LDBS Academies Trust Spring Newsletter

LDBS Academies Trust

LDBS ACADEMIES TRUST

SPRING 2024

Table of

Contents 3

4

7

Letter from Chair of Trustees

Stanwell Fields

Meridian Angel

10

13

14

St Andrew and St Francis

Holy Trinity

St Richard's

16

18

19

Millbrook Park

St Michael's

St Anne's

20

22

24

St Paul and All Hallows

Message from our CEO

Trust developments

Letter from our Chair of Trustees

02

Stanwell Fields

Getting outdoors!

At Stanwell Fields we pride ourselves on our extensive grounds on the periphery of Heathrow with its huge green field, woodlands and space for extra curricular clubs. Using our DfE out of school funding has been a key priority this term and this is evident in the expansion of opportunities on offer to our pupils; many of whom do not have access readily available to gardens and times to visit green spaces.

The Junior Achievement Challenge (JAC) is an awards programme designed to help children develop as individuals, challenge them in a range of different ways and help them build life long skills whilst having fun. At Stanwell Fields, we have successfully provided our pupils the JAC programme since September 2017 and now offer all three awards: Bronze, Silver and Gold. It is a multistage award scheme - where pupils must achieve a certain number of hours in the following areas: Hobbies and Skills, Fitness, Adventure, Community and Eco. Those participating in JAC develop confidence, teamwork, resilience, independence and are inspired to reach their full potential.

Visit from Kylie Grimes - Paralympian We were very lucky to have an inspirational start to our new club offer from amazing Paralympian Kylie Grimes. Everyone was wowed by her story, about how she overcame challenges and went onto to win Olympic Gold. Kylie then put everyone through their paces in a high energy aerobic routine which really fired the children's drive to participate. The school also raised over £1700 towards facilitating more sports in the future.

Dance club offers Year 1 and 2 pupils the opportunity to work as a team and learn team spirit, learning new dance skills, helping them to improve their fitness while doing something they enjoy and love! Pupils work on flexibility, dance coordination and allowing them to listen to a variety of different music genres and learning different styles of dance with our new dance equipment. It also gives pupils the chance to express themselves and their feelings in a different way through dance.

SPORTS at STANWELL FIELDS

Stanwell Fields football was relaunched with the aid of Coach Lucy Gunning - parent, SFCP kitchen staff and FA qualified coach. Coach Gunning has high expectation of conduct and sportsmanship which has permeated through every training session and match with ever improving success. What is great has been the involvement of both boys and girls in the beautiful game.

Dodge Ball Club has been hugely popular and what better way to show off new skills of ball control and working together as a team than a Dodgeball Match - yes SFCP won.

Pupils have been learning new skills from professional hockey coaches from nearby Ashford Hockey Club, using our grant to purchase new equipment to make this sport available to all children.

Meridian Angel

Spring Term!

Language of the Term: Portuguese • We launched ‘Language of the

Term’.

• It was Portuguese and we

launched it by inviting a Portuguese speaking parent in to share key words and phrases with us.

• This was shared on Class Dojo and

during collective worship.

• We invited a few other parents in

to support the translation of key words and phrases from English into Portuguese.

Newspaper Club: Wednesdays @ 8am • Newspaper club started on

Wednesday mornings at 8am.

• Children turned up to school at

7.55am ready for an 8am start.

• All children had a chance to discuss

current affairs and matters happening in the news around the world.

Kevin, Y5 Accra, said to a Trustee: “In newspaper club we have conversations about what is happening across the world, and we then get maps out to find out where these places are.”

• These words and phrases were

used across the school.

Vanisy, Y3 Sofia, said: “I understand all lot of those phrases and I’m glad others in the school are learning them too.”

Planting wildflowers – sustainability.

• John Gilbert, our Newspaper Man, worked with our KS2

children to plant wildflowers to support sustainability.

• The children in KS2 along with John went out to the

school planters and sowed seeds for wildflowers.

• This gave the children an opportunity to take their

learning out on the school grounds and start something they will see flourish.

• We will keep you updated, and pics will be sent through

in due course.

Author Visits EYFS/KS1 • Anne-Marie Anyang (author of ‘I am Nefertiti’) came in to visit the

EYFS/KS1 children.

• She shared her stories with the children and introduced them to 2

musical instruments: the Kalimba and the Marimba • Lots of fun and learning took place.

• We have taken note and will ensure more of these activities happen.

Asu, Y2 Kingston, said: “I want to do that again.”

KS2 • Breis (author of ‘Brilliant Rappers Educate Intelligent

Students’) came in to visit the KS2 children.

• He shared stories of his journey and took the children through

his book of rhymes and the inspiration behind them.

• The children had an opportunity to write their own rhymes

with input from Breis.

Young Voices Young Voices performance at the O2: • A select number of children rehearsed and prepared as part of the school choir, and they

performed at the O2 today for Young Voices • A lot of time and effort went into this from the adults and the children, and they were

excited about performing to thousands on such a grand stage • Thank you, families, for all your support in the build up to this and a huge thank you to

Ms Ansah, Mrs Hitchens, and Mrs Bennett for coordinating it all.

• Families, you were amazing!

• The number of you that turned up to support your children at the O2 was moving.

• We greatly appreciated your support and I know the children were so happy to see and

know you were there for them.

• The performances from the children were amazing and videos were posted on

ClassDojo.

• Children are already asking when the next performance will be – watch this space eh!

St Andrew and St Francis

‘Encourage one another and build each other up.’

Spring term marked the start of an exciting new partnership between IntoUniversity and SASF. IntoUniversity is an educational organisation that seeks to raise pupils' aspirations whilst equipping them with the skills and knowledge required to achieve their goals. Children growing up in Britain’s least privileged neighbourhoods have always faced an uphill struggle, resulting in very few children achieving either a university place or entry into their chosen field. Data indicates that the most disadvantaged young people in England are 4 times less likely to attend university than the least disadvantaged group and this difference increases to 11.4 times less likely for higher tariff institutions (UCAS End of Cycle Report, 2021). Data also demonstrates that young people from disadvantaged backgrounds are 50% more likely to be NEET (not in education, employment or training) than their similarly qualified but betteroff peers while young people from disadvantaged backgrounds with better qualifications are less likely to be NEET (Youth Jobs Gap: Establishing the Employment Gap, Impetus, 2019). IntoUniversity was established in 2002 to break the link between economic disadvantage and educational underachievement that can permeate every stage of a child’s education.

IntoUniversity shares SASF’s belief that, with support, every child can achieve their chosen aspiration, whether that is higher education, employment or training. We are both committed to helping our children on this journey and so have come together to facilitate long-term success.

Currently, our KS2 children are undertaking IntoUniversity’s Primary FOCUS Programme; this is designed to inspire and support children’s ambition through dedicated, long-term support that has the potential to break the cycle of disadvantage.

Bringing schools, universities and corporate partners together, FOCUS provides information, advice and guidance, supporting the development of key skills through fun and immersive workshops. In addition to this, exciting trips provide pupils with the firsthand opportunity to learn about different careers and universities. IntoUniversity inspires children to think about their future education and the world of work, culminating in a week of concentrated learning on a university degree subject in Year 6. To date at SASF, IntoUniversity has explored the concept of a 'career' with Year 3, practised transferable skills with Year 4 and explained what a university is to Year 5. All their programmes encourage teamwork and confidence-building; they also work closely with our teachers to tailor the activities to pupils’ individual needs so that all students are fully included.

Miss Kingsley, a Year 4 class teacher, reported that their first IntoUniversity workshop – about future careers and skills – was highly informative and interactive. The children were taught that a skill is something that they can learn and develop over time and were introduced to various skills needed in a career. Whilst divided into three mixed attainment groups, children had the opportunity to participate in three different career-based activities: Scientist, Museum Curator and Foley Artist. Each activity on the carousel allowed the children to explore the different skills required in each job.

Adults noted that the students were engaged and well-behaved. They absolutely loved the experience of wearing badges, using the career specific props (test tubes, historical artefacts and instruments) and sharing their ideas with the IntoUniversity team. At the end of the workshop, the class discussed skills they had acquired from and used during the hands-on activities, which included problem solving, communication, listening, decision making and teamwork.

As a school, we were keen to take up the opportunity to work with IntoUniversity because evidence suggests that early intervention is key to breaking down barriers in education. Career-related learning in primary schools can also help to broaden children’s horizons and can have a lasting impact on their perceptions and knowledge of different occupations. IntoUniversity’s support begins with children aged seven but continues through secondary school and even post-18, as young people start their next chapter in life. Therefore, as a school, we can be confident that the aspirations our pupils have developed whilst at SASF will continue to be supported once they have left us.

IntoUniversity does not limit their support to those who have been labelled ‘bright’ or ‘gifted’; like us here at SASF, they believe that every child has talent. We were particularly keen to work with them as we want every one of our pupils to progress to an excellent post-school destination. Both SASF and IntoUniversity are committed to helping them on their journey to success, however that may be defined.

IntoUniversity’s annual results show that with their help, thousands of young people achieve their chosen aspiration, including university, further and higher education, employment and work-based training; this is what we want for all our pupils!

Cultural capital (the currency for social mobility) is one of SASF’s five curriculum concepts and, therefore, is at the heart of everything we do. A recent report indicated that overall, 80% of students are likely to gain financially from attending university. A university degree is likely to be a good investment for all groups, but especially for students from the lowest-income families. Research like this further bolsters our intention to support our children to achieve the best possible outcomes in life and our partnership with IntoUniversity is one way we are making this happen.

Engineering Day at Into University Brent. The children learnt about a day at university - they took part in a lecture, a seminar and this practical activity where they had to design and build a sustainable city using recyclable materials. Prizes were given out for respect, teamwork and aiming high.

Holy Trinity

Our whole school Palm Procession around our local community. Children caused a wonderful noise as they called 'Hosannah, Christ is Risen' through the houses next to our school.

We had people waving from windows and people smiling at the faces of joy on our children as they waved their paper palms.

St Richard's

Reading & Maths Cafes Family members have had the opportunity to come into school and engage in fun and interactive reading and maths cafes.

At the reading cafés, everyone was treated to story-time followed by hands-on book-related activities. There were also lots of books to read and enjoy together. At the maths cafes, a range of problem-solving activities and puzzles were on offer to test mathematical minds both young and old.

Of course, everyone - Mums, Dads, grandparents and younger siblings - enjoyed the obligatory tea, coffee, juice and biscuits!

Sponsored Bounce We continue our fundraising efforts to raise money for our school library project, which is now underway. The school community raised an incredible £1800 through a sponsored bounce this term. We are looking forward to sharing the library developments with you all in next term's Newsletter!

Reading for Pleasure: School of the Year 2024 For the last 3 years, St Richard's has been a participant in Get Hounslow Reading: a longterm borough-wide commitment to improving children’s life chances through inspiring them to read. The project has seen all our teachers from EYFS to Year 6, learning how to embed a reading for pleasure culture across the school.

Lauren McCarthy, Deputy Headteacher, has led the project in our school and has also been appointed as a Get Hounslow Reading Ambassador. We were delighted that her commitment and passion for reading were recognised at the 2024 conference, where St Richard's was named 'Reading for Pleasure: School of the Year 2024'!

World Book Day 2024 This year's World Book Day competition was our best yet, with an impressive array of characters and book-related models. Families embraced their creative side and made the judges jobs very difficult indeed. A winner was chosen from each class and was treated to a trip to Waterstone's to buy a book of their choosing.

Millbrook Park

Reading at the local care home A number of our Reading Ambassadors walked down the road to our local care home, to read to the residents. This was such a positive experience for all involved and really supported two of our school values - kindness and community spirit. The care home have been really keen to arrange for our children to visit and it feels like we have developed a long term relationship in our community.

DJ Team Our lunchtime radio DJs are now sporting their new DJ hoodies! It was brilliant to be able to provide them with their new kit and they have all been really proud to wear it around school.

The DJs have been developing their role this year and provide announcements over the microphone, including club start times and birthday wishes!

Our Radio Shed has now been fully converted into an outdoor library too! Our brilliant PTA has stocked it full of amazing books and made it look really inviting. The children love reading at lunchtime and we hope that when the weather improves - they will be able to spill out onto the playground too.

03

As part of a relaunch of our behaviour approach across school, we have revamped our Star Award assemblies. The children come into assembly and sit at the front of the hall on special seats. We then all find out why they have been selected for Star Award, which is such a positive experience.

On the following Monday, the Star Award children join me in my office for a chat with juice and biscuits. I feel very privileged to spend this time with the children and it is lovely to hear about some of what they have been doing inside and outside of school.

This lovely piece of artwork has been created by our lunchtime art club. The children have worked so hard to include themselves, as well as words that are really important to them and our school.

It is going to take pride of place in our front office.

St Michael's

Year 5’s culinary journey, travelling back to the Tudor era! The children developed their food & nutrition skills, whilst whipping up some delicious seasonal vegetable soups.

Our EYFS children have loved learning about the past. They were excited to get into the role of palaeontologists, excavating fossils.

The children enjoyed dressing up for World Book Day. They developed their love of reading, and took part in activities linking to their chosen text.

St Ann's

Nursery Flight to Kenya Nursery returned to their classroom after lunch to discover it had been turned into an ‘airport’. They boarded their flight to Kenya and enjoyed healthy onboard snacks of passion fruit, avocado, mango and pineapple. All inspired by their class story 'Handa's Surprise'

Geography & Team Building in Norfolk Y5 spent three days in Norfolk on a geography field trip learning about the geology and landscape, environmental issues and building their confidence and resilience.

03

St Paul and All Hallows

Our Year 5 & 6 pupils were visited by Leo Powell, who delivered a very informative and thought-provoking talk about county lines. The talk was delivered in a very child friendly manner, and even made use of the pupils’ drama skills during the delivery. Feedback from the pupils was that they have learnt a lot and now feel more confident about making the right decisions and to make sure that they stay safe.

The Year 6 parents attended a SATs maths workshop, which was delivered by the Year 6 class teacher, Mr Crowley. The focus was on reasoning and the pupils demonstrated to their parents how they go about solving these problems. Feedback from parents was that they did not realise that the maths their children are doing can be so complicated.

They were very appreciative for the workshop and now feel more able to support their children at home.

Litter Picking Our Year 1 & 2 pupils met with the Head of School to discuss how they can do something for our community. They did not like to see litter in the streets on their way to school, so decided that they would like to do something to make our local community look better. They have started picking up litter in the streets around the school and they are very proud to be able to give something back to the local community.

07

A message from our CEO As the days of celebrating Easter approach, let us remember that God gave His only Son so we may have life everlasting (John 3:16). Easter is a time to remember and give thanks to God. May the love and sacrifice of Jesus be recalled as we celebrate the risen Lord.

Each moment of the life of Jesus had purpose.

I always feel my joy and optimism lift this time of year as the days get longer and the signs of spring make their presence felt in our communities. It is truly wonderful to see the richness of creativity, hard work, innovation, and spirit evident in our schools. I am always in awe of the work that happens in each of our schools every day. In this issue we celebrate some of the beautiful work of our pupils and staff across LAT and LAT 2.

This term has seen many events marking International Women’s Day, celebrating World Book Day and our love of reading, supporting local charities, field trips and excursions.

The sheer passion and energy to learn has been a joy to see across all our schools and in our two nurseries.

Our interim executive headteachers are leading on developing a Trust Curriculum with all our school leaders. We are making significant progress to ensure all our children are in receipt of a broad, ambitious, exciting and engaging curriculum including a commitment to the arts and music.

02

Our Trust Curriculum reflects our Trust’s Vision: Jesus promised a life in all its fullness which means that we value each person as the individual God made them to be; we encourage creativity and teamwork in our schools; we encourage forgiveness and put others’ needs before our own; we actively encourage everyone to work to care for creation; learning the full range of subjects (including Religious Education) and always aiming for excellence. Daily Collective Worships is provided as a space to ask big questions, reflect on what is happening in the world around us and pray. Put simply, our schools are life-giving.

All our schools are developing their own Inclusion Charter. We believe inclusive learning and teaching recognises all pupil's entitlement to a learning experience that respects diversity, enables participation, removes barriers and anticipates and considers a variety of learning needs and preferences. We are extremely proud of the progress we are making.

Using evidence-based research from the EEF, we are working across all our schools to support adaptive teaching. So what is adaptive teaching? Adaptive teaching focuses around being responsive to information about learning, then adjusting teaching to better match pupil needs. In that respect, it’s a helpful term that does what it says on the tin. We are committing the time to develop exactly this kind of shared understanding.

We have been blessed to have had another successful term. Here is to another fantastic term ahead of us.

Wishing you a blessed and joy-filled Easter, overflowing with the grace of God. Christalla Jamil CEO of the LDBS Academies Trust

02

Trust Developments

Year 5 children from each of our Trust schools visited The Houses of Parliament. They were shown around and had the opportunity to ask questions about the political system in the United Kingdom.

The summer term will see the creation of our own Trust Parliament!