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Frequently Asked Questions

Below you will find the answers to some of our most commonly asked questions

How much time does my school need to devote to oracy?
Being a Voice 21 Oracy School is a commitment over three years, eventually involving all staff in oracy across your curriculum, subjects and culture.
 
Each year, you can expect to invest time in the following activities with Voice 21:
  • 2 x in person Development Days across the year for your Oracy Champions
  • 3 x one to one, online consultancy sessions per year for your School Lead and Oracy Champions
  • 90 x minutes (approx.) of online CPD  is recommended for your wider teaching staff per term
  • 1.5 hour online presentation at the end of the year for your Oracy Champions
  • 3 x hour online implementation module over the year for your School Lead
Voice 21 Oracy Schools will also often use staff and departmental meetings, inset days, and their own CPD calendar to incorporate oracy development into their plans for the year.
 
Who are my Oracy Champions?
Oracy Champions are the staff you select to plan and implement the strategic roll out of oracy across your whole school (with our help, of course!). 
  • Primary, Infants, Junior and Special schools have 2 Oracy Champions
  • Secondary schools and Colleges have 3 Oracy Champions
  • You can pay £700 for an additional Oracy Champion.
We'd recommend that you select staff who have the passion and confidence to cascade a vision whole school - as well as the time to dedicate to Oracy.
What is a School Relationship Officer?

Your SRO is your single point of contact at Voice 21. Based in your region, they enable you to get the most out of your Voice 21 Membership by guiding you to relevant resources and online CPD whilst providing tailored advice about the next steps and implementation in your school.

What does the membership include?

Below are some of the main components of becoming a Voice 21 Oracy School:

  • Structured Programmes to follow each year, helping you implement Oracy into your Classrooms, Curriculum and Culture - whilst learning how to adapt and tailor to your students.
  • We develop the skills in your staff through a mixture of online and in-person CPD, resources and consultancy.
  • Annual impact measurement tools
  • A dedicated School Relationship Officer
  • Three online consultancy sessions, up to 90 minutes each, in your first year
  • Unlimited online learning through the Voice 21 Exchange modules and live open online learning for all staff in your school
  • Peer Open Mornings and networking
  • Exclusive publications, resources, and our Talk on Tuesday Newsletter.
  • Discounted tickets for national events like the Great Oracy Exhibition.
  • The opportunity to become an accredited Voice 21 Centre for Excellence 
  • The opportunity to purchase additional Oracy Champions
Can I speak to someone over the phone?

We understand there's a lot of information to digest about oracy and becoming a Voice 21 Oracy School!

 

If you have a quick question - please feel free to email us on join@voice21.org.

 

How do we become accredited and what is a Voice 21 Centre of Excellence?

A Voice 21 Centre for Excellence is a school accredited by Voice 21 for its practice in embedding and sustaining a high-quality oracy education, underpinned by the Oracy Benchmarks. Your school needs to be a Voice 21 Oracy School to be able to apply. If you're interested in learning more, reach out to your School Relationship Officer or get in touch with us at Voice 21.

How do I see what other schools are doing with oracy?

Voice 21 Oracy Schools regularly talk about their oracy journeys and we have dedicated case studies detailing their progress here.

How do I follow you on socials?

To make sure you’re up-to-date with all things oracy in education, as well as with Voice 21 news, events and resources, you can join our online community on Twitter (@voice21oracy), Linkedin (Voice 21 UK), and Facebook (Voice 21)

How can I recommend Voice 21 to another school or Trust?

We always love to talk to schools and trusts about our work. Thanks for connecting us. Please, put us in touch by emailing join@voice21.org

How do I sign up for Talk on Tuesday, the Voice 21 Member's Newsletter?

Talk on Tuesday is our exclusive member newsletter. By joining the Voice 21 Exchange, staff members in your school will be signed up to receive weekly top tips, insights and latest news.