www.boarding.org.uk No images? Click here Dear Members,Welcome back for the start of the new academic year – I hope you’ve all managed to get some well-deserved rest and relaxation over the summer. As we return, there are still a number of COVID-related restrictions in place - mainly around international travel - and some complex rules and regulations still needing to be negotiated as a result. However, we can begin 2021/22 with a fresh sense of optimism and certainly in a much better position than we were this time last year. A big thank you to the members of the BSA Team who’ve been continuing to liaise with government departments, as well as other associations and stakeholders around the world, throughout the summer and, as ever, the team continues to be here if you need any guidance or support. The new term begins with us getting to grips with the revised Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) guidance for England, which comes into effect on September 1, 2021, and the linked Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment guidance, which has also been updated. BSA and Sacpa will be running two special sessions, KCSIE 2021 and sexual violence update, on September 1 and September 6, looking at the changes to both pieces of guidance and will highlight the management and compliance implications, so please do sign up if you haven’t done so already. September 1 also marks the official launch of the BSA Group’s new health and wellbeing association, the Health in Education Association (Hieda). Hieda aims to champion health and wellbeing education in schools, colleges, universities and workplaces. More information on Hieda is available at its new website, where you can also find details of how to join as a member. Finally, members will be aware of the recent developments in Afghanistan. If your school is doing anything to support the community in the UK or in Afghanistan itself, including offering places to pupils, do let BSA know via bsa@boarding.org.uk. It promises to be a busy start to the new academic year but, as the past 18 months have shown, we’re ready for any challenges that may be in store in the months ahead. Best wishes,
England and Wales: red list updatesMany of you will have seen an update from us on Tuesday (24/8) following the Department for Education advising that its Boarding school students from red list countries: quarantine arrangements guidance for England will be updated. A copy of that update can be viewed in full here. On Wednesday (25/8), the Welsh Government also published its updated Boarding schools guidance; isolation arrangements for students arriving from red list countries. To view a copy of that update, please click here. IICSA: new time frame for Residential Schools investigation reportIICSA has revised its publication timetable for the Residential Schools investigation report, originally scheduled for publication this autumn. It is now anticipated the report will be published in early 2022. In the meantime, the Inquiry has published a new report, 'Child sexual abuse in contemporary institutional contexts: an analysis of Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) discretionary case files', which can be viewed by clicking here. Visas and immigration update: EEA business travellers guide and common queries leafletThe Home Office has advised us about some new guides it has produced, along with an update to guidance for financial institutions:
Immigration legal adviceFor the start of the new academic year, we're delighted to welcome a new addition to the BSA team. Sabrina Kadi has joined us this week as our new In-House Solicitor to support members on immigration advice. The service will include five hours pro bono immigration legal advice time per week for BSA member schools during term time (approx. one hour per day). Maximum call times are limited to 15 minutes and member schools are entitled to up to three free calls per term. Anything over 15 minutes or over three free calls per term will be chargeable by agreement and free calls cannot be banked to carry over to future terms or academic years. For more information about the new service, please email Sabrina at Sabrina.Kadi@bsagroup.org.uk. CPD, events and trainingA new academic year also means a packed new programme of CPD, training and events. On August 31, we've made a special addition to our programme, COVID considerations for the return to school, 2021-22, which will be run by Hieda. This has been organised to address enquiries we've received in recent weeks from members around returning to school under ongoing COVID conditions, including quarantine, isolation, testing and vaccinations. BSA members can access this webinar at the Hieda member rate, so please do select the “member” option on the booking form if you are not yet a Hieda member. I hope you can also join me on September 1 for Shaping strategy, where former P&O/Cunard CFO, Ed Jones will join me to take a closer look at ideas and suggestions to revitalise and focus strategic planning. Also a reminder that if you weren't able to join us for our first KCSIE 2021 and sexual violence update this week, we will be running this session again on September 1 and 6. Other September highlights also include our first conferences of the new academic year, the Sacpa-led Mental Health and Safeguarding conference, on September 20, and our second Equity, diversity and inclusion conference (INDEX): identity, belonging and connectedness, taking place on September 28. And don't forget, we have a full Accredited Training Programme also open for bookings, with our first course, Online BSA Certificate in Professional Practice - Mental Health & Wellbeing, beginning on September 22. For more information on our forthcoming CPD, training and events, please scroll down to the BSA Academy section. International Student University Fair, September 29, 2021Book now for our International Student University Fair, a free online event taking place from 11:00-17:00 on Wednesday, September 29, for international students in Years 11, 12 and 13 and the staff who support their university applications, e.g. Heads of Careers and EAL. This event addresses feedback from over 30 BSA and BAISIS schools who attended a forum earlier this year on how to best support international and ex-pat students as they make the transition from school to higher education. The fair offers:
Please book now by clicking here, and further details will follow on booking in as many international and ex-pat students as you wish. BSA Certified Agent and Guardian schemesWith a new academic year beginning, a reminder too that our BSA Certified Agent and Guardian schemes continue to grow, providing reassurance for schools and families. The schemes' training and certification programmes assure BSA boarding schools that they are dealing with educational guardians and agents who have the highest standards in the safeguarding of children, safer recruitment and training of staff and host families, and careful liaison with parents and schools. The schemes are a clear demonstration to BSA boarding schools of the quality and intention of the educational guardians and agents who reach certified status. For more information on the schemes, or to view a list of our current certified Agents and Guardians, please scroll down to the BSA Certified Agent and Guardian schemes section. School site securityAs part of our consultancy service, we can now offer a physical security health check to our member schools. This includes a site visit to assess access and egress control, perimeter resilience and supporting technologies, focusing particularly on boarding houses and procedures, and will include an optional resilience check on unauthorised site access by an ex-police officer as well as our recommendations. For more details please contact Bethan Waddington, Head of CPD, Events and Consultancy. BSA Magazine autumn edition - send us your contentThe autumn edition of the BSA Magazine is currently in production, with publication due in October. If you would like to send any contributions for this edition, please email them to Andrew Gray, Communications and Partnerships Manager, no later than close of play on Friday, September 17. Best wishes,
BSA AcademyAccredited trainingThe BSA's programme of Professional Development and training is the most comprehensive CPD package offered to staff in boarding schools. It includes a series of professional practice Certificate courses specifically designed to meet the practical needs of boarding staff and provide an internationally-recognised qualification in Boarding Education. We are delighted to announce that bookings are now open for the 2021-22 accredited training courses! Certificate Course Online BSA Certificate in Professional Practice - Mental Health & Wellbeing This module is comprised of three tutor-led study days featuring guest speakers, interactive morning and afternoon sessions. Breakout groups allow for discussion and time with the course tutors. Study day sessions will include:
Click here to reserve your place. TWO PLACES LEFT: BSA / Hieda Advanced Certificate in Boarding Practice (School Nurses) The course is tutor-led and will consist of four separate live online study days spread over a full academic year. The sessions on each study day will be a mixture of presentations often with an external expert, and group discussions. Find out more or reserve your place here. BSA Certificate in International Boarding BSA Certificate in Professional Practice - Inclusion Lead Training Participants will receive high-quality training and support from a range of experts to further develop the skills and confidence needed to establish, embed and sustain equity, diversity and inclusion work in their school. Throughout the two days there will be opportunities to meet, collaborate and discuss with other participants and to learn from case studies and good practice from other schools. Click here to reserve your place. Autumn Diploma in Boarding Practice (Leadership) - 2021 - 2022
This is comprised of three, tutor-led study days, with interactive morning and afternoon sessions that allow for discussion. Find out more or reserve your place here. BSA Certificate in Professional Practice for Pupil Welfare & Support 2021-2022 Sessions for this course include:
Click here to reserve your place If you need any further information about our Accredited Training programme, please contact Liz McDonald, Head of Accredited Training, at liz@boarding.org.uk. Conferences - 2021-22We look forward to welcoming you at our range of virtual conferences, running throughout the year. To help with CPD planning, here are the events we are running in the autumn term:
In addition to the one-day conferences running in the autumn term, we are delighted to publish the dates for a number of our other conferences for 2021-22. Please do 'save the dates' in your diaries and if you'd like to register interest, please email us.
Induction training - 2021-22Our CPD programme gets under way right at the start of the new academic year, with induction training options for staff joining boarding for the first time, taking on new responsibilities or joining a new setting, and for senior staff looking to develop their leadership and strategy within boarding. We are running our day seminar programme virtually throughout 2021-22 to ensure training is accessible for all:
Safeguarding training - 2021-22Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and the start of a new academic year provides a clear marker to ensure that all staff have received appropriate training relating to safeguarding and their responsibilities. The virtual sessions below will be appropriate for most practitioners working in education settings:
To see our latest training programme, click here.Index (Inclusion and Diversity Excellence)Following our inaugural inclusion conference in October, BSA Group launched Index, a programme of support to help members in this area. This includes the BSA Index Framework and Toolkit - guidance documents to promote the values of equity, diversity and inclusion (they can be accessed here via the EDI area). Our second Index (EDI) conference will take place on September 28, 2021 – a number of exciting speakers have already been confirmed for the event. You can find out the latest by visiting the event page on our website, with more details to be announced soon. Inclusion Leads/Staff with an EDI Leadership role - we are collating names and email contact details of anyone in a BSA school with an EDI leadership role. Please email bsa@boarding.org.uk with your full name, school and full job title/role. For more information about our Index programme, please email Ammy Davies-Potter, BSA Group Director of Guardianship and Inclusion. BSA Certified Supplier SchemeThe organisations below are members of the BSA Certified Supplier Scheme, which aims to connect members and organisations. BSA Gold Certified Suppliers
BSA Certified Suppliers
For more detail on each of the suppliers, please visit the BSA Certified Supplier Scheme page on our website. Please note: The suppliers listed are not endorsed by BSA, nor does the association accept any liability for the quality of the goods/services listed on this page. All suppliers below have entered into a commercial arrangement with the BSA to promote their goods/services. Certified Agent and Guardian schemesBSA Certified AgentsWe are delighted to announce that Akademis (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) has joined the BSA Certified Agent scheme. Welcome to the BSA family!
For more information on the BSA Certified Agent scheme, please visit our website. BSA Certified Guardians
For more information on the BSA Certified Guardian scheme, please visit our website. We have also had a number of requests from schools for our BSA Certified Guardian logo to use on admissions information or school websites - you can access a copy of the logo by clicking here. Partner news
Keep in touchPlease note the BSA office is now closed and the team is working remotely. If you would like further advice from the BSA, please email bsa@boarding.org.uk or contact the team directly:
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