Great Yarmouth Primary Academy Prospectus

An Inspiration Trust Academy

We care, we share, we dare to do more

Welcome to Great Yarmouth Primary Academy, which we believe is a fantastic place to learn.

I feel incredibly fortunate to be the Principal at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy, where we focus on giving every child the best opportunity to flourish ensuring they are the best possible version of themselves and develop a love of learning which will remain with them for life.

We are passionate about ensuring our children achieve exceptionally well both academically and in their personal development. We want children to leave primary school with excellent academic outcomes as well as developing into exceptional young adults who continue to the world around them positively.

I look forward to welcoming you and your child to Great Yarmouth Primary Academy and sharing the exciting opportunities we offer with you.

Mrs Guy, Principal

Our Core Values

Look Up

We strive for excellence. We have created a culture where our pupils are resilient, passionate, committed and enthusiastic learners; they work hard to achieve success and our staff work hard to ensure we provide an excellent, exciting education for all. We keep looking up.

Look Around

Our curriculum provides rich knowledge through the teaching of individual subjects and our wider curriculum. We will provide a fully rounded education that supports every pupil to grow personally and socially as well as academically. Our curriculum is enriching. Our students will be able to be part of the conversation of society by being curious, honest, loyal and fair. We pay attention to the world around us.

Our Mission

Great Yarmouth Primary Academy aims to ensure pupils encounter academic opportunities, regardless of their socioeconomic background. Additionally, we intend to provide our children with a wealth of experiences and opportunities for personal development, with a particular emphasis on building resilience.

Look Out For Each Other

Our students will be kind, supportive, caring and compassionate. Our parental community is committed and supports our high standards and expectations. In our school where expectations are high, our pupils can and will exceed social expectations. We will look out for every pupil and ensure they look out for each other too.

Supporting Pupils at Every Stage

Here at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy we recognise that Early years education is vital for the future success of our children. We give our pupils the best start in their education journey.

Our Early Years Teaching Approach

Reading is at the heart of our Early Years curriculum and we use the Read Write Inc programme to teach our children how to read accurately and fluently through the use of phonics. This also supports early spelling and writing and gives all of our children a brilliant foundation to develop as readers and writers.

Stories and poems feed our pupil’s imaginations and allow them to experience high-quality literature. Vocabulary is developed through teaching of core words and knowledge, allowing our pupils to read and understand as many words as possible.

Early teaching of mathematics is also part of our approach to early years learning. We focus on securing mathematical understanding and fluency. We use pictures and physical aids, such as counters and coins to introduce concepts before children are introduced to abstract ideas.

We combine teaching and modelling with structured play to develop children’s personal, social and emotional skills. Through our approach, we believe that children gain all the knowledge they need to investigate the world around them, both physically and imaginatively.

Transition to School

Starting school is a big change for children. We work hard to support them during this time. Once your place at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy is confirmed, we will ensure our Early Years Lead visits as many children as possible in their current nursery or at home.

We then offer a transition morning where children can visit school and meet their teacher.

In September, children will have a transition period where they are supported into school.

For our children with Special Educational Needs we will offer a transition which is appropriate for them and their needs. This will be done through conversation with parents and their nursery setting if appropriate.

SEND Support

At Great Yarmouth Primary, we are committed to ensuring that learners with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are fully included in the life of the school and are able to thrive academically and socially.

If your child has an identified special educational need or an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), the first step is to talk to our SENCo.. Our SENCo can give you an overview of the kinds of reasonable adjustments and provisions which are typically made for learners with SEND at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy to ensure that they can access the curriculum and enrichment opportunities.

Once your child’s place at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy is confirmed, we will discuss your child’s barriers to learning with you and your child in detail. We will also talk to your child’s current setting (if applicable) and any other professionals working with your child.

Together we will draw up a plan with shortterm targets focussed on your child’s special educational needs. The plan will include

provisions that reduce your child’s barriers to learning as well as strategies that your child’s teacher(s) can use in lessons.

Learning Plans, provisions and targets are reviewed on a termly basis with both you and your child and adjusted as needed to reflect their changing needs. If your child has an EHCP, the short-term targets will be linked to the EHCP outcomes.

We also offer coffee mornings where our SEN team are available to answer questions and support our parent community.

For more detailed information about what our academy does to support learners with SEND, please read our SEND Information Report on our website.

Communicating with Parents

The school parent partnership is a vital element in a pupil being successful in their educational journey. There are a number of different ways in which the school will communicate with parents in relation to learning, personal development, attendance as well as a wide range of other information.

This consists of;

- 2 x parents meeting

- 1 x full report

- Additional meetings for children

- Weekly newsletters.

Pastoral Care and Safeguarding

We offer extensive pastoral support. We have a dedicated inclusion team as well as a Parent Support Advisor and Safeguarding Leads. These teams work collaboratively to offer the best possible support for children and families.

Our Parent Support Advisor works with our families, supporting in a range of different ways. From food bank support, uniform support or family support, they also help with our Friends of GYPA group.

Our Safeguarding Lead works with our parents and pupils to support worries and concerns. They are available on the school gates and a meeting can also be arranged.

The Safeguarding Lead works with all class teachers to identify concerns and support both the pupil and parents.

This will often involve losing with external professionals to support all involved. This will often involve losing with external professionals to support all involved.

The Primary Safeguarding Lead for Inspiration Trust manages and supports our safeguarding and attendance team. They are available in school regularly and work to support pupils and families.

Some of our children may need additional social, emotional and mental health support at times, at GYPA this could include individual therapy, inclusion team activities based around emotional literacy or supported break and lunchtimes for pupils.

Our Curriculum

From the very start of their educational journey in Reception right up to the end of Key Stage 2, we provide a nationally-recognised curriculum that is both inclusive and ambitious.

We aim to provide all pupils with a broad and balanced, fully inclusive curriculum which equips them with the knowledge, vocabulary and skills they will require to be fully prepared for their next steps.

Reading, writing and speaking are the enabling skills that will make aspirations possible. At the heart of our knowledge-rich curriculum is a deliberate focus on readingboth through explicitly teaching vocabulary across subjects and through promoting reading for pleasure.

GYPA aims to ensure pupils encounter academic opportunities, regardless of their socio-economic background. Additionally, we intend to provide our children with a wealth of experiences and opportunities for personal development, with a particular emphasis on building resilience. We believe that a carefully sequenced, subject-specific approach enacted through thorough teaching and

pedagogies is the best way to provide children with the cultural capital they will require to participate in conversations within society.

We also recognise the disciplines of each subject and teach children to recognise these. This is supported by a rich variety of experiences, with a renewed focus on sports and the arts as part of our post-pandemic recovery, as well as external visits that our children may not typically encounter in their everyday lives. We also have weekly PE lessons which support children in developing a love for sport and exercise as well as developing their sporting skills.

At the heart of everything we do is the GYPA way, a set of aspirational tools which provide a strong foundation for our curriculum to build on.

Leaders have developed an ambitious curriculum. OFSTED 2021

Progress and Attainment

We support our pupils in striving for the best possible academic progress and attainment.

As a school our Reception pupils achieve exceptional outcomes which make sure they have the best possible start to their primary school education.

This progress is continued with pupils making excellent progress during their time at school and finishing Year 6 with good outcomes, making sure they have the best possible future success.

Music Matters at Great Yarmouth Primary

The Inspiration Trust strongly believes in the power of music to enhance lives, both through the sheer pleasure of listening to and enjoying music, and through the discipline of individual and group playing and singing. As part of our extended Arts and Culture Programme, pupils have the opportunity to take part in a variety of plays, concerts and music competitions.

As part of our commitment to music education, we also offer our students a range of peripatetic lessons with our highlyskilled and experienced team of Visiting

Music Teachers - these include piano, singing and recorder lessons. Learning to play an instrument helps students to develop cognitive and social skills, expand language and motor skills, as well help build determination and patience. Plus, it is fun!

Our pupils are encouraged to participate in numerous Trust-wide music competitions and Inspiration Trust has made a pledge to have a full orchestra or musical ensemble in every one of its schools by 2027.

Every year our students get to take part in our Trust-wide Carol Service.

An annual tradition, the Carol Service sees pupils from all across our sister schools - primaries, secondaries and sixth forms - join forces to perform a series of traditional carols and hymns in the Winter Term.

Always a big calendar event, the Carol Service is a fantastic opportunity for our students and staff to showcase their brilliant musical capabilities, whether through playing instruments or singing, while getting to perform in an iconic location.

The Carol Service is a fun Christmas event that always makes for a lovely family evening.

11 Before 11

To ensure pupils have the best possible experience at primary school we have a real focus on personal development.

Our pupils develop lifelong skills, hobbies and passions which will stay with them throughout their life and will support them in maintaining resilience, looking after their own wellbeing, making friends and contributing positively in the world.

During their time at school pupils will have experiences in 11 key areas which support them in being the best possible person they can be and in learning as much about the world around them as possible.

Extra-Curricular Activities

At Great Yarmouth Primary Academy we support our pupils with a wide range of enrichment opportunities.

We are supported to run sports clubs after school, recently including:

Multi-sports

Football Club

Basketball

Hockey Netball Athletics.

We also offer a range of after-school clubs across the year including:

Arts and Crafts

Book Club

Games Club

Film Club

Cooking Club

Gardening Club

Science, Mathematics and Engineering Club.

Our House System

When pupils start at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy they are placed into one of our four houses.

Our Houses are: Britannia Wellington Breydon Haven.

The house system offers our children:

A strong sense of community and belonging

Opportunities for competition

Leadership opportunities

Opportunities for rewards

Opportunities to learn our school values.

Taking Part in Trust-wide Sports Competitions

At Inspiration Trust we pride ourselves on our sports provision which not only includes a nationally-recognised sports curriculum, but includes half-termly Trust-wide sports competitions.

These competitions include football, athletics and dodgeball, and sees us working in partnership with brilliant local organisations such as the UEA Sportspark and The Nest in order to offer our students the very best facilities in which to compete. The atmosphere at these events is always described as electric!

Through taking part in sporting competitions our students are given the chance to shine outside of the classroom and learn vital skills such as the importance of team work, determination, patience and perseverance.

It is also proven that taking part in sport encourages higher standards of achievement, improves cognitive function and improves overall wellbeing through having fun and making friendships. Whilst outstanding sports provision is often overlooked within the state sector, all of us at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy believe it is a core part of what every pupil should expect from their time in education and we are proud to deliver that.

Primary Olympiads

All pupils have the opportunity to be involved in our Trust-wide Olympiads. These see pupils compete in competitions within their favourite subjects, allowing them to shine in areas where they are gifted.

One of our strategic aims is to ensure each and every child fulfils their potential. We believe this potential is not only reached through academic success, but through wider opportunities such as competitive programmes.

Our Olympiads cover everything from Maths and Modern Foreign Languages through to Geography and Computer Science. They help children learn about teamwork and morals, and offer a fun, alternative way to explore the subjects they love.

School Meals

At Great Yarmouth Primary Academy, all pupils in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are entitled to a free school lunch.

Our school canteen provides a healthy, balanced menu. Alternatively parents can send their child with a balanced, healthy packed lunch. Children may also bring in fruit or vegetables to school for a breaktime snack.

Even though pupils in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are entitled to a free school lunch. We still ask that parents complete the free school

meals application form if in receipt of benefits as this adds several thousand pounds funding per child to the money we have to spend on your child’s education.

Reading is at the centre of everything pupils do... staff teach the phonics programme consistently well. Pupils are eager to show their learning.

OFSTED 2021

Our school opens at 08.30 daily for all children to attend.

We offer a breakfast club from 08.00-08.30 for all children. This offers children a range of breakfast options as well as time to prepare for the school day.

Our Uniform

Our policy is that all children should wear clothing that is in keeping with a purpose and an aspirational learning environment.

We want children at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy to take immense pride in their dress, behaviour and learning.

You can order your uniform from our supplier, Harrisons Schoolwear. Our uniform includes:

Dark-blue v-necked jumper with logo (Required)

A white collared buttoned shirt (long or short-sleeved) (Required)

Great Yarmouth Primary Academy tie (clip-on ties rather than normal ties can be worn for Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 pupils) (Required)

Grey trousers or grey skirt (below the knee) - only grey tights (no leggings) are permitted (Required)

Black shoes/black boots (below the shin) and no trainers (Required) The only jewellery permitted is small ear studs.

Our mandatory PE kit includes:

Navy crew neck t-shirt (with a small or no logo)

Navy shorts (with a small or no logo) Trainers or plimsolls

Plain navy, black or white socks (not football).

Inspiration Pathway

As a named feeder school for Great Yarmouth Charter Academy, our pupils have priority for admission when compared to non-feeder schools.

Great Yarmouth Charter Academy is a school built on respect, hard work and dedication. The school’s motto is ‘Sapientia Potentia Est’, meaning ‘Wisdom is Power’ is reflected throughout the school’s teaching, with a team who are committed to giving its students the best education in a calm and focused environment.

As part of Inspiration Trust, we share a common trust curriculum, which includes space for flexibility to further meet the needs of our community of pupils. By taking this approach we are able to benefit from a curriculum that is designed and shaped by subject-specialist curriculum leaders, both centrally by Inspiration Trust and independently by curriculum leaders in our school.

We offer a curriculum which supports pupils from ages 2-11 and the curriculum underpins the Key Stage 3 and 4 curriculum. This helps pupils make the best possible progress through primary and high school.

The Admissions Process

By law children must start statutory education full-time at the beginning of the term following their fifth birthday.

For first admission to school, the common application form will be sent to parents. The closing date for applications will be as per the published timetable. Children may start school full-time at the beginning of the autumn term before their fifth birthday. (Part-time admission will be considered on an individual basis.)

Our admission policy allows children to start school earlier than the law requires. However, the law also allows parents to ask for their child to be admitted but also delay the start date until later in the school year.

Your child must start school by the beginning of the term following their fifth birthday and the place must be taken up by the start of the summer term.

If you have any queries about an application for a place at Great Yarmouth Primary Academy or about the admissions process please contact the school office. A full overview of our admissions arrangements is available in our Admissions Policy and on our school webpage.

Admissions Team, County Hall

Martineau Lane

Norwich NR1 2DL

Telephone: 0344 800 8020

Email: admissions@norfolk.gov.uk

We are part of Inspiration Trust, twice ranked the country’s top family of comprehensive schools for pupil progress

S Quay