Chartered College of Teaching
Chartered College of Teaching
Overview
Born from a desire to radically change our approach to curriculum and pedagogy, and rethink what schools can and should be, we transformed an unused, boggy two-acre playing field into a vast Forest School. Over the last six months, we have planted 3,500 trees, dug a pond, and planted huge wildflower meadow. This space has become integral to both our curriculum and our approach to teaching and learning, as well as a crucial space to support the mental health and wellbeing of our children.
Context, rationale & pedagogical approaches
Fender Primary School is located in the very middle of the Woodchurch Estate, a large estate in Birkenhead, Merseyside. Deprivation indicators suggest we are an area of high deprivation (decile one for almost all indicators) (MHCLG, 2019). Over 65 per cent of our children receive pupil premium funding, with many families facing the daily realities of economic hardship. This situation is compounded by years of government cuts to youth services and the loss of our local library.
