Cambridgeshire Education ICT Service Fortnightly Briefing

Friday 9th October 2009

Central hosting major upgrade

Purpose:   Advance warning for centrally hosted schools

Audience:  All schools using central hosting

During November, the ICT Service has to carry out a major database upgrade that also involves commissioning new equipment. We have looked at a variety of ways of minimising disruption to services, but it will involve loss of service on two weekends: 14/15 November and 21/22 November. There will be no access to central hosting on the Saturday and a part of Sunday on those dates, though we hope to restore service as soon as possible on the Sunday. The Central Hosting Portal (which will still be available) will provide more information on the actual weekends. The ICT Service apologises for the length of these planned works, but these are the shortest times we can manage outside of normal school hours.

Online Reporting and SIMS Learning Gateway

Purpose:   Invitation to participate

Audience:  Secondary Headteachers and SIMS Managers

Secondary schools using SIMS will have received a letter advising them of an opportunity to start using SIMS Learning Gateway to meet the government expectation to report to parents online by September 2010. The letter gives details and a faxback form allowing schools to nominate the principal contact in the school for the ICT Service to work with. This project is heavily subsidized by Harnessing Technology Grant to reduce costs to schools.

Primary schools’ invitations will go out later this term as their target is September 2012.

IMPULSE conference

Purpose:    Details of forthcoming event

Audience:  All Cambridgeshire Headteachers & Senior Leaders

This strong and interesting agenda includes latest topics and matters of collective interest. This year, to meet the particular needs of Primary and Secondary, will also include 'breakout' sessions as further opportunity for discussion and developments.

Cambridgeshire Impulse Conference 2009

For Heads and Senior Leaders

Leadership, Management and Information



Millennium Hall, Buckden

Tuesday, 17^th November 2009 - 09:30 - 15:30

Oliver Cromwell Hotel, March

Wednesday, 18^th November 2009 - 09:30 - 15:30

Cambridge Professional Development Centre

Wednesday, 25^th November 2009 - 09:30 - 15:30

‘Improving Outcomes for Children and Young People’

                                                                                                           RAISEonline and Target Setting Project

                                                                                              The Learning Gateway and Online Reporting

     Workforce Census – new uses and opportunities

       BREAKOUT SESSION

                                                                                              Primary – new ToPP, Dinner Money

             Secondary – SIMS Learning Gateway, ToPPS (KS3)

                        LUNCH

          One to One Tuition and managing identified groups

                                                                                                                             FFTlive update

                                                                                                                             NEW Progression Guidance and children with special needs

Guest speakers include: Nigel Battey, Gordon Wilkinson, Angela Scott, Celia Davis

MUST BE BOOKED IN ADVANCE: 2 free places for each school including lunch .



Please note we are unable to accept bookings over the phone. You may call to check course detail and space availability on telephone 01480 376670 or email: ict.courses@cambridgeshire.gov.uk , unfortunately no places can be provisionally booked.

ESafety in the Primary Classroom

Purpose:    Spaces available

Audience:  Primary Teachers, TA's, ICT Subject Leaders

Are you and your colleagues ESafety aware?

Do you know what the key issues are?

Would you like to know more?

There is a half day course that will help you to review Esafety issues and help you to address the teaching and learning of esafety in your classroom.

The course will investigate practical examples you could readily use in the classroom based on nationally available resources and look at esafety within the Starz Primary Learning Platform.

Thursday 22nd October 2009 09:30 - 12:00 at Education ICT Service, Godmanchester

Please note we are unable to accept bookings over the phone. You may call to check course detail and space availability on telephone 01480 376670 or email: ict.courses@cambridgeshire.gov.uk , unfortunately no places can be provisionally booked.

Cambridgeshire Online Training Search

Cambridgeshire Online Training Search (COTS) is a database of training opportunities provided by the Local Authority. It can be accessed from any computer connected to the Internet without the need for a password; its powerful search engine will help you to find suitable courses. Eventually, all providers will be using this database, please check the Providers list for the services currently represented. You will already find the complete listing of courses offered by CAS, CREDS, SLS, Education ICT Service, ISSIS, Cambridgeshire Youth Work and Connexions.  Go to: COTS to access this service now.

ICT Service Blog and Helpline Blog

The information in this briefing is also available through our blog. This means that you do not have to wait for the fortnightly distribution; news items go online immediately. Other relevant information about ICT is posted there too. It is also possible to use the blog to comment on items and to give us feedback.

There is a link to the blog from our website or you can visit it directly at http://educationictservice.blogspot.com/ If you use a newsreader such as Google Reader, you can subscribe to the blog using the link in the left-hand column; your news reader will automatically highlight new blog items for you. If you would like to learn how to do this, contact the Helpline.

For up to the minute Helpline information, please visit the ICT Service Helplines Blog by searching for Resource id: 3750 from the Education Portal or by using this link: ICT Service Helplines Blog. You can subscribe to this blog in exactly the same way.

More ICT News on the Portal...

Do you regularly check the ICT News page on the Portal? It features all the latest ICT-related news of importance to Cambridgeshire's schools.

To take a look, simply search for resource ID: 584 from the Portal front page, or click on 'News' on the ICT Service home page (www.ict.ccceducation.net).