Kingsford Community School has achieved the Inclusive School Award with Flagship status.
Enthusiasm and Determination
The atmosphere everywhere at Kingsford Community School is warm and friendly. It is well ordered, and pupils go about their business with enthusiasm and determination. The school had an Ofsted Inspection in October and were rated as a Good School. Our Assessor felt this was an understatement. They judged it to be an excellent, inclusive school providing high quality education for the young people in the area.
Our Assessor met briefly with the Deputy Head who was in charge that day as the Headteacher was elsewhere. They spoke briefly about the journey the school has been on and about the Ofsted Inspection. Whilst they are glad to get this out of the way he is very sure that staff will not be complacent and will keep moving forward with their development plans.
The first meeting was with the Assistant Head (inclusion) and time was spent talking generally about the many exciting projects that have happened over the year.
Next, was a meeting with the Assistant Head with responsibility for literacy across the school. She has worked closely with the Assistant Head (inclusion) and the Assistant Literacy Coordinator. Literacy is a key priority at Kingsford and one indication of this is that there is an Assistant Head who leads it, supported by a Deputy Literacy Lead and with the involvement of the Inclusion Deputy Head and SENCo to name but a few. Literacy is a whole school priority and every teacher is a teacher of literacy. However, Kingsford have gone further than most schools in its efforts to improve literacy across the school.
There is an emerging partnership with the Globe Centre which is next door to the school and has a new public library (all Kingsford pupils have a library membership) and a theatre space. Furthermore, the school has a new library and are currently recruiting a new full-time Librarian. The Tower Hamlets Library Association has supported the school in getting the new library set up.
Mission44 Project
The school has recently been awarded STEM funding to work with 10 primary schools and are currently setting this exciting project up. Furthermore, they are involved with Mission44 – a project headed up by Sir Lewis Hamilton to address inequalities and bring about social change. The Mission44 project aims to “support, champion and empower young people from underserved groups to succeed through narrowing opportunity gap in education, employment and wider society”. The school were approached to participate (their reputation for inclusive practice is well known) and they were delighted to get a visit from Sir Lewis himself. They will be building this initiative around literacy.
The school has been developing a Literacy Framework including oracy, interventions (Lexicon) with pupils. There is also a literacy programme for parents. This has been (and continues to be) delivered on-line and has been really well attended. The programme includes discussion on ‘academic talk’ and alternative language so as to avoid over used slang and words such as ‘basically’.
The main thrust of developments have been around the Lexonik Sound Training programme. The Deputy Literacy Coordinator said she completed the training and is now training other teachers. She is an English Teacher and her department is very much involved in the whole school literacy programme. She explained all pupils are screened when they come into the school and those who have low literacy scores are targeted for further support through Lexonik. They are put into small groups of 4 pupils, and they still use phonics for those who need it.
Lightning Bolts
The Assistant Head (inclusion) saw Lexonik being used in the SEN department (as it is in many schools) and decided it could be a very useful as a tool to improve literacy across the school. This has been done and the impact has been seen very quickly. There is a Word Room that involves breaking down words that is used in Tutor time. The pupils enjoy it and can get quite competitive, and they quickly become engaged. The programme is very appropriate and useful for more able pupils. There are reading tests every year to establish if pupils are improving. The tests are computerised and therefore are not perfect but they are useful in terms of identifying pupils who need specific support.
LEXONIK is delivered face-to-face and those involved do 5 different reading tests to help staff see where the gaps are. Teachers are provided with information about the reading ages of all pupils, and they are expected to use this information in their planning. The impact of this work in a Year 9 (who arrived with no KS data) has shown a significant improvement in literacy scores.
Furthermore, the Assistant Head (Literacy) has been delivering LEXIA and this is a literacy programme that can be accessed at home and can target different areas that have been identified for improvement. LEXIA was designed for children with dyslexia but they realised there was more to it and looked to see how it could be used to support more children.
Currently, every Year 8 pupil is involved in the programme. They all have a log-in and had an assessment and all have to complete 30 minutes Lexia homework every week. They get certificates and ‘lightning bolts’ when they complete a number of hours on the programme at home. The pupils really enjoy it and the leading Tutor Group get a Pizza Party. Our Assessor was told it is all about pupil engagement. It’s clear to see the progress pupils are making as it automatically moves onto an extension. The Assistant Head and Deputy Literacy Coordinator gets flagged up if a student is having difficulty at stage 2 and they work with the tutor to intervene. Lexia also picks up on comprehension issues.
The English department have introduced an extra lesson just for reading in Year 7 and 8. They have introduced Reading Booklets which are used during tutor time and extra reading lessons, and they have proved to be very useful literacy tools. The school aims to give pupils ownership of their own language and they really value pupils who speak more than one language. They don’t see EAl as a deficit model – quite the reverse.
Pupils who need more support with literacy follow the CORE 5 programme and this is used with the LEAP (SEND) group. Children can move through the Lexia programme quickly if they are motivated to do so and spend enough time on it. In fact, currently there are two pupils in Year 8 who have completed the programme and have moved onto extension activities.
Next the Assessor met with some of the pupils who have been following the Lexia and Lexicon programmes. They spoke about all about the work they had been doing and they said it was very good and helped them a lot. One pupil said it had helped him learn English (which was not his first language) as well as supporting his literacy. Pupils said their parents were encouraging them to spend more time on Lexicon as it helped them to say words correctly and to use different vocabulary confidently. Although the pupils said they had learned a lot about grammar and literacy in primary school the Lexia programme recaps that learning. This is important because they have forgotten much of it. From Year 9 upwards the programme teaches advanced vocabulary and exam speak.
Staff said pupils will change over to a new system designed for older pupils that concentrates on GCSE specific language. This is called BEDROCK and it maps onto English in the GCSE curriculum.
Barriers to Application
Next, our Assessor met with the Assistant Heads who are in charge of student leadership and behaviour and pastoral care. A very informative leaflet about student leadership opportunities was provided. Whilst the PHSE programme is developed by another Assistant Head, they work closely together to make sure things link up. Philosophy for Children (P4C) is an important part of the curriculum, and the school holds a Silver P4C award.
The Assistant Head (student voice) arrived at the school in September and she found that student leadership and student voice were all set up and were viewed very positively. These are obviously valued by the Headteacher and SLT and are now embedded across the school. Her aim is to ensure all pupils are represented on the different leadership groups. She wants membership of the different groups to reflect the demographic of the school. Currently, SEND pupils are under-represented. Girls are over-represented (slightly). After looking at the data of the membership of these groups the Assistant Head carried out pupil voice activities to gather views and perceptions about being part of one of the pupil leadership teams. This exercise highlighted a number of barriers to application and some possible solutions.
As a result, there were 380 applications for student leadership positions in the Autumn term and in order to provide even more opportunities another band of leaders was introduced – the Wellbeing Ambassadors. At the moment there are 296 student leaders across the school. Further changes made was to hold separate School Council Meetings and Year Group Councils and termly feedback is provided to pupils about the changes and decisions made by the student representatives and leaders.
Further impact of actions taken show there are increasing number of pupil premium pupils participating. However, the data collected around applications and membership is constantly collated and analysed and is always followed by action to address any issues arising.
Executive Functions
The next topic for discussion was the Executive Functions (Neuro-diversity function) that had been mentioned many times during the visit. The reasoning behind introducing the Executive Functions was that the values the school promotes are often very different from those they learn at home. Our Assessor was told it’s about the different skills they (pupils) will need when they leave school and move on in life. The EFs were developed with Brighton College and with industry. The idea is that these are all skills pupils can learn and develop and don’t have to be part of your personality.
The important thing to know is these are all skills that can be taught and be learned by all pupils. They are skills that can be used in real life, at work and home as well as at school. Staff have had a great deal of training on the Executive Functions and subsequently the language of staff and pupils is changing. The EFs were introduced in September and they are currently drip-feeding the information and showing how it can be used in the classroom. The companies they are working with on establishing the EFs are using the school practice to research the benefits. It was explained the functions are about developing a teaching and relationship pedagogy rather than coming up with a list of rules and it was important to explore how staff can explicitly teach them. They have developed a ‘strategy bank’ that can be used when a pupil is displaying a lack of one of the Executive Functions.
The pupils are fully aware of what the Executive Functions are all about and there have been many assemblies and tutor time activities devoted to discussing them. They are aware of the change in language associated with them. The school are currently presenting the Executive Functions to parents with the hope that they would start using the same language at home. They are also working with teachers to ensure the pedagogy links with the teaching framework (TEEP). Currently, they are looking at a two-year programme with Connections in Mind Organisation (CIMO.Org) which is building on what’s in place already and through TEEP.
Following the discussion on Executive Functions our Assessor was able to visit some lessons and see pupils at work. The first lesson was a Mandarin lesson which is taught at all levels across the school. The school has had a link with China almost from the time it opened, and this link was established through the Headteacher. Now every child takes Mandarin as a Modern Foreign Language and children make good progress with very pleasing exam results. However, there are also many opportunities for the pupils to visit China and to participate in many different joint projects.
Excellent Relationship with the Pupils
The next visit was to an EAL lesson where the very impressive EAL lead was teaching a class of newly arrived pupils who were in the very early stages of learning English. This was a mixed age class but had a very positive feel to it. Pupils were confident to try out new words and to speak up in class. They were supportive of one another as they learned the basics of the English Language to help them acquire enough words to access different lessons. The teacher is very skilled, and she has an excellent relationship with the pupils, and this means the outcomes are very good. The children are very proud of the fact that they speak more than one language. This is no longer seen as a deficit but is a real positive that can be built on.
The next meeting was with the LEAP and LINK (SEND) leaders and SENCo. They told our Assessor they do lots of work around transition especially from primary to secondary. They start this work in Year 5 with children with EHCPs and attend annual reviews in Year 6. There is a joint SENCo Day for all SENCos in Newham and parents can come and speak to the SENCos in all the secondary schools. Subsequently, they are not receiving too many consultations. Currently there are 12 teaching assistants, and they support in-class and they run interventions. They often have to use agencies as they are finding it difficult to recruit new TAs. ASD is the main area of need.
A discussion was held about the way that LEXIA is used for pupils with SEN but our Assessor was told they use Core 5 for these pupils. There are lots of different interventions, many involving external agencies. The school buys in Speech and Language therapy, ELSAs and CAMHs etc and additional Education Psychologist support. This additional support means the Educational Psychologist can do work with pupils beyond assessing them.
Primary schools have been mostly good at identifying the needs of pupils before they arrive at Kingsford but there are a significant number who come into school through the normal transfer procedures. This means the school is not alerted to pupils needs but has to identify them in situ.
Currently there are 7 pupils with EHCPs and 15 in receipt of Higher Needs Funding. There are a further 125 on the SEN register. There are a further 6 pupils coming in September who have EHCPs. The SEN department link with the whole school literacy programme as with the pastoral teams who provide a lot of additional support. The school delivers an ASDAN Programme in KS4 which involves lots of coverage on Health and Safety, Life Skills and now Mental Health and keeping safe. They also do PHSE/RSE modules including family, parenting, sexual relationships and sexual health. The curriculum is individualised to ensure safeguarding and wellbeing of pupils.
Relational safeguarding is particularly important and whilst SEN pupils are subject to the same culture of vigilance that contributes to the safeguarding of all pupils the school recognises there are key areas of additionality required for their most vulnerable pupils.
The team agreed that most SEND pupils’ needs are met in the classroom and teachers are trained to be experts in adaptive teaching for meeting the needs of pupils with different needs.
Safeguarding Policy and Procedures.
The Assessor asked the school about their safeguarding policy and procedures. There is a large Safeguarding Team who are well trained and who meet regularly to discuss individual children who are on the safeguarding list. Heads of Year are also trained to Level 3 and can support the children in their year group in safeguarding matters.
The school prides itself as being a “Telling School” where pupils report when someone is bullying or exploiting them. They will speak up if they have concerns about a friend. There are lots of assemblies and keeping safe is part of the PHSE curriculum, so pupils are well informed.
There is a detailed Safeguarding Newsletter sent home once a term and there is lots of advice and guidance about on-line safety.
Staff at all levels are well trained in safeguarding and they complete three online safeguarding training modules every term. These are short and to the point and only last for 20 minutes and cover all aspects of safeguarding. The Safeguarding Team includes senior staff with responsibility for health and safety so there is a clear link between the two. The teacher with responsibility for CLA are also on the team so that no safeguarding aspect is ignored.
Some of the safeguarding issues that are causing most concern at the moment are the rise in domestic violence particularly over the Covid pandemic, social media issues and alcohol and drugs misuse. Vaping is becoming increasingly concerning.
The DSL leads and team do not yet have external supervision. However, this is on the agenda for governors.
Pupil Voice
Finally, the Assessor was able to meet with 12 pupils to talk about Pupil Voice. They explained all the different ways the school supports them
One pupil said he arrived in England in 2020 and didn’t speak any English but he had lessons with other students, twice a week and soon learned grammar and spelling and has been welcomed by everybody and now speaks and writes very well.
Three girls (SEND pupils) had prepared a little presentation about Kingsford School. This is a strategy that is used across the school to get pupils to speak up and speak out and to work as a team and to have their voices heard.
They covered lots of positive aspects about the school including the different roles and responsibilities, the kind and patient teachers who provide extra lessons where they need them and literacy and reading sessions, and the different trips, after school clubs and activities. They said these helped them improve their personal skills in increase their self-confidence.
They explained these activities took them out of their comfort zone and they felt proud when they participated in them. They said that the LEAP and LINK programmes help them to learn and catch up.
Other pupils who were members of the School Council talked about the way they help the school get better and better. They said the School Council members come up with new ideas and they listen to other suggestions and discuss what they need to improve things and then plan how they will do it.
Pupils were very proud they were learning Mandarin as most schools don’t offer this. One boy said he had no friends when he joined the school and teachers noticed and ‘joined us together’ with other pupils so they did get friends. They are still friends today.
Many mentioned becoming a Global Ambassador and this made them feel welcome and made them proud of their language.
Find out more about the IQM Inclusive School Award
If your school is interested in obtaining the IQM Inclusive School Award or you wish to talk to a member of the IQM team please telephone:
028 7127 7857 (9.00 am to 5.00 pm)
or email: [email protected] for further details.
Want more information on the IQM Award? Click here to request your free IQM information pack.