Parent Survey - Your Comments

February 2025

Thank you to all the parents / carers who completed the parent questionnaire that was circulated in February. We received over 100 responses – a very good response rate for a school of our size. This demonstrates the passion for high quality education that this community holds.

We are happy to share some of the highlights from the survey, and some of the actions that we are taking as a result of parent feedback.

What our parents say…

• 95% of parents said that their child does well at this school.
• 90% of parents say that their child is happy at school.
• 93% of parents say that their child feels safe in school.89% of parents say that their child is taught well at school.
• 87% of parents said that there is a good range of subjects available to their child.
• 91% of parents said that the school supports their child’s wider personal development.
• 95% of parents said that their child can take part in clubs and activities at school.
• 100% of parents of children in Reception said that their child’s transition into this school was smooth.

We are listening

Whilst we are very pleased with the positivity that has been displayed in this questionnaire, there are some common themes that have been communicated by parents / carers which we have tried to address below:

School Meals

Several parents expressed concern about both the quantity and quality of school meals. School meals are provided by North Yorkshire’s County Catering service – we have made them aware of your comments. To gain a better understanding of the specific issues that parents / children have with our school meals, we will be sending home a short survey that is specifically about school meals in order to help gain a better understanding of what needs to improve.

Communication from teachers

Another common theme was regarding communication from teachers regarding attainment and what is going on in school. Regarding attainment, school already offer two parents’ evenings, a mid-year report and an end of year report. Moving forward, teachers will load a weekly note to their “class story” on Class Dojo with any important reminders or information for parents.

Use of technology for homework

A small number of parents were concerned about the impact of technology on homework, especially Boom Reader. This year, we have trialled Boom Reader, an electronic replacement for reading diaries. After Easter, we will be consulting with parents, as well as comparing the amount of reading which has been logged on Boom Reader with the amount of reading that is traditionally logged in reading diaries. This consultation and statistical analysis will inform the decision as to whether we continue using Boom Reader.

After School Club Food

We are delighted to have appointed Miss Poole to cook warm meals each day for the children attending After School Club. The children have already enjoyed pancakes on pancake day amongst other tasty and healthy meals.

Thank you for completing the parent questionnaire that was circulated in February. We received over 100 responses – a very good response rate for a school of our size. This demonstrates the passion for high quality education that this community holds.

What the children are learning about

There was a significant drop in the number of parents who agree that school makes parents aware of what their child will learn during the year. Teachers will continue to publish half-termly class newsletters which feature updates on what the children will learn about in the upcoming half-term. The school website also has a ‘curriculum’ section, which features the long term plans for each subject and year group.

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December 2023

Thank you to all the parents / carers who took the time to complete our survey. We were heartened at such a positive response.

We are happy to share some of the highlights from the survey, and some of the actions that we are taking as a result of the parent feedback.

What our parents say…

• 95% of parents said that their child is happy in our school. This has increased from 91% last year.
• 99% of parents said that their child feels safe in school. This has increased from 94% last year
• 97% of parents said that their child is taught well at school. This has increased from 87% last year.
• 94% of parents said school helps their child have a healthy lifestyle. This has increased from 89% last year.
• 100% of parents of children into Reception said that their child’s transition into this school was smooth.
• 95% of parents said that there are a good variety of subjects on offer. This is compared to 88% last year.
• 95% of parents said that their child does well at this school. This is compared to 87% last year
• 93% of parents said that the school has high expectations for their child. This is compared to 67% last year!
• 97% of parents said that school makes them aware of what their child will learn during the year. This is compared to 61% last year.
• 96% of parents said that school let them know how their children are doing. This is compared to 80% last year.
• 85% of parents agree that the school is led and managed effectively. This is compared to 55% last year.
• 93% of parents think that the school’s values are clearly communicated. This is compared to 78% last year.
• 100% of parents who had children here last year said that communication has improved over the last year.
• 94% of parents said that communication in this school is good. This is compared to 73% last year.
• 96% of parents feel comfortable approaching the school with suggestions and concerns. This is compared to 80% last year
• 95% of parents would recommend this school to another parent. This is compared to 85% last year.

We are listening

Whilst we were very pleased with the overwhelming positivity that was displayed in this questionnaire, there were some themes communicated by parents / carers which we have tried to address below.

Communication

We asked you which method of communication was preferred. A strong majority suggested email as their preferred method of communication. As such, we will continue to use emails as our primary method of whole-school communication.

Communication Method	Purpose	Example
Email	·  Whole school communication  ·  Communication from the office / Head Teacher to individual groups / classes ·  Notifications of head-bumps	·  Monthly Newsletters and other letters  ·  Information about trips
Text Messages	·  Occasional time sensitive notifications   ·  Text messages will be used rarely.	·  School closure, club cancellation
Class Dojo	·  Communication from class teachers directly to a whole class group of parents   ·  Direct communication between teachers and individual parents	·  Class Newsletter, general reminders  ·  Queries about homework, arranging SEN meetings
Facebook	·  Celebration of achievements / events  ·  Urgent notifications	·  Photos from trips  ·  School closure

 Governance

It is clear from the questionnaire results that there is a lack of clarity over where to find information about our current governing body and their responsibilities. You can find a list of our governing body by visiting our website:  Governance

On the governors page, there is a ‘pen portrait’ of each governor to give you further information about their backgrounds.

The main purpose of the Synergy Schools School Governing Body is to:

• Ensure clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction of our school.
• Hold leaders to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils, and the performance management of staff.
• Oversee the financial performance of the school and make sure its money is well spent.
• Ensuring the voices of stakeholders are heard.

Our Local School Committee meet every term (3 times a year). This non-statutory committee undertakes the governor monitoring role, holds our school in the Federation to account and provides a direct link to the Full Governing Body.

After School Club

A number of parents indicated that children do not do their homework at After School Club. Finding ways to give the children more opportunities to complete some of their homework at After School Club is something that we are working with Mrs Straw and the ASC team to accomplish. Parents / Carers may have noticed that school has applied for planning permission recently. Part of this is to improve the provision at After School Club by erecting a fence and creating an outdoor area in which the children can play. This is in addition to the excellent work that Mrs Straw completed over the summer freshening up the whole of After School Club with new paint, furniture and even an X Box!

Extra-Curricular Clubs

It was mentioned that the cost of clubs was prohibitive for some parents. As such, we have taken the decision to remove the costs from the following clubs that are run by school staff:

• Running
• Chess
• Wildlife
• Year 5/6 football
• Skateboarding

Warhammer will still incur a small charge to pay for the resources needed for these clubs. That charge will be £4 per session. This can be paid at the start of term as a one-off or paid in weekly chunks.