Artsmark Silver Status

We have renewed our Artsmark again (October 2024) Please read below. 

 

Congratulations! We are delighted to inform you that you have been awarded an Silver Award!

Your award is valid for two years and will expire on 21 October 2026.

Every Artsmark Award is a significant achievement. Thank you for your commitment to embedding arts culture and creativity across your whole school. We know the work and effort that this takes and would like to use this opportunity to thank you as the Artsmark lead for completing an Artsmark journey. We hope you have seen the real impact that you have had.

We’re pleased to share feedback from our Assessors with you regarding your submissions:

 

You have done well to maintain your commitment to the arts, fostering their ongoing development .....  You have achieved much of what you set out to do, elevating the use of sketchbooks, gradually embedding Charanga, mapping out the performing Arts/Dance curriculum from EYFS to Year 6 and giving the dance curriculum its own place within the Arts curriculum rather than PE curriculum. Pupils have followed though their enthusiasms, taking up club involvement and engaging with arts opportunities outside school.

 

What comes across very clearly as a thread that runs through your provision, is your attention to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. You made strategic efforts to poverty proof your offering, for example by switching to mini-masterpiece magnets to capture children’s individual art work. You engage your mobile pupil population with compassion, including your very high proportion of EAL children and significant numbers of children who have experienced trauma. On arrival, children create self-portraits, taking inspiration from artists that are relevant to the cohort. EAL booster groups use drama and role play activities to foster language skills. Your arts curriculum provides children with a safe place to explore their emotions and ideas in a setting that is respectful, and values their rich cultural heritages. Your Leadership’s strong Values and Ethos have led to the construction of a curriculum that is multicultural and reflective of your diverse pupils, and subject coordinators have cascaded training in a supportive manner.

 

It will be valuable, going forward, to capture evidence of how your use of the arts impacts on wider learning, perhaps particularly in language acquisition. With strong Leadership, Values and Ethos and EDI to build on, there are a couple of criteria you may wish to focus on as you continue your journey. Children and Young People – it is great that you still hope to create Arts Ambassadors and, more broadly, you might think of how you can further help young people drive forward with their own learning, perhaps through more peer collaboration. Your Cultural Collaborations can continue to grow, with arts organisations, creative practitioners and other educational settings, all of which might support CPD and sharing of good practice, while enriching your children’s experiences and learning. We look forward greatly to hearing where your Artsmark journey takes you next.

 
 
September 2019
We have been awarded the Artsmark Silver Award in recognition of our work in school. Artsmark commended us on the clear vision we have in developing the skills and capabilities of our pupils within the arts curriculum. Our curriculum represents our diverse school community and local area. It also showcases innovative and pioneering national and global artists both past and present.
 
Please enjoy our online portfolio which will give you a flavour of some of the outstanding work our pupils have created over the past and current academic year.
Christ Church Has Got Talent
 
A highlight of our school calendar! Children get the opportunity to audition, rehearse, choreograph and perform to the school, governors, staff and wider school community.
"Sing for joy"
 
There is no denying we love to sing at Christ Church. It lifts our spirits and brings us together as a school, community and as an extended family.
 
We have participated in numerous exhibitions over the years, battling it out with other schools in competitions and harmonising with children from our cluster schools as part of a larger choir. We have written our own school song and had visits from singers and performers who have praised our skill and enthusiasm for singing.
 
 
Welcome to the Gallery
 
Every child in school created a piece of art which was framed and displayed in a gallery style exhibition.
The art was available to buy, many were purchased on the day, and we could not have been prouder of our budding artists. 
Harvest Festival
 
Every year we celebrate Harvest with a whole school assembly in which every child performs in some capacity, be it song, dance, poetry or prayer. We invite our community to be a part of this event with us and gather food donations to share with others.
Self Portraits - It's all about that face!
 
We start every year with a focus on Self-portraits. Each year group takes inspiration from a different artist, often suggested by the children themselves, and we create work in the particular style of that artist. Over the years, and across the school, we have traversed the globe and the decades, visiting everyone from Vincent Van Gogh to Andy Warhol. 
Take a Note
One of the skills we chose to develop for our Artsmark award was the ability to read and use musical notation.
We have worked with Mrs Harris for many years and she has nurtured our children as they have learnt to play the recorder and claranet. We have shared these skills with each other for occasions such as class assemblies, seasonal celebrations and "the big gig".