startof Lower Ground and First FloorQEII Jubilee School planning application submitted.The Grey Coat Hospital Start of works

Building Westminster BSF SchoolsProgramme updateThe construction programme for the sampleschools in Westminster is progressing well,all are on schedule for completion.Artist impressions of Pimlico Academy,St Augustine’s CE High School and Westminster City SchoolSample SchoolsAt Pimlico Academy, the first half of thenew build is well underway and theterracotta tiling on the school’s interior isdue to begin. The new build atWestminster City School is alsoprogressing well <strong>with</strong> concrete workscomplete and refurbishment works on track.Pouring of Sports Hall walls and theconstruction team at Pimlico AcademyWork on the outside of the new buildingat St Marylebone School BlandfordStreet has started and internal work isprogressing well. Additionally, refurbishmentof the convent area has now started. Therefurbishment of the High Street site iswell underway and preparation for therefurbishment of the science laboratorieshas begun.Non Sample SchoolsThere has been very good progress onthe Non Sample Schools (those forecastto be designed and delivered later inthe programme).The sample schools are:Batch 1 - St Augustine’s CE High School,St George’s RC School, The Grey CoatHospitalBatch 2 – College Park School, QueenElizabeth II Jubilee SchoolBatch 3 – Quintin Kynaston School,Beachcroft SchoolThere has been very good progress onBatch 1 <strong>with</strong> works now commenced onSt Augustine’s and St George’s schoolsand <strong>with</strong> construction works forecast tocommence on The Grey Coat Hospitalover the Summer period.Batch 2 schools are now progressingtowards planning permission, whilst anexciting scheme is being developed forBatch 3. The scheme will be known as theMarlborough Hill Campus development andwill incorporate both Quintin Kynaston andBeachcroft Schools as well as the GeorgeEliot Infant and Junior Schools.The construction teams working onWestminster’s BSF programme are all highlymotivated and committed to the challengingsummer programme and look forward tocontinuing their excellent progress.We look forward to telling you about allthe new developments taking place <strong>with</strong>inour construction programme in the nextnewsletter!AUGUST• ICT implementation completed, St Marylebone School,Pimlico AcademySEPTEMBER• ICT induction training, St Marylebone School,Pimlico Academy3

<strong>Working</strong> <strong>with</strong> <strong>Ramesys</strong>on a clear vision for ICTSt Marylebone CE School hasjust completed this importantstrategy development process<strong>with</strong> <strong>Ramesys</strong>’ EducationTransformation Manager, LesleyHoneyford. All schools will havethis opportunity around ninemonths before the <strong>Ramesys</strong>service is deployed.At St Marylebone, the school vision setsout to develop stronger community linksincluding adult involvement in classesprovided by the school. This will beachieved through access to the facilities forlocal community and adult learning groups.The school is also almost at the pointof signing up to the Microsoft Academyprogramme <strong>with</strong> the aim of using the newBlandford Street site for delivering Microsoftcourses to students, the community andlocal businesses.<strong>Ramesys</strong> is a leading ICTpartner in the Government’sBuilding Schools for theFuture and AcademiesProgramme. It integrateschange programmes andtraining <strong>with</strong> products andservices from global partnersto deliver world class schoolICT solutions and learningopportunities.Elizabeth Doyle, AssistantHeadteacher values the support: “We havefound revisiting all our thinking at this pointextremely helpful, and Lesley has been greatat facilitating and guiding the process.” Theoutcome is a report that describes wherea school is now and where it plans to bein future, <strong>with</strong> each area for change clearlydefined:• Leadership and management• Curriculum• Learning and teaching• Assessment• Professional development• Extending opportunities for learning• Resources• Impact on student outcomes.Artist impression ofSt Marylebone CE SchoolCommunication <strong>with</strong>learners will be increasinglyimportant, and electronicnoticeboards and alertswill be available viathe Managed LearningEnvironment (MLE).Underlying the entireinstitution, there will bea robust system able tocope <strong>with</strong> the demandsof 1000+ users aroundthe clock and all yearround. The ICT infrastructure will supportin-school and remote access to emailcommunication for all stakeholders and willbe capable of maintaining information aboutattendance, punctuality, progress, financialarrangements and transactions such aslibrary loans (books and peripheral devices),cashless school lunches and trips.The school already has a strong studentvoice initiative, including regular councilmeetings, and a training programme inwhich students are coached on how toobserve and critique their teachers. Theyplan to expand and refine this process toinclude the examining of ICT across thecurriculum. The school will also take partin the Borough-wide transformation projectinvolving Student Voice and the MLE.Lesley Honeyford says: “This is just a smallpart of the work I have done <strong>with</strong> ElizabethDoyle, the Assistant Headteacher, andJohn Sellars, E-Learning Manager at StMarylebone. It’s been a privilege to be partof such an exciting phase of the school’shistory and I know learners here will bebenefiting from their foresight for years tocome.”The Team: Lesley Honeyford (right) <strong>with</strong>Elizabeth Doyle, Assistant Headteacher,and John Sellars, E-Learning Manager.PROFILE...Lesley Honeyford <strong>Ramesys</strong>’ Education Transformation ManagerAfter completing a secondary PGCE ingeography and outdoor activities, Lesley’sfirst school appointment was teachinghumanities. After two years she left theclassroom fora brief time tobecome a trainerfor the NewOpportunitiesFund programmeand she alsoworked on thedevelopmentand delivery of online assessment. Onher return to teaching, Lesley becamea Head of Department for ICT in aCambridgeshire school and experiencedat first hand the rapidly changinglandscape of ICT in education. She wascentral to the establishment of a MicrosoftAcademy also incorporating MicrosoftSharePoint and Class Server whichquickly became a centre of excellence,providing qualifications for both studentsand the extended community. She hashad direct experience of the Becta Self-Review process, working towards andachieving the ICT Mark and Computingspecialist status. She believes that if weare to prepare the next generation <strong>with</strong>the relevant skills for an increasinglycompetitive global job market, educationneeds to keep pace <strong>with</strong> technology.ICT affects so many areas of our lives,so school communities need to take aholistic approach to learning. If we are toengage the minds of students, we shouldbring to the classroom the technologiesthat entertain them outside school.4Issue 1, Summer Term 2009