Parent View Survey

Parent Survey Results Spring 2022

We had 121 families answer our survey which is a great response. The results were overall very positive and there were some lovely comments that show how much you value the things we prioritise such as our nurture and positive relationships. Of course there is room for improvement, and the responses to the survey show us the areas that we need to focus on as we work with you.

Some Comments from Parents

The school has a very nurturing environment and both my children have been very happy and settled there.

My child seems very happy and settled at school.

Constant support to the children, caring and nurturing at all times, allow the children to feel all their emotions and work it through with them.

They teach good manners and to be kind.

News letter is great. The workshops are brilliant, really nice to see the children at school and do something with them. All the staff are friendly, approachable and helpful.

There are lots of lovely and friendly staff. Great facilities, great outdoor spaces.

Centre education around the specific needs of the child.

Helping the children to be the best they can be. Communication with parents is excellent.

Gently demonstrate Christian values.

My child has made a lot of good friends and the balance between academic performance and personal development is good.

Looking after the children’s well-being, dealing sensitively with SEN, encouraging the children to respect and take care of each other, overall education materials.

It sounds silly but i love how you are a very child orientated school.

I think the school creates a lovely environment for the children. I think the weekly newsletters are great to give parents an idea of activities in the classroom and there are some lovely plans in the lead up till Christmas. The children seem happy at school and I think the teachers really care about them.

Encouraging those who are struggling.

We appreciate the strong Christian ethos at school including Christian members of staff. Our child is so enthusiastic about school and tells us what he has been learning. The staff are good at their jobs, kind and approachable.

I love how the school really nurtures the children. Giving them cuddles when they are upset and making celebrations like birthdays and Christmas special!
As a parent I also really love the Sway and the graduated start time in the morning.

My child is in year one and i’ve been nothing but impressed with the school overall. Communication is super and my child is happy.

All staff are happy and welcoming and go above and beyond to help and educate the children.

Genuine care for the children. Managing behaviour, both good and bad. Informal conversations in classrooms about issues happening in the class. Assemblies. Teaching about Jesus.

Pastoral care, valuing the needs of all children, encouraging faith and spirituality, loving our children so well, excellent teaching and a challenging environment to learn in.

There is a strong ethos within the school which is fed through everything they do. Staff are friendly and approachable. Children are valued, listened to and opinions respected.

Everything. Especially the care for each child.

All the staff we have come into contact with have been approachable, friendly and caring. Everyone listens well and is proactive. There is a lovely warm ethos. I feel privileged my son can go to school here.

Sharing information about the phonics and reading. The weekly newsletter is super informative and communication with the parents is fantastic.

Fun way of learning and making school fun but educational and introducing rules to thrive in the world.

Staff are fantastic. Feel like I can talk to them about anything, ask questions, and frequently get feedback (both positive and negative to help reward and inform of issues to be dealt with straight away).

Care so well for each individual child and encourage them whatever their needs are. Communicate well with us. Approachable and friendly. Christian values at the centre of everything.

The newsletters are now really informative about what each year group is doing and which allows parents to help their children and support their learning. Communication is good.

Think with regards to the pupils who have needs under the SENCO they are well catered for and school works hard in order to give them attention that they need and also realise that they aren’t going to be perfect 24/7 but work hard to make them feel as normal as part of the class as much as possible. Thank you.

Communication with my sons teacher has been brilliant this year. We really appreciate the mental health side talks/activities you do within the school!

Survey Questions and Responses

Q. My child is happy at St Laurence Church Infant School

  • Strongly Agree = 69%
  • Agree = 26%
  • Neutral = 3%
  • Disagree = 2%
  • Strongly Disagree = 0

Our comments: We know that being happy at school is hugely important – if children aren’t happy, they won’t be able to focus on their learning. It was great to see that 69% of you strongly agreed with this statement.

Q. My child feels safe at St Laurence Church Infant School

  • Strongly Agree = 64%
  • Agree = 33%
  • Neutral = 2%
  • Disagree = 1%
  • Strongly Disagree = 0

Our comments: School needs to be a place where children feel safe so while it was wonderful that so many of you agreed, there was one child who doesn’t feel safe at school and that is 1 child too many.

Q. St Laurence Church Infant School makes sure its pupils are well behaved

  • Strongly Agree = 36%
  • Agree = 51%
  • Neutral = 8%
  • Disagree = 4%
  • Strongly Disagree = 0

Our comments: Four percent of you disagreed that all pupils are well behaved. We have seen a big impact on behaviour from the pandemic and have a small number of children who have suffered real trauma over this time. Our trauma informed, attachment aware behaviour regulation policy gives all children the chance to learn to name and regulate their emotions and to put things right with natural consequences when their behaviour hasn’t been as good as we expect. We often have positive comments from visitors into school or when we go out on trips to commend our children’s good behaviour.

Q. Has your child been bullied at school?

  • Yes = 11%
  • No = 89%

Our comments: We know that sadly, bullying can and does happen, especially as young children are still learning social skills. Our PHSE work helps us think about how we get along well together and what makes a good friend. We know that bulling can have long lasting harmful effects if it isn’t addressed early. When we become aware of bulling, we act quickly to support the victim and keep them safe, and to help the bully to understand the impact of their behaviour. I was pleased that only 1% of families disagreed that when bullying had happened, it was dealt with quickly and effectively.

Q. The school makes me aware of what my child is learning during the year

  • Strongly Agree = 37%
  • Agree = 50%
  • Neutral = 8%
  • Disagree = 3%
  • Strongly Disagree = 2%

Our comments: Five percent of you felt we have not made you aware of what your child is learning throughout the year. Our weekly newsletters has information in the year group sections about what is being covered in school, for example the sounds being taught in phonics each week. In Key Stage One there is a topic map each half term, the Spring One one will be in next week’s newsletter. Reception were given a yearly overview of the EYFS curriculum in September. We have held parent information sessions on Reading for Reception, Phonics for Year One and will be holding a session on the End of Key Stage Assessments (SATs) for Year Two later this half term. To help you to understand our curriculum better, each week I will be asking our subject coordinators to give a summary of their subject across school, starting with Design and Technology in the week after next.

Q. Have you raised concerns with the school?

  • Yes = 30%
  • No = 70%

Our comments: I am happy that families feel they can approach the class teachers and myself when they have a concern about school. We work hard to address your concerns and put things right so I was very pleased that of the 36 families that have raised concerns, there were none that disagreed that the concern had now been resolved.

Q. St Laurence Church Infant School has high expectations for my child

  • Strongly Agree = 37%
  • Agree = 50%
  • Neutral = 9%
  • Disagree = 2%
  • Strongly Disagree = 1%

Our comments: Three percent of you disagreed that the school has high expectations for your child. Part of my job, with the rest of the senior leadership team, is to monitor the teaching and learning in school to ensure that all children are given the appropriate level of challenge. We do this through looking at assessment data, watching lessons, looking at teachers’ planning and at children’s work and by talking to the children themselves.

Q. Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

  • Yes = 16%
  • No = 84%

Our comments: Of the 19 children with SEND, two felt their child didn’t receive the support they need. Mrs McFall, the SENCO, works closely with class teachers and in partnership with parents to monitor and review the support in school. She meets every term with parents to discuss this and make plans for support for the term ahead. We know that there are sometimes long waiting lists for external services such as speech therapy and community pediatricians. We try very hard to use the resources we have in school to support children who need extra help and make adaptations to meet their needs.

Q. My child does well at St Laurence Church Infant School

  • Strongly Agree = 45%
  • Agree = 43%
  • Neutral = 8%
  • Disagree = 2%
  • Strongly Disagree = 2%

Our comments: 88% of you feel your child does well at school.

Q. The staff let me know how my child is doing at school

  • Strongly Agree = 30%
  • Agree = 53%
  • Neutral = 12%
  • Disagree = 4%
  • Strongly Disagree = 2%

Our comments: It is important for you to know how your child is doing, so that you can support them at home. There were seven families who didn’t feel that we let you know how your child is doing at school, and 14 families who were not sure. We hold a parent’s evening towards the end of each term, and this year have introduced a print-out from our assessment system which we gave to you at parents’ evening. If we are worried about your child, we would let you know. If you are not sure about how your child is doing, you do not have to wait for parents’ evening: please chat to your child’s class teacher at the end of the school day, or leave a message with the office to ask them to call you.

Q. The children have a good range of subjects at the school

  • Strongly Agree = 40%
  • Agree = 49%
  • Neutral = 12%
  • Disagree = 0
  • Strongly Disagree = 0

Our comments: There were no families who felt we didn’t have a good range of subjects in school. We cover all of the subjects in the EYFS or KS1 National Curriculum, often in a thematic or topic based way. The weekly newsletter item from subject leaders, starting in a few weeks, will help you understand a bit more about the broad range of subjects we teach in school.

Q. My child can take part in clubs and other activities at school

  • Strongly Agree = 37%
  • Agree = 39%
  • Neutral = 18%
  • Disagree = 5%
  • Strongly Disagree = 1%

Our comments: One of the areas commented upon specifically as a thing we could do better is the range of after school clubs available, especially to Reception children. We currently have a dance club and two multisport clubs as well as a peripatetic music teacher offering violin, guitar and ukulele. I am looking into finding more club providers, but was pleased that we have secured the Star Project to begin a musical theatre club for all year groups after school today, and have asked Jason, our forest school leader to look into running a club after February half term. If you know of any other club providers who would be interesting in leading after school clubs here, please let me know.

Q. St Laurence Church Infant School supports my child’s wider personal development

  • Strongly Agree = 31%
  • Agree = 50%
  • Neutral = 17%
  • Disagree = 1%
  • Strongly Disagree = 1%

Our comments: We were really pleased that many of you feel we support your child’s wider personal development. Understanding children holistically, and not just focusing on achievement in English and Maths is very important to us. We do this through extra curricular activities such as clubs and forest school, by celebrating children’s achievements at out of school activities and giving them chance in “show and tell” to share what is important to them. We give children opportunities to take on responsibilities within the class and school for example being the line leader, or on the school council. Our daily worship develops children’s global citizenship, understanding of the rights of the child and promotes their spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding.

Q. I would recommend St Laurence Church Infant School to other parents

  • Strongly Agree = 62%
  • Agree = 31%
  • Neutral = 4%
  • Disagree = 2%
  • Strongly Disagree = 1%

Our comments: It was really pleasing to see how many of you would recommend our school to other parents.