How Artsmark helped give structure to plans at Newcroft Primary Academy
Newcroft Primary Academy began its Artsmark journey in the summer of 2020, at the same time Issy Veazy started her new role as Art & Design subject leader. She embarked on an Artsmark journey to help give direction and structure to her plannings, as her headteacher had recommended Artsmark after seeing the impact it had in their previous school, supporting the design and development of a creative curriculum. Issy reflects on their Artsmark journey so far…
Can you briefly tell us a little bit about your school?
Based in Northwest Leicestershire, Newcroft Primary Academy has a growing population of approximately 400 children from Reception to Year 6 and is part of a multi-academy trust – Symphony Learning Trust. We started our Artsmark journey in the summer of 2020, just after the first lockdown. We began putting things in place in the Autumn term and, despite the challenges of the years that followed, have achieved a lot already.
What was the challenge or area for development you were trying to address?
The main driver for starting our Artsmark journey was curriculum design, aligned with developing staff Continued Professional Development (CPD) and supporting more teachers to feel confident and see the value of the arts. We wanted to really look at the progression of skills in our curriculum, linking art skills progression across the school within our topic-based curriculum, so that the children were building on their skills as they moved through the school.
I worked closely with the leadership team so that projects were supported from the top – and it could be seen that Artsmark was a whole school effort. I feel that this was an important step and appreciate how lucky we are to have a headteacher who is so supportive of developing the arts. Artsmark has also allowed us to develop new projects across the school and apply for funding to develop Arts Award as well.
What has happened so far?
Now we’ve made so many changes to the curriculum, it has just been brilliant! The first year was very much about putting things in place and planning a new curriculum. It was quite stop/start at the beginning due to the different lockdowns, but looking back we have achieved a lot, including whole school projects such as a project linked to British values where every year group painted the Queen in the style of a different artist. We sent off a letter to the Queen telling her about the project, and she replied! It was definitely a highlight for me!
We’ve also developed art-focused days (e.g., whole school Bollywood dance day), and have developed an art club, craft club, and staff have been on training courses where we share our learning across the school.
What outcomes have you seen?
The staff are now much more on board, which was one of the biggest challenges I found when starting out. Artsmark has helped staff to see the breadth of the arts, that art is not just drawing but dance, design, music, PE, drama etc. Staff are also more confident, sharing back from training they’ve attended to share ideas and tips across the school via inset days – so everyone can get new ideas and develop their confidence.
Before we started Artsmark, progression in the Art & Design and Design & Technology curriculums was limited, with often the same activities happening in Reception as in Year 2, but this has all changed after we’ve re-written the curriculum for Art and Design, Design and Technology, Music and PE. We’ve come up with skills and progression for each of those… so we’ve really changed the curriculum.
Children have also reflected that there are more opportunities in school now and parents have also commented and noticed the difference. When you start to see the impact on the children, that makes a big difference. The children are much more aware now that they are doing art, now that we’ve made so many changes in the curriculum, which has just been brilliant.
What advice would you give another teacher just about to start their Artsmark?
- Don’t panic! It can be quite overwhelming knowing where to start at first but it helps to break it down into stages – looking at the next 6, 12 and then 18 months ….and before you know it you have a plan!
- Work with your senior leadership team - don’t be scared to have ideas and go to them for support, you just need a clear plan and an idea of what it will help achieve. Getting your SLT on board from the start is really important.
- Get staff involved – you can organise and lead things but you need to get staff on board to ensure it gets embedded across the school. I planned in CPD opportunities for team members and have shared back ideas to build the confidence of the team – giving staff a chance to try things out has really helped with their confidence.
- Budgets – don’t be afraid to ask for money or help to fundraise from your PTA or similar.
Since this blog was first published, Newcroft Primary Academy received an Artsmark Gold Award! Congratulations to everyone involved!
