FAQs

1. A Gypsy Traveller family has requested places at school for their children even though they are camped on the roadside and may not be here long? Do I have to admit them?
Yes. They should be admitted on the same basis as any other children. Cambridgeshire LA has a statutory duty to ensure that education is available for all children of compulsory school age in their area appropriate to their age, abilities, aptitudes and any special educational needs they might have. This duty applies to children whether they are residing permanently or temporarily in the area and therefore includes Gypsy Traveller children.


2. We have Gypsy and Traveller children and newly arrived bilingual learners in school at the time of the end of Key Stage 2 tests, what do we do?
If the Traveller children are on your school roll, you should administer the tests in the same way as you would do for all other children. National advice on SATs can change from year to year. The guidance for assessment and reporting arrangements at the end of each key stage makes explicit reference to pupils new to the country, and therefore schools should consult these in the first instance.


3. How do we record absences of Gypsy Traveller children?
In exactly the same way as for any other child with the exception of instances where it is known that the family is travelling away from the area. In that case the mark “T” is put in the register and the absence is recorded as authorised.


4. How can we involve parents from BME and Traveller communities when some parents find it difficult to communicate, either because of limited English or school experience?
Schools need to look imaginatively at ways of encouraging dialogue and listen to parents. In some cases CREDS Home School Liaison Officers will be able to offer advice and support to involve less confident parents and community members. Schools can take some simple measures to create an ethos of inclusive practice.
For example:

· Training reception staff on equality and cultural diversity issues

· Establishing a communication strategy with parents and community members in an accessible format (information on tape, translating materials and using an interpreter). Regular consultation with parents.


5. What information should we ask for when admitting black, minority ethnic and Traveller children who are new to the area?
Name, date of birth, ethnicity, parental contact, parental fluency and literacy in English, family history, previous educational history, country of origin, languages spoken/written, length of time in the UK. (Contact CREDS for a sample information-gathering form).


6. What tools should we use to assess the needs of newly arrived EAL learners?
· QCA’s A Language in Common
· CREDS can support a 1st language assessment
· Classroom observations of the skills of newly arrived learners will inform curriculum planning and differentiation.
· Assessment in mathematics toolkit to support pupils for whom English is an additional language (National Numeracy Strategy Key Stage 3 Ref. DfES 0267/2003)


7. If we highlight racist incidents, couldn’t this lead to a worse situation? It could make white pupils feel guilty and those of minority backgrounds feel vulnerable and insecure?
It’s important, certainly, to treat all incidents proportionately and with sensitivity, and therefore to
avoid over-reacting or creating martyrs, and in these ways bringing the school rules about racist bullying into disrepute. However, the much more substantial danger lies in ignoring incidents and giving pupils the impression that adults condone racist behaviour. Ignoring incidents means that pupils who are attacked feel unsupported, and so do their friends and families. They are likely
then to feel that the school does not care about them and they may even form a view that all ‘white’ people are hostile to them and cannot be trusted.

8. How do we track the attainment and progress of BME and Traveller pupils when we’ve only got one or two in the school?
Track the progress of individuals as you would with all pupils, taking account of their ethnic origin, length of time in the country and prior educational experiences. It is important to compare the attainment of children from the target groups with that of the same groups at county and national levels as well as with that of the rest of the cohort in your school. In addition, schools should monitor and analyse the progress of their BME and Traveller pupils across the school as a whole.
While this process might seem to be statistically insignificant to schools with few pupils from the target groups, it becomes relevant once the data is collated and analysed at county level.



(This is taken from Making Children Matter, CREDS)