Woodcroft Primary in Barnet first to pledge to Generation Culture

16 October 2015

To enhance their offer and help more young people, we’re asking London Schools to commit to spending a portion of their pupil premium to help raise achievement of disadvantaged young people in their schools through the arts and culture.

Find out more about Generation Culture and sign the pledge

The first London school to sign up to the pledge is Woodcroft Primary School in Barnet, and we asked Headteacher, Craig Tallon about his plans for integrating creativity and culture into the school's learning, a bit more about their use of pupil premium, and why they signed up to the Generation Culture campaign.

Craig Tallon – Headteacher: Woodcroft Primary School

Woodcroft Primary School has placed the Arts at the centre of its drive for whole school improvement. Creating an environment where Arts and creativity can flourish is being achieved through the provision of an outstanding core curriculum, supported by a cross curricular Arts enrichment programme called AIM@Arts. Prioritising the Arts at Woodcroft is supported by the whole school community; pupils, parents, governors and staff.

Woodcroft’s curriculum is further enhanced by an extensive range of extra­curricular Arts clubs; over 30 clubs and music ensembles have been introduced over the past 4 years. Many have benefited from strong partnerships with local Arts providers such as Barnet Education Arts Trust (BEAT) and the Unicorn Theatre. This work is supported by the use of Pupil Premium funds. For example, we give every eligible pupil the opportunity to learn a musical instrument.

Integral to the highest quality broad and balanced curriculum must be planned opportunities for pupils to be inspired by professional artists. Our Pupil Premium grant supports our attendance at live performances in world class venues across a wide range of genres. The Arts are a unique way of inspiring, motivating and communicating ideas. They are a vehicle for personal expression, and play an important role in the personal development of pupils. The Arts reflect the society and culture we live in, and so the teaching and learning of the Arts enable pupils to better understand the world.

What are we pledging to do for Generation Culture?

As part of our pledge to the Generation Culture campaign we are collaborating within our local partnership of eight schools, the ‘connectED’ group, to run a yearlong series of cultural events and activities hosted at each school. Through art, drama, literature, dance and music pupils from the different schools with diverse cultures will work together. We are calling these our Harmony Events.

The Arts at Woodcroft provide opportunities for all children to create, reflect, share, participate and have fun! These skills and experiences enable our pupils to appreciate the rich diversity of culture, helping them to become well rounded individuals. An education that focuses on developing a child’s ability to participate in the Arts will also enable skills, attitudes and aspirations to transfer across their learning to ensure the best possible outcomes for all.

Schools can find out more about Generation Culture and sign up to the pledge now