Interserve is supporting the educational sector to ensure pupils, staff and visitors remain safe as schools open to larger numbers of children as the COVID-19 restrictions ease.

The company provides best-in-class hard and soft facilities management (FM), maintenance and catering services to more than 150 schools across the country. Services range from cleaning through to catering, site pre-planned maintenance (PPM) and site compliance to make sure the ventilation, water, electrics and gas systems are all properly maintained.

Colleagues have been working hard to interpret the UK Government guidance and advise the schools and Local Authorities before implementing safe responses.

Interserve has provided total FM to four secondary schools as part of the Derby Schools Contract for 17-years and employs 90 colleagues on the contract. The company – via its catering firm Autograph – also supplies high-quality food to the schools. As with many schools across the country, they have all remained open for children of keyworkers and vulnerable children.

Robert Booth, Interserve Account Manager for the Derby Schools Contract, said: “We’ve drawn upon our experience to suggest ways to maintain the buildings and how to safely open them up to larger groups of children.

“We’ve carried out a great deal of risk assessments during this period and as Year 10 and Year 12 age groups return to school, we are working with our clients to create the safest possible environments.”

Richard Haigh, Interserve’s Account Manager for three secondary schools in Leeds, added: “We have an intimate knowledge of the buildings and have therefore designed one-way routes, installed hand sanitiser stations at entrances and exits and have provided advice about how classrooms can be set up to reflect the guidance.

“We supported schools as they moved almost overnight from being educational facilities to childcare centres, and now we are responding to the regular alterations in guidance we are getting from UK Government, Local Authorities and the schools’ governing bodies.

“We’ve advised on the planning of one-way systems and have installed signage and tape to put them into practice. We have also removed water fountains and other items that would clearly be hotspots for spreading the virus.”

Across Interserve’s contracts, cleaners have been working more day-time hours on site to ensure touch points – handles, railings and sensors – are cleaned regularly. Workforces have also been split into separate teams, so that if one colleague contracts or is exposed to COVID-19 then the other work team won’t be infected so that continuity of service is protected.

Karen Byrne, Business Manager, from Pudsey Grangefield School in Leeds, said: “At every stage, Mr Haigh has been instrumental in our planning for re-opening the school from a buildings, cleaning and catering perspective; as he was for the initial closure and setting up the site for vulnerable students and the children of key-workers.

“Interserve has been key in working with us to interpret UK Government guidance relevant to facilities management to ensure that we translate this into the day-to-day operation of the school. Mr Haigh’s expertise is trusted and valued by school.”

Andrew Knowles, Tupton Hall School Head Teacher in Derby, said: “Our partnership with Interserve has ensured that we keep risks to a minimum. Their advice and guidance has been valued and greatly appreciated.”

A “worryingly high” number of schools say they are not in a position to offer teacher training placements in the next academic year, according to the findings of a survey by the National Association of School-Based Teacher Trainers (NASBTT).

From 247 responses to a survey which closed on 1^st June, 124 School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) providers, School Direct Lead Schools and HEIs have reported that school partners had informed them they are unable to participate in training programmes in 2020-21.

Furthermore, 81% of ITT providers are more concerned about securing sufficient school placements next year compared to previous years and 45% of providers have closed, or are considering closing, programmes as a result of placements.

The findings come at a time when latest figures show that there has been unprecedented increases in the number of applicants accepted for places on postgraduate ITT courses in the month between mid-April and mid-May: 30,600 compared with nearly 29,400 in May 2019, and also marking some 4,000 new applicants since mid-April.

“ITT providers have told us, through our survey, that schools are not offering placements primarily due to concerns over the post Covid-19 transition, including worries about having additional people in school, the reluctance to allow trainee teachers to teach given the amount of time children have been away from school, the need to focus on other priorities, and uncertainty resulting from the pandemic,” NASBTT Executive Director Emma Hollis explained.

“Additionally, capacity in schools (and in particular mentor capacity), concerns over the amount of support NQTs will need and therefore not being able to also support ITTs, and general anxiety over school finances have all been given as reasons for the decision. The number of schools who appear to be withdrawing placements is worryingly high, especially at a time when we are seeing increasing applications to teaching.”

Emma called on the Department of Education to “act now” to ensure that there is no permanent damage to the system. “We would like to see supportive communications to schools, including clear guidance and encouragement to take ITTs and NQTs in the next academic year; but if needed, a requirement for schools to engage in ITT,” she said. “Funding, including suggestions for funding to schools to incentivise placements and to providers to support additional mentoring time, is also a consideration. And further guidance to ITT providers on areas such as social distancing for training and flexibility in online offerings is also worthy of attention. The bigger picture also shows concerns about the ITT Core Content Framework and Ofsted Initial Teacher Education (ITE) Inspection Framework, and both of these could be delayed or relaxed to give ITT providers some much needed breathing space.”

Giving his reaction to the findings, James Noble-Rogers, Executive Director of the Universities Council for the Education of Teachers (UCET), added: “We are extremely worried about the likely shortage of school placements next year and the impact it could have on recruitment to ITE. At a time when we are experiencing the first significant increase in applications to ITE for many years, it would be a great shame if potentially excellent teachers were turned away because of placement difficulties. The government could help to address this by pointing out to schools the benefits of participating in ITE, and giving ITE providers the flexibility that they need to maximise existing placement opportunities.”

Internationally renowned manufacturer of display technology, BenQ, launches new additions to its Premium RP Series of interactive flat panels for education and corporate environments.

Available in three sizes: 65” (RP6502), 75” (RP7502), 86” (RP8602) each with 4K resolution and Fine IR Touch for precise control, BenQ has combined hardware and software features to enhance healthcare, collaboration and management support for installers, IT departments and end users.

Sam Pomfret, director of B2B sales, comments:

“2020 has certainly thrown a curveball at the industry and forced IT teams to look at its use of technology in a different way, while pushing resellers to discover new ways of achieving systems to assist end users. It’s always been a focus of BenQ to look at how its technology supports the end user, so the launch of the new Premium RP Series coincides with what education and businesses will be requiring to future-proof its technology. The displays’ hardware and software work together harmoniously to provide a cost effective and user intuitive display solution for either in-room or remote usage.”

Focused on the wellbeing of its users in their environments, BenQ has incorporated its exclusive HealthCare+ technology to help protect users against deteriorating health risks.

Preventing the spread of bacteria often found on touchscreen surfaces, an antibacterial non-toxic nano-ionic silver screen coating kills bacteria on touch and is resilient to heavy use and cleaning. In addition, a built-in sensor measures the room air quality, signalling when CO₂ levels are too high, indicating to users to adjust the room’s ventilation. The RP Series also features BenQ’s smart eye-care technology to protect against   blue-light and flicker irritation.

For education and corporations to get the most from its displays, an intelligent use of NFC technology has enabled BenQ to embed an NFC sensor into the front of each panel, allowing users to gain access to any display within its network via an ID card or QR code. Combined with BenQ’s exclusive Account Management System (AMS), users’ personal workspaces and display settings load instantly, with added access to documents saved within personal cloud storage.

The latest version of BenQ’s exclusive collaboration software EZWrite 5 is built into the RP Series. Its intuitive features let users switch between apps while still being able to annotate and screen capture anywhere on the screen and on any input, whilst EZWrite Live is ideal for in-room or distance/remote learning.  The display is also compatible with BenQ’s InstaShare app to allow multiple users to connect personal devices to the display, share content and annotate simultaneously.

For IT departments, the inclusion of BenQ’s free Device Management System (DMS) provides advanced access to control, manage and service a single display or fleet of displays either onsite or remotely.

BenQ has also installed its free X-Sign Broadcast software into the panels, which creates and schedules messages or content to the displays remotely. These can be sent in full screen resolution, as a banner or as a ticker across part of the display allowing the extra element of communication and signage.  

The displays are available to pre-order for delivery in July.

For more information or to book a demo contact BenQ on BQUK.demo@benq.com.

New digital resources will help teachers to meet statutory curriculum changes and support blended learning during the COVID-19 pandemic

A digital programme to help primary schools deliver the new RHE curriculum – both in the classroom and via distance learning –  is being launched today.

From September it will be compulsory for UK primary schools to provide teaching of relationships education, physical health and mental wellbeing. To support schools in meeting these changes, and to enable them to do so easily at this challenging time, Discovery Education is providing schools with a free period of access to the complete suite of digital resources, suitable for children in years 1 to 6.

Providing full coverage of the new DfE objectives, Discovery Education Health and Relationships will enable teachers to deliver lessons with confidence. Devised by subject experts, the programme’s resources are both engaging and age-appropriate. Child-led scenario-based videos feature children talking about key topics while role play activities help pupils explore scenarios and develop skills to confidently deal with issues that affect their lives today and as they grow.

Discovery Education Health and Relationships covers 6 key topic areas: Healthy and Happy Friendships, Similarities and Differences, Caring and Responsibility, Families and Committed Relationships, Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds and Coping with Change. Designed as a spiral curriculum, the programme enables pupils to revisit each topic as they progress through primary school, building upon their skills and understanding.

Many of the topics covered e.g. feelings of loneliness, isolation and loss and coping with change, have special relevance to the current pandemic and the challenges children face. The programme’s digital content means that teachers can easily pick up activities for children to complete at home to help them cope with the uncertainty of the situation and share positive thoughts and ideas with classmates.

Support for teachers includes end-to-end curriculum planning, detailed guidance and help with parental communication. The programme also sets out a series of best practice principles to help schools create a safe learning environment for teaching about healthy relationships.

The programme’s series editor is Lucy Marcovitch, a PSHE subject expert and former government advisor. Lucy said:

“PSHE can be tricky to teach, especially if teachers aren’t confident with the subject matter or don’t know what is age-appropriate. Discovery Education Health and Relationships gives schools a complete solution to both of these issues. The high-quality, inclusive resources ensure that children can learn about healthy relationships in a supportive and nurturing environment.”

Kristina Mjomark, Head of Curriculum Content at Discovery Education said:

“This is an exceptionally difficult time for schools and many teachers feel unprepared to meet the RHE curriculum changes which come into play from September. Health and Relationships will support primary school teachers to deliver this challenging subject with confidence while empowering their pupils to lead healthy and fulfilling lives.”

Primary schools are encouraged to sign up for Discovery Education Health and Relationships here. To enable teachers to have time to fully review the resources, those signing up now will receive a free period of access until 31^st October 2020.

Discovery Education is the global leader in curriculum-matched digital resources and professional development for teachers everywhere. Together we’re re-imagining learning, harnessing the power of technology to bring the real world into the classroom and ignite pupils’ curiosity.

Discovery Education’s digital resources are trusted by thousands of UK primary schools.  We’re the makers behind the award-winning digital learning service Discovery Education Espresso, Discovery Education Coding and Discovery Education STEM Connect.