Text Box: Policies & Advice Text Box: Faversham, Sittingbourne and Isle of Sheppey Association To contact us please call: 01795 532467 or email: jah253@btinternet.com Text Box: Meetings & Training Text Box: Campaigns Text Box: Home Text Box: No to New Academies The NUT is totally opposed to the Con-Dem proposals for new Academy Schools. We believe academies could have a negative impact on children’s opportunities; they could affect the educational content taught in schools; are less democratic than local authority control and they threaten to undermine school teachers national pay and conditions agreements. We are asking all of our NUT School Reps to call a school union meeting—with the other school unions — and ask all members if they would pass the following Academies Resolution. Passing this resolution in thousands of schools will send a signal that teachers and school staff members are united in their opposition to academies: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - IMPORTANT - PLEASE EMAIL / CALL NUT TO LET US KNOW WHEN YOU HAVE PASSED THE FOLLOWING RESOLUTION IN YOU SCHOOL GROUP - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Academies motion for school groups (click here for a printable version): 1. This NUT group agrees that the Government’s academies and free schools programme would have the negative effects of: undermining national pay and conditions for teachers undermining local authorities breaking up common admission arrangements damaging local democratic planning of school places redirecting hundreds of millions of pounds that would be better spent on supporting existing schools 2. This NUT group believes that: the evidence from this country and from abroad is that academies, charter schools and free schools do not improve attainment overall and increase the segregation and exclusion of the poorest and most disadvantaged children there is no good reason for putting the provision of publicly funded education into the hands of private companies who would seek to profit from it 3. This NUT group therefore agrees to: call on our governing body to express its support for the NUT’s opposition to any move to academy status and to communicate this opposition to the Government and local authority. Resolution passed by ................................................................................... NUT school group. This resolution was passed on ....../....../...... ABOUT OUR ASSOCIATION Faversham, Sittingbourne and Isle of Sheppey NUT Association represents members in schools throughout the local area. We help teachers organise collectively in the workplace and when necessary, we provide help and assistance. We held two meetings to welcome NQT’s to our local area. These took place at the Abbey School and Westlands School on the 4th and 5th of October. All local school reps within Faversham, Sittingbourne and the Isle of Sheppey should go to our meetings and training page for details of this year’s local school reps training day. For all teachers who have yet to join a teachers association, we would like to stress the importance of becoming a member of a union. You never know when you might need some help or support and whilst many teachers believe that the NUT is the best teaching union to join, there is no doubt that it is sensible to join one of the available unions. We hope that the NUT will be your choice! The original Faversham NUT Association was formed in 1887 - with Sittingbourne being formed in 1882 - and the Isle of Sheppey in 1926. The amalgamation of the three separate associations was completed in 2003. Association meetings are held once per term, where members from local schools have the opportunity to meet and discuss local and national issues. We also hold events for NQT’s - as well as social meetings at Christmas and in July. Kent NUT Division hold meetings six times per year. Three members attend from our Association (the Secretary, Treasurer and one other member). There is also an active Kent Retired Teachers Committee which meets six times a year and holds an annual seminar at Aylesford Priory in July. Teachers who are about to retire can attend this and gain useful information about retirement. Any NUT members locally are welcome to get in touch with us and attend any of our local events! ADVICE UPDATES LEARNING WALKS A recent development is schools is the introduction of Learning Walks. These are different from drop-in’s. Learning Walks are intended to focus upon the collective learning journey of the class as a whole and not of an individual. If Learning Walks are being introduced in your school click here for advice. BAD WEATHER It is possible that we can look forward to more bad weather this winter, with very cold classrooms and snow closing down some schools. If you experience cold classrooms click here for advice. If your school is closed due to snow click here for advice. Text Box: Click here for our national website