Lane End Primary School

School Improvement Plan

At Lane End we are pleased to teach children with a variety of needs and from a variety of backgrounds and it is important to us that all the children in our school feel valued. The plan reflects our aim to provide the best possible education for all of our children.

 We aim to work in partnership with parents and the community to help further improve the school - this leaflet gives you a summary of the results from our most recent parents’ questionnaire.  We also make sure that we listen carefully to the children and use our Pupil Forum to gather information and suggestions for improvement from the children’s perspective. Along with our own internal monitoring and development areas identified by staff and governors we use this feedback to inform our school improvement plan each year.

Feedback from the Parent Questionnaire

One way in which we listen to parents is through our annual parent questionnaire. Below you will find the results of the questionnaire which was carried out in Spring 2012. Thank you to everyone who responded to the questionnaire. We used the VLE for the questionnaire for the first time for this questionnaire and would have liked a higher response (31 people completed the questionnaire – each person represents 3% of the responders). Using the VLE allows us to analyse the results more efficiently and effectively however for the next questionnaire, we will also produce a paper version in the aim of getting a higher response rate and so a wider picture.

The results are pleasing and reflect the hard work we put in to the school and your children’s experience at Lane End. There is always something to be improved and we use your feedback help us plan our school improvement for subsequent years. As a result of your feedback this year, for example, we have changed the date of parents' evening to November and introduced another Reception Parents' Meeting in November as well as the initial meeting after the children have settled in.

Overall, responses to the statements were very positive:

 We also asked the following longer questions:  What do you believe we do well as a school? What else could we do to improve further?  Any additional comments?       

All of these results feed into our school improvement plan for 2012/13. Whilst the results were very positive, we are always aiming to move the school forward to get the best for all of the children and we have already started using your feedback to help us improve.

We can all be very proud of our school and children and it is lovely to get some positive feedback from the questionnaire from parents, comments included:

The school has a great atmosphere and environment in which the children are comfortable and keen to learn. It is welcoming and encourages the children to progress. We are really pleased with how our daughter is progressing.

The school provides an environment that my child looks forward to attending each day. He enjoys the outside space to run around, burn off excess energy, explore and make dens etc. at play time… His regular targets show me that he is pushed enough to reach his potential.
There is a great range of after school clubs.

All children look really happy at school, which is great.

Well organised and clear and frequent communications with the parents. High standard of teaching. Encouragement to be independent.

The school's environment is safe & personal - it is like a second family home for the children!

The school gives each child the opportunity to realise their potential with appropriate teaching levels, guidance, targets & encouragement without the child feeling under pressure. The school also works hard to provide additional staffing resources to further enhance the children's learning experience when required. Communication is also very good & strong links maintained with various outside bodies e.g. church, other schools home & abroad, high school & various visitors e.g. Olympic athletes, fire dept.

I believe you develop the 'whole' child through a creative curriculum, links with the outside community and extra-curricular activities. Children are very aware of their academic levels and more importantly now how to improve them.

Parent communication is brilliant. I can directly compare this to our previous school which did not provide the same detailed level of information as Lane End.

I think you create a friendly and warm environment to learn in. I think you are well structured and organised as a school.

School has encouraged a happy relaxed atmosphere where children are eager to learn and develop.

Good support from PTA. It is also great to see staff supporting the PTA events.

I believe that the children are taught strong values and how their behaviour can affect those around them, which are good qualities to instil in all children.

The school is welcoming and has a strong sense of community in which student's thrive

The school appears to excel in teaching pupils to care and support each other. From a parents perspective the fact that pupils throughout the school seem so 'well rounded' testifies to this.

Having spent a lot more time helping in school it has shown me what a fantastic school we have, the teachers and teaching assistants are so dedicated to their role and to the Children.

Keep the children interested, enthusiastic and eager to learn. The teachers are kind, caring and inspiring. The lessons are exciting and enjoyable. The school encourages parents to be involved and interested in the school activities.

SUMMARY OF THE SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PLAN 2012 - 2013

OUR MISSION STATEMENT:

At Lane End Primary School we aim to work in partnership with all members of the school community to make teaching and learning exciting and enjoyable, support and challenge every child to achieve at the highest possible level and create a safe and secure environment where every child is happy, valued and prepared to make a positive contribution to our rapidly changing society.     

Excellence, Determination, Inspiration, Respect, Courage, Equality, Friendship

AIMS

Over the next 5 – 10 years we have identified 4 main areas we will be developing within the school.

A: To further develop teaching techniques and a meaningful curriculum which enthuses every child and enhances their individual learning.

B:  To develop our learning community (giving everyone in the school community the opportunity to learn together).

C:  To further develop our global perspective/ global citizenship (children understanding their place within the world) and to live the Olympic and Paralympic Values.   

D:  To create a 21^st Century school environment which enhances learning opportunities for all.

STEPS TO ACHIEVE THESE TARGETS

We are taking many steps to ensure that we achieve the targets we have set. 

Here are a few examples of ways we endeavour to achieve these:

1. To further develop teaching techniques and a meaningful curriculum which enthuses every child and enhances their individual learning

Our whole school “themed week” this year is going to be based on Science and Engineering with Mr Vallance leading the staff to deliver a wide range of interesting activities and challenges during the week.

We are focusing on further improving achievement in reading across all ability levels throughout the school. We are looking at the technicalities of reading (e.g. the children’s phonic knowledge) as well as taking a wider scope and looking at their ability to read for comprehension and ‘reading for pleasure’.  We hope to have an author visit school to inspire the children as well as doing work in class and assemblies. We are also upgrading the library thanks to the PTA’s fundraising all of which should add to the children’s love of books. Please keep sharing books at home with your children – hearing them read and reading to them. Displaying an enjoyment of books yourself and talking about what you and your child enjoy reading make such a big difference.  

We aim to use assessments to target additional resources and initiatives for specific children. We continue to put provision in place based on identified need. We also aim to challenge each child at the appropriate level within their class and find opportunities for children to use their talents and skills.  We set challenging targets for ourselves and the children which we strive to achieve.

2. To develop our learning community

We want to further develop partnerships with other schools to enhance our curriculum. We are aiming to share our own good practice and learning from others.

We are continuing to gain information about how to improve our school through the use of the pupil and parent questionnaires, our Pupil Forum and VLE. We want to develop the school together for the benefit of all of the children.

We want to further develop all staff so that everyone is able to provide the best educational experience for all of the children.

We want to develop our use of technology to bring our community together – e.g. our school website and VLE and to enhance learning – e.g. through the use of mobile technology.

3. To develop our global perspective/global citizenship

We are continuing our work on having a ‘Growth Mindset’ - enjoying a challenge and not being put off by failure but, instead, learning from it and persevering. We are also continuing to work on the Olympic Values of excellence, determination, inspiration, equality, courage, respect and friendship which have become an integral part of what we want to see in school each day.

We want to enrich assemblies with relevant visitors and organisations linked to our whole school aims.

We are aiming to further our African school link to impact on children’s understanding and appreciation of other cultures – we are looking into further partnership arrangements with Zambia.  

We want to make best use of the school garden including links to sustainability and the environment, cross-curricular links and links with parents, children and the community. We want to develop our use of the outdoor environment are looking into ‘Forest Schools’ and using the natural environment around school. We are aiming to start some Forest Schools work with Mrs Chamberlain and the Year 1 children.

D.  To create a 21st Century school environment which enhances learning opportunities for all.

We are updating our library, funded by the PTA, to make it fit for the 21^st   Century.

We would like to further develop our outside area and when funding allows, install more outside play and exploration equipment.

In consultation with the children we are going to refurbish and update aspects of the school they would like to see improved.  We are aiming to redecorate and refurbish to get the very best out of our school building and environment.

  Thank-you for taking the time to read this information, we hope you find it useful and that it gives you a better understanding of the improvements we are focusing on or intend to make. All of these steps are designed to help your child achieve their best and enjoy their education.  Please continue to work with us to achieve these aims.

Our School Improvement Plan is continually reviewed and developed. We will update you in the next academic year about our progress towards these targets and new targets we have set.

If you have any queries relating to this summary of the School Improvement Plan, or would like additional information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Many thanks,

 James Twigg