Believe is a Multi Academy Trust with the objective of raising educational achievement for children by providing a first class education that will inspire, motivate, challenge and unlock potential. We expect our academies to achieve more by recognising and harnessing the power of individuals whilst also working as a collective.

In addition to its ambition to transform the sector, Believe is committed to building a Trust which is accountable to its employees, providing career opportunities and an inspiring workplace. This has underpinned the Trust from the start and is central to Believe today.  

Southwark Primary School was the founding academy in the Trust. Originally the school converted as a stand-alone academy but expanded to Multi Academy Trust status through the partnership with Arnbrook Primary School in 2014.  Originally the Trust was named Southwark Primary Academy Trust.

After making a strategic decision to start to grow, the Board agreed to rename the Trust Believe Academy Trust. The main reason for this was to help establish a Trust identity serving all academies and also to assist in setting a clear strategic direction.

Believe Academy Trust now consists of Southwark Primary School, Arnbrook Primary School, Derwent Primary School and Abbey Primary School. The schools are working together as part of an exciting partnership, providing children from both schools with rich and varied learning experiences. Take a look at our website to see all of the exciting things we are able to offer.

http://believeacademytrust.net/  

Believe are leading the way. Again. This is the Trust on a mission to ‘Change the World’ from mundane education leadership after all – and their revolutionary ethos permeates every single Believe Academy.

The whole place runs on pride, passion and performance. From a revolutionary work/life balance ethic to a values system based on respect and understanding, small wonder there’s a sense of togetherness across all the academies.

We are extremely proud to have been named in the Times Best 100 not-for-profit organisation list for 2018.  This demonstrates the commitment and value we place on our employees and making the Trust and the schools within it, the best places to work.

ORGANISATIONAL SCALE AND CAPACITY We use the advantages afforded to us through scales of economy to procure or internally deliver services presenting value for money.  

SYSTEMS AND PROCEDURES SUPPORT Does what it says on the tin!  

NETWORK AND PARTNERSHIPS We collaborate and challenge each other to hold ourselves to account for the performance of our academies. We actively seek opportunities to work with other schools and MATs where there is an identified need.  

DELIVERING SUSTAINABLE IMPROVEMENTS We support schools in delivering improvements that are in line with their development priorities and are built to last.  

STAFF WELLBEING Ensuring all staff have the support, flexibility and resources for a healthy work-life balance.  

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT We invest in top talent to stay at the forefront of educational practice.  

CAREER PROGRESSION Schemes designed to fast track careers from the day your school joins.  

FLEXIBLE WORKING Whatever the situation we help you find the best working pattern that suits the needs of team.  

REDUCING CARBON FOOTPRINT Our trained staff will work with school leaders to help reduce the academy’s impact on the environment.  

STAFF INVOLVEMENT All staff, each department, every academy contribute towards plans to improve staff engagement.

A career at Believe Academy Trust will give you the opportunity to impact on future generations, share in our passion for providing the best education possible for our pupils and above all make a real difference.  If this is what you are looking for we would warmly welcome receiving an application from you.  

Our vision

At Arnbrook Primary School we are dedicated to improving the lives of children in our local community, through the provision of an outstanding education. We have a relentless focus on excellent teaching and learning, exemplary behaviour from our pupils and ensuring our children experience a rich and inspiring curriculum which prepares them for their future lives.

About us

Arnbrook Primary School is improving rapidly and we are determined to create a culture of high levels of achievement and success across the school, following a period of transition. We have seen our results in both Early Years & end of Key Stage 1 rise to be in line with national figures and been responsible for huge shifts in the proportion of children passing the Y1 phonics screening check in the last two years. With many exciting new initiatives across the school, and a staff team dedicated to improving teaching and learning, we are on an amazing journey.

Arnbrook Primary School has a new and extremely talented Senior Leadership Team under the direction of the Headteacher, with Assistant Head Teachers for each phase and core curriculum area. All have a proven track record of exemplary teaching and are extremely effective at leading their whole school responsibilities. We have invested heavily in the school environment, with a new building set to be completed by September 2017.

Our pupil number is currently 165.  We serve the communities of Daybrook & Bestwood, Arnbrook is a larger than average primary school. We have a high proportion of disadvantaged children and our catchment area is an area of high levels of social deprivation. Therefore, team spirit is vital to us at Arnbrook as we face many challenges that come with primary education in areas of deprivation. Arnbrook staff all share a “can do” philosophy and have very high expectations of the children. 

Our values

All our work in school is underpinned by the following four values.

Respect: We aim to foster a sense of social responsibility in all our pupils and help them develop into outstanding citizens and to ensure they are well prepared for life in modern Britain.

Enjoy: We believe in instilling a sense of belief in all pupils that they can succeed; raising aspirations and developing a love of learning.

Achieve: We believe in providing opportunities for the best possible achievement of all children in a climate of high expectation.

Inspire: We want all children to be inspired by their experiences at Arnbrook; inspired to learn and grow even more, inspired to make a positive contribution to the local and wider community now and in their adult lives.

Southwark Vision

At Southwark we create a school community where children excel, develop a passion for learning and share magical memories that will last them a lifetime. We have high expectations for every child and provide opportunities for children to develop as independent, confident, and successful learners. Through our curriculum, we equip our pupils with a secure foundation of knowledge and skills to give them success for today as well as prepare them to become lifelong learners by developing a curiosity about the world around them. We believe that every child has the right, as well as the capacity, to succeed. We develop the whole child, meeting their individual needs in a safe, secure and nurturing environment where our differences are celebrated and children can make a positive contribution to their community and the wider society. We believe that our school must reflect the community we serve. We create a collaborative environment where all members of the school community are highly valued, make positive contributions, and work cohesively to create an inspirational environment to succeed and flourish.

Southwark Values 

Our shared values underpin everything that we do here at Southwark Primary School. They help us to form our attitudes, guide our choices, and influence our behaviours. At Southwark, we have 11 values. Throughout the year, the whole school community focuses on a different value, exploring what it means and how we can use this to positively influence our everyday lives. Our shared Values are: Respect, Honesty, Trust. Love, Courage, Patience, Empathy, Positivity, Co-Operation, Equality and Liberty. 

About Us 

Situated in Old Basford, three miles from the centre of Nottingham, Southwark has 663 children on roll, aged from three to eleven years. We have a state-of-the-art school building and excellent facilities. The school buildings accommodate up to 630 children and has a 90 place F1 unit. This means a potential total of 720 children on roll. There are three bases or “hubs” to the building: Nursery, Reception and Y1 inhabit one area, Years 2 and 3 another, and Years 4, 5, and 6 in the third. This is designed to aid transition. The EYFS and Y1 hub consists of two 45 place F1 Nursery units, three F2 Reception classes and three Y1 classes. Across the Year 2/3 hub there are three Y2 classes and three Y3 classes and in the Year 4/5/6 hub there are three classes in Y4, Y5 and Y6. 

Southwark has a dedicated and passionate Senior Leadership Team under the direction of the Headteacher. This consists of a Deputy Head Teacher, Assistant Head Teachers for each hub as well as Assistant Head Teachers with responsibilities for Safeguarding and the curriculum. All have a proven track record of exemplary teaching and are extremely effective at leading their whole school responsibilities as well as supporting staff across the school. 

Here at Southwark, we regard excellent behaviour as essential if children are to learn and achieve their full potential. We also acknowledge our influence in promoting positive behaviour which will enable our pupils to be successful, life-long learners and responsible citizens. As our pupils enter the Early Years & Foundation Stage, we focus on the ‘characteristics of effective learning’ and as our pupils move further up the school we focus on six main learning behaviours: teamwork, determination, focus, curiosity, creativity and reflection. We promote these learning behaviours through all areas of the curriculum, as well as discuss these in assemblies and explicitly recognising, encouraging and celebrating when these are shown. Each learning behaviour has its own superhero character, designed by pupils, to support pupils adopting ‘super hero powers’ to display each desired characteristic. 

Our outstanding facilities support our pupils to receive the very best in academic and extra-curricular provision. We are lucky to have a 3G pitch, a multi-use games area, and a grass area. The outstanding 3G facilities are available to the community when not in use by the school. We also have a large sports hall and a Main Hall. We have a beautiful quiet courtyard and a gardening area. Consequently, our school council, eco club and gardening club are always busy! We run many extra-curricular clubs and are extremely proud of our sporting success and passion for physical activity both competitive and for enjoyment. We also have a beautiful stage and theatre standard sound and lights to make our annual performance extra special – every child takes part in our summer production! 

Southwark is a large, active and exciting school. Our staff demonstrate passion and drive to ‘go the extra mile’ for our pupils and local community. We have a high proportion of disadvantaged pupils and our catchment area has families with high levels of social deprivation. Working here can be demanding, but only the best will do for our children! We work tirelessly to support and develop all staff through outstanding professional development opportunities led by our dynamic senior leadership team in partnership with the Believe Academy Trust. Here at Southwark, we also recognise sustained outstanding performance and give opportunities for accelerated pay progression as a result. We have a clear staff engagement strategy to make working here as rewarding as possible through additional benefits and incentives. If you like a challenge, want to work with a passionate team who go the extra mile to support each other, and you want a school that “buzzes” about teaching and learning, then Southwark is the place for you! 

Derwent Primary School

Derwent Primary School is situated in an area of Derby City with 275 pupils on roll, aged from two to eleven years.

We opened as an academy in June 2017 and we are a school that is improving. We have seen our results in Early Years rise to be in line with National Average. The end of Key Stage one results are showing an upward trend with the expectation that they will be in line with National Average in 2018.  There has been a huge improvement in the percentage of pupils passing the Y1 phonics screening check in the last two years and it is now above National Average.

Derwent Primary School has an established and talented Senior Leadership Team, working under the direction of an experienced Head Teacher.  The team consists of a Deputy Head Teacher and two Assistant Head Teachers each having responsibility for different phases of the school.   All have a proven track record of exemplary teaching and are extremely effective at leading their whole school responsibilities.  There is also a lead for Safeguarding.  

We have a high proportion of disadvantaged pupils and our catchment area as families with high levels of social deprivation.  Therefore team spirit is vital to us at Derwent as we face many challenges that come with inner city education. Teachers are well supported and have very high expectations of the pupils.

Derwent Primary School was one of 18 primary schools in Derby where expansions were implemented during 2013-2014following a significant level of growth in pupil numbers in the primary sector.  There was an increase in our admission numbers from 30 to 45 per year group and numbers are increasing through the school. During this time the school had two new classrooms built as a separate block to accommodate the additional pupils. 

The school building can accommodates 315 pupils and has a 52 place F1 unit and a 24 place two year old unit.

The school has a mobility rate of around 23% which is 8% higher than the national average and experiences a high level of transience with families moving in and out of school during the academic year. There are an increasing number of pupils from ethnic groups other than White British and the number of pupils who enter school with EAL is increasing considerably year on year.

Punctuality and attendance of our pupils is extremely important and we have staff responsible for promoting this and ensuring that our pupils and families recognise the value of attending school every day and arriving on time. The staff work tirelessly to promote this with regular prizes and incentives in place for pupils, and support given where and when it is needed.  We also offer a breakfast club at a small cost which also supports attendance and punctuality.

Our Mission Statement

We believe every child starts school with skills, abilities and needs different from all other children. We will work in partnership with parents, carers and others in the community to help every child do his or her very best. 

Statement of Curriculum Aims

At Derwent we do our best to make sure that all children:

Want to learn all their lives

Learn all they need for life

Remember loving learning.

• Part Of The Service - Access to health, wellbeing and counselling programmes.
• Active Life - Salary reclaim and employee incentives that support active life.
• Sports - Put your fitness to the test by joining our outdoor personal training sessions.
• Healthy Work Environment - We will install water coolers in every academy to keep hydration levels up.
• Induction - Comprehensive induction packages into the Trust at all levels.
• Rewards - Reward systems that are fair, equal and appropriate.
• Charity Days - One free day a year for your staff to donate their time to a charity of their choice.
• Book Allowance - Expand your knowledge and enhance your critical thinking.
• Learning For You - We will support you in enhancing your knowledge, skills and professional aspirations.
• Equipped - Equipment that works and does not hinder employees in carrying out their job.