In September 2021, local authorities commenced receiving funding to enhance the responsibilities of Virtual School Heads, extending their strategic oversight to include children with social workers.
The term "children with a social worker" encompasses all individuals aged 0 to 18 across various educational settings who are subject to a Children in Need plan or a Child Protection plan.
Responsibilities of the Virtual School
The extended responsibilities of the Virtual School concerning children with a social worker include:
- Highlighting Challenges: Identifying and addressing the disadvantages faced by children with a social worker, fostering collaboration among educational institutions and local authorities, including children’s social care, to maintain high aspirations for these individuals.
- Promoting Educational Engagement: Encouraging practices that support children's participation in educational settings, acknowledging that such attendance is crucial for safeguarding their well-being.
- Narrowing the Attainment Gap: Working to improve educational outcomes for all children, ensuring that those with a social worker receive appropriate support to recover from the educational disruptions caused by the pandemic.
Virtual School Heads are not expected to:
- Engage directly with individual children and their families, including tracking and monitoring individual educational progress or providing specific academic interventions.
- Respond to inquiries from parents or caregivers seeking advice or support regarding individual children with a social worker.
- Assume responsibility for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) who do not require a social worker, as defined above.
What Does Dudley Virtual School Offer?
- Provide access to training to enhance schools' and educational settings' understanding of attachment and trauma. Please contact the Virtualschool@dudley.gov.uk for further details.
- We can offer advice and signpost schools and educational settings to additional services, ensuring they receive the necessary support to assist their cohort of children with a social worker.
- Offer advice on educational issues to social workers to include: attainment data, SEND processes, attendance, exclusions and reduced timetables.
- Work with schools, educational settings, LA education colleagues and social workers in working together to improve attendance, punctuality, and behaviour, aiming to prevent exclusions.