Pen Portrait
Birkenshaw C.E. (C) Primary School is a voluntary controlled school for children currently aged 3 – 11 years in Kirklees Local Authority. In September 2013 we completed the reorganisation to change from a First School to a full Primary School with a Nursery.
The school has an extensive and attractive site, which includes a well-established wildlife conservation area, including a pond and mature woodland, a kitchen garden, mud kitchen, a ball court and purpose designed play areas.
The school has four buildings. The Key Stage Two building comprises of four classrooms, a technology Suite, an Art/DT Room which is also home to our Breakfast and After School Clubs, a hall, a library, the Headteacher and administrative offices, and storerooms. The classrooms are self-contained units with their own cloakrooms and toilet facilities and direct access to outside teaching spaces and play areas. This building is home to the children in Years 3 and 4.
The Year 5 and 6 children have their own modular building which is self-contained and has breakout rooms for small group to access.
The younger children (Reception, Year 1 and Year 2) are based in the Key Stage One building, which dates from the early 1970s. It has six semi open-plan classrooms with shared areas, together with a hall, a library, a small group room, the staffroom, staff workspaces and storage facilities. Our kitchen is located in this building and the hall becomes the school dining room at lunchtimes.
Our Nursery is housed in its own modular building, adjacent to the Reception classes.
There are two mixed ability classes in each year group and teachers plan together. We teach a creative Curriculum and link curriculum areas where this is relevant and meaningful. We are committed to enriching the curriculum - theme days and weeks are a regular feature of school life, as are visits by theatre groups and professional artists and musicians, and visits to places of interest both within and outside the local area. A wide range of extra curricular clubs are also on offer.
We have a strong environmental focus and hold the Eco Schools Green Flag Award and Fair Trade School Status. We also place great importance on cultural awareness in education, and caring for the community around us. Modern foreign languages are taught throughout school, starting in Nursery.
Our Christian ethos is at the heart of everything we do, and we have a close relationship with our parish church. We have a tradition of fundraising for charities through various fun events.
Support children’s emotional wellbeing is a strength of the school and we have an active working party which includes staff, parents, Governors and children who champion children and families emotional wellbeing.
We are proud of our high standards in IT, with children from Reception to Year 6 currently receiving specialist teaching once a week. We hold the NAACEMark award for ICT.
We have a large and friendly staff team and, because we have a number of separate buildings, work hard to ensure that a whole school ethos and approach is maintained.
Our children are a pleasure to teach and we have active School and Eco Councils Digital Leaders and a Care Crew. Pupils also undertake a variety of jobs around school. We hold the Investors in Pupils Award.
‘Pupils behave well, care for one another and show responsible attitudes.
They enjoy life to the full’. (Ofsted December 2016)
