Marden Lodge Primary School And Nursery in Caterham, Surrey has achieved the Inclusive School Award.
Buzz in The Air
Our Assessor received a very warm welcome when they arrived at Marden Lodge. There was a purposeful buzz in the air and pupils and staff start their day in a positive way. All staff provide enthusiastic and positive role models for pupils.
Leaders’ motivation for working towards the Inclusive School Award is for the school to be recognised externally for the great work that they feel is taking place across school. It is hoped it will support the work that is currently taking place to raise the profile of the school.
Leaders are working tirelessly to raise the profile of the school within the local community and are focusing specifically on the EYFS department. Regular and exciting updates are posted to the school’s social media alongside extending community events in attempts to further build a positive reputation for the school. This is supported by termly newsletters that celebrate learning across the school.
Proud of the Work They Do
Members of the school community were keen to meet with our Assessor during the visit as they are all extremely proud of the work they do. All staff spoke with a real passion to support their pupils to be the best they can be.
Parents speak highly of the school and give credit to the personalised approaches that allow their children to reach their potential. Parents are delighted that their children are supported to be themselves and build their self-confidence.
It is clear parents feel well informed and involved in their children’s education. Constructive relationships were highlighted during the meeting, with parents grateful to have a voice and input into their children’s school life, they described staff as ‘going above and beyond’ for their children and always visible at school events. 
It was a pleasure to meet with a group of year 6 ‘star ambassador’ pupils from the school, they were all very keen to explain what they think of their school and all communicated how happy they are at school and how well supported they feel by staff. It was heart-warming to hear pupils speak of how grateful they are to have teachers that make learning fun!
Staff use the one form entry aspect of the school to their advantage by building strong relationships with all pupils and families, leaders allocate families to members of staff that have good relationships in order to build trust.
A standing agenda item at leadership meetings is family concerns, this ensures that there is a collaborative approach to supporting families and effective and timely support can be actioned.
Strong Professional Links
Marden Lodge is part of a 5-school cluster. Teachers have worked collaboratively with peers from their cluster to devise their own aspiring curriculum. The curriculum provides teachers with an effective base which they are able to adapt to reflect the individual needs of learners within their setting. Creating a curriculum in such a way has provided strong professional links for teachers across the schools and allows for co-planning to take place, a task difficult to achieve in a one form entry school. Teachers reported that this approach has a very positive impact on their workload and consequently their wellbeing. 
Leaders ensure that the cluster of schools provides as much support to their own school as possible, an example of this is planning for teachers to have PPA at the same time as fellow year group teachers across the schools. This provides a very effective level of support and strong working relationships have evolved as a result.
It is clear that staff have really bought into the concept of the cluster and the shared opportunities it brings, key staff members work across the different schools to share expertise and skills. Leaders report that this has been welcomed by staff.
Marden Lodge School is pupil centred and staff work tirelessly to overcome barriers pupils may face. Leaders pride themselves on starting with a problem and working out what needs to happen to overcome, regardless of resources, and then working out how to make it work for the school.
Much More Than a Academic Curriculum
Marden Lodge is much more than an academic curriculum, pastoral support offered to all pupils is strong and embedded into school culture. 
There is a strong sense by all that children will make better progress if they are learning from a place of calm and positive wellbeing.
An embedded strategy that supports this is the school being a Thrive school.
Staff are very proud of being a Thrive school and it is clear when speaking with members of the school community and when walking through the school, that it is part of the school culture.
Thrive is an example of how Marden Lodge sticks with an initiative and builds momentum and staff buy in to drive effective strategies forward.
During the visit our Assessor had the pleasure of meeting with one of the school’s governors, the school is fortunate to have such a knowledgeable and passionate governor supporting them.
It was evident during the discussion that governance at the school is effective at identifying concerns as well as potential solutions and raising these with senior leaders. A working example of this was a review of safeguarding procedures and working with senior leaders to review current practices and agree actions for development. This has resulted in more effective record keeping procedures being in place. Governors have worked with senior leaders to review the Green Paper and ensure it is actioned accordingly at Marden Lodge.
During the meeting with the governor, the pressures for staff that lead on safeguarding was discussed. It would be beneficial for leaders to explore supervision for DSL roles in school to ensure that staff are supported in carrying out challenging roles.
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.
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