See below updates from our Asterdale governors informing about their monitoring & evaluation activities in school for your information: 

 

Cari Burgess - Co-Chair: 

Dear Families, 

As well as my Joint Chair of Governor duties I have visited Asterdale to undertake some monitoring visits in the Autumn Term and there is lots of great news to share ....

• Children are engaged in their learning and enjoy it ! They are keen to learn and recognise the very many additional experiences Asterdale offers them; they are proud of their learning and couldn't wait to show me lots of learning examples in their books. 
• The achievement and progress of all children is carefully tracked by our leaders to ensure all children are receiving the best possible educational offer ; this includes children who have additional needs such as SEND; EAL or are in receipt of Pupil Premium Funding. Teaching is also adapted to meet the needs of different children. For further information about our SEND offer please look at the website.
• Pupil Premium Funding is carefully allocated in accordance with the DFE guidelines and has impact - parents can view further information on the pupil Premium Strategy on the website
• Staff Wellbeing is supported by leaders in a variety of ways as we recognise that our staff are the biggest resource our school has in supporting our children and delivering the best education we can.
• Safeguarding - this is our highest priority shared by everyone at Asterdale and each Governor looks at a planned specific area each time they visit. 

In the Spring Term I plan to talk further with children about their experiences both academic and social and to talk further with the school's SENDCO about how we plan to use future funding in this area to meet ever increasing need.

 

Paul Appleton - 

Over the last term, I’ve been able to take part in several monitoring and wider‑school activities, which have given me a really positive insight into the ongoing work at Asterdale.

• Just before Christmas, I attended the Carol Concert, which was a real highlight. The atmosphere was lovely, the children sang beautifully, and it was clear how much work staff had put into making it a special event for families and the community.
• I have also carried out some achievement monitoring, looking closely at progress across year groups. It was encouraging to see the consistency of approach and the strong focus on high‑quality teaching and learning. It was clear that staff continue to maintain high expectations. I’m looking forward to continuing this achievement monitoring during the spring term, particularly to see how children build on the strong start they’ve made.
• In addition, I completed some safeguarding monitoring, focusing on site safety, visitor procedures and general compliance. It was reassuring to see that risk assessments are well managed, security procedures have recently been strengthened, and there is a very clear culture of vigilance across the school. Staff were confident in their understanding of fire and lockdown expectations, and the systems in place felt robust and well understood.
• I’ve also continued my involvement in the trust-wide staff wellbeing work, looking at how we can best support teams across all schools. It has been valuable to explore initiatives that help maintain a positive culture, a manageable workload, and strong staff retention, and I’m keen to consider how Asterdale can continue to benefit from this work too.

Looking ahead, I’m excited to keep exploring our spring term achievement monitoring, and build on the positive momentum we’ve seen across the school.

 

 

Maxine Bull - 

As a new Governor to Asterdale I made several visits to the school in the Autumn to meet with senior leaders, staff and pupils.

• I attended my first governor meeting in January and listened in at the Parents’ Forum where it was great to hear views on school uniform and wellbeing.
• What has impressed me is the warm welcome from all, the excellent behaviour of pupils and the passion from individuals about the roles they do, from a love of outdoor learning in Forest Schools, ‘Everyday readers’, ‘Mastering maths’, wellbeing champions, safeguarding practices to what leaders are prioritising to improve the school.
• I was particularly interested in the pieces of writing displayed in the entrance, which show pupils’ pride in Asterdale, enjoying learning, friendships and more…..
• As governors we ask lots of questions and visit at least once each term. It was great to hear this week about the Asterdale Toolkit for EYFS, developed by the EYFS leaders and how they have introduced ‘Mastering maths’ which they say the children love and is showing in their learning.
• What’s next…. soon I will be meeting with some curriculum subject leaders to find out about successes and challenges that I can share with the Governing Board.