This meeting will consider the validated results of Lewisham schools for the 2023/24 academic year. There will be a focus on the educational achievements of Black Caribbean heritage pupils, as well as a discussion about the number of families choosing to electively home educate their children. The committee will also use the meeting to review its previous work and consider which topics to prioritise in the year ahead.

School Standards

This part of the meeting will focus on a report that aims to give the committee an understanding of achievement in Lewisham schools in the 2023/24 academic year. It covers all schools in the borough, including academies.

The report describes the validated results of statutory assessments at the Early Years Foundation Stage, Key Stage 1, Key Stage 2, Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5.

It breaks down the headline figures by gender, whether a pupil is eligible for Free School Meals¹ and by ethnicity.

The report notes particular successes at the Early Years Foundation Stage, where Lewisham was ranked eleventh highest of all local authorities in England for the number of pupils achieving a Good Level of Development.

At Key Stage 2, the report describes an increase in the number of pupils who achieved the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. Lewisham pupils are now performing 2% above the England average for this measure.

However, the report does describe some challenges for Lewisham schools. In particular, the report notes that progress made by Black pupils in Lewisham consistently lagged behind the progress made by Black pupils across England as a whole. For example, at Key Stage 2, only 47% of Black Caribbean pupils achieved the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, compared to 61% of Black Caribbean pupils nationally.

The report also highlights Phonics at Year 1 and maths at Key Stage 2 as areas that need to be improved.

Tackling Race Inequalities in Education

The committee has requested an update on the work schools and the Council is currently doing to address race inequality and to improve educational outcomes for Black Caribbean Heritage pupils.

This portion of the meeting will consider a report about the Tackling Race Inequality in Education (TRIIE) project, which is funded by Lewisham Learning² and involves all Lewisham schools and Lewisham College.

The report describes the TRIIE project as having four main aims:

• To close the attainment gap between Black Caribbean pupils and their peers.
• To tackle systemic bias and racism.
• To reduce the number of exclusions.
• To support parents and communities.

The report describes a number of the project's activities and provides data about the progress that has been made in each area. It also includes an analysis of the 2023/24 educational attainment of Black pupils.

The report describes anxiety and mental health as an increasing issue in Lewisham. It states that the service has worked hard to ensure that children are safeguarded, highlighting 27 occasions in 2023/24 where a School Attendance Order had to be served because electively home educated children were deemed not to be receiving a suitable education.

Elective Home Education

The committee has requested a report on Elective Home Education (EHE).

This section of the meeting will focus on an annual report about EHE in Lewisham. The report provides context, describes the legal framework and sets out Lewisham's performance indicators. It also outlines the actions that Lewisham Council and Lewisham education providers are taking to make progress in the area.

The report states that although Lewisham Council has no formal powers to monitor the provision of EHE, it does have a duty to identify children in the borough who are not receiving a suitable education. To achieve this, the council's EHE Team tries to visit families within the first term after a child is withdrawn from school to review the education the child is receiving.

The report describes how the number of children who are electively home educated has increased both locally and nationally. At the end of the 2023/24 academic year, there were 540 children being electively home educated in Lewisham, an increase of 118 from the previous year.

The report provides a breakdown of the reasons why parents chose to electively home educate their children, noting that anxiety and mental health is a growing issue. It goes on to describe the council's work to ensure that children are safeguarded, particularly when a child has a Child Protection Plan.

Finally, the report describes the impact of the GCSE courses that Lewisham College now offers to electively home educated children aged 14-16. These courses are proving to be extremely popular and have had a significant impact on the number of electively home educated children taking GCSEs.

Select Committee Work Programme

This item provides committee members with an opportunity to review their previous work and make suggestions for the next year.

The committee will consider a report that describes the work the committee has done over the previous year. It will then discuss which topics to prioritise in the year ahead, noting that a draft work programme will be provided at the committee's first meeting in 2025/26.

The report notes that the committee met five times in 2024/25. It lists the topics that were considered, which included:

• Family Hubs and Children and Family Centres
• Pathfinder³
• Youth services
• Youth justice service inspection findings
• Budget savings
• Special Educational Needs and Disabilities inspection and strategy
• Children’s social care improvement
• Post-16 destinations, options and information, advice and guidance
• Tackling Race Inequality in Lewisham Schools
• The post-pandemic environment in schools, including validated school standards data

The report also sets out the areas that fall under the committee's remit. It explains that the committee has particular responsibility for:

• Schools and related services
• Children’s Social Care
• Transition for care leavers
• Youth services
• SEND provision for children and young people up to age 25