Local school commissioners: be our heroes, but listen first

With utter predictability, Sir Michael Wilshaw, the man with the most self-aggrandising title in education, has just had a promotion.  The  ”Founding Principal” of the politicians’  favourite school, Mossbourne Academy, and poster boy of the government’s blazers-for-all approach... 
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Engagement in 2012: a balancing act amidst the sound and fury

Here at MAC we always like to say that the best time to engage with people is when they can see the point of engaging, when there is something to fight for or against.   Number One in the Reasons to Engage Top Ten is “Taking It Away”.   We see this in the NHS – the mere mention that... 
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Parental Fingers on the Inspection Trigger

On April Fools’ Day we reported that the schools’ inspector Ofsted was considering giving parents the right to tell them directly what they thought of their children’s schools.  The teaching unions seemed to think it was a joke in bad taste but Ofsted, true to its word, has now launched... 
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Top Site, Top Dogs, Top of the Agenda? Everyone’s a winner.

Like most local community groups, the Clissold Park User Group (CPUG) often struggles to get people to understand its role.  As the current Chair of the group I can see that the higher our profile and the more professional we look, the less people think we are really a community group.  If you... 
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Corrupting Caroline

On Friday I shelled out £50 to a local student for looking after my daughters so I could spend the day sitting in a room full of health professionals, local authority workers and people from the salaried bit of the voluntary sector who, if not all highly paid, were certainly being paid quite a bit to... 
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Testing times: pass or fail for patient and public engagement?

I won’t be the only one living with teenagers at at the moment who is sick and tired of tests and exams (not least because it means you cannot predict who is in the house at a given moment).  But as they say, if you can’t beat ‘em…..So I decided to give myself a little test.... 
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Bigger boards but no room for patients

Good timing for the publication of the Health Select Committee’s latest  report on commissioning. Following the government’s new-found interest in “listening” to what others have to say about health service reform, let’s hope they have set aside some time to read this report... 
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Let’s see a “Parent Opinion” website

A new consultation on school inspections has raised the question of how much attention the inspection body Ofsted should pay to the views of parents. “We…. intend to take greater account of parents’ views in helping us to decide when a school should be inspected. We are currently considering... 
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Feeling giddy at the Health Select Committee: and it’s not just the wallpaper

The Health Select Committee, whose activities we have been following with interest on this blog,  is sitting this week to look in more detail at the arrangements for commissioning set out in the new  Health Bill.  This morning’s session, which you can listen to online, focused on public accountability... 
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All right Guv’nor?

Having recently become a school governor again after a four year break, I have just stumbled across a report on school governance to which I contributed so long ago I can’t even remember what I said or whether it was sensible.  The Twentieth Century School: Implications and challenges for governing... 
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