This school has undergone dramatic changes in the past decade. The old Victorian building has been replaced with a modern well-appointed building. A well-resourced purpose designed area has been established for the Foundation Stage and the children have designed a ‘senses’ environmental area at the front of the school (achieving Bexley in Bloom’s ‘Best School Frontage in 2003’).
The Ofsted Inspection in 2002 praised the hard work, which had been needed to turn the school round from special measures in 1998. There were no major weaknesses identified for action. For three consecutive years (1999-2002) the school has received the School Achievement Award for improved standards.
The current Management Team have been appointed through internal promotions, which indicates the confidence the staff and governors have in their ability to continue to build the school’s effectiveness. Until this last year, the teaching staff have been stable for the past five years. In common with other London schools, change has been with overseas trained teachers returning home. Members of the support staff have been at the school for the longest time and have experienced the changes outlined above. Pupil mobility is minimal with the exception of the current year 6.
The Deputy Head teacher attended the Well-Being briefing meeting and recommended to the Head that for a minimal outlay the school could be involved in a worthwhile programme.
Completing the OSRM and raising the level of awareness of the aspects of wellbeing at individual and organisational level resulted in the Head and Deputy discussing a review of the communication systems.
The Leadership team wanted coherent and inclusive systems in place, understood by all to ensure a good level of communication in the school. They set up a cycle of meetings to ensure this:
The school also wished to raise levels of communication concerning the direction of the school. They wanted to ensure different sections of the school community were engaged in the process. It was agreed that the most effective method would be to have at least two reviews of the School Development Plan (SDP) throughout the course of the year. It was felt that this would involve all the different staff groups and help them to understand how their roles impact on the bigger picture.
The support staff raised the issue of roles and responsibilities needing to be clarified. In response to their concern, this issue is currently being discussed. The SMT are aware that they will need to revisit and engage with the issue over a period of time as the discussions and implementation of Remodelling takes its course. The co-ordinator of the TAs is very committed to the Well-Being Programme and to the school. She has said that the reason she has been at the school for 16 years is that it is a “very good school”.
Inducting new staff into the way communication works at this primary school is being addressed through the mentorship of Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) and other new staff by members of the SMT. This is overseen by an Advanced Skills Teacher (AST) who has responsibility for NQT mentoring and aspects of their training.
The school is very positive about the outcomes of the Well-Being Survey and intends to continue to a second year so that staff feel they have another way of recording their perceptions about the areas of strengths and development for themselves and the organisation.