Issue - meetings

The Cabinet received a report on the annual education performance review for 2021/22 and the development of priorities for the Education and Participation Strategic Plan 2023-2026.

The Cabinet Member for Children’s Social Care and Disabilities introduced the item and explained the context of the successes and improvements in an area with high levels of deprivation, the inclusivity within the Borough’s schools and the strong offer for vulnerable children and those with special educational needs, all against the backdrop of the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The Cabinet Member for Educational Attainment and School Improvement congratulated the Borough’s schools and other educational establishments for their contributions to the ongoing improvements and commended the partnership approach that existed with the Council and other agencies.  National research had shown that areas of high deprivation and the youngest pupils suffered most from the pandemic, yet the proportion of Borough schools rated ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted stood at 95% (56/59 schools) which, for the first time, was above the latest published London benchmark of 93% and well above the national benchmark of 87%.  The Cabinet Member also referred to several of the other key performance headlines for 2021/22 and highlighted the specific achievements for Looked After Children, those progressing to higher education and the Borough’s Cultural Education Partnership ‘Inspiring Futures’ which celebrated its 10th year of providing broader support for young people’s health and wellbeing. 

Cabinet Members welcomed the report and conveyed their appreciation to the Borough’s young people and to the Council’s Commissioning Director, Education, who was present at the meeting, with a round of applause.

Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Reaffirm the Council’s commitment to strengthening and developing partnerships with Barking and Dagenham’s family of schools, Barking and Dagenham School Improvement Partnership (BDSIP), Barking & Dagenham College, CU London, UCL PEARL and other key partners to achieve the best possible outcomes and opportunities for the Borough’s children and young people;

(ii)  Note performance against the priorities of the Education and Participation Strategy 2018-22 as set out in section 2 of the report and in the dataset at Appendix A to the report; and

(iii)  Note the proposed priorities for the Education and Participation strategic plan for 2023-26 as set out in Appendix B to the report.