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This week has been full of celebrations for WeST! From remarkable achievements to memorable events, our community has come together to honour the hard work and dedication we have for the children in our care. Here are some highlights from this week:

WeST Phonics screening check results 2024:

I am delighted to share with you the Phonics Screening Check (PSC) results for 2024, for our Year 1 pupils across the trust. The Phonics Screening Check is a short assessment that tests the pupils' ability to read words using phonics skills. The results show that our pupils have performed exceptionally well and have considerably exceeded last year's national average. I would like to congratulate all the pupils, staff, and parents for their hard work and dedication.

Here are some of the highlights from the results:

  • Of all our 690 Year 1 pupils, the average score, out of a maximum of 40, was 35.95 in the check.
  • 91.7% of our Year 1 cohort met the expected standard.
  • 18.1% of the pupils (125 pupils) scored the maximum of 40 out of 40, which is a hugely impressive achievement - this was also our most common score.
  • The frequency of the scores achieved increased incrementally from 32 to 40, showing that more and more pupils scored higher in the check.

I am extremely proud of these achievements and I look forward to celebrating more successes with you in the future.

CELT Visit

We enjoyed welcoming CELT Trust to WeST this week. CELT were keen to see the enactment of our KS2 Opening Worlds Humanities curriculum.

I’d like to extend my thanks to Woodford and Ugborough for hosting us. CELT were impressed with how we work together and how generous we were with our time and sharing.

The teachers, TA’s and subject leads were fantastic. Having 15 people observing in one classroom is no mean feat!

It was great to see high quality teaching, super storytelling, and brilliant work from our children.

Becci Johns and Caroline Kearney also shared their inclusion and SEND expertise and the work they do to ensure all children can access a high quality curriculum in our schools.

Visit from our New Director of Education (Secondary)

We were very excited to welcome our new Director of Education (Secondary) to WeST this week. Naveed Khan will be starting with us in September and had a very successful day meeting with members of the School Improvement Team and Secondary Headteachers.

Visit to the House of Lords

I was privileged to be invited to the House of Lords for the CST ‘s annual reception. It was good to be able to share the event with lots of other members of the Trust community. We are very fortunate to have Steve Rollet, Deputy Chief Executive Officer coming down to visit us in the Autumn term to join us in our professional development work.

 

Best wishes,

Rob Haring

CEO

WeST Policy Updates: 

The Trust is currently consulting on the introduction of a set of revised family-friendly policies, a refreshed DBS policy and a new Flexible Working Policy. 

These policies have been shared with our Joint Consultative and Negotiation Committee (JCNC), which consists of regional union representatives from the teacher unions; ASCL, NAHT, NASUWT and NEU, and the unions representing support and other professional school staff; GMB, UNISON and Unite. 

Copies of the policies, including tracked-changes where practicable, can be found on the Staff Portal in the ‘Consultation and Feedback’ area.

Questions or comments are welcomed via hr@westst.org.uk . Consultation closes on Friday 5 July, and we intend to launch the revised versions prior to the end of term.

Please see below new, revised policies: 

  • Adoption Policy
  • WeST DBS Policy
  • Flexible Working Policy 
  • Maternity Working Policy 
  • Paternity Working Policy 
  • Shared Parental Leave Policy 
  • Staff Leave and Absence Policy 
  • Unpaid Parental Leave Policy 

Meet our RS Heads of Department!

WeST RS HoDs had a wonderful day at the Locally Agreed Syllabus launch for Devon, Torbay and Plymouth! A really productive day which will help support our knowledge-rich curriculum.

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Joyful June 2024

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Recruitment update:

We are delighted to inform you of the following exciting career opportunities within our Trust:

Hele's School is looking to fill the following vacancies:

Learning Support Assistant - To work under the direct instruction of teaching/senior staff, to support access to learning for students and provide general support to the teacher in the management of students and the classroom. Closing date: 1 July 2024.

Careers Support Manager - We are looking to appoint an exceptional candidate, to give every student the opportunity to develop and fulfil their aspirations and their potential. Supporting students in all aspects of their career development, alongside providing information, advice and guidance. Closing date: 2 July 2024

For more information on the above vacancies please click here.  

Coombe Dean School is looking to appoint a Cover and Behaviour Inclusion Supervisor - As Supervisor you will be working alongside the Cover and Behaviour Inclusion Lead and the Year Team Leaders, with a focus on supporting students, particularly those who are identified as having barriers to their learning and progress. For more information on the above vacancy please click here. Closing date: 12 July 2024. 

   Eggbuckland Community College is looking to appoint Casual Exam Invigilators. As an invigilator, you will assist examination staff with their examination processes. This activity may include setting up examination venues by laying out stationery, equipment and examination papers in accordance with strict procedures. For more information on the above vacancy please click here. Closing date: 9 January 2025.

Westcountry Schools Trust is looking to fill the following vacancies:

 Executive Assistant (School Improvement) - As Executive Assistant, you will be responsible for providing both routine and complex administrative support to the School Improvement Team. Closing date: 1 July 2024. 

Executive Assistant (WeST Training Institute) - As Executive Assistant, you will be responsible for the onboarding of teachers and school leaders as they register for programmes through the WeST Training Institute.  Closing date: 5 July 2024. 

ICT Support Technician - To assist the provision of support to all Trust schools. This will include maintaining of computer/laptop, servers, tablets, audio, visual, printing and telephony equipment. Closing date: 1 July 2024.

For more information on the above vacancies please click here.