Agenda item

To consider the report of the Director of Community and Children’s Services Department

The Board considered the report of the Director of Community & Children’s Services seeking approval to proceed with two research projects from a list of proposed research projects for the upcoming academic year, noting that the projects align with the new Education Strategy 2024-29 which promotes bringing research to the education community in London and further afield and focuses on achieving the five strategic priorities: Supporting Educational Excellence, Promoting Personal Development, Reinforcing Safety, Health & Wellbeing, Improving Employability, and Embracing Culture, Creativity & the Arts. 

Members noted that each proposed project is designed to contribute to the strategic goals by fostering innovation, collaboration, new learning and evidence-based practices, and noted the detailed outline set out in the appendix to the report - noting especially the benefits of new research, added value that it would provide, and how such research might fit into the overall corporate plan of the Corporation.

A Member asked whether the Education Strategy Unit (ESU) has conducted research before, and the meeting heard that the proposed projects are a new initiative on the part of the ESU delivery of the new strategy whose remit now has a greater focus on new research and fresh knowledge and insight. The meeting noted that the four proposals stem from areas of concern following feedback from stakeholders during the consultation around the recently approved Education Strategy, and that the four proposals were extracted from a broader set of areas of concern expressed in that feedback. 

A Member asked whether the proposed projects constituted research (as opposed to fact-finding exercises). Based on the research experience of two ESU officers gained during their doctoral theses, the meeting noted that the proposals have been delineated to ensure that, as shorter pieces of research, they are able to offer value and insight into important areas and to potentially act as a catalyst of ideas that can be further explored, particularly in the light of the interest in the CoLC being more responsive to developing concerns and ideas. 

Noting the £10K cap on the cost (well within Officer delegated authority), a Member sought clarification on the opportunity costs of conducting the research. The Board heard that the cost is from the existing budget, that the opportunity cost may involve staging fewer events that do not have a measurable impact, and that the research proposals will offer greater insight and knowledge to the educating communities in London and across the UK.

In response to a question on why the CoLC should be undertaking the research and the extent of the commitment of the CoLC family of schools, the meeting heard that the CoLC is uniquely placed (because of its close relationship with the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and its wider interests in art and culture) in respect of option 3 (music education) noting, in particular, the DfE’s publication in May 2024 of the School Music Development Plan and and current national curriculum review. The meeting heard that there is no expectation of involvement on the part of CoL schools, since the focus in the schools is on the operational delivery of excellent education, and that the views of the CoLAT executive would also be sought.  It also reflects the content of the Education Strategy, approved by Court of Common Council.

The meeting noted that contact has been made with a CoLAT governor who is a high-profile expert on music in education.  

Members commented that more detailed selection criteria would be welcome (to include intended audience, expected impact, and existing knowledge gaps), noting also an apparent lack of clarity on the reason for the selection of the topics of the projects that the Board was being asked to sponsor. The Board heard that , drawing on detail in the Appendix to the paper, the intended audience is schools, Government, and researchers and that the expected impact includes the sharing of new knowledge and insight in the name of the CoLC.

Members noted that option 2 (on the ‘post-truth era’) offered an opportunity for the City of London Corporation (CoLC) to contribute a new perspective to an innovative area of study arising from the civil unrest during summer 2024. 

A Member noted the merits of opting for option 4, particularly for the purposes of teacher retention issues and the CoLC’s broader strategy. 

Members asked for further details of the proposed projects to be circulated with a response required by Friday 18 October 2024, ahead of the Awayday on 21 October 2024, so that responses can be collated with a view to those responses informing a decision via delegated authority of the Town Clerk on the matter, in consultation with the Chair and Deputy Chair.

RESOLVED, That Delegated Authority be granted to the Town Clerk to select two projects in consultation with the Chair and Deputy Chair, following a consultation among Members during which responses would be collated.