Seize the moment

As this is the first Learning Partners bulletin of 2024, I’d like to wish everyone a Happy New Year.

While we have only completed three full weeks of term, it is amazing how long ago the Christmas holiday feels, and how quickly half-term is looming on the horizon. In just two weeks’ time, we will again be away from school – this half-term will be gone before we know it. Despite the wintery weather, I spotted snowdrops flowing in the garden this morning, another reminder that spring will be upon us very soon.

This realisation highlighted to me the importance of seizing the moment. It is so easy to let time slip past us, especially during this dark, cold time of year, when it is harder than usual to be enthusiastic. In the central team, we have had a busy few weeks, with several new team members joining us. There has been lots to do – queries from schools, educational reviews, school visits, maintenance planning and work to setup new systems. However, it is easy to get lost in the daily list of tasks to complete, and we have been trying to find time to re-visit the ‘Development Plans’ that we set at the start of the academic year, to remind ourselves what we identified as the real priorities, and to check that we are making time to ensure that these things get done properly. The important things can easily get lost among the urgent items that crop up in our inbox every day.

I’m reminded that the children in our schools only get one opportunity to benefit from this academic year – for them, it won’t be repeated. Whether work directly with children in the classroom, or support their education indirectly from the school office, caretakers workshop or the central team, this should encourage us to create an environment that encourages the children to make the most of every opportunity that they have.

Looking slightly further ahead, we are looking forward to welcoming all Learning Partners staff to our trust conference on 19th February. Like last year, we will split into three separate groups (classroom based staff in primary settings, classroom based staff in secondary settings, and non-classroom based staff). We have planned a series of talks and workshops to suit each of the three groups, based on the theme of ‘Resilience’ – we are looking forward to welcoming you all to these conferences after half-term.

Patrick Overy

Chief Operating Officer

Governor Training

Bitesize Learning Series

Thank you to those governors who have joined us on our trust-led training sessions so far. We have enjoyed seeing you and we hope that you found the sessions valuable and informative.

We really appreciate any feedback that you can share with us, and will use it to inform our planning for future sessions; if you have attended a session and not yet submitted your evaluation form, please do so!

The next 2 sessions are coming up soon;

SEND on 7 February and Wellbeing on 29 February. These sessions will be led by our trust experts in each area, and have been scoped to really support you in your role.

As always, we can only run these sessions if we have sufficient attendees to make them viable. Bookings are open now!

Was your new years resolution to be better organised this year? Sometimes, we all need a bit of help with that, and OneNote is a great piece of software to assist with this.

Sometimes, it is the getting started that is the difficult part and the templates that Microsoft offer make this process much more straightforward. You will find some details of these below, as well as some guidance on how to use OneNote to take notes, be it in a typed, written or audio format!

Don’t forget, if you have any suggestions of things you would like covering, please do email Jodie Farrell-Gray.

Useful Information for Governors

Every one of our governors has access to Governor Hub and the National Governance Association. These are both valuable sources of information, guidance and ideas.

This week we wanted to share with you 2 useful articles; Safer Recruitment from Governor Hub and Preparing for LGB Meetings from the NGA.

Please click on the links below to read more; we hope you will find these articles enjoyable and informative.

Network Team Update

A new year and a new term, I hope everyone is enjoying what appears to be a winter with lots of sunshine and rain in equal measures. With the calendar year just starting, the team are hard at work resolving tickets that have been coming into the helpdesk, plus working through the large number of project work already agreed to, just some examples:

-Antivirus/malware upgrades in some schools

-Setting up MFA at Kings

-New printers & laptops at Fullbrook

-New web filtering/monitoring for offsite devices at George Abbot

-New chrome books at multiple primary schools

-New iPad’s and room layout’s at Northmead

There is an area that I need your help with, Cyber Security and in particular phishing emails. This year so far we are experiencing a 10 fold increase in the number of phishing emails coming into our schools. With 95% of these emails being caught by our email system, that still leaves 5% coming through to you.

Phishing emails are fake emails that appear to be from a legitimate sender but are in fact from either scammers, hackers or fraudsters trying to gain access or steal information, usually for malicious purposes.

As a result of this we would like to point out some main characteristics to look out for when spotting these emails:

-If the main body of the message seems strange or is out of character for the sender.

-Look at the name/email. Who sent it? Is it legitimate?

-Look at the email address and compare it to the name of the account

Above is a real example from one of our schools.

As you can see although the name is Alastair, the actual email address is different to what is expected.

With emails like this they usually have an urgency to them, this is to try and catch you off guard and to act without fully reading or taking in the email in detail.

You can also see a CAUTION banner. This should not appear for anyone within the school/organisation, so if this appears this should be an immediate red flag.

It is at this point that you we ask you to please forward onto the IT Helpdesk.

IT Helpdesk Update

Since the start of January, the Network Team have received 1080 new tickets to our helpdesk with a total of 884 tickets being closed so far. On the lead up to the half term the team will be working hard to get current outstanding tickets closed, as well as planning what tasks and projects we need to prepare for this term and for the rest of the year.

The following ticket categories were the most submitted to the helpdesk:

·Online Services: Online services play a crucial part in the day-to-day learning and teaching in schools. With applications such as SIMS, Teams, Insight, Satchel:One, IRIS and SAM learning it is important that both the on-site team and central network team provide quick response to tickets especially online services tickets where users may not have access to their work, teaching systems and other resources.

·Staff Software: Staff software plays a major part in ensuring a teacher’s school day runs with ease, its main purpose relating to any software issues not based in classrooms and their devices. Staff Software focuses more on the online software and products, like SIMS and other MIS products, as well as Adobe products, like Acrobat DC and Reader. Office 365 applications and CPOMS fall under this category too. This is all key software for staff to prepare and organise their lessons to help aid student learning.

We thank you for your support and as always, we please ask that you log any issues or queries on the helpdesk by emailing: networkhelpdesk@learningpartners.org.

Regards

Ben Sayers

Learning Partners IT Director

ATTENTION

TRUST INSET DAY

SECONDARY STAFF & NON-TEACHING PRIMARY STAFF

please car share where possible

Looking forward to seeing you there!

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT continued

Discounts for Teachers

& Ode Cashback Card

Free Will Writing Service

Learning Partners Academy Trust and Estate Planning and Will Writing specialists Dunham McCarthy are able to offer you a free will writing service to help you plan for your future, protecting your family and loved ones. The free service is provided remotely, either by telephone or video call, at a time to suit you. You will have an adviser to help you complete each step from start to finish.

All Learning Partners staff, in any role (not just teachers), can access exclusive discounts, cashback and vouchers when they join the scheme. There are over 1200 of the biggest brands on their website and thousands of deals. Save on holidays, fashion, homeware, days out, mobiles, finance, insurance, TV and broadband and more. It’s free to join and free to use, it only takes a couple of minutes to register, and you can start saving on your purchases right away.

Click here to watch a short webinar with advice on what can be included in a will

Click here to sign up now

For more information and to book your initial appointment, click here

Click here for further information on Discounts for Teachers

Click here for further information on Ode Cashback Card

Freedom leisure - discounted membership

Freedom Leisure and Learning Partners Academy Trust can offer you discounted membership at Freedom Leisure sites in and around Surrey. There are three different packages to choose from offering various entitlements.

• Classic Corporate Plus (Peak) - £46 per month on direct debit or £460 annually (discount of 2 months free)
  
• Classic Corporate (Off Peak) - £37 per month on direct debit or £407 annually (discount of 1 month free)
• Connected Corporate - £51 per month or £510 annually (discount of 2 months free)
  

Employee Assistance Programme

The EAP is a confidential employee benefit designed to help you deal with personal and professional problems that could be affecting your home life or work life, health and general wellbeing. The helpline is available 24/7, 365 days a year.

Click here for further information

Kings Community Sports Hub Gym

Click here to sign up for discounted membership

Learning Partners staff can access the new Kings Community Sports Hub Gym (at Kings College Guildford) at a discounted rate of £14.99 per month (direct debit). Opening hours:

Monday to Friday 5.00pm to 10.00pm Weekends 9.00am to 5.00pm

Click here for further information

Click here to sign up for discounted membership

Octopus Electric Vehicle Salary Sacrifice Scheme

Nuffield Health Discounted Membership

Learning Partners Academy Trust and Nuffield Health have teamed up to offer a 30% discount to all Learning Partner employees at Guildford Nuffield.

There are two membership options available with the 30% discount. The pricing for these options is as follows:

1. A monthly rolling membership of £61 per month (instead of £87) and can be cancelled with a calendar months’ notice at any time during the membership.

2. A 12-month direct debit membership of £50 per month (instead of £72) and can be cancelled within the 12-month commitment period (with a calendar months’ notice) if there is a change in circumstances that falls within the terms and conditions. This includes a health issue or injury, redundancy, pregnancy, relocation, etc.

Additionally, there is a 20% partner discount available for anyone who joins alongside Learning Partners members providing they link their membership payments together.

Supporting the UK government’s push towards an electric vehicle revolution, we are operating the Learning Partners Academy Trust Electric Car Scheme, in partnership with Octopus Electric Vehicles (OEV).

You can drive a brand-new electric car* using part of your gross salary, making savings on income tax and national insurance. You will pay some company car tax (Benefit in Kind) but the rates for electric cars are extremely low until 2025.

*Subject to eligibility and you signing the Learning Partners Academy Trust Driver Handbook.

You can save up to 40% on driving a brand-new electric car with maintenance, tyres and more included, plus insurance. There are some added extras too, including a home charger, funded with a standard installation, and 4,000 miles of free home charge or 4,000 miles public charge on the Electroverse + £50 home credit, if you switch to Octopus Energy at home. T&Cs can be found here.

Click here for further information

Click here for further information

All employees have access to the Learning Partners Sharepoint folder "Learning Partners Benefits" where all the information regarding the benefits above is filed.

Click here to access the folder

Horizon Guildford

Surrey Sports Park

Horizon Guildford (in Merrow), part of Horizon Leisure, is a newly refurbished state-of-the-art not-for-profit charitable trust with over 25 years of experience in the health and fitness industry. With established locations in Havant and Waterlooville, Horizon Guildford marks the exciting expansion into the Guildford community. The mission is simple: to inspire more people to live healthier, happier lives. Alongside the gym, swimming facilities and classes, Horizon are passionate about promoting overall health and wellness. By becoming a corporate member, you will gain access to exceptional facilities, including a gym equipped with high-specification equipment, public swimming, sauna and steam room and over 100 weekly classes, including Les Mills experiences.

Find out more here

Horizon Guildford are delighted to offer all Learning Partners staff a discounted rate of £35 per month (usually £42 per month) for a 12-month membership commitment, along with a £10 administration fee.

If you would like to join Horizon, please contact Anita Kidgell.

akidgell@horizonic.com

07547 103933

Surrey Sports Park, continued

Octopus Referral Scheme

• Member Journey
• An initial appointment to find out about your goals and what you're looking to achieve
  
• The fitness team will then provide you with a 3-day programme and go through this with you
  
• Your next meeting they will go through day 2 of the programme
  
• After 4 weeks, you will be booked in again to find out how you're finding your membership and make any adjustments to your programme
  
• This is repeated once more after
  
• They will then check in with you after 4, 8 and 12 weeks to see how you're progressing and here you'll be offered programme reviews.
  

Octopus have also just launched a referral scheme where staff who sign up for an electric vehicle receive a referral code which they can pass on to any colleague(s) ordering car. When the car arrives both parties receive £50 credit to their account. There is no limit to how many times someone can share their code.

Click here for further information

Octopus EV

Salary sacrifice and pension impact

While salary sacrifice schemes can be really beneficial and help you save money, it's important to understand the potential impact they can have on your pension, especially if you’re part of a defined benefit pension scheme like the Teachers Pension Scheme (TPS) or Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS).

If you are interested in this membership option or are just looking to have a tour around the amazing facilities, then please visit the sales team between 10am and 5pm Monday – Friday. You just need to provide proof of your workplace.

Click here to find out how

an EV salary sacrifice

can affect your pension

01483 682662

sales@surreysportspark.co.uk

www.surreysportspark.co.uk

Sports Massage and Injury Rehabilitation at Kings

A sports therapist who rents a room at Kings College is offering all Learning Partners staff a discount for various services including:

• Sports massage
  
• Injury assessment and rehab
• Postural correction
• Corrective exercise

Click here for further information

Boxgrove

Guildford Grove

No current vacancies

Child Healthcare Assistant

School Business Manager

Learning Support Assistant (Physical & Medical Needs)

Loseley Fields

Northmead

School Business Manager

No current vacancies

Pirbright

Sandfield

No current vacancies

No current vacancies

Shalford Infant & Nursery School

No current vacancies

Fullbrook

George Abbot

No current vacancies

Science Technician

Guildford County

Kings College

No current vacancies

No current vacancies

Glebelands School

Moss Lane Infant School

Learning Support Assistant

No current vacancies

Tillingbourne Junior School

Burpham Primary School

School Office Administrator P/T

No current vacancies

Learning Partners Academy Trust

Surrey Maths School

Teacher Apprentice

No current vacancies

05.02.24 09.00-10.00

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06.02.24 08.30-10.00

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