2015 balfour prospectus

Balfour Road, Brighton, BN1 6NE telephone: 01273 507722

email: [email protected] website: www.balfourprimary.co.uk

to Balfour Primary School

PROSPECTUS 2015/16

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www.balfourprimary.co.uk

I would like to welcome you and your child very warmly to Balfour Primary School. I am very proud

of all the children in our school. I am particularly proud of the enthusiasm with which our children

approach and embrace their learning, the progress they make and the way they develop into

conscientious and responsible individuals with a high level of self-esteem and a love of learning.

I passionately believe that if children have an inspirational start to their educational careers then

the world becomes their oyster. We aim to give them this very special start by creating a child-

centred learning environment that encourages and inspires children to enjoy and achieve. Our rich,

creative, thought provoking and enquiry based curriculum, delivered within a highly nurturing

environment, is designed to equip our children with the qualities that will enable them to be

successful citizens of the 21st Century. As a school we feel very privileged to be able to set them on

their way in this vital first stage of their formal lifelong learning journeys and to expose them to a

range of exciting opportunities that contribute to educating the child as a whole.

I am delighted that the school can count on a wide range of expertise amongst the staff and that a

large proportion of our team are involved in exciting projects within the local authority and

nationally; keeping our school at the heart of creative and innovative practice. This, combined with

the school’s close partnership with parents, carers, governors and the local, national and

international communities ensures that our provision is rich and stimulating and more and more

evidence-based as a result of our own research projects.

There is a great sense of community in our school and our academic year is filled with wonderful

and memorable occasions when we all get together to celebrate your child’s achievements.

I hope this prospectus gives you a clear understanding of our

school aims, philosophy, values and organisation. I really look

forward to meeting you all personally and to welcoming your

child, yourselves, your family and friends to our school.

Marcelo Staricoff Headteacher

3 Respectful Courageous Friendly Caring Ambitious Enthusiastic

Thank you so much for taking the time to find out more about Balfour Primary School. Our school is a truly remarkable place, and I believe that it is an inspirational setting for children as they embark upon the first seven years of their educational adventure. As a former parent at Balfour, and the current Chair of Governors, I wanted to highlight a few areas where I believe that our school really shines; We live our values

Our school values are ones which have come from our community, and we apply them to all that

we do. We really are caring, enthusiastic, respectful, courageous, ambitious, and, of course,

friendly. These values permeate our school.

We are a vibrant community of lifelong learners

As you would expect from a Primary school, everything we do is focussed around learning, creating

an environment which fosters a lifelong love of learning. As a larger-than-average school, we are

able to offer diverse opportunities to our pupils which encourage them to explore engaging and

inspiring learning in all sorts of ways within our vibrant community. And these opportunities extend

to our wonderful team, both teaching and support staff, who play such a fundamental role in all

that our children achieve. Everyone is always learning at our school, and this is something to be

truly celebrated.

Everyone is an individual

Whilst some consider our school to be large, every pupil is treated as an individual. Our team gets

to know each and every child and we develop learning experiences that are personalised; this type

of learning is at the heart of Balfour, and our knowledge of each pupil is built upon year by year as

they progress through our school.

Everyone is welcome

We’re so proud of everyone who is part of Balfour. Lifelong learning is a partnership between

school and home, and we offer parents, carers and other family members numerous ways to be

part of our school. Not only will you have the chance to learn about learning through our

information talks and events, but throughout the year everyone gets together – fireworks night,

Christmas and Summer fairs, quiz nights, fundraising through the wonderful parent group ‘Friends

at Balfour ‘ (FAB), Art shows, sports events, concerts, assemblies are just some examples. You are

always welcome at our school.

I’m so proud of all that we achieve at Balfour, and hope that you will visit us and experience it for

yourselves.

Vicki May Chair of Governors

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ABOUT OUR SCHOOL

Balfour Primary School is a larger than average, four-form entry Primary School with over 870 children aged 4 - 11 on roll. Balfour Primary School was formed in September 2011 following the merger of Balfour Infant and Balfour Junior Schools, although the original Balfour School dates back to 1905. The school was last inspected by Ofsted in November 2012 and it was judged as Good.

We are situated within the 28 hectare Surrenden Campus which also contains a playgroup, two secondary schools, a special school and a sixth form college. The school is made up of two separate buildings and is surrounded by a number of well-equipped outside learning areas.

As one of the largest primary schools in the country, we are able to provide an extensive range of experiences for our children; many of which they wouldn’t be able to access at a smaller school.

AGE YEAR STAGE

4-5 ............. Reception ........ Foundation Stage

5-6 ............. Year 1 .............. Key Stage 1

6-7 ............. Year 2 .............. Key Stage 1

7-8 ............. Year 3 .............. Key Stage 2

8-9 ............. Year 4 ............. Key Stage 2

9-10 ........... Year 5 .............. Key Stage 2

10-11 ......... Year 6 .............. Key Stage 2

OUR VISION

Aim high so children will feel happy and safe, recognise and achieve their full potential.

OUR MISSION

To provide a stimulating, creative curriculum that supports the needs of all our children through high quality teaching, which encourages and challenges pupils to be active, independent, reflective, lifelong learners.

OUR ETHOS AND VALUES

Respectful

Treating everyone and everything as you want to be treated

Everyone has a voice

We listen to each other

Courageous

Have a go at things

Stand up for what you feel is right

Caring

Caring for each other, the school and the environment

Friendly

You don't have to be friends, but you need to be friendly

Consider other's feelings

Ambitious

Want to do our very best

Realise that there are no limits to what we can achieve

Enthusiastic

Love for learning with a positive, growth mindset

Appreciating how lucky we all are

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Respectful Courageous Friendly Caring Ambitious Enthusiastic

FAMILIES IN PARTNERSHIP We welcome parents and carers into Balfour Primary School believing we are partners in the education of your children.

There are many opportunities for parents to become involved in the life of the school and to gain a greater understanding of its work. Parents’ support and expertise can be used in many ways and is greatly valued. Police checks and DBS checks are carried out on all adults working in school including regular volunteers. If you are able to help, please talk to your child’s teacher.

COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS

We communicate with parents and carers in various ways, for example through our fortnightly newsletters, questionnaires, workshops and informal social events. Parents are regularly invited to assemblies, and to Parents’ Evenings each term. Every year parents and others are invited to attend our Annual Open Day and Sports Day as well as children’s performances.

Staff will always be happy to meet with parents and carers to share any concerns.

The school has a Home School Agreement to support the partnership between home and school, and foster shared dialogue. Parents and others are involved in policy development through consultation and working parties.

The School’s website has a wealth of information including our newsletters, class pages and copies of key policies.

FRIENDS AT BALFOUR (FAB), OUR PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION

FAB exists to support the life and work of the School and is open to all members of the school community.

The Association provides invaluable support to the school through organising many social and fundraising events involving parents and the wider local community. Money raised provides extra facilities and equipment for the pupils. The group holds regular meetings in school, with dates and details published in the fortnightly newsletter. FAB identifies long and short-term projects for its fundraising; which enables us to buy ‘special’ extras to enhance pupils’ school experience.

FAB needs the support of parents to ensure it is able to continue to enrich the lives of children. As a new member of our school community we hope you will be able to add your support to the work of the Association.

BECOME A GOVERNOR

The Governing Body of the school is made up of people from a variety of backgrounds. The school governors are a group of individuals, who are elected, nominated or co-opted and are representative of parents and staff, the Local Authority and the local community. School Governors work with the Headteacher and are responsible for setting the strategic direction of the school. There are 10 meetings per year, each with a specific focus such as finance, teaching & learning, etc.

If you are interested in becoming a school governor, please contact the Headteacher to find out about any vacancies and ask for a Governor’s Information Pack.

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OUR CURRICULUM We aim to help each of our pupils fulfil their potential by preparing them intellectually, socially,

spiritually, emotionally and physically through a rich, creative, thought provoking, thinking skills

and enquiry based approach to our curriculum. We focus on teaching the children how to learn,

and how to become successful lifelong learners with a high level of self-esteem so as to be ready

for the challenges of the 21st Century. Each academic year begins with a whole school Learning to

Learn Week designed to equip all children with the skills, dispositions, tools, confidence and

motivation of successful learners - all of which underpins the school’s philosophy to education

which we refer to as the ‘Joy of Not Knowing’™ (JONK). The school has also developed a Teaching

and Learning known as the Model of Excellence and Enjoyment that encapsulates the learning

process within the classrooms.

The children’s learning experiences are carefully planned, personalised and structured to reflect

their stage of development, their interests and their needs. We have high expectations of all the

pupils, and children learn that effort, as much as achievement, is acknowledged and rewarded.

Children thrive on the exciting learning opportunities and challenges we provide them with, on the

resources we use and on being encouraged to assume responsibility for their own learning. Our

goal is for all the children to become responsible members of the school community and to also

become aware of themselves as members of the wider local, national and global communities.

HOME LEARNING There is much evidence to support the view that children who are given regular homework make

greater progress than those who are not. To this end, we believe that carefully structured home

learning, encouraged in a positive way, can be extremely beneficial. It can encourage a more

positive use of children’s leisure time; generates positive attitudes towards school; actively involves

parents in their children’s learning; develops research techniques and encourages the use of

libraries and visits to places of interest. Consideration is given to the age, aptitude and ability of

pupils, together with competing demands on their time, when setting homework. Constructive

feedback and valuing children’s efforts are at the heart of making home learning a valuable

experience. We appreciate that parents play a key role in supporting this.


SCHOOL STANDARDS

Early Years Foundation Stage

Balfour National

Percent of pupils achieving overall good level of development: 84.0% 66.2%

Average SYFSP Score 38.0 34.3

Key Stage 1

Percent of pupils who met the Year 1 phonics standard 87.5% 76.8%

Key Stage 2

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INCLUSION AND EQUALITY As a United Nations Rights Respecting School we feel that we achieve all our

goals by being able to create an atmosphere of mutual support, understanding

and respect which is now underpinned by our new set of whole-school values and a new set of

lifelong learning attributes, enabling all of us to flourish as individuals, lifelong learners and creative

thinkers. Please refer to the Equalities Statement on our website for more information.

We will build on our similarities and seek enrichment from our differences and so promote

understanding and learning between and towards others to create cohesive communities. We

recognise and accept our equality duties as set out in the Equality Act 2010 and seek to involve the

whole school community in order to ensure better outcomes for all. We aim:

• To promote positive attitudes to difference and good relationships between people with

different backgrounds, genders, cultures, faiths, abilities and ethnic origins.

• To promote equality of access and opportunity within our school and within our wider

community.

• To eliminate discrimination, harassment and victimisation.

We recognise that it is unlawful to discriminate against a pupil, prospective pupil or a member of

staff by treating them less favourably if they have protected characteristics.

We have produced a Disability Access Plan (found on our school website) which addresses our

statutory duties to:

• increase the extent to which disabled pupils can participate in the curriculum;

• improve the physical environment of schools to enable disabled pupils to take better advantage

of education, benefits, facilities and services provided; and

• improve the availability of accessible information to disabled pupils.

MAXIMISING THE POTENTIAL OF ALL OUR PUPILS

We work closely with multiple agencies in order to support students and families and we run a

number of different booster groups and interventions throughout the school in order to ensure all

pupils are able to achieve their potential. These include:

4-Week Reader

AcceleRead/AcceleWrite

Achievement for All

Annual Review

ASCSS

Behaviour and Inclusive Team

Booster Groups

Better reading Partners (BRP)

Common Assessment

Framework (CAF)

Team Around Family (TAF)

Dialogue Counselling

Every Child a Reader (ECAR)

Educational Psychologist

Early Literacy support (ELS)

EMAS

Enrichment activities

Jump Ahead

Language Literacy Support

Service(LLSS)

Narrative

Nurture

Parent Volunteer

Reading Support

Phonics Support

Rapid Maths

Speech and Language

Therapy (SALT)

School Start

Foundation Stage

Teaching Assistant

support in the

classroom

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Respectful Courageous Friendly Caring Ambitious Enthusiastic

BEHAVIOUR Balfour Primary School promotes a high standard of behaviour in an atmosphere where excellent

learning can take place and where all members of the school community are valued. The

philosophy of the school and the behaviour policy is embodied by the whole school’s “Rights and

responsibilities charter”. This has been agreed by Balfour School pupils through the school council

and is written below:

Adults respect this by…

WE ALL HAVE THE RIGHT TO… Children respect this by…

Listening to and valuing each other's ideas

be listened to Listening to and valuing

each other's ideas

Taking care of everyone and everything at school

be safe Taking care of everyone and everything at school

Providing healthy food, water, exercise and rest

be healthy Making healthy choices

Helping us to learn an education Helping everyone to learn

and do their best

Helping us to become the best we can be

become the best we can be

Doing the best we can

Providing a time to play and relax

relax and play Playing positively and

fairly together

Treating each other thoughtfully and fairly

be treated fairly

Treating each other thoughtfully and fairly

Therefore, our aims are to:

Develop a moral framework within which initiative, responsibility and positive relationships

can flourish

Enable children to develop a sense of self-worth and a respect and tolerance of others

Produce an environment in which children feel safe, secure and respected

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SAFEGUARDING Balfour Primary School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and

expects all staff and volunteers to share in this commitment. Staff work hard to maintain an

environment where children feel safe and secure. The curriculum is designed to ensure

opportunities for all children to develop the skills they need to recognise and stay safe from abuse.

Children know that they can approach any of the adults in school if they are worried and that they

will receive a consistent supportive response. In recognising our responsibilities for Safeguarding

and Child Protection, as a school we:

• Have clear staff recruitment and selection procedures, ensuring that all staff (including

volunteers) who have unsupervised access to children, have been appropriately checked for

their suitability through the DBS procedure.

• Aim to raise awareness of child protection issues and equip children with the skills needed

to keep them safe.

• Develop and implement procedures for identifying and reporting cases, or suspected cases

of abuse.

• Support children who have been abused in accordance with his/her Child Protection Plan.

• Establish a safe and nurturing environment free from discrimination or bullying where

children can learn and develop happily.

If you would like to know more about our policy or procedures for Safeguarding, please speak to

Jacqy Biggs or Gaynor Entwistle, our designated teachers for Child Protection.


ATTENDANCE ABSENCE

If your child is unable to attend school for

any reason please telephone the school

office to let us know. If your child has

sickness or diarrhoea we ask that he/she

does not return to school for 48 hours as

this type of illness can be very infectious.

In 2014/15 our absence rates for children

in Year 1 – Year 6 were:

Attendance rate ............................ 96.81%

Authorised Absence ....................... 2.95%

Unauthorised Absence ................... 0.24%

School attendance is above the National

Average.

TERM DATES

PUNCTUALITY

The school day begins promptly at 8:50 for Key

Stage 1 and 8:55 for Key Stage 2 and we ask that

children arrive on time to ensure a positive start

to their learning. Please ensure your child is not

late for school. Children who arrive late are asked

to report to the school office on arrival. Any late

attendance is recorded.

HOLIDAYS DURING TERM TIME

The current law does not give any entitlement to

parents to take their child on holiday during term

time. Any application for leave must be in

exceptional circumstances and the Headteacher

must be satisfied that the circumstances warrant

the granting of leave. The School’s Attendance

Policy is available to download on our website.

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EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES We have a number of clubs and activities that take place across the school, at various times during

the day. These clubs are run by staff, volunteers and/or external organisations. In addition, we

have many lunchtime clubs which are set up & run by students with the support of a staff member.

For more information about any of these activities please speak to the school office.

Run by staff:

Breakfast Club

Football

Rugby

Dancing

Drama

Gardening

Orchestra

Recorders

Choir

Cello

Violin

Keyboard

Guitar

Run by external organisations: (not affiliated with the school)

Class of their Own afterschool club

Basketball

Football

Cricket

Tennis

Street Dance

Art Club

Taekwon-do

Spanish

Karate

Cricket

Woodwind

Run by our own students:

Chess

Dance

Architecture

Football

Girl’s Football

Geography

Book Group

HEALTHY LIVING HEALTHY EATING

We are an accredited National Healthy School and are committed to promoting and monitoring healthy

food at break and lunch times. Different teaching styles and learning opportunities are offered to pupils

to develop their awareness and understanding of healthier eating and basic food safety practices.

SCHOOL MEALS

All pupils in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are offered a free school meal. Schools are legally

required to provide meals that comply with the School Food Standards. These standards are

intended to ensure that children get the nutrition they need across the whole school day and

govern all food and drink on offer within the school. We work with our meals provider, in liaison

with parents, to cater for any pupils with special dietary needs. Menus are supplied to parents in

advance so that meals can be pre-ordered; parents can choose not to take-up a school lunch for

their child, in which case children should bring a healthy packed lunch into school. We encourage

these to be healthy in content and ask parents not to include sweets, chocolate, crisps or fizzy

drinks. As we have a number of children and staff who suffer from nut allergies, we also ask that no

products containing nuts or eggs are included in lunch boxes.

If you think your child is eligible for free school meals, please collect a form from the school office.


SCHOOL UNIFORM What a child wears to school reflects his/her learning. It also

portrays the school’s ethos and shared positive values. We have

a smart but simple uniform that we encourage all pupils to wear.

This is a navy sweatshirt, sweater or cardigan; a white shirt or

polo; and black, navy or dark grey trousers, skirt or pinafore.

School uniform, including sweatshirts, fleeces, and polo shirts are

sold at cost and can be purchased from the school office.

Water bottles, book bags and PE bags are also available for sale.

All items of uniform should be clearly named.

Children are asked to wear black socks and sensible black shoes -

no trainers please.

Jewellery, other than watches, is not permitted and studs only

are to be worn in pierced ears.

PE & GAMES KIT

It is important for pupils to wear correct clothing for physical

activities.

For PE children require a white t-shirt and dark shorts. Track suit

bottoms may be worn for games during winter months. All

clothing should be clearly labelled. The children will change into

a pair of PE shoes such as plimsolls or a pair of trainers (not

converse shoes) with non-marking soles for indoor and outdoor

PE.

Jewellery must not be worn for sporting activities and long hair

should be tied back.

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OTHER INFORMATION FIRST AID

Basic first aid is given at school when necessary by qualified First Aiders. If an accident needs hospital attention we will make every effort to contact parents. We ask parents to ensure all contact details are kept up-to-date so that we can contact you in an emergency. All injuries are recorded.

MEDICINES

The school has responsibility for the safety and welfare of pupils and regularly reviews arrangements to ensure that the medical needs of the pupils are met at school. There may be times when children attending school need to take prescribed medication. Any such medicines needed by a child during the school day should be brought to school in the smallest practicable amount by the parent/carer, not the pupil, and be delivered personally to the office. These medicines must be in the original bottle/packaging in which prescribed, clearly labelled with the pupil’s name, contents, dosage & date.

Parents will be asked to complete a written request for the school to administer medication. A record is kept of all medicines administered.

Asthma inhalers are prescribed medication and parents are asked to complete a Parent Request Form on their child’s entry into school. Inhalers should be taken to sporting events and used prior to or during exercise if an episode of asthma occurs.

Parents are encouraged to provide the school with full information about their child’s medical needs so that staff can exercise appropriate levels of care.

SMOKING

We operate a no-smoking policy - smoking is not permitted anywhere within the school or grounds.

SUN PROTECTION

During warm summer months all children should have a named sun hat in school which they will be encouraged to wear when playing outside. School hats are available from the office or you may provide your own.

School staff are not permitted to apply sun cream to children, but we would ask that you apply a long lasting sunscreen before school in sunny weather. Children may reapply their own sun cream which must be provided in a clearly named container.

SAFEGUARDING

We have a Safeguarding Policy which explains how the school works to ensure that children are thriving and safe. We take safeguarding and the protection of children very seriously If we have any concerns about a child’s welfare it is the Headteacher’s responsibility to contact Social Services. If you have any concerns about the well-being of a child please inform us in confidence immediately.

MONEY

Please ensure that all monies sent to school are in a sealed envelope marked with your child’s name, amount and the purpose of the money. All monies should be given to the class teaching assistant.

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CHARGING POLICY

At Balfour Primary we are constantly seeking to enrich the children’s learning experiences through trips; by inviting visitors and experts to talk to the children; and by running activities and workshops. The children always feedback that these activities bring learning to life and are some of their most memorable experiences of primary school. Where possible, teachers look for free activities or apply for grants that will enable the school to provide enrichment opportunities at no cost to families. We may seek voluntary contributions from parents towards the cost of any activity that takes place during school hours. The contribution must be genuinely voluntary, though, and the pupils of parents who are unable or unwilling to contribute will not be discriminated against. Where there are not enough voluntary contributions to make the activity possible, and there is no way to make up the shortfall, then the activity will be cancelled. Please see the Charging & Remissions policy on our website.

FAMILY SUPPORT

Please contact our Inclusion Managers Jacqy Biggs (KS1) and Gaynor Entwistle (KS2) via the school office if you would like some advice on any aspect of parenting or child care. We work closely with many family support agencies and can make a referral for families if they wish.

FEEDBACK COMPLIMENTS

These are always welcome and very encouraging to teachers and staff. The school encourages feedback

or opinions from pupils and parents/carers because we really value the parent/child/school triangular

relationship. In practice this dialogue is continuous, sometimes directly also indirectly. It may not always

be possible to act immediately, but pupils and the school always benefit so please don’t hold back.

CONCERNS

It is natural that parents may occasionally be concerned about an aspect of their child’s education or welfare at school. This could include issues concerning the school’s approach to aspects of the curriculum, home learning, behavioural problems or any other issue. The school welcomes enquiries from parents about any matter. Teachers and staff will explain the school practices, policies and how they affect the pupils. The vast majority of concerns will be handled by the class teacher. If in doubt, keep asking until you are completely satisfied as all staff are eager to help. To ensure everyone is ready to start the school day on time staff should not be approached first thing in the morning except via the office. The usual format is to speak to your child’s class teacher in the first instance, or to contact the school office to arrange an appointment to discuss your concern with whoever you wish. At all times the staff will help resolve a problem.

COMPLAINTS

If occasionally parents feel they must state their concern formally, this too is not a problem. The school has defined procedures for handling complaints so don’t be embarrassed if you feel your issue warrants more attention. Please see the Complaints Policy on our school website for more detail.

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ADMISSIONS & TRANSITION

Brighton & Hove Authority's admission policy admits children to school who are four years old by the end of August before the commencement of the school year. The arrangements for the admission of children to this school at age 4+ are made by the Council.

During the summer term there is a meeting for new parents/carers to discuss ways in which the children's start at the school can be as happy and positive as possible. The children are invited to a separate play visit towards the end of term to meet their new teachers and teaching assistants in their classrooms and become familiar with the school layout.

In September, during the first few days, parents/carers and children are invited to individual appointments to meet the teacher and teaching assistant. During the next two weeks the children come in for half a day. One week in the morning and the other week in the afternoon. This allows the children to gradually settle into a calm environment and help them get into classroom and school routines.

If you would like your child to attend Balfour Primary you need to apply please via the local authority's website.

Families may find it helpful to know that, if there are insufficient places available to meet demand, these will be allocated to children in accordance with the following list of priorities:

1. Children in the care of the local authority, or who were previously in the care of the local authority;

2. Children with compelling medical or other exceptional reasons for attending the school; 3. Children who in the coming September will have a brother or sister at the school or at a

linked junior school; 4. Children transferring between a linked infant and junior school; 5. Other children

If it should be necessary to decide between children within any of these priority groups, this will be done by giving the places to those children who live closest to the school.

HISTORICAL CHOICE PREFERENCES

FIRST PREFERENCES SECOND PREFERENCES THIRD PREFERENCES TOTAL # of Places Available (120)

Listed as 1st Preference

1st Preferences offered

Listed as 2nd Preference

2nd Preferences offered

Listed as 3rd Preference

3rd Preferences offered

Total # of preferences received

Total places allocated

2015 144 115 113 5 122 0 379 120

2014 131 113 119 7 123 0 373 120

2013 123 108 132 11 140 1 395 120

2015 balfour prospectus

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