Gold award for school

Royd Nursery Infant School have been successful in achieving the Artsmark Gold Award!

The Artsmark is a nationally recognised award and celebrates excellence in delivering culture and creativity across the whole curriculum.

The class teacher and Art Curriculum Team Leader, Mrs Musgrave commented “The Artsmark sets out quality principles for schools to embed in their provision of Art including; striving for excellence and innovation, being authentic, creating a positive and inclusive experience and being exciting, inspiring and engaging.

“Before her maternity leave, Mrs Musgrave worked closely with staff to instil the seven quality principles of the Artsmark at Royd and as a result, we have implemented a number of experiences, over the past few years, to further enhance our already strong arts curriculum. These include annual art week, choir, skill-specific training for staff, visitors such as trained artists, dancers and musicians as well as creating a rock band with the support of Rock Steady to name but a few.

Deputy Headteacher Mr Sly added “The Artsmark journey has been indispensable for Royd. We have used the ‘Self-Assessment Framework’ to provide children with the best possible art and cultural learning experiences. This has enabled our children to broaden their knowledge and experiences of the world including other countries, cultures and time periods. To support this, we have worked with professional artists, musicians and dancers and strong working relationships have been developed. Through experiences of industry professionals visiting Royd, children have developed an understanding that through the arts there are endless job opportunities and careers. Children have developed their leadership skills and have driven their own learning. They have further developed their leadership skills by taking on roles in performances linked to dance and music. There have been many other benefits where children have development of teamwork, creativity and self-confidence. Furthermore, there are many opportunities for children to steer their learning.”

Miss Jones, Executive Headteacher of both Royd Nursery Infant School and Deepcar St Johns CE Junior School further added “We are delighted to have received the Artsmark Gold Award. I am delighted that staff and children have been recognised for their hard work and commitment. I am really proud of their achievements”.