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8. Listening to Children and Young People

We know that the only way we really find out if a child is happy , feeling safe and taking part in the full life of our community is for the school to be certain that it hears the voices of children, especially those most vulnerable. As a Rights Respecting school we take the child’s right to be heard very seriously.

We make sure that we listen to children in our school and respond to what they say in a number of ways, including:

  • clear policies and systems to support children in expressing any worries or concerns that they have: giving children the right to choose a preferred adult to talk to;
  • talking to children and/or groups of children after lesson observations to understand their experience of the lesson;
  • inviting children to make personal contributions to their Annual Review meetings, for example, through a video montage or ipad presentation;
  • encouraging children to respond to feedback given through developmental marking;
  • agreeing with them individual ‘next steps’ in their work;
  • all children take part in the Big School Meeting. These are meetings of all children from Reception to Year 6. The children work collaboratively to discuss themes and share ideas and plans. The meetings are inclusive and represent the whole of our community;
  • ensuring that our safeguarding procedures are strong and that all staff are well trained.

How do you work in partnership with parents?