EPDA – Excellence in Pupil Development Award – 2024

While academic success is one aim of Netherwood Academy, preparing young people for life in an increasingly complex world, so that they can manage their lives, understand their responsibilities towards themselves and others and make a positive contribution to society are key aims which will sustain them in the long term.

Actively developing pupils’ life skills so that they can be critical thinkers, creative, tolerant and empathetic people are necessary characteristics for citizens of our modern society. Employers recognise that developed personal skills are sometimes sorely lacking among young people, hindering their chances of employment and progress. This award is more than an approach to developing citizens of the 21st century, it is a way to ensure young people are equipped with the personal skills and knowledge which will help them manage risk and setbacks in their lives, as well as enhancing their wellbeing.

The need for teachers and parents/carers to develop children’s personal skills to live in a rapidly changing world has been recognised in educational research. The impact of Covid 19 on schools, children and young people’s development cannot be underestimated. Developmentally, it is thought that some younger children have regressed in their social, emotional and communication skills, as a result of the huge disruption to their schooling and social interactions. A strong personal development curriculum is therefore crucial for their development.

Netherwood Academy is excited and proud to be currently completing the Excellence in Pupil Development Award, an award which aims to embed a culture and ethos in which pupils’ personal attributes and attitudes can grow and flourish through achieving the following objectives:

Objective 1: The school demonstrates a commitment to promoting pupils’ personal development and skills by working towards achieving the Excellence in Pupil Development Award.

Objective 2: The school has robust policies in place that promote and develop pupils’ personal development and skills, including their behaviour and attitudes.

Objective 3: The school’s curriculum promotes and supports pupils’ personal development and skills.

Objective 4: The school actively enlists the support of professionals and agencies linked to national and international organisations to strengthen its provision for pupils’ personal development and skills.

Objective 5: The school promotes pupils’ positive behaviour and attitudes towards one another, adults and their learning.

Objective 6: The school commits to training and developing its staff to fully support pupils’ personal development and skills

Objective 7: The school works with the local community and parents/carers to support the school’s commitment to developing pupils’ personal development and skills, including their conduct and attitudes.

Objective 8: The school summarises its achievements and outlines its future plans for pupils’ personal development.

Updates on the completion of this award will be made available on the school website.

It Stops Now

The ‘It Stops Now’ campaign is a high profile, whole school approach to tackling key issues across the school community. ‘It Stops Now’ runs throughout the academic year and includes relevant and specific themes at key points, each reflecting the needs of our students, the school and the local community.

Topics include:
• Sexual Harassment
• Racism
• Bullying
• Using derogatory language
• Homophobia

The aim of the ‘It Stops Now’ campaign is not only to educate students on how to deal with these incidents, but also to provide knowledge and understanding of the short and long-term impact of being involved in such incidents, both in and outside of school. This will also provide a greater understanding of what constitutes racism, homophobia and sexual harassment etc., empowering students to report such incidents.

With this increased understanding amongst students, Netherwood Academy aims to reduce incidents of this nature not only within the school, but also in the local community. Students learn to understand the importance of the whole community taking a stand against this kind of behaviour, changing the culture, and ensuring students feel safe in the Academy and beyond.

Morning Address
The start of the day is the most important. The purpose of a morning address is to ensure a calm, organised and purposeful
start to every day. The morning address will be led by Progress Leaders, Heads of Year and senior staff, and supported by form tutors. Staff will check for any uniform issues and ensure that all students are ready to learn. It sets the tone and standards at the beginning of each day.
Each week has a theme linked to important character traits and developing good habits. It is also an opportunity to cultivate the school’s culture and over communicate our vision, values, and ethos on a regular basis. The themes each week will link to and complement the PSHE and form time curriculum to reinforce key messages across the whole school. Morning Address also provides an opportunity to publicly reward students, celebrate success and draw attention to national or significant events. Examples of the themes covered each week include: scholarship, tenacity, resilience, respect, kindness, responsibility.

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