Agenda item

Virtual School for looked after children - annual report for 2019/20

Report of the Director of Community and Children’s Services.

Minutes:

Members received a report of the Director of Community & Children’s Services regarding the Virtual School for Looked After Children Annual Report for 2019/20. The following points were noted:

 

·         the cohort was looked-after young people, many refugee young people with almost no English language ability, and therefore a key focus was ensuring the students’ language abilities were at a suitable level to engage with the curriculum;

 

·         the shift to virtual learning due to COVID-19 was challenging as many students had minimal IT skills or experience with laptops. Making sure students were engaged on a daily basis was challenging;

 

·         lockdown had an impact on the mental health of the cohort, particularly due to worries about family abroad and limited access to communication with family;

 

·         the Quorum project helped children with sleep patterns, and this was beginning to show some impact but there was not much detail.

 

RESOLVED, that the report be noted.

Supporting documents: