̨Íåswag Academy Bydales has achieved the Inclusive School Award with Flagship status.

The Inclusion Quality Mark assessor was pleased to return to ̨Íåswag Academy Bydales and see the progress that had been made against the targets from the previous review. Since the assessor’s last visit, the previous Principal has retired and after a thorough handover, a new Principal has been appointed from outside of the Trust. The Principal and senior leaders were keen to demonstrate the academy’s wide praise ‘culture of kindness’ with a relentless focus on ensuring children are supported by removing barriers that may lead them to miss out on learning opportunities.

The strength of the academy’s success lies in the robust school systems and policies driven by a team of dedicated leaders and staff. The leadership qualities of the Principal and the Senior Leadership Team continue to foster a culture of high standards along with love, care and compassion for their students.  The word tolerance is no longer used and has instead been replaced with acceptance. The Principal is driving a focus on ensuring all children and staff have a sense of belonging at ̨Íåswag Academy Bydales, creating a school which engages with its community, adapting policy to support the most vulnerable whilst ensuring support for all.  

At the start of the school day, the assessor observed staff making adjustments for a student who was in the local authority care system. Staff were warm and nurturing, making reasonable adjustments to ensure this student felt supported.  Their policy clearly jumping off the page, they praised this student and offered the support needed for that student to remain safe in school. The culture of positive praise and kindness has changed the narrative of staff, students, and their families where it is a regular occurrence to succeed. This change was in its infancy during the previous review but can be felt with the full force through the staff training around positive regard and noticing the achievements of all (no matter how small).

During the assessor’s meeting with the Principal and IQM Lead, the clear aim of providing high quality provision for the young people of ̨Íåswag Academy Bydales is paramount to all they do. They have created a clear plan for future-proofing provision in the academy and are keen to engage with other leaders to see their vision become reality.  During the learning walk around the academy, the assessor was able to see how leaders have begun to develop their spaces throughout the school to provide this provision for those facing disadvantage in education.  

Literacy is a high focus across the academy.  Leaders have thought carefully about the use of staff and have used evidence from the Education Endowment Fund to shape the support given to students. Support staff are used effectively to provide high quality interventions both in and out of lesson time. The impact of this directed support can be seen in the success of students’ reading ages and a love of reading can be seen throughout lessons.  

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