
3THE GREETLAND ACADEMY |
BEST PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE
We communicate with parents through
letters, newsletters, curriculum guides
and other electronic communications;
each sent out as necessary to different
audiences. Our recent launch of
“Seesaw”, an online teacher-to-
parents progress reporting system, has
proven to be very successful, alongside
one of the most popular primary
school Facebook pages in the country.
We believe that the best people to deal
with any parental concerns are class
teachers, given their familiarity with
the child in question, and in addition
to scheduled meetings we encourage
open and constructive dialogue at the
end of the school day.
Children and parents appreciate
the lengths that staff go to when it
comes to ensuring that all children
feel positive about and fully included
in academy life. Activities and
opportunities are planned so that all
can participate and achieve their full
potential, often through the confidence
to fail and try again. Our residential
trips are carefully planned to similarly
develop independence and resilience;
our year 6 pupils undertake theirs at
the beginning of the academic year to
effectively develop positive relationships
and trust for both children and staff.
Innovation and working with
the wider world
Following our becoming the first primary
academy in Yorkshire and the Humber
in 2011, we have made the most of
our freedom to make our own financial
and curricular decisions. In recent years,
we have steadily developed our own
personnel, and by attracting additional
funding streams employed additional
staff to manage our TSA, SCITT and
MAT alongside our status as a research
school and an English hub.
When applying for additional
designations, the input of our Head
of Research School Dr Jo Pearson has
been key. Working closely with the
EEF, research-informed decision making
has led us to pursue the “best bets” for
greatest school improvement impact.
A recurring challenge has been the
often unavoidable delay between new
project acceptance and receiving due
funding. Continued progress has been
made possible by having a sufficiently
well-qualified academy bursar and
business manager – now our MAT’s
CFO and COO. Such system leadership
has enabled the necessary forward
planning and change management
to successfully implement new
developments. To meet fresh
commitments, we have always planned
to respond securely, continuing to
build upon our solid foundations.
A future for all
Over two decades of strong governance,
leadership and planning have ensured
that our MAT school principals and
their respective teams are now in the
best position to develop their schools
and serve their communities, to best
serve our growing number of external
stakeholders and to meet that crucial
final line of our vision:
“ All achieve their full potential
and all can reach great heights.”
The academy is proud of
the success of its SCITT
students; several have
gone on to teach there
Our early
adoption of
academy status
and all
subsequent
developments
have been driven
by our desire and
preference to be
at the forefront
of the academic
landscape and to
lead change
CEO and Executive
Principal, Amanda
Bennett
“
“