Equalities & Additional Intervention

We believe that all children should be equally valued at Chobham. We strive to eliminate prejudice and discrimination, and to develop an environment where all students can flourish and feel safe. At Chobham we value the talents of everyone and no student is allowed to fail.

Chobham Academy is committed to inclusion and part of our strategic planning involves developing cultures, policies and practices that include all learners. We aim to engender a sense of community and belonging, and to offer new opportunities to learners who may have experienced previous difficulties. At Chobham, every student is an individual and we will respond to learners in ways that take into account their varied life experiences and needs.

We believe that educational inclusion is about equal opportunities for all learners, whatever their age, gender, demographic group, ethnicity, additional need, attainment and background. We pay particular attention to the provision for and the achievement of different groups of learners:

• Students from families that are financially disadvantaged (Pupil Premium)
• Students who arrive at Chobham with below nationally expected performance in any curriculum area
• Boys and Girls
• Students from minority faiths, ethnicities, travellers, asylum seekers and refugees
• Students who have English as an additional language (EAL)
• Students who have Special Educational Needs or a disability (SEND)
• Students who are Gifted and Talented (G&T)
• Students who are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender (LGBT)
• Students who are Looked After Children (LAC)
• Young carers, sick children and children from families under stress

Cultural Capital

At Chobham we believe in maximising the cultural capital of all students. There are several definitions of cultural capital. Two particularly resonate in the Chobham context:

1. The social assets of a person which promote social mobility in society

2. An Ofsted definition;

• The essential knowledge that children need to be educated citizens

And

• To prepare young people for their future success.
   

We believe that if our students are to be able to present themselves at their best and excel in a range of social situations, then developing their cultural capital is key. The skills and dispositions involved will assist them in achieving their higher education and employment aims and then help them to thrive at university and in the workplace.

In order to develop cultural capital amongst our students we focus upon the following areas:

• Ensuring all students have a broad and deep a knowledge base as possible across all curriculum areas
• Encouraging students to read, watch and research beyond the content of the school curriculum (and providing them with the resources to do these things)
• Ensuring all students see themselves as lifelong learners and are equipped with high level study skills
• Giving all students access to trips and external speakers which broaden their knowledge of society, university and employment
• Building into the wider curriculum opportunities for students to learn about and practise social skills
• Providing opportunities for students to engage in structured discussion on current affairs and other relevant topics
• Providing a range of student leadership opportunities for students.

Universal Offer

We are committed to providing a core set of experiences to which every student is entitled. This affirms our commitment to equality of opportunity for all students. These experiences include:

• A broad and relevant curriculum focussing upon the particular learning needs of Chobham students
• A range of curriculum pathways from Key Stage 4 (Year 10 onwards)
• A recognition that any student may require academic or emotional support at some time in their school career and a wide range of provision in place to support this need
• Enrichment activities which form part of the core curriculum for all students
• A range of trips including galleries, museums, theatre visits and other cultural experiences
• E well stocked and easily accessible school library
• Opportunities for reflection and discussion embedded throughout the curriculum
• A programme of mindfulness activities and a reflective moment in all assemblies
• Giving all students access to a range of sporting activities and other forms of physical exercise and relaxation

Pupil Premiun Funding

44% of students in the Chobham secondary phase are in receipt of Pupil Premium (PP) funding. PP funding is allocated to schools on the basis of the number of students they have from disadvantaged backgrounds. The purpose of the funding is to ensure that students in receipt of PP support are enabled to succeed to the same degree as their peers at school who are not from disadvantaged backgrounds.

There are a couple of key principles which underpin our PP strategy:

• That the PP strategy should be an integrated part of whole school strategy
• That PP spending works most effectively when all students benefit from it, not just those who are directly entitled

The first of these principles helps ensure that PP strategy is considered when whole school plans are devised.  This is essential to making sure that our approach to PP is embedded in our thinking and discussion, not simply ‘bolted on’.  Integrating PP in this way makes for better planning and a higher recognition of PP strategies as an integral part of our work.

The second principle is equally important.  If strategies benefit all then they are more likely to be at the forefront of people’s thinking and applied consistently across the school.  Minimising any sense of PP students being different to their peers also ensures that students feel confident and secure and not in any way singled out.  With careful implementation, it is possible for us to deliver high quality provision for our PP cohort whilst ensuring that the impact of the PP budget is felt much more widely.

The principle strategies we apply to maximise the impact of PP spending are validated by recent research as being amongst the most effective available (see the Education Endowment Foundation findings at

https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/evidence-summaries/teaching-learning-toolkit/. 

These can be summarised in the following main areas:

• Teaching development (including teacher training, recruitment and retention and support for early career teachers)
• Targeted academic support (including structured interventions, small group tuition and one to one support)
• Maximising attendance (perhaps the single most effective way we can make an impact upon student progress)
• Effective use of digital technology (e.g. provision of school funded laptops)
• Strategies for literacy and developing reading comprehension
• Improving the setting and quality of homework
• Developing a range of highly effective feedback approaches
• Developing our provision to support students with English as an additional language (EAL)
• Increased use of peer tutoring.

At Chobham, we want all of our students to be able to suceed equally. We define this as meaning that:

• PP and non-PP students make comparable progress overall in GCSE examinations
• PP and non-PP students make comparable progress in each individual subject
• PP and non-PP students engage to the same degree in enrichment and extra-curricular activities
• All groups of students behave and learn equally well
• All groups of students have the same access to trips and visits and participate equally
• Ensuring PP students are able to take part in a range of character building activities.

The Pupil Premium Spending plan for 2020-21 can be found here.

The Pupil Premium spending plan for 2021-22 can be found here.