Greenwich primary school with 49 languages bags prestige inclusion award

A primary school that has pupils using 49 different languages has received a prestigious inclusion award.

Millennium Primary School, based in the heart of the Greenwich Peninsula, has achieved the nationally recognised IQM Inclusive School Award for the first time.

The Inclusive Quality Mark (IQM) is awarded to schools that can demonstrate the importance they place on inclusion and how they promote equal opportunities for all pupils, whatever their age, gender, ethnicity, attainment and background.

The school’s location close to Canary Wharf means many families travel with work so it has a high mobility of pupils – with some joining at different points in the academic year and others leaving before they finish their primary education.

Over 46 per cent of pupils have English as a second language, 11 per cent have special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and 26 per cent are classed as disadvantaged.

During the two-day evaluation visit, held on January 25 and 26, Millennium Primary School was praised for its ‘warm, friendly atmosphere’, and ‘exemplary pupil behaviour’.

IQM assessor Pam Ash said: There is no doubt in my mind that Millennium Primary School meets all the IQM criteria. The leaders of Millennium Primary School have a clear vision of inclusion and how this should be seen in the school.

There is the drive for staff to be able to recognise disadvantage in its widest terms and to understand the impact this can have on all pupils,” she continued. “Those at the school spoke of how everyone was special in the school and of the need to ensure that all pupils in the school were given opportunities to develop educationally and emotionally and to excel.”

Millennium Primary School Head of School Cara Took, said, “Inclusion is at the heart of everything we do in school to ensure that all our community can embrace diversity, encourage individuality and strive for excellence. We are delighted to have this externally recognised and to celebrate the hard work of all our team, especially at this time.”

Millennium Primary School is part of Maritime Academy Trust and shares its Executive Headteacher, Debra Joyce, with one of the other schools in the Trust, Timbercroft Primary School. The IQM report highlights ‘excellent collaboration’ as a key strength of the school.

Debra Joyce, Executive Head of Millennium Primary School and Timbercroft Primary School, said: “I’m incredibly proud of all the team involved in the achievement of this highly regarded award. Achieving the IQM involves a rigorous process and the commitment and support of the whole school community.

We are now looking forward to working towards becoming an IQM Centre of Excellence over the next few years and sharing our learning with other schools in our Trust.”

The Inclusion Quality Mark provides schools with a nationally recognised framework to guide their inclusion journey. There are around 5,500 schools in the UK that have either received an IQM Inclusive School Award or are actively working towards it.

Millennium Primary School’s full IQM report can be accessed at:  https://iqmaward.com/news/millennium-primary-achieves-the-inclusive-school-award/