It is very important to us that parents are able to give us feedback, so that we can act on any concerns, know when things are going well or refine what we do. There are many ways parents can get in touch with school, emailing teachers using the new teacher email listed below, phoning or making an appointment to see a member of staff via the school office.
As well as this, we have set up a Parent Voice group, with representation from across the school, who meet each half term to discuss issues or parental concerns, as well as share positive feedback about what different years groups are doing and what we are doing well. Please click onto the Parent Voice icon to view our parental representation, meeting notes and a contact form for agenda suggestions.
Parent Questionnaire Feedback: March 2018
I would like to express my thanks to the many parents and carers who took the time to complete a questionnaire during the parent consultations before the Easter break. We strive very hard to provide the best possible education and value your opinions on what you feel is working well and your view about how we could get even better. I would like to take this opportunity to share a summary of the responses we received which I am very pleased to say were extremely positive and have been very informative.
|
|
Strongly Agree |
Agree |
Disagree |
Strongly Disagree |
Don’t Know |
|
My child is happy at school. |
76% |
24% |
|
|
|
|
My child feels safe at school. |
80% |
20% |
|
|
|
|
My child makes good progress at this school. |
75% |
25% |
|
|
|
|
My child is well looked after at this school. |
81% |
19% |
|
|
|
|
My child is taught well at this school. |
80% |
20% |
|
|
|
|
My child receives appropriate homework for their age. |
60% |
35% |
4% |
|
1% |
|
This school makes sure its pupils are well behaved. |
71% |
29% |
|
|
|
|
This school deals effectively with bullying. |
57% |
24% |
1% |
|
18% |
|
The school is well led and managed. |
74% |
25% |
|
|
1% |
|
This school responds well to any concerns I raise. |
62% |
28% |
2% |
|
8% |
|
I receive valuable information about my child’s progress. |
64% |
32% |
3% |
|
1% |
|
I understand the role / responsibility of the governing body. |
52% |
37% |
4% |
|
7% |
|
I know how to contact the Governing body if I needed to |
51% |
31% |
7% |
|
11% |
|
Would you recommend this school to another parent? |
71% |
19% |
|
|
|
What do you think are the positives about the Berkeley Academy?
· Children: happy, valued and important, secure, looked after, confident, make good progress, encouraged to reach their potential
· Staff: high standards of teaching, caring, strong leadership and governing body, happy, effective, positive, encouraging, inclusive, supportive, nurturing, caring, friendly, approachable, high learning expectations.
· School: celebrate a wide range of achievements, supportive of pupils and parents, friendly, massive improvements over last few years, always striving for excellence, always improving through new initiatives, integrated out of school care, class assemblies, open door policy, excellent facilities, well maintained, trips, lots of after school clubs, coffee afternoons
· Atmosphere: positive, challenging, great, sense of enjoyment and fun, close knit, welcoming, warm, family feel, mutual respect
· Behaviour management: high expectations, rewards for positive reinforcement, consistent, fair.
How can we make further improvements to The Berkeley Academy?
· More outdoor equipment
· More/less homework and tailored more specifically to children’s ability
· Develop parental partnership further
· Update website more regularly
· Reduce number of times parents are asked for money
· Improve school dinners
· Bigger time between younger and older children finishing at the end of the day.
How well do you feel we communicate with our parents/carers?
Views on how communication is working well:
· Range of sources including email, texts, parentmail, Facebook and website are now used by vast majority and commented on as working well
· Advanced notice of events help to plan family life
· Planners work well for day-to-day communication
· Good communication between teachers and parents
· New teacher email has worked well when queries need to be made
· Teachers respond to messages quickly
Suggestions to improve communications:
· Fewer emails and more text messages
· Emails specific to Nursery need to be clearer
· More notice for some events
· Emails to include information rather than attaching a PDF
Any further comments:
Thank you to all your responses so that we can continue to move the school forward and celebrate what you feel we do particularly well. I am very proud of the many positive comments that were received and I would like to share a sample of the very positive we received:
· ‘Thank you for all your hard work. It is great to know that my children are happy and confident coming to school and that they are being encouraged to do their best. They are making great progress.’
· ‘We think the school has gone from strength to strength over the past few years – really pleased.’
· ‘The staff are always encouraging the children and invest a lot of time in each child.’
· ‘Whilst the school is large, there is still a strong family feel at The Berkeley. My children are very happy at the school. Thank you!’
· ‘Everyone who works at the school is approachable and caring – every child matters.’
· ‘The Berkeley is a very happy school which allows all children to reach their potential. It is always striving for excellence and looking at ways to improve through new initiatives.’
· ‘The teaching staff are fantastic – what a wonderful school.’
Parental feedback is important to the school; hence the questionnaires collected as part of the parental consultation process. I therefore hope that if parents have concerns or would like further clarification regarding any aspect of school, they would contact the school directly. From the information you have provided we will continue to look at ways to keep moving the school forward. Since the previous questionnaire we have responded to many of the comments made by parents. These have included:
Yours sincerely,
Miss Carolyn Brown
Headteacher
Parent Questionnaire Feedback: January 2017
|
|
Strongly Agree |
Agree |
Disagree |
Strongly Disagree |
Don’t Know |
|
My child is happy at school. |
81% |
18% |
1% |
|
|
|
My child feels safe at school. |
82% |
16% |
1% |
|
1% |
|
My child makes good progress at this school. |
75% |
24% |
|
|
1% |
|
My child is well looked after at this school. |
84% |
16% |
|
|
|
|
My child is taught well at this school. |
82% |
17% |
|
|
1% |
|
My child receives appropriate homework for their age. |
72% |
25% |
2% |
|
1% |
|
The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved. |
82% |
17% |
|
|
1% |
|
This school deals effectively with bullying. |
60% |
20% |
1% |
|
19% |
|
The school is well led and managed. |
78% |
20% |
|
|
2% |
|
The school responds well to any concerns I raise. |
67% |
21% |
1% |
|
11% |
|
I receive valuable information about my child’s progress. |
70% |
25% |
3% |
1% |
1% |
|
I understand the role & responsibility of the governing body. |
58% |
30% |
6% |
|
6% |
|
I know how to contact the governing body if I needed to. |
45% |
37% |
6% |
4% |
8% |
|
Would you recommend this school to another parent? |
89% |
11% |
|
|
|
Any further comments:
‘The Berkeley Academy really is a wonderful school. Staff and pupils are a real credit.’
‘Love this school so much. My children are so happy here. Thank you.’
‘It does not just focus on academic achievement. It is fantastic that sport and art are encouraged so much.’
‘Whilst the focus is on learning, there is still a strong element of fun and enjoyment – this will lead to happy memories at The Berkeley. Thank you!’
‘I could not be happier with The Berkeley. I feel very lucky that my children come here, such a wonderful school.’
‘One of the things I love about The Berkeley is the way it encourages pupils to care about others and not just themselves.’
‘An amazing school that has inspired, nurtured and developed all our children to the next step in their life journeys.’