(Images: Swansea Teachers visiting Harlem Children’s Zone in New York)
A delegation of 11 teachers from schools in Swansea recently returned from a visit to the renowned Harlem Children's Zone in New York City. They were in Harlem to learn firsthand about the "Community Schools Approach" championed by groundbreaking organisations like HCZ. The model is a key part of the Welsh Government’s wider policy for tackling the impact of poverty on educational attainment and was explored at the Community Focussed Schools conference in Wrexham last week.
Over the course of a packed week, the teachers connected with HCZ's model, meeting with practitioners, observing community partnerships, health initiatives, family engagement programmes, after-school activities, and strategies for boosting community engagement and educational outcomes in underprivileged areas.
This was the third such visit facilitated by British Council Wales to provide professional learning opportunities and global perspectives on community-focused education models. Previous trips took Welsh teachers to New York in 2017 and Florida in 2019. The trip came as part of British Council Wales IEP programme, funded by the Welsh Government.
"We've been blown away by the Harlem Children's Zone. The passion of the staff, the interconnectedness of the entire organization, and the commitment to ensuring no child slips through the cracks - it's truly inspiring," said Peter Owen, head teacher at Townhill Community School in Swansea. "HCZ provides a powerful model for us to reflect on how we can improve outcomes for our most economically disadvantaged learners."
Ruth Cocks, Director of British Council Wales, emphasised the value of the international exchange. "Connecting our teachers with pioneering global programmes helps bring innovative ideas into practice here in Wales. This project with Harlem Children's Zone will provide invaluable insights to help develop Wales’s community schools’ model. These professional development visits have led to deep connections and learning between USA and Wales, the results of which we can now see benefiting both nations.
She added about the Community Focussed Schools conference in Wrexham saying: “We heard some inspiring stories from teachers and schools about the community-focussed projects they’re undertaking across North Wales and from policy leaders on the developments in policy around community schools”.
The visits align with the Welsh Government's priority of adopting a community schools approach to support pupils, schools and their wider communities.
“Our ambition is for all schools in Wales to be Community Focused Schools - responding to the needs of their community, building a strong partnership with families and collaborating effectively with other services," said Education Secretary Lynne Neagle. "The conference presented an excellent opportunity to invite international perspective on our work in Wales and to showcase Welsh examples of schools that have effectively developed Community Focused Schools approaches.”
The Community Focused Schools conference was held in North Wales for the first time last week, convening over 100 practitioners in Wrexham. Presentations put the spotlight on multi-agency partnerships, family engagement strategies, and the impacts of the engagement model in areas like Wrexham, Prestatyn and Llangefni.
Key speeches at the conference came from Dr. Amy Ellis from the University of Central Florida's Center for Community Schools who lent her expertise from the US. Also from Nicola Edwards, Deputy Director, Equity in Education Division, Welsh Government.
Highlights from North Wales came from Donna Dickenson, Head of Service Prevention and Support, Wrexham County Borough Council and Lisa Mathews, Community Focused Schools Manager, Wrexham County Borough Council.
The Community Focused Schools conference continues the British Council’s work, building connection, understanding and trust between people in the UK and overseas.
To find out more about the work of British Council Wales visit https://wales.britishcouncil.org/en or follow on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.
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Rosalind Gould | Media Manager, UK
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