David Roundtree writes:
Moortown Primary is a happy and healthy place to learn, and also to work.
I was appointed as Headteacher around about this time of year, but way back in 2007. This has been my seventh teaching job. Having spent a year in a village school in Warwickshire, three years in a York school, a year working in a university, two years in Wetherby, three years in Harrogate and a year in a rural school as Acting Headteacher, it might have been predicted that I might stay at Moortown for maybe three or four years. The eight years and two terms proves how much I’ve loved my time here.
One of the first big changes we made was the logo. We went from this…
…to the familar orange, green and blue blobby people we see today.
The school councillors liked the different colours in the new logo, which they decided represented our different cultures, plus the jumping and dancing which represented energy and happiness, plus the connection of the characters as a symbol for friendships. (At the same time as this, we changed the uniform colour from dark green to red – another decision made entirely by pupils. I seem to remember this went down badly with the 2007-08 Year 6 pupils who wanted black tops – but the decision was a whole-school democratic one!)
This change might seem a bit shallow – just a cosmetic change? Not so. It helped to shift the culture of the school. It became a more dynamic, more modern, more forward-thinking place to be. And it led to our slogan: a happy and healthy place to learn – more than a slogan, really: something deep-rooted in what we do.
Following this came a new website. I hope you agree this gives you loads of information: ‘need to know’ facts along with ‘nice to know’ snapshots about all the great learning and activities that take place. Don’t forget the website offers lots of advice and suggestions about how to support your child at home, including lists of learning expectations for each year, for each subject. It’s a website that’s often copied by other schools – even in recent weeks, I’ve noticed content on websites in Leeds and London that seems really quite familiar!
The front playground used to be barren wasteland. A bleak and unused space is now a popular play destination, both during school and at the end of the day. Also implemented with the help of the school council, it’s another change which has proved really successful.
Not all the changes have been by choice, but we’ve always tried to approach everything we do with optimism and determination to be the best. When the government introduced changes in the curriculum, for example, this was an opportunity to overhaul ours: introduced more whole-school topics to reinforce the strong community culture we have, and we increased the amount of flexibility we have so we can adapt what we’re doing to match children’s interests. When the government increased the importance of grammar in schools, we were already ahead of the game but we took the opportunity to develop staff and children’s grammar skills even further. And when the government abandoned levels, we took the opportunity to implement a simpler, but more powerful, way to assess children’s learning and identify next steps for children. …mmm…lots of change introduced by those ‘experts’ in government (!).
Since 2007, there have been lots of changes amongst the teaching staff, too. Before actually starting, I was fortunate enough to be part of the recruitment of three teachers: Mrs Weekes as Inclusion Leader, and two newly-qualified teachers, Miss Kieran and Mr O’Leary (now teaching in Sweden and Dubai, respectively). Miss Hewson and Miss Beatson came first (now teaching in York and London). In 2010, a record four new teachers joined: Mr Owen, Mr Wilks, Mr Redfearn (known as the boyband!) and Miss Hazell. (Mr Redfearn enjoys teaching success in Manchester and Miss Hazell in Harrogate.) Mrs Maver as Assistant Headteacher came and went around this time, too. In 2013, we had another round of big change when Miss Rushbrooke, Miss Valentine and Mrs Keating joined us, and most recently we’ve welcomed Mr McKeon, Mrs Wells and Mr Catherall. In all this, Mrs Burke and Mrs Taylor have stood the test of time!
There have been some challenges. For example, our Ofsted inspection of 2011 was tough; despite being judged outstanding, it was hard to accept comments about the Reception class because we’d made lots of improvements. (I’m really proud about the wonderful things that happen here these days, and lots of experts from the local authority agree.) Sadly right now, we’re experiencing another challenge: we are missing the care and guidance of Mrs Wilson. (Mrs Weekes and I visited just yesterday, and she’s doing well, and was keen to hear about all the goings on.)
Nevertheless, I’m proud of so many things here at Moortown Primary.
I’m proud that amongst all this teacher turnover, we’ve seen some brilliant teaching, and we continue to do so – the teaching team we have now is quite probably the best we’ve ever had, and that includes our great teaching assistants. I don’t have space to list them all here, but they do a wonderful job. The office team and site staff, too, are quite probably the best we’ve ever had, too. Mrs O’Malley and Mrs Russell are the face of Moortown Primary and we’re all lucky to have such a friendly face!
Equally, I’m proud of our children. They are polite, pleasant and positive, always great ambassadors for our school. I’ve loved seeing children in Reception grow in confidence and skills over the years. It’s such a privilege to be able to observe so many different characters approach their learning, their friendships, in fact, their lives, in different ways.
School leaders are another reason to be proud. Mrs Weekes has done a fantastic job in supporting me as Deputy Headteacher; she, combined with the passion and commitment of Mr Owen and Mr Wilks, have been great colleagues to lead Moortown Primary in the last few years. Talking of school leaders, the governing body has grown in skills and effectiveness over the years. When I joined Moortown Primary, Janice Rush was new to the role of Chair; she was replaced my Becky Lawrence. Both have been fantastic Chairs. In the autumn, there will be a vacancy for a new Chair as Becky steps down. Whoever this may be, I’m confident the governing body will continue to provide a powerful balance of support and challenge, and remain committed to making the best strategic decisions for the school. Whilst you might not have direct experience of the governors, be assured we’re all privileged to have such an effective team.
Finally, I’m proud of you, our parents, too, and thank you for all your support over the years. This might be as parents who talk to us and tell us their thoughts, whether in person or in surveys or such like (we do listen, and we do try to respond), or simply as parents who take the time to say hello or goodbye each day.
Thank you to all pupils, staff, parents, school leaders. You’ve all helped to make this the happy and healthy place it is today.