Association of Teachers and Lecturers
WIRRAL BRANCH
NEWSLETTER Spring Term 2008 |
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Notice of Elections:Branch Officers and Others I give notice that nominations (1 for each position) are required:- Branch President
Branch Vice President Branch Secretary Branch Assistant Secretary Branch Treasurer Branch Assistant Treasurer Recruitment Secretary/ULR Branch Almoner/Publicity Committee members (x6) Honorary Auditors (x2) Conference Delegates (x3)
The nomination may be accompanied by a brief curriculum vitae which can be used in conjunction with a ballot, should one prove to be necessary. Nominations must be received by me before the AGM. All officers must be members of the branch and must hold standard/retired/student membership through the period of office. |
Annual General Meeting Wallasey School 14th May 2008 4:15pm
Contact details Branch Secretary Jeffrey Bevan
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Conference 2008 (Torquay)The annual Conference is the main policy making body of ATL. Conference discusses policy resolutions, if passed, the executive then implements those policy decisions. The 600 members who make up conference include ATL's Executive Committee, together with representatives elected by the branches. The number of representatives each branch can send to conference depends on how many members it has. Wirral was entitled to three representatives:– Jeffrey Bevan; Jake Heslop; John Williamson. Monday 17th March (17:00-19:30) Welcome address by Mary Bousted (General Secretary) Tuesday 18th March (9:00-18:15) ATL PRESIDENT (Julia Neal) PREDICTS ORWELLIAN SOCIETY IN FIVE YEARS UNDER GOVERNMENT'S EDUCATION PLANS. ‘Teachers will talk about surveillance cameras in classrooms, about over-zealous observation of their teaching. We will hear about teachers delivering a prescriptive curriculum and teaching to the tests in order to secure a good place in the league tables for their school.
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These issues all add up to an education system which focuses on targets and outcomes, and fails to meet individual pupils' needs despite the Government's pledge for personalisation. It also adds up to an education system in which teachers are not trusted as professionals.' Wednesday 19th March (9:00-17:45) Address by Jim Knight Minister of State for Schools and Learners at the DCSF notable for what he did not say. Phil Jacques (Dorset Executive Committee member) gave a vote of thanks, which clearly, yet courteously, expressed the views of ATL members about current issues in education. Thursday 20th March (9:15-12:15) Address from Hilary Fisher, Director of End Child Poverty. In her closing speech, Mary Bousted challenged conference ‘Are you proud of your union? Spread the word with a membership form in your hand then when we meet in Liverpool in 2009 we will be a bigger and better union.
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Redeployment/ Redundancy ProceduresThe new redundancy policy moves away from least continuous services (not acceptable due to the Age Discrimination Act) to a skills analysis which is linked to the school's curriculum and development plans. A Wirral redeployment scheme no longer exists. • Schools can only declare redundancies if they are in a deficit situation • Redundancies cannot be declared until March when budgets for the following year are known. The above changes were approved by Wirral's cabinet in January 2007. The local authority organised training for Heads/Governors last year to explain the new procedures. If your school is in a deficit situation please contact Jeffrey Bevan (Wirral ATL Branch Secretary) immediately. |
An ATL rep in every WIRRAL school ATL representatives provide vital information and support to colleagues in their establishment. Being an ATL representative is not an onerous task and individuals can undertake as much or as little of the role as they wish at any given time. The responsibilities of a representative fall into three main areas, none of which should be time consuming:
If ATL is going to be a strong and expanding union we need an ATL rep in every WIRRAL school/college – please elect a rep for your school if you do not have one. |
Cheshire/North Wales/Wirral Training DayA Training Day took place at The Gateway to Wales hotel on Saturday 23 February 2008. The course focussed on behaviour management (excellently led by Fiona Hallett) and the ATL/Edge Hill partnership. Wirral participants were: Beryl Howells (Wallasey);Chris McIlhatton (Claremount); Jake Heslop (Hospital School); Jill Bunting (Wallasey) Pam McDonald (Birkenhead); Lesley Price (Heswell); Pam Jones (Mosslands);Bryan Ewing (Branch President) and; Peter Gopsill (Branch Treasurer). “ Just a note to say how much I enjoyed the training day (Managing Behaviour) at the Gateway to Wales Hotel today. I can understand that there may have been some doubt about the potential popularity of a Saturday event but from a personal viewpoint it is possible to attend without the stress attached to 'not being at work' on a weekday. The course was interesting, relevant, paced well and extremely thought provoking. It is always a privilege to listen to people who are knowledgeable and experienced in their field. I have no suggestions for improvement if this course or similar are offered in the future and only hope that there are further opportunities to attend other events.”
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