Marton Primary Academy and Nursery has achieved the Inclusive School Award with Flagship status.
Truly Inclusive Ethos
Marton Primary Academy and Nursery has a truly inclusive ethos and culture that permeates every aspect of the school’s life. In the words of a Year 6 pupil, “everyone is included, there are no excluded people”. Staff describe the academy as, “a family” with a strong sense of, “how can we make this happen for the children?” Parents and carers echo this and are strongly supportive of the work that the academy does for their children.
Provision at Marton includes a Nursery along with a SEND unit for autistic pupils (and those with global delay) known as the Marton Suite. It also has a recently introduced Pathways provision for six pupils of reception age with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) (or awaiting EHCPs) who are not yet ready for mainstream provision. The academy serves an area of high deprivation (44% of the students are eligible for Pupil Premium). There are 305 pupils on roll with 31 in the SEND unit. There are 51 EHCPs (31 in the Marton Suite) and a further three submitted. The academy population currently includes 39% of pupils identified as having special educational needs.
Marton is a “magnet” academy for students with special educational needs and is a beacon of good practice cited by the Local Authority and the Trust to which the academy belongs. The most recent Ofsted Report (2023) was exceptionally positive about the SEND provision.
Strong and Principled Leadership
The Head of School and Senior Leadership Team (SLT) provide strong and principled inclusive leadership which is felt throughout the academy and the wider community. The Head of School spoke powerfully about, “doing the right thing” coupled with a strong “no excuses” culture, balancing supporting the needs of the pupils with high expectations of achievement and behaviour. Marton has recently begun its journey as a ‘Rights Respecting School’, led by the Early Years Lead and this supports and underpins the academy’s ethos.
School leaders at Marton Primary Academy and Nursery are active in networks in the Local Authority and the Trust sharing their expertise and the good practice of the academy. They are far from complacent about their provision, for example, the Head of School spoke about how they have improved the provision for more able pupils so that an increased number can attain greater depth in their writing.
Marton’s commitment to inclusion was encapsulated in evidence that, as a member of staff put it, “we do not do anything if there are children who cannot access it”. The wide range of clubs and extra-curricular activities are as inclusive as possible, and the ‘Passport for Learning’ entitlement applies to all learners. An example of this commitment to provision is the creation of an outward-bound experience and sleepover for students with significant disabilities so that they might participate in the school’s commitment to providing a residential experience for all junior-age pupils.
Exceptionally Impressive
The inclusive curriculum is exceptionally impressive. A learning walk around the school showed that a very great deal of thought has been given to ensuring that high-quality teaching is available to all pupils through adaptive learning. Pupils with a wide range of needs are fully included in each class and they are fully engaged in their learning. Support staff are well deployed to support the individual needs of the pupils. It was impressive to see the links between the Marton Suite and the main school, for example, where a pupil in Year 6 had Mathematics and English lessons in the main school and his other provision in the Marton Suite. The use of shared outside areas was also a strong feature of the integration of the various aspects of the academy’s provision.
There is a wide and inclusive curriculum offer at Marton Primary Academy and Nursery. Pupils have an entitlement to life experiences implemented through the ‘Passport for Learning’. For example, all pupils can learn to swim in Year 2 and in Year 3 all pupils have a residential experience, in Years 4 and 6 all pupils learn to cook five healthy meals. Forest School has been introduced as part of the curriculum and as an extra-curricular activity, part of the very wide range of clubs that are much appreciated by the pupils. Early Years provision is exceptionally strong.
Staff workload is managed, with teachers talking about the intelligent use of directed time to maximise opportunities for the pupils. Staff feel very well supported and are, in turn, supportive of the academy which they describe as being, “like a family”. Staff turnover is very low and there is good provision for staff development. Members of staff said that it is, “just a lovely place to work” and that “everyone is proud to work here”.
Individual pupil support is exceptional with parents commenting on the willingness of staff to address the needs of each child. There has been a focus on speech and language development, including ELKLAN training across the academy and for parents /carers.
Learning Environment
The learning environment has been very carefully considered with colour, image, furnishings and sound being used to create a very appropriate learning environment for children with a range of needs. This is consistent across the academy. Space has been very intelligently used to create small withdrawal spaces, as well as investing in purpose-built provision such as the sensory room.
During the learning walk, behaviour around the academy was observed to be very good with positive relationships between pupils and staff. The Assistant Headteacher described the academy ethos as being built on, “extremely strong relationships” and this was the case in practice. Pupils described the use of restorative approaches to resolve issues, with any bullying being dealt with. The Inclusion Lead spoke about current investigations into “Solution Circles” as a development of the restorative approaches.
There are plenty of opportunities for student leadership; the pupils described the roles of eco-counsellors, ‘Rights Respecting School’ representatives and sports ambassadors and they talked about changes implemented because of school council action, such as increasing the range of clubs and changing the kitchen environment. The pupils demonstrated remarkable empathy when talking about those with additional needs. The pupils feel that the academy looks after them. Technology is used as appropriate, for example, “Yoohue” is used effectively to swiftly identify and address pastoral concerns and issues.
Parents Trust the Academy
Parents and carers are supportive of Marton Primary Academy and Nursery, for example, a parent submitted a letter as part of this review which stated that, “the support he has had with his learning has been amazing”. The parents trust the academy and they feel safe. The staff “learn every child’s traits” and the parents value communication by ClassDojo and in person. They describe the staff as being, “always positive”. Parents and carers engage in the life of the academy, for example by helping to create the sensory garden.
Marton Primary Academy and Nursery has extensive involvement with the local community, for example by hosting its own foodbank and clothes bank, signposting sources of funding for families in need and providing minibus transport to the academy for those who need it as a short-term provision. The academy is seen as a beacon of good practice for SEND by the Local Authority and leaders play an active role in the Local Authority and the Trust. There is a wide range of curriculum provision linked to the wider world and the global community, through languages and geography for example.
Our Assessor added, “It was a pleasure and a privilege to visit Marton for the day and to witness the exceptionally inclusive ethos, culture and practice”.
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.