Children's Services Department 

The 5 areas which make up the Division are:

• The School Improvement Service (including the Community Music Service, Education ICT and Trewern Outdoor Education Centre)
• School Estate and Admissions
• 14-19
• Adult College
• Workforce Development (Training)

The main role of this service is to provide support and challenge for schools so that children and young people are helped to achieve highly, to enjoy their time at school and to make the progress that they should. It has an important role in quality assurance.

A team of inspectors and advisers carries out regular visits to schools, provides advice on subjects and aspects of the curriculum and leads a programme of professional development activities for teachers.

In addition advisory staff work in schools alongside teachers, supporting teaching and helping to develop teaching materials.

The team provides advice, guidance and support to schools on issues relating to buildings and investment. In particular they provide help to schools to address priorities as identified in the Asset Management Plan and hold information in an extended database to support this function.

The team is responsible for exploring the need for investment to improve or create school place provision and supporting the Council's aims and objectives regarding School Organisation.

A major role is to lead on investment strategy across the schools' estate, and extended buildings portfolio in Children's Services.

The team also leads on functions relating to admissions to schools including:

• All cohort admissions processes for Reception and Year 7
• In year admissions for primary and secondary phases
• Support to the Additional Needs Panel
• Management of transfer requests between schools
• Support to exclusions processes, governors hearings and data collection
• Responding on appeals in respect of these matters

This service area contributes to improving the levels of aspiration and achievement of young people by facilitating and developing a range of high quality applied and vocational learning programmes, and particularly to those identified as vulnerable to disengaging from education, training or employment.

The Barking and Dagenham 14-19 Team delivers a range of programmes and services to develop young people's employability skills  and support local learning providers to develop study programmes which meet the needs of all young people and employers.

The activities we deliver are:

Trident
Two week work experience opportunities for most of the borough's Year 10 or Year 11 students, and a number of Year 12 students. The Trident team delivers this service and maintains links with hundreds of employers.

Education Business
Links activities in and for local schools. It arranges industrial visits, runs a mock interview programme and fosters interest with local employers to support work-related learning.

Flexi-Learning Service
Which provides exciting opportunities for selected young people in Year 10 and Year 11 to pursue a mixed curriculum of school subjects, vocational training and extended work placements.

Aim higher
Events supporting young peoples' aspirations to progress to Higher Education.

Apprenticeships
Co-ordination to maximise opportunities for borough residents, including young people.

The Tuition Service provides a wide range of alternative provision:

Erkenwald Centre
Tuition Centre

The Technical Skills Academy, run and managed by Barking and Dagenham College is now accepting applications.

This service area engages residents in part time learning opportunities developing knowledge, skills and qualifications to enhance employability and personal development throughout adult life. Both accredited and non accredited courses are offered in a wide range of subject areas. The largest curriculum area is Skills for Life including English for speakers of other languages (ESOL).

This service area supports partners across the Children's Trust to work in collaborative ways to improve outcomes for children, young people and their families. It also provides targeted training and professional opportunities for officers working in the children's and adults' social care sector.

Training Courses:

• Children's Trust Joint Induction
• Child Protection Part 1
• Child Protection Part 2
• Equalities and Diversity
• Managing Allegations
• Signs of Safety