Education/Our Children- Our Future
It is vital that all children have the opportunity to attain the necessary skills and knowledge to prepare them for their future. Good standards of education make a positive difference to the lives of children, young people, their families and carers.
Our Community is stronger when it is educated and mobile
We need to encourage a balance between the “head” type of professions, including the sciences, finance and digital type work. The “hand” professions: builder, mechanic and farmer, and the “heart” type work such as nursing, social workers and psychologists.
I feel that Jersey undervalues the craft and caring professions and does not tailor the educational system towards these careers. I believe our society has undervalued these professions.
We must progress with our educational reform and in line with current research apply best practice from early years to post-16 education.
We need to open up opportunities for vocational education and apprenticeships in the craft, caring and developing digital professions.
Inna Gardiner St Helier Jersey
Nursery and Primary Education.
We need to ensure we meet the needs of our youngest residents.
The best social return on spending in any society is to invest in good nursery and primary school education. Nurseries and primary schools need to have the funding to adapt to the new challenges presented by our society as it develops.
Subsidised nursery places should be made available from the age of two for families where both (or the only) parents are working or studying. These are vital years for children’s language and socialisation skills to develop.
We have a large workforce of parent who stay at home due to the fact they cannot afford child care. Giving parents more free time, and re-introducing them into the workforce will help to reduce immigration.
Our primary school teachers face the problem of an increasing number of children entering the educational system with English as their second language, thus we need bilingual teaching assistants in classes where there are children who are not fluent in English. If we do not engage these children at a young age, we risk the prospect of preventable issues becoming bigger problems for Jersey as a society further down the line.
Children with Special Needs
The diagnosis of children with special needs should be made as early as possible and followed by appropriate support both inside and outside the classroom.
Early diagnosis improves a child’s ability to reach their academic potential and also helps prevents the development of low self-esteem and behavioural problems that further interfere with their ability to learn.
Without early diagnosis, the potential to develop the skills they need to have a normal, successful life as an adult can be greatly reduced.
Earlier diagnosis will inevitably increase the number of children at school diagnosed with special needs which will necessitate an increased budget, I believe all pupils benefit when special needs children have early diagnosis and early intervention.
Wellbeing in Schools
Student wellbeing in schools is a shared responsibility. It is not and cannot be the sole responsibility of the schools. Wider support must be available to ensure that wellbeing of the whole school, learners, staff and leaders is a priority.
Wellbeing should be seen to include nutrition in the form of free school meals, regular exercise in an outdoor play space with greenery and after school activities and clubs.
Facilities should be capable of delivering wellbeing goals and it is my mission to ensure all schools in Jersey meet minimum standards and hopefully exceed them.
Safety in schools
The most recent School Survey had an overall response rate of 86% for years 6, 8 and 10. Almost a quarter of the children reported being bullied at, or near school during the previous year.
It appears that bullying affects our minority communities the most.
Only 6 in 10 believe that schools take bullying seriously.
We need to do our upmost to end bullying in school, both personally and digitally. We need to ensure that there is proper security for those who are bullied in school. Additionally, we need to provide psychological support to both the bullied and their families. We need to educate our children on the best way to deal with online bullying. The individuals who par-take in bullying behaviour also need our attention and to be helped. Racial discrimination in schools must be shown to be completely unacceptable.
Mental health support for students and staff should be routinely included as part of the curriculum, we should focus on preventative mental health support rather than in response to an incident or crisis.
Informal education – Youth services
Youth services play a vital role in our community and I will campaign for our youth service to receive statutory recognition.
While the youth services do an incredible job with local teenagers, there is very little engagement from non-Jersey born teenagers.
Often the children of individuals who have immigrated to Jersey struggle to find their place. With their parents working, and due to the fact many feel they do not fit in, they spend a lot of time alone and can often avoid their peers.
The Youth Services teaches young people and young adults to learn about themselves. Now the challenge is how to attract non-Jersey born children to help them to become active member of our community.
I would support activities which raise the percentage of not-native speaking residents attending youth clubs and centres.
Transport To And From Schools.
I support the development of traffic reducing, pupil friendly transport policies that include less private cars and more school buses on the road.
I supported the scheme for free bus passes for the under eighteens.
‘Walking bus”, cycling, car sharing and safe route to school are ways forward.
Art in Education
Theatre, Music and Art is an important part of education, and has a long cultural and educational history. Every child, from any background, should have a chance to play music if they wish, perform on stage and be part of an art exhibition.
We need to find ways to connect schools to the wider Jersey artistic community, to consider musical, theatre and art hubs, where schools and organisations, charities and private/professional musicians, actors and artists can collaborate with Government support the educational curriculum for the benefit and entertainment of the wider community.
I support University Education Grants
It should be possible for every hard working, talented individual to have the opportunity to attend University. Jersey needs a university educated workforce to compete as a global finance and digital centre. If we do not educate our locals, then we will surely have to import these professional.
We need to look into developing Technical apprenticeships which have been neglected over the years.
We must create a local environment and professional pathways which encourage our university graduates to return to Jersey.
We also need a mature student grant for those who want to make a career change in later life.
Working together
I support the creation of Jersey’s “Children First Group”. Being sponsored by both Education and Health and Social Services departments, this group will put the child and the family at the centre. The plan is to ensure that children and families in Jersey are delivered the best possible care and consideration whilst abolishing the duplication of activities.