Education minister visits Hasmonean as further language support funding announced
Catherine McKinnell came to the Jewish primary school in Hendon to see its early language support programme, with the Government committing £3.4 million for next year
The Minister of State for School Standards visited a Jewish primary school on Friday, as the Government committed £3.4 million to be spent on continuing early language support programmes for schoolchildren.
Education Minister Catherine McKinnell came to the Hasmonean Primary School in Hendon to see an example of the programme in action. The school has been Hasmonean has been instrumental in introducing the ELSEC [Early Language Support for Every Child] programme to its Nursery and Reception classes. The scheme helps schools, nurseries and parents to support their children with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN). McKinnell was accompanied by leaders from the Barnet Education Service.
Commenting after her visit, the MP said: “Today, we’re announcing over £3m for the ELSEC programme to continue for another year.
“This will help 20,000 more children with speech & language difficulties & SEND [Special Education Needs and Disabilities] get earlier support to succeed at their local school.
“To see the programme in action, I visited Hasmonean primary school, which has already seen a real impact from the support. It was fantastic to see the teachers using fun, creative approaches to help their pupils build their speech and language skills!”
The school’s staff have had bespoke individualised training and have reportedly seen the positive impact of this programme across Nursery and Reception, so much so that it is now being brought to Hasmonean’s innovative Learning Space as well as Key Stage 1. The Minister observed an activity focused on developing children’s social communication skills.
Head of Early Years and SEN Support at Hasmonean Primary School, Jemma Brahams, said: “The impact on our pupils’ development has been really positive. The training provided on these interventions has been huge for us, as we now don’t need to wait for anyone to come into the school or go on any waiting lists – we can just take it forward straightaway.”
“The impact on our pupils’ development has been really positive too. As the activity is creative and interactive, it supports the children’s speech and language development, concentration and attention – we’ve seen so much progress.”
According to data from the Department for Education, developmental delays have been a growing issue since the pandemic, with more than 40,000 children waiting over 12 weeks for speech and language therapy as of June 2024.
This is particularly prevalent for children with SEND, where numbers have risen sharply from 1.3 million in 2020 to 1.67 million in 2024 – with one in four of these children requiring additional help to overcome difficulties listening, understanding and talking.
A parent of at Hasmonean Primary school whose child is part of the programme said: “Raphael is four and did not speak until recently, he only made noises which was so frustrating for him, but with interventions he has progressed amazingly.
“With 3-4 interventions a week he has massively grown in confidence, he is communicating with his friends and expressing himself more than ever – we are now hopeful that Raphael can go to Reception in September, which was not an option a few months ago!
“This programme has been so impactful for my son and it is amazing to see the work being done for children like Raphael.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
