Penwortham Flagship Award

June 16, 2026

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Penwortham Primary School is a large primary school in Streatham. Staff and pupils are proud to be part of the school community, citing the sense of belonging. Everyone is working together to achieve their potential. The focus of the school is on being kind to one another and on everyone having the space and supportive environment to express themselves freely.

Parents speak highly of the support given to children and families. They praise the communication and support on offer to families, and the Showcases where parents can join a session themed to a particular curriculum area. These events result in parents continuing activities at home, consolidating learning from school. Penwortham School makes a commitment to being outward facing, interacting with their local community and working with external stakeholders to support pupils and staff.

The school’s inclusive practice is evident from the moment you set foot through the door and are welcomed in the reception. They are a school that are continually reflecting on the needs of the pupils and staff to be the very best they can be.

Continuing partnerships

Penwortham has continued to develop the partnership with parents and the wider community to develop their understanding of the needs of their child and develop strategies to support them effectively. Training and outreach sessions have been led by the school, targeted to the needs of pupils. Parental engagement opportunities have been well thought out and integrated to offer the highest quality support. Parents have felt more confident helping their children after attending these sessions, reporting less anxiety and an improvement in behaviour at home. Parents are encouraged to contact staff as soon as possible after issues occur, allowing everyone to work together to support the child and implement appropriate strategies.

The Showcases have been hugely successful and positive. These Showcases allow pupils to share their learning with their parents, offering a specially dedicated time and space to learn new skills together and later share skills at home, such as cooking and pottery. A recent initiative was the Year 6 café, where pupils cooked a meal that was served to parents. Parents were “blown away” by the pupil’s efforts, and all enjoyed taking part, noting how helpful these skills will be to children in the future. The Eid Bazaar and Winter Festivals put together and hosted by the pupils for parents were also well attended.

The Parent Teacher Association has continued to go from strength to strength, organising events which develop inclusion and engagement. These have included film nights, wreath making, and quiz nights.

Increasing inclusivity awareness and upskilling

Targeted workshops for parents have included topics such as “Masking in Girls”, “School Avoidance”, “Supporting Speech and Language Development”, and “Overcoming Literary Challenges.” These workshops have been taken by external providers and specialist teachers from the school. The impact of these has been an increased understanding by parents of their children, as well as specialised SEND terminology.

The Educational Psychologist has implemented drop-in sessions with a focus on staff wellbeing. These sessions have had a positive impact on staff wellbeing as they provided a safe space to discuss the complex needs of pupils and identify strategies to support. The targeted coffee mornings that have been provided for parents and carers have been similarly effective in ensuring transparent information sharing and understanding between the professionals and parents.

Penwortham are looking towards the future and aiming to further develop the parents and carers understanding of their child’s need to allow everyone to become an engaged and committed learner. The school aims to facilitate parents sharing information and stories with other parents and carers and continue to collaborate in a flexible and responsive manner.

IQM is proud to award Penwortham Primary School the status of Flagship School, for their work developing inclusive practice.