The Education Board of the City of London Council met on 10 June 2025 to discuss a range of topics, including the election of a chair and deputy chair, parental engagement, and the City Educational Trust Fund. They were also scheduled to discuss the revenue outturn for 2024/25, the London Careers Festival, and the Virtual School Headteacher Report.

Election of Chair and Deputy Chair

The report pack included the election of a chair and deputy chair as items for decision, in accordance with standing orders.

Parental Engagement Toolkits Report

The Education Board was scheduled to receive an update on the initial pilot evaluation of the Parental Engagement Toolkits, which were implemented across schools within the City of London Academies Trust (CoLAT).

The toolkits were designed to address barriers to parental engagement, including poverty, communication breakdowns, and language barriers. The toolkits are now entering a second phase of pilot testing, extending beyond CoLAT. According to the report pack, key findings from the initial pilot study included:

• High baseline engagement and confidence levels among parents
• Variations in practice across schools and phases
• Limited engagement with the toolkit by teachers
• A need for improvement in the toolkit structure
• Persistent barriers to engagement
• A strong desire for reciprocal engagement

The report noted that the toolkits have been revised in co-production with Ofsted inspectors and educators from a diverse range of schools, and that The Parenting Circle is actively incorporating feedback to develop improved, bespoke training modules for early adopters, which will accompany the revised toolkits.

The City Educational Trust Fund (CETF) Grant Management Update

The Education Board was scheduled to receive a quarterly update on the Primary Arts programme, which is funded by the City Educational Trust Fund (CETF). The City of London Corporation is the sole corporate trustee of the CETF, a charity that aims to further education for the public benefit.

A New Direction was awarded a £3,649,998 grant from the CETF across 48 months in April 2024 to roll out Primary Arts – a cultural arts programme across London's primary schools. According to the report pack, the number of sessions undertaken this quarter across all programme strands include:

• Cultural Education Leadership Programme: 2 sessions
• Masterclasses: 2 sessions
• Come & Try: 3 sessions
• Go & See: 1 session
• In-Schools Touring Programme: 92 CPD sessions, 100 performances, and 200 workshops

The report pack stated that a total of 7,505 children and 1,438 teachers took part in Primary Arts this quarter. The principal impact of the Year 1 programme to date is increased teacher confidence and motivation to try out new creative approaches across the curriculum.

London Careers Festival 2025 Evaluation and Recommendations

The Education Board was scheduled to receive the evaluation report for the London Careers Festival (LCF) 2025. The LCF aims to mobilise Square Mile organisations to be career advocates, inspire young Londoners to consider Square Mile connected careers, and support those facing the most challenge to explore the skills required for these careers.

According to the report pack, key findings from LCF 2025 included:

• An estimated 10,367 young people attended LCF 2025.
• 167 businesses, training providers, and livery companies participated in the delivery of LCF 2025.
• 85% of young people rated their experience as excellent or good.

The report pack also included a number of recommendations for LCF 2026 and onwards, including:

• Empowering young people to feel like they could work in central London
• Increasing representation of sectors of interest to the attendees
• Young people sharing their own perspective and interacting with other young people
• Enhancing on-the-day festival operations

Virtual School Headteacher Report

The Education Board was scheduled to receive information about the role of The City of London Virtual School. The Virtual School promotes and supports the education of all children in care, those who have been previously looked after, those living in kinship care arrangements, and those who have a social worker.

According to the report pack, the Virtual School acts as a conduit between Education and Social Care teams and works with partners inside and outside The City of London to support children and their families. The Virtual School team work to ensure smooth educational transitions, provide additional tuition and play therapy, and have supported families with applications for Education, Health and Care plans, in complex situations.

The report pack also set out the Virtual School's current priorities as set out in the School Development Plan:

• To work effectively with an increasing number of partners and services.
• To reduce the number of care experienced young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET).
• To embed all extended duties and include new cohort of children in kinship care.
• To increase access to the arts and sport.
• To provide successful education and enrichment projects for identified groups of children and young people

Revenue Outturn 2024/25

The Education Board was scheduled to receive the revenue outturn report for 2024/25. According to the report pack, actual net expenditure for the committee's services during 2024/25 totalled £3.173m, which was an overspend of £3,000 when compared to the final agreed budget for the year of £3.170m.

Other Matters

The agenda also included the receipt of the Order of the Court of the Court of Common Council of 25 April 2025, a report of action taken regarding CPG and CCL funding, and a questions section for members. There was also a motion to exclude the public for the discussion of certain items.