Welcome from the Head of School

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you, on behalf of the children, staff and governors, to Old Bank Academy.

As part of Impact Education Multi Academy Trust, we are passionate about making a difference and inspiring children to be resilient and confident learners with a love for learning. Here at Old Bank, we want our children to be excited about learning and to develop their knowledge, skills and understanding across a wide curriculum. We believe in celebrating success and ensuring that children feel valued.

At Old Bank, we work in partnership with parents and carers. We value the contributions of a child’s whole family and are committed to building strong links with the community. We know that the more parents are engaged in their child’s learning, the more they will achieve!

We are a school Where Every Pupil Grows.

Kind regards,

Amy Liddle

Our Aims

• To ensure that the achievement, personal development, and well-being of children is the primary concern of all

• To create outstanding learning and teaching which engages pupils, is active, collaborative and encourages independence

• To foster pupil voice which involves children in the development and delivery of their own education and the life of their academy

• To construct a curriculum which meets the needs of all learners, is engaging and fun

• To develop professional networks which provide opportunities for pupils

• To understand and promote community cohesion within the curriculum and wider opportunities available to children and families

Vision & Values

Our vision is to ensure that learning is engaging, active and fun. We want children to love school, be happy and healthy. Central to the vision are the following key drivers, which underpin the curriculum, the way we behave and our expectations.

Wider opportunities – We strive to give children as many opportunities as possible. This is because children’s personal development is crucial to becoming a happy learner. Whilst at Old Bank, children have an entitlement to participate in drama, music, art, sport and outdoor educational activities.

Knowledge and skills – Developing language and providing knowledge in order to apply in a range of skills in different contexts is fundamental to our curriculum. We want children to have knowledge and skills that can be used to support their community and beyond.

Grow Values – At Old Bank our GROW values underpin everything we do, the values are Growth, Respect, Opportunity and Wellbeing. Our aim is for every child to grow and thrive to be the best they can be, we want our academy to be a place ‘Where Every Pupil Grows.’

High aspirations – Raising aspirations and aiming to be the very best that we can be. Challenging ourselves to dream, believe and achieve across a wide range of activities, we value what we measure.

Additional Resource Provision

There are several ARPs across Kirklees, offering support for a range of educational needs. Old Bank Academy’s ARP has been set up to support children with a primary need in cognition and learning. Our ARP provides targeted support to enable children to make progress, achieve their identified outcomes and continue to access the mainstream curriculum.

i-Challenge and i-Can Milestones

Through the i-Challenge curriculum, we offer access to a broad array of opportunities aimed at fostering the emotional, physical, and intellectual development of pupils. These activities afford pupils the chance to cultivate essential life skills, such as teamwork, resilience, responsibility, and friendship.

The i-Can Milestones programme is tailored for our youngest pupils, enabling them to participate in the enjoyment of ‘i-challenge’. Here, our focus lies in understanding how children learn through establishing relationships, fostering teamwork, and building confidence.

Thrive

The Thrive approach helps children and young people feel safe, supported and ready to learn. Thrive offers our school the strategies and approach to support at the right-time the social and emotional development of our children. Thrive is a whole-school approach to wellbeing and is proven to improve attendance, behaviour and attainment…

Parent Hub

The Orchard is a dedicated space in our school, designed especially for the Parent Hub. We welcome families to get out of their house and enjoy a nice cup of tea, for a chance to chat with other parents and Mrs Cooper. Parents can come alone or with their babies/ toddlers to socialise and play. Or they can come to ask questions or seek professional advice, support or guidance on anything at all…