INSPIRATIONAL FORMBY PRIMARY SCHOOL HONOURED IN PRESTIGIOUS UK CELEBRATION OF TEACHING

Redgate Primary School Early Years Team wins Silver Award for Early Years Team of the Year.

This week the Early Years Team at Redgate Primary school has been named as one of 80 Pearson National Teaching Award Silver Award winners across the country. The team is honoured with a Silver Award in the Award for Early Years Team of the Year for their outstanding commitment to changing the lives of the children they work with every day.

The EY team at Redgate has grown from one teacher and a TA working alongside seven reception pupils in 2015 to the expanded team it is today, which works across Nursery, Reception and the complex needs unit. The EY team currently supports 66 children.

This growth has brought new and exciting opportunities for the children and families within the community to learn and develop together within an inclusive, nurturing, child-centred and play-rich environment. The impact of the passionate and ever-evolving Early Years team has not only improved the outcomes for children in the mainstream and SEN early years departments, but it has also improved the sustainability of the school and influenced the whole school ethos of child-centred practice. The Early Years Team has also shaped the strong person-centred pedagogy of the complex needs provision, which has had a demonstrative positive impact on pupils at Redgate.

As a Silver Award winner, the Early Years team has now been shortlisted to win one of just 16 Gold Awards later in the year. These once in a lifetime achievements will be broadcast on the BBC’s The One Show as part of a week-long celebration of teaching, which sees famous faces honour award winners every night in the run up to the ceremony. This is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the exceptional school staff who have worked wonders to bring together their local communities despite the challenges of the past few years.

The Silver Award winners are being honoured as part of the wider celebrations for national ‘Thank a Teacher Day’, bringing together everyone across the country to celebrate the schools and colleges at the heart of our communities.

The Pearson National Teaching Awards is an annual celebration of excellence in education, founded in 1998 by Lord Puttnam to recognise the life-changing impact an inspirational teacher can have on the lives of the young people they work with. This year marks its 23rd year of celebrating our school teaching staff across the UK.

Sharon Hague, Managing Director of Schools at Pearson UK, said:

“Congratulations to today’s Silver Award winners on their incredible achievement, they should all feel very proud of themselves. And thank you to all the incredible educators and support staff across this country who really do make our schools and colleges so special. I am delighted that we can take this opportunity to say how much we appreciate all that you do for us.”

Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said:

“Congratulations to the Early Years Team at Redgate Primary School on this incredible achievement, and for the hard work and dedication which led up to it. Winning this award is impressive, well-deserved and shows the team’s commitment to helping students achieve their full potential.”

Michael Morpurgo, celebrated author and former Children’s Laureate, and President of the Teaching Awards Trust, said:

“For so many of us, it was someone at school who changed our lives, was at our side through hard and difficult times, who lifted us up when we were down, helped us find our voice, gave us confidence when we needed it most, and set us on a path that we have followed ever since.

“No matter who we are, school has touched our lives and played a central role in our childhoods. School is about so much more than learning, and we see that now more than ever before. Schools really are the beating heart of our communities. Every person that cares for our children in schools should be celebrated loud and clear on Thank A Teacher Day 2022.”