The VCN has been providing Voice workshops for educational organisations for the past 15 years.
Education
Teachers and Assistants often forget their most important tool is their voice. Read here for information on protecting it, for both the employees and employers.
Clear Speech for Effective Teaching and Managing Behaviour for Learning. A practical interactive workshop to boost vocal capability and clarity in the classroom. Advice on how to use the voice in a positive, calm and assured manner to help manage pupil behaviour.
Strategies for keeping your voice stronger for longer and communicate effectively developing your voice! A practical and interactive workshop designed to help you find, use, enjoy and maintain your voice. This one day workshop looks at ways to keep your voice healthy as well as use it to best advantage.
It is clear that the number of Support Staff in schools has increased rapidly in the last few years. Schools and Local Authorities have responded by providing much greater training and focus on all Support Staff, particularly HLTAs (higher level teaching assistants) and TAs.
There were over 30 Papers presented over the 2 very full days, from a range of UK and International specialists. Individual morning and afternoon sessions were chaired by well known and much respected people - John Rubin and Jan Svec, as well as Dr.Ruth Epstein and Philippa Ratcliffe from The Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital.
The inspiration behind the Symposium was Dr Ruth Epstein, Head of Speech and Language Therapy Services at the Royal. 
Dr.Lesley Hendy gave an excellent summary to the delegates of the current background that faces teaching staff. Whilst they have always been seen to be at 'higher risk' - the main reason for Roz starting the VCN over 15 years ago!
Classrooms of Sweyne Park School in Essex have been transformed. Hearing impaired students work with main stream pupils so the school is designated as a resourced school for hearing impaired pupils. It is also a Specialist Science Centre.
Two in five NQTs desert the classroom because of workload and pupils' indiscipline, GTC survey finds (Article from a recent TES). The first major survey into why huge numbers of new teachers quit the profession has revealed that they are driven out by badly behaved pupils and heavy workloads.
Noise can be bad for pupils and teachers, but architects put style over learning, says Bridget Shield, who gave a fascinating paper at our recent Spring Study Day and this article in a recent copy of TES.
ATL -The Association of Teachers and Lecturers – have booked the VCN to deliver more voice workshops for NQTs this summer. VCN will be delivering in London, York, Manchester and Birmingham in July and August this year, ahead of the new academic year.
As previously reported in Voice Matters – Spring Issue, the VCN was awarded some start up funding for a pilot project to deliver voice training workshops to fill gaps in CPD provision for teachers in England, by the TDA.
During this summer, VCN will be delivering many workshops to teachers and NQTs for members of the ATL (Association of Teachers and Lecturers), and the NUT (National Union of Teachers). Workshops are being delivered in Glasgow, Cardiff, London, Bristol, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle and Birmingham by a number of VCN Tutors around the country – Cathie Owen, Philomena Chandler, Sandra Gittleson, Suzanne Parke, Ria Richardson and others.
Recent letter received from a Local Authority near Manchester highlight the importance of the
Hants Council County recently contacted Head Office to deliver some specific Voice Training for Support Staff throughout the County. On behalf of VCN, Yvonne Morley delivered the first 2 in June and further workshops were immediately booked to cope with demand. We were delighted when their Professional Adviser, Patricia Langley, took the trouble to write in and personally thank Yvonne.
Following successful ‘pilot’ voice workshops in Poole and Bournemouth, the VCN was asked to provide a Key Speaker to the annual TA (Teaching Assistant) Conference being held on behalf of Poole/Bournemouth and Dorset Local Authoritie