Clusters and Districts

A strange title I know but one that has some relevance.

In Staffordshire all the schools are grouped in what are called clusters based around a Community Learning Prtnership. Typically there are six or eight schools, both primary and secondary, in each one and the idea is that they are an easy way of identifying and dealing with schools which have a geographical or catchment area connection.

But the clusters are not aligned to local council areas and recently I’ve found that may be causing a problem. To be fair it is a problem which hasn’t been obvious until I’ve started to understand the process around educational welfare, family intervention and all things connected.

I’ve, for some time, been concerned at the lack of an obvious escalatory process around problems with some young people in Fazeley and Mile Oak. A few youngsters or families (or both) cause regular problems and if you listen to central government this amazing ‘machine’, in the form of different services like the Youth Service, Education Welfare, Youth Offending Service and others, all come along and wrap themselves around the ‘challenging’ young people and their families to put things right before having to go down the Courts route.

The reason it doesn’t seem to be working is this cluster and district/borough set up. I’ve found that because the schools in much of my County area are in the Rawlett cluster (including several in Tamworth Borough) but in the local council area of Lichfield District, the Tamworth Borough teams of County agencies don’t seem to be interacting with other teams which work based on Lichfield District Council boundaries and conversely too.

So, for instance, Education Welfare which is based around the Tamworth cluster for Rawlett School doesn’t interact well with the Youth Service which is based on Lichfield District boundaries. There isn’t that connection or clear route through the various diversionary agencies if you have this problem where the geographical boundaries are different. This must be replicated across Staffordshire and it’s important because in my experience some young people are falling through the gaps and that answers the concern I raise above about the escalatory process not working.

A small but significant find and after talks with the various Departments involved I’m hopeful it will be addressed… at least around Lichfield.

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