IQM Flagship Status for Outwood Academy Freeston

Outwood Academy Freeston provides education for 11–16-year-olds and is situated in Normanton, West Yorkshire, near the city of Wakefield. With a long and rich history dating back to the 1500s, the school has been at its current site since the 1950s. Outwood Academy Freeston finds itself at the heart of inclusive practice. From the start of our assessor’s visit, the layers of support and encouragement were clear to see across the academy. They aim to provide the best education for all pupils, with the highest standard of teaching and learning. A positive learning environment is at the core of their vision, and links with the wider community are used to enrich the lives of staff and pupils alike. The Personal Learning Centre, Learning Support Centre, Bridge and adapted afterschool clubs are in place to ensure that every child’s needs are met, irrespective of what those needs might be.

Charity and kindness are at the heart of life at the academy. Placed prominently in the corner of the main school dining hall, the Random Acts of Kindness Tree serves as a reminder of the good that occurs every day on campus. Every Wednesday the student Pride Lead and Learning Manager refresh the tree with new names, showing that inclusion, kindness and community are core and active values within academy life. Around the time of Remembrance Sunday, the tree leaves become crosses, telling the stories of local heroes from the community. Kindness extends beyond the school halls at Outwood Academy Freeston; initiatives such as ‘Mission Christmas’ present wrapping and collecting items for the Normanton Food Bank show that inclusion in the wider community is integral to the academy pupils. Charity quizzes also allow the school to come together for a good cause, while reinforcing student, staff, and parental relationships within the school community.

The launch of Unifrog was a notable step on the school’s inclusion journey. Unifrog allows students to create a career profile using a questionnaire to look at jobs that might suit them, and to explore pathways that could lead to that career. Outwood Academy Freeston uses this data to help individual students plan trips and visits around these career aspirations. A visit to ‘Production Park’ was organised for students interested in the entertainment industry. Unifrog has also allowed students to generate a CV that can be used beyond school life, and to find resources that can help them in the subjects required for their future career. The academy reinforces this active approach through lunchtime careers cafes, that have allowed specific students to avail of more targeted careers support. Further one-to-one sessions show a strong commitment in the school to the future of all of their pupils.

Student voice and opinion hold an important place in building a more inclusive academy. A new School Parliament is elected at the start of every academic year, and this year, two new positions relating to Anti Bullying and Culture were identified as areas of need.  The emphasis on student voice has prompted a sense of initiative amongst pupils, with the Year 8 sustainability lead explaining to our assessor how he had been tasked with leading an environmental grant application to improve the green spaces on and around the school campus.

Weekly assembly incorporates topical content that represents different backgrounds, cultures, and local needs. Our assessor noted that “praise is daily and celebration events are frequent” in the academy, so that every student is included in the academy’s uplifting environment throughout the year. This is further displayed in the Honours programme. There were an average of 5 badges awarded per student, mainly for reading and academy conduct. This year has seen an increase in popularity in the Honours system, showing the desire to build a better educational environment – on an individual and whole school level – is at the heart of Outwood Academy Freeston.