LaceyField, consisting of two schools the Infant Academy and the Junior Academy.
LaceyField serves an underserved community with a significant number of pupils eligible for pupil premium. The school had a turbulent history, marked by inconsistency in behaviour policies and curriculum.
Before September 2019 the Infant Academy had received a “requires improvement” judgment, while the Junior Academy had the highest rate of fixed-term exclusions within the trust.
The prevailing sanction-led approach to behaviour management proved ineffective for the students, staff, and the community as a whole.
This triggered the desire for staff to have the tools to develop consistency, routine, and support for children by creating a relational behaviour policy.
This required equipping the staff with knowledge, skills, and understanding of attachment, behaviour, and trauma.
Under the leadership of Emma and the LaceyField team, the school adopted the approaches of relational practice with guidance from When the Adults Change to create a transformative shift from reliance on fixed-term exclusions and lesson removal to a trauma-informed, relational practice with calm and consistent adults. A whole school approach facilitated the successful transition, ensuring that all staff members embraced the change.
“The hope was to ensure all staff felt empowered to provide a relational approach to learning, ensuring every child felt safe, loved and ready to learn.”
They applied principles of a relational approach to create a bespoke culture of learning. This includes ‘Bee-haviours for learning’ in which students are recognised for using their bee-haviours for learning: be brave, be kind, be in charge of me, be grateful, be curious, be on the team. And recognition boards are buzzing with Bees! Positive postcards and ‘bee of the week’ assemblies, complete with hot chocolate have been implemented to foster a learning environment that is dripping with recognition for those children going over and above.
LaceyField’s embrace of relational practice is evidenced by having an environment where every child feels valued, relationships thrive, and recognition abounds. The transformation has paved the way for a harmonious and supportive community, empowering children to grow and succeed both academically and personally.