Ripon primary school named as one of the most diverse in North Yorkshire

Moorside Primary School and Nursery in Ripon has been named as one of the most culturally diverse schools in North Yorkshire and has been recognised for its inclusivity.

The school has pupils from 17 different nationalities and has become the first in the county to be awarded the Inclusion Quality Mark (IQM) Flagship status.

Almost 10 different languages are spoken by children at the school and almost 20% of the school, 33 pupils, do not speak English as their first language.

It has 190 pupils of various religious beliefs and there are children whose families originate from countries such as Nigeria, Syria, Afghanistan, Poland, Pakistan, Romania, China and Latvia.

The Inclusion Quality Mark was established in the UK in October 2004 with the objective of supporting both state and independent schools to become inclusive.

Claire Rowett, headteacher at Moorside Primary and Nursery, said:

 “There have been increasing opportunities through our IQM work to raise pupil voice and provide them with a platform to share projects, as well as share their learning opportunities, knowledge across the curriculum, personal development opportunities and also how they keep safe, mentally and physically healthy.

“We support and celebrate diversity within our school community.”

Ms Rowett added:

“Some of the work has also led us to achieve gold in the North Yorkshire Council’s Healthy School Awards for our efforts to improve the health, wellbeing and resilience in our school community. I am, as ever, extremely proud of everything that we have achieved at Moorside. The success that we have had has been through the tenacious hard work of all staff and governors, working with our children and their families, which we value greatly.

Above all, we are proud of our pupils and their confidence in sharing the work the we do together – they are the best ambassadors for our school”

Children in class with teacher Georgia Padbury-Hunt.

North Yorkshire Council’s assistant director for education and skills, Amanda Newbold, said:

“The IQM award recognises the commitment by schools to provide the best education for all children irrespective of differences. This recognition truly reflects the wonderful work of staff, governors and, of course, the pupils at Moorside Primary School and Nursery to successfully remove barriers to learning and maximise educational experiences. Congratulations to all involved.”

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Ripon school earns national recognition for supporting refugees

Moorside Primary School and Nursery has become a nationally recognised School of Sanctuary after demonstrating an understanding of refugees.

The Schools of Sanctuary programme is a network of over 300 primary and secondary schools committed to supporting refugees in the UK.

Schools join the network if they can prove over a period of time that children learn what it is like to be a refugee and this is embedded in the curriculum in subjects such as  geography, history and religious education.

They are then reassessed on a three-year rolling basis.

Other schools in the Harrogate district to have achieved School of Sanctuary status include Grove Road Community Primary School, St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Springwater School, and Outwood Primary Academy Greystone.

Moorside’s award certificate was presented during last week’s national Refugee Week.

Claire Rowett, headteacher at Moorside, said:

“At Moorside, we have established an inclusive and welcoming ethos, where the importance of safety is embedded across the curriculum.

“Learning about people across the world and their contrasting environments and experiences to our own in Ripon, has taught our children that our one rule, to be kind, is not just associated with school, but is a rule for life, and that nobody should feel alone.”

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Schools of Sanctuary is organised by City of Sanctuary UK, an organisation established in 2005 to promote the UK as a welcoming place of safety for all.

Yvonne Jefferies, the lead for Schools of Sanctuary at Ripon City of Sanctuary, which is part of City of Sanctuary UK, said:

“This award is not given lightly. Schools work very hard to demonstrate that they understand what it means to be a refugee and to arrive here in the UK, likely friendless and very anxious.”