Electronic Recording and Approval of Education Visits

The role of education visits is widely recognised as being an important element in achieving the outcomes of Every Child Matters. Therefore as part of our ongoing commitment to promoting and encouraging learning outside the classroom we propose to make a number of improvements to the Education Visits process which are intended to support schools and services.

The first of these is to replace the current EdVol system for the on line recording and approval of visits. This is as a result of a number of user comments and the long term suitability of EdVol. Consequently Children’s Services in partnership with Risk and Insurance has reviewed the suitability and sustainability of other systems on the market. As a result it has been decided to suspend the use of EdVol from 1 September and over the next year transfer to a new system called Evolve. Evolve has emerged from the options appraisal as the market leader which is simple to use, capable of being quickly updated to suit emerging needs and provides a number of other functions which will benefit users.

Therefore I would be grateful if Education Visit Co-ordinators ensure all future records and applications for approval of Category B visits are made through the paper system until Evolve is made available.

The new system will be introduced in the following stages:

Stage 1: Transfer of previous users of EdVol to Evolve through a series of training workshops to be held in each area during October and November 2007. These workshops will also introduce Evolve to those currently using the paper based system.

Stage 2: All future Education Visit Adviser Training will be based on the use of Evolve

Stage 3: Withdrawal of the paper based system by August 2008.

The management of the transfer to Evolve is being undertaken by Graham Lodge, our new Education Visits Adviser, who has very quickly identified and proposed what we believe will be a better system. Graham will also be revising the guidance for education visits which will be integrated into Evolve and therefore be more readily accessible. Should you have any questions or suggestions regarding Education Visits please contact Graham Lodge at Norwich PDC on 01603 433276.