Prince of Wales Primary School

A Message from Lord Pickles and Lord Blunkett, followed by Prince of Wales Primary School's best practice article

The ability to listen and learn from one another has always been vital in parliament, in business and in most aspects of daily life. But at this particular moment in time, as national and global events continue to reiterate, it is uncommonly crucial that we forge new channels of communication and reinforce existing ones. The following article from Prince of Wales Primary School is an attempt to do just that. We would welcome your thoughts on this or any other Parliamentary Review article.

Rt Hon The Lord David Blunkett

Rt Hon The Lord Eric Pickles

www.princeofwales.enfield.sch.uk

THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW

Highlighting best practice

28 | PRINCE OF WALES PRIMARY SCHOOL

Mr Bless, head teacher, with

pupils Amari Lee Boyaram and

Hashem Jaelani

Friendly interaction during

acomputing lesson

On arrival at Prince of Wales in September 2012, Jan

Bless noticed a wide range of challenges that needed to

be addressed, including pupil behaviour, the quality of

teaching and aspects of leadership. With a willing and trusting

school community and two open-minded deputies with 50 years of

shared experience, Prince of Wales has transformed into a school

which is valued and praised both within and beyond the localarea.

During my first staff meeting, I focused predominantly on the importance of

building positive relationships with pupils and their families. I explained my

plan for improvement, inspired by the London Olympics, that every pupil could

be a “gold medal” learner. Another key task was to identify emerging leaders

who shared my vision. The next step involved a staff restructure and a middle

leadershipprogramme.

New assistant head teachers (AHTs) emerged from within the existing team and

through careful recruitment. This leadership team had a varied skills set, ranging

from finance, inclusion, data, training, communicating with parents and the early

years foundation stage (EYFS). Their ability to problem-solve and commitment

to improve pupils’ learning experiences allowed me to focus on other strategic

matters, including a five-year school expansion programme. Recruiting additional

outstanding subject leaders moved the bar higher. Gradually, the competencies of

good leadership cascaded down to all staff, with the core purpose of improving

outcomes for all pupils.

Issues around behaviour and attitudes to learning were the most pressing

concerns. Over the last ten years, the needs of the local community had become

REPORT CARD

PRINCE OF WALES PRIMARY

SCHOOL

»Head teacher: Jan Bless

»Founded in 1950

»Based in Enfield

»Type of school: State primary

school

»Work with Westminster

University and SACRE on

developing an RE programme

of study contributed to the

recognition of Alevism as a

religion in Britain in 2015

»Prince of Wales won the

Enfield in Bloom gold medal in

2017 for the second time

»www.princeofwales.enfield.

sch.uk

Prince of Wales

Primary School

29PRINCE OF WALES PRIMARY SCHOOL |

BEST PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE 2018

more challenging and the school

had adopted a reactive approach.

A range of initiatives built around a

new positive behaviour strategy were

introduced that supported pupils in

making informedchoices.

»Pupils, staff and parents jointly

devised shared principles for our

school community. These were

exemplified in our Learners’ Values

– listen, excellence, attitude, respect,

negotiate, enjoy, responsibility

and support. These values were

communicated at every opportunity,

such as during assemblies, meetings,

through the school website and in

our weeklynewsletter.

»Initially focused on the Olympic

and Paralympic values, a two-year

programme of values was introduced

that incorporated British values. In

the weekly achievement assembly,

pupils look forward to a ceremony,

unique to the school, where selected

pupils are awarded with an engraved

baton. These batons are passed on

every week to the next gold medal

learners.

»Five years of leading two thought-

provoking assemblies every week

have been an integral pillar to the

initiation of our ethos for a shared-

values culture. They can talk about

resilience, that learning is hard and

that mistakes must be made in order

to make progress.

»A new head teacher award system

was introduced where pupils could

earn a pencil, star, wristband, book

or a cinema ticket after 20 days of

“staying on gold”. All pupils start

the day with their names on a large

gold medal. Simply by following

all the school rules and values and

allowing learning to take place,

pupils earn a tick if they remain

there by the end of the day. A

simple traffic light system is triggered

when behaviour does not meet our

standards. A range of sanctions may

then beinvoked.

»Replacing the cloakrooms with

intervention spaces offered new

areas for small group work and

installing lockers outside the

classrooms maximised lesson time

and reduced lost property.

»Various climbing structures were

installed for each key stage in order

to stimulate physical development

and as a source of enjoyment.

Playleaders received training on how

to engage the children.

»The profile of year 6 pupils was

raised by identifying positive role

models such as a head girl, a head

boy and school prefects, while

allowing pupils to earn black

uniform jumpers for commendable

behaviour.

»CCTV cameras were installed

in strategic places around the

playground and in corridors.

Since then, pupils regulate their

choices better as there are clear

consequences to their behaviour.

»We have turned very high mobility

into an opportunity and strength.

Pupils are used to forging new

friendships and pass on our values

and expectations. A lot of thought

goes into changing all classes each

year so that there is a balance of

abilities and needs.

Relationships and

communication are key

to success

Over the last ten

years, the needs

of the local

community had

become more

challenging and

the school had

adopted a

reactive

approach

“

THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW

Highlighting best practice

30 | PRINCE OF WALES PRIMARY SCHOOL

A relevant and exciting curriculum

reflects the community we serve and

engages pupils. Reading takes centre

stage and the Power of Reading is key

to much of the learning. Opportunities

are seized to enhance learning such

as local archaeological digs, Royal

Opera House visits or the Women’s

Cricket World Cup at Lord’s. We offer

a rich outdoor curriculum through our

school grounds and utilise our local

environment and Londonitself.

Good relationships with our families

are vital. Our school community

is a kaleidoscope of different

backgrounds, experiences and

expectations and this has at times

presented significant challenges. As

a school we understand that there

are sometimes substantial barriers to

learning, and knowing our families

iscrucial.

There are an increasing number

of vulnerable families who require

different forms of support. The

school provides services such as

Place 2 Be, music therapy, a sensory

room, learning mentors and a parent

support adviser. Parents can attend

ESOL (English for Speakers of Other

Languages) or parenting classes

and have access to a wide range of

children’s centre services.

Through regular workshops such as

phonics, bar modelling or reading,

we demonstrate to parents how they

can help at home. We now have

new and active parent governors, a

reborn Friends’ association and a well-

attended Parent Forum.

Staff development has evolved over

the past years. The focus has shifted

from what a good lesson looks like to

effective questioning, giving relevant

feedback and more recently to teacher

efficacy and Lesson Study.

Staff have worked very hard to improve

the school and regular inspection visits

confirmed we were on the right track.

Good partnerships with the governors

and LA improvement service offered

the right amount of support and

challenge. Identifying talented people

whom I can trust and delegate to has

been an essential part of my leadership.

The past five years have confirmed that

change doesn’t take place overnight.

By being positive, building good

relationships, empowering staff and

getting children to work hard and do

their best, we now have a school of

which everybody can be proud.

The past five

years have

confirmed

that change

doesn’t take

place

overnight

“

Left: Annual school

community picnic

Right: Baton ceremony

www.princeofwales.enfield.sch.uk

This article was sponsored by Prince of Wales Primary School. The Parliamentary Review is wholly funded by the representatives who write for it. The publication in which this article originally appeared contained the following foreword from Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng.

Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng's Foreword For The Parliamentary Review

By Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng

This year’s Parliamentary Review reflects on a tumultuous and extraordinary year, globally and nationally. As well as being an MP, I am a keen student of history, and I am conscious that 2020 would mark the end of an era. It will be remembered as the year in which we concluded Brexit negotiations and finally left the European Union. Above all, it will be remembered as the year of Covid-19.

In our fight against the pandemic, I am delighted that our vaccination programme is beginning to turn the tide – and I pay tribute to the British businesses, scientists and all those who have helped us to achieve this. But the virus has dealt enormous damage, and we now have a duty to rebuild our economy.

We must ensure that businesses are protected. We have made more than £350 billion available to that end, with grants, business rates relief and our furlough scheme supporting more than 11 million people and jobs in every corner of the country, maintaining livelihoods while easing the pressure on employers. The next step is to work with business to build back better and greener, putting the net zero carbon challenge at the heart of our recovery. This is a complex undertaking, but one which I hope will be recognised as a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Through the prime minister’s ten point plan for a green industrial revolution, we can level up every region of the UK, supporting 250,000 green jobs while we accelerate our progress towards net zero carbon emissions.

With our commitment to raise R&D spending to 2.4% of GDP and the creation of the Advanced Research & Invention Agency, we are empowering our fantastic researchers to take on groundbreaking research, delivering funding with flexibility and speed. With this approach, innovators will be able to work with our traditional industrial heartlands to explore new technologies, and design and manufacture the products on which the future will be built – ready for export around the globe.

And I believe trade will flourish. We are a leading nation in the fight against climate change. As the host of COP26 this year, we have an incredible opportunity to market our low-carbon products and expertise. Our departure from the EU gives us the chance to be a champion of truly global free trade; we have already signed trade deals with more than 60 countries around the world.

As we turn the page and leave 2020 behind, I am excited about the new chapter which Britain is now writing for itself, and for the opportunities which lie ahead of us.

Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy