Bidford Primary School in national challenge award
Bidford-on-Avon Primary School has become only the third school in Warwickshire’s history to receive the NACE Challenge Award.
The National Association for Able Children in Education (NACE) visited Barford and conducted a thorough assessment of how the school encourages and stretches its most able pupils.
The NACE inspector observed lessons, interviewed class teachers, the inclusion manager, assistant head teacher, parents, pupils and governors and rigorously examined works carried out by pupils.
Several criteria were identified in which the school is excelling. These include:
· Collaborative activities which allow pupils to work with a partner
· Homework activities which allow pupils to record their work in a variety of media
· Sports and arts being valued and celebrated equally with academic subjects
· How high performance is celebrated; all teachers identify ‘work of the week’, ‘writers gallery’ and ‘pupils for special mention’
· The invitation to parents to share in the successes of their children on a regular basis. Talking to the inspector, they said they were ‘very proud of their school’
· The extensive range of displays in class and around the school supporting learning. These feature work in progress, group targets and finished examples
· The school’s process of identification of able pupils and how the assessment and tracking of pupils’ progress gives teachers detailed knowledge of abilities and enables ‘personalised learning’ approaches
· The confident use of ICT by teachers to enhance learning
The school’s inclusion manager, Laurie Whiting, has also been invited to NACE’s conference in June to run a workshop on the school’s journey to accreditation, independent learning and collaborative episodes.
She said: “It is an absolute honour for the National Association of Able Children in Education to accredit Bidford Primary. Every pupil in the school is important and we have high aspirations for all our children. The pupils have responded to our efforts to create a curriculum that will extend them. This recognition is rare and coveted and so much of it is down to the hard work and ability of the pupils.”
Cllr Heather Timms, portfolio holder for Children, Young People and Families said: “We are very proud of the children in Bidford and delighted not only that they have achieved this challenge award for encouraging outstanding achievement but also that the NACE wants the school to showcase its approach to nurturing gifted and talented children is an accolade that we should be proud of.”