Not long ago, Four Dwellings Primary Academy in the heart of Quinton, Birmingham, had never received a positive Ofsted judgement in its history. The school, troubled by a revolving door of leadership with seven principals in as many years, was left unable to support students to secure a promising future.
With 75% of our students qualifying for free school meals when I first joined, there was a deficit mindset about the potential of our children. Phrases like "Our kids can't" and "The parents won't do that" could be heard echoing through the halls. My least favourite, “It's in the water in Quinton,” anytime there were challenges, was a learned mindset.
I was determined to change the narrative on the potential of our children. Drawing inspiration from schools in similar circumstances that had successfully turned the tide, my new team and I explored case studies, looking at schools with similar levels of deprivation who had triumphantly raised standards.
We looked at these schools and probed with critical inquiries like, "What does this reveal about us?" and "Does this align with our situation?" - questions that sparked truly reflective conversations, particularly around unconscious bias and the expectations of children.
We also looked at the effectiveness of our school's behaviour policy, especially in light of the challenges we had at the time, and we presented anonymised policies from several other schools to the staff. The aim was to create discussion about the relevance of ours compared to theirs, which led to constructive discussions and opened opportunities to reconsider what might best serve our students.
This approach not only provided practical strategies for improvement but also served as a powerful reminder that adversity can be overcome with an open mind and decisive actions. It was not only to copy successful models but also to develop a culture of reflection and adaptability, testing whether our strategies were relevant.
The reality of unemployment for many of our families directly impacts our children's daily routines and is closely linked to the challenge of consistent school attendance. Our challenges around attendance are deep. Last year, attendance was 4% lower than the national average, which is troubling, especially in a community with high levels of deprivation.
Understanding this connection, we have proactively integrated solutions to address these challenges into our curriculum, reinforcing the value of education as a pathway to employment and success.
Given our context, our guiding mission has been to elevate the aspirations of our students, teachers, and families. Central to this are two pivotal projects we have created over the past couple of years: RISE (Raising Inspiration for Successful Employment) and an oracy project, each to expand their horizons.
RISE, our careers project, is an ambitious initiative aimed at broadening our students' perspectives on potential career paths, involves organising trips and inviting professionals from various fields to interact with our students, offering them a glimpse into the diverse range of career opportunities in later life. Complementing RISE is our oracy project to support students' articulation and interview skills. By focusing on these communication skills, we are empowering our students to confidently express their aspirations and visions for their future.
These projects have been at the heart of school life over the past couple of years. The careers projects for us are not just about exposing students to potential job roles; it’s about embedding the belief that employment is an attainable and essential goal. Similarly, the oracy project is more than developing communication skills; it's about empowering our students to articulate their dreams and confidently step into the world.
This ethos of raising aspirations for pupils and parents in all our efforts was clear and obvious during the recent Ofsted inspection. The shift we have made in our academy was evident in how our students spoke about their future, voicing dreams of becoming astrophysicists and engineers to inspectors.
The progress we have made in our performance is remarkable, too. Not long ago, we were the lowest performing school in our trust, with only 37% of our students achieving the expected standards in Reading, Writing and Maths, which increased by 19 percentage points to 56% in just one year.
Of course, these are still some way off from where we want to be, but the trajectory is set. We are making this school excellent - and its first-ever positive Ofsted result in four consecutive attempts is affirming of that.
The water in Quinton is still the same, and at Four Dwellings Primary Academy, there's something promising flowing through it.