1
Longlevens Infant School
A message from the Headteacher
Choosing the right school for our children is one of the most important decisions
we make as parents. We hope that the information you receive today will help you
make that decision. At Longlevens we are confident that your child will have an
exciting, fun filled three years that will instil them with a love of learning, an
enthusiasm, curiosity and motivation that will enable them to be outstanding
independent learners. As well as this we want all our children to be good citizens
with core values that foster a caring, thoughtful and reflective attitude to the world
around them, the people they meet, creatures they encounter and the
environment. Our recent Ofsted inspection in March 2018, recognised that our
school is “... ambitious for every pupil to achieve the very best standards. (It) has
tackled weaknesses to raise achievement “.
We want you as parents and carers to join with us as partners in this vision.
We look forward to working with you.
Kerry Cunningham
EYFS Family Tree Morning
2
Our Drivers
Our drivers underpin everything we do here at Longlevens Infant School.
Our drivers shape our curriculum, how we communicate with each other
and drive the very high standards that we all aspire to.
All of us Together– The family of Longlevens Infants School. We are all in this
together. We have a growth mindset and an understanding that anything is possible.
Child Centred– Activating Joy and playfulness, attuned staff, that affirm understand
and recognise using the right words, a talking school where children feel listened to and
understood, where they develop the language to confidently articulate their ideas. This
alongside a broad spiral curriculum that encourages curiosity, independence and engage-
ment building strong foundations for the acquisition of the knowledge and skills needed to
be lifelong learners.
Creativity– Enriched Environments both inside and out, a curriculum that allows
children to express themselves through their individual talents but that is also exciting,
providing new opportunities and freedom for children. Developing their imaginations and
applying their skills using their knowledge and understanding to make links across different
subjects and genres.
Community– A family place that is fun, happy and safe, with people that respect
each other, understand what is expected of them through the learning powers, feel they
belong, are heard, see themselves and are seen as a
9
Pupil Premium
The government introduced the Pupil Premium Grant in April 2011. This grant is additional
to main school funding. The Government believes that the pupil premium, which is in
addition to main school funding, is the best way to address the current underlying
inequalities between children eligible for free school meals (FSM) and their wealthier peers
by ensuring that funding reaches the pupils who need it most. The ultimate aim is to ‘close
the gap’ between pupils from different backgrounds.
Although all children in the Infant phase are currently entitled to a free meal this is different
to the FSM entitlement and we would urge you if you are in receipt of benefits to sign up
and ensure the school receives the extra funds to provide for your child’s needs.
Here at Longlevens Infant School, the parents/carers of eligible children work with us to
determine what will best enable their child to meet their potential.
SEND
At Longlevens Infant School we provide additional classroom support, small group focused
support, a pastoral support team which includes a learning mentor to help those at risk of
not achieving their potential. We also have a specialist artist who works in school on
enrichment activities.
If your child needs extra support we will endeavour to meet their needs through our careful
provision mapping and in partnership with you. The parents and carers.
Ofsted report March 2018 “Initiatives to help pupils catch up are having a strong impact in
improving outcomes”.
Hot School Meals
In September 2014 it became statutory for schools to provide a hot school meal each day
for Infant pupils. This is known as Universal Infant Free School Meals. Here at Longlevens
we have our own dedicated kitchen providing meals for our children which was built during
the summer 2014. We encourage all our children
to have a hot meal each day. Special dietary needs
are catered for.
8
School Improvement
The school is committed to providing the best possible opportunities for the children in our
care and this means constantly striving to be the best we can be for the children and
families we serve.
This year our priorities for improvement are:
Maximising high quality distributed leadership across the school community in order to secure consistency in provision in a strengthened workforce.
Revising the curriculum to ensure it meets the schools vision and aims and prepares children for future learning.
Create an atmosphere that supports whole school ownership of Be Ready, Be Respectful and Be Safe .
Recognising our PSHCE curriculum as a core subject that develops and celebrates our diversity as individuals as well as a community.
Fun With Friends
Fun with Friends is our Breakfast and After School Club provision which runs Monday to
Friday in term time. The club is a vibrant and happy environment for the children. They offer
snacks, special occasion celebrations, outdoor play/big toys/bikes, story time, arts and
crafts, constructive play and character and friendship building.
Ofsted : ‘The breakfast and after-school club provide good-quality care for working families.
Pupils start and end the school day in a safe, secure and welcoming environment.
Ofsted report: March 2018
A Science Experiment
3
School Context
Longlevens Infant School is a four form entry Infant School. This means we have 120 children
in each year group, 30 children per class. Reception (EYFS), Year 1 and Year 2. The school is
located on the northern outskirts of the historic city of Gloucester. The school has strong
links with the local community, with our pre school providers and with our partners at the
Junior School.
Motto
All of Us Together in Forest School
Partnerships
The school has an experienced Governing Body who help the leadership by challenging and
supporting the school in its aim to make the school outstanding. To become a parent
member of the Governing Body you must be democratically voted into office.
We also have a very strong Friends of Longlevens Infant School who help raise valuable
funds for projects the school cannot afford from its own delegated budget. Last year they
helped us fund our new iPads. They also bought new staging for our legendary
performances and bought additional resources for the classrooms, these are just a few
things they have helped us with.
Everyone with a child at the school is automatically a member of our Friends. They have
several events throughout the year and are always looking for fresh ideas.
4
Admission
Children come to Longlevens Infant School from many different pre-school settings. We
work closely with pre-school settings, meeting on a termly basis and working alongside our
colleagues to ensure our children are ready to start school.
In Gloucestershire children are admitted to school at the beginning of the school year in
which their fifth birthday falls. The Local Authority (LA) is the admissions authority and
manages all admissions to local authority maintained schools. The LA send out a letter which
asks you, as parents and carers, to complete a preference form. This must be completed
even if you already have children at the school. Under the terms of the Education Act (1980),
any parent who has been refused a place for their child has the right of appeal. The details
of this are made clear when you receive the letter/email informing you which school your
child has been allocated.
Induction
If you choose Longlevens Infant School and we sincerely hope you do, to help our new
Reception Children settle at school we have a fun and comprehensive induction programme
to make their start of school as smooth as possible. This programme includes:
Information meetings for new parents
Pre-school visits we aim to make contact either face to face or via a phone call with every child’s pre school provider
Welcome booklets for both parents and children with a free nursery rhyme CD to enjoy together.
School based sessions for the children during the summer term including Teddy Bear Story Time sessions and picnics.
Home Visits.
Reception children have a short part time induction in September, but are quickly introduced into school on a full time basis. The structure of the part time induction is reviewed year on year .
The children spend three years with us: Reception which is part of the Early Years Foundation Stage, Years 1 and 2 which are part of Key Stage 1. Following this time most of our children move onto Longlevens Junior School (LJS) who we work closely with to ensure a smooth transition for our children to Key Stage 2.
7
The School Day
The bell goes and doors open at 08:50 and the day starts 09:00
09:00-11.45/12.15 Curriculum Time
11.45– 13.15 Lunchtime (This is staggered so each year group has 1 hour.)
13.00/13.15— 15:00 Curriculum time
15:00 end of the school day.
Fun With Friends
The school has their own Breakfast and After School club in The Studio
07.30-08.55 Before school
15:00p.m.— 18:00 after school
Our curriculum is broad and balanced with an emphasis on Creativity, Child Centred and
Community based learning which provides active and inspirational teaching and learning,
ensuring the basics of Reading, Writing and Maths are firmly embedded. Beyond this the
school has much to offer. We have lots of extra curricular opportunities outside the school
day with a variety of clubs, dance–creative and country, athletics, football, art, cross county,
choir, Pyjama Drama, roaring rugby, cricket and Multi-sports to name a few!
We have peripatetic drumming and violin lessons available. We also have our own Forest
School area on site; this has been named ’Go Explore’ by the children. As an Artsmark Gold,
a Sing Up Gold school and a Music Mark school, there is a strong tradition of performance
here whether it’s the Reception Nativity, Year 1 concert, Year 2’s end of year performance,
taking part in exhibitions, taking part in the Shakespeare Festival, singing carols at the
Co-op, performing at one of the dance festivals; there is so much to get involved with.
6
Golden Rules Behaviour and Safety
The school is committed to instilling in our children a set of core values and respect of each
other, our school, the community and society at large. The behaviours we expect are taught
explicitly through value based assemblies, the curriculum in Personal, Social, Health and
Citizenship Education (PSHCE) and are modelled by all the staff. We always seek to positively
reinforce and reward positive behaviour. We have quiet, walking corridors which all
members of the community are encouraged to uphold.
To help guide our children we use just three rules and apply all our behaviour teaching
around this model:
Be ready
Be respectful
Be safe
The school has a strong anti bullying and behaviour policy and uses restorative approaches
to help keep children on track with their learning and not to be distracted by unacceptable
behaviour. We encourage children to make the right choices. This system rewards as well as
sanctions behaviour.
Good behaviour is rewarded in many ways in class, and is based on teaching our children the
right attitudes and dispositions through our learning powers. We also praise children’s
efforts with stickers and verbal feedback. We hold a weekly ‘Celebration of Work‘
Assembly where good work and behaviours are recognised through a presentation by the
Senior Leadership Team. Parents of the children who are chosen for the ‘Celebration of
Work’ Assembly are invited to come along on the day.
‘Celebration of Work’
Assembly
to Win It’
5
Longlevens Primary Partnership
We work in partnership with Longlevens Junior School in order to ensure that the children
have a smooth transition and a complete primary experience. Whilst both schools remain
independent of each other we work closely together on joint projects involving children and
staff.
Team building
activities
The school is an Artsmark Gold
School. A piece by Year 2.
Gloucester Schools Partnership
The school is a strategic partner in the GSP a
family of schools in the Gloucester area which
work closely together on whole school improve-
ment, procurement ventures and events for
children. Our children regularly take part in
Science Festivals, Sports Competitions, Dance
Festivals, Pupil Conferences, the Shakespeare
Festival and Art Exhibitions. The GSP works hard
to broaden children’s cultural experiences
across the city and we are proud to be a key
partner in this work.