Welcome from Paul Glover, CEO, STEP Academy Trust

Dear Parents and Carers,

After another very successful term across STEP Academy Trust, I want to extend my sincerest thanks to every
single parent and carer for continuing to work with us to deliver the very best education for our pupils. Not only
has this excellent support been reflected in two Outstanding Ofsted results this term, but we have also seen it
in the continued commitment to providing a holistic approach to education, offering your children opportunities
and experiences that will have a positive impact on them far beyond their primary education. It continues to be
a pleasure to serve our pupils, parents, and the wider school communities.

We recognise that this has been another difficult year in the education sector. I want to assure you that STEP
will continue to provide support to every school and for every pupil. It remains our top priority to ensure that
we provide our pupils with the strongest possible start to their education.

Finally, I want to thank you for your continued efforts to improve attendance. We all know that the best place
for a child is in school. We want to thank you for working with us to ensure that children are attending school,
and it is because of that collaboration that our attendance figures are above the national average. As we move
into the New Year, we will continue to provide support and work with you to guarantee that your child is happy,
safe, and learning well in their classroom.

Thank you once again for all of your support this term. We are looking forward to the beginning of Spring Term,
which we know will be another great success, but before then I hope you are looking forward to the Christmas
break.
Outstanding Ofsted Results
We start by celebrating three excellent Ofsted
judgements this term. Firstly, Beddington Park
Academy achieved a remarkable result, being
graded ‘Outstanding’, only three and a half
years after being put into Special Measures by
Ofsted. Inspectors emphasised that pupils are
“extremely proud of their school”, reflecting
that efforts are taken to ensure our pupils are
at the heart of everything we do at Beddington
Park. The report also commended the “high
expectations” which have helped Beddington
Park pupils develop into “highly motivated
learners”, reflecting the positive attitude to
learning that is embedded across the school.
Every single member of staff at Beddington
Park should feel immensely proud of this
fantastic journey of improvement.
Similarly, Park Academy have been celebrating
their own incredible ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted
judgement. Inspectors praised the school for
providing an “exceptional education” for pupils
and being an environment where they can
learn and achieve well. Moreover, the school’s
leaders were praised for working very closely
with parents, who were “very positive” about
their relationship and the support they receive.
Importantly, Ofsted recognised that Park
Academy is a “happy and joyous school where
pupils flourish”. Again, I want to thank every
single colleague at Park Academy for their
fantastic work in delivering this amazing
outcome, which is a reflection of the brilliant,
well-rounded education provided to pupils.
Finally, we had a Section 8 inspection at High
Cliff Academy, which whilst the outcome has
not been released yet and remains
confidential, I am incredibly proud of the
whole school community at High Cliff and
recognise every member of staff’s hard work
and dedication.
Websites Launched
We are very pleased this term to have been
able to launch new websites across the Trust
for every single school, which have enhanced
communication and collaboration across STEP
Academy Trust. The new websites serve as
hubs of information, resources, and tools for
our teaching staff, students, parents, and the
wider community.
User experience has been central to our
website relaunch strategy. The new websites
make it easier than ever to navigate and access
the information you require.
These new websites have further strengthened
our education community and improved
communication channels among staff, pupils,
parents, and wider stakeholders, and are
central to our commitment to ensuring we
have open channels of communication.
Attendance
Thank you, once again, for working with us to
ensure your children are attending school. It is
our number one priority as educators to make
sure that our pupils are safe and happy in
school, and we will continue to work hard to
make this a reality for every child we look after.
As you may know, schools across the country
have been struggling with poor attendance,
following the impact of the pandemic, but I am
pleased to say that our collaborative approach
has meant our attendance levels are 94.6%
against the national average of 93.7%.
By continuing to work together, I have no
doubt that this can be strengthened further. At
STEP, we believe that it is only through a
collaborative approach between parents and
schools that the ambition to have every child
attending school regularly can be achieved.
Whilst we are pleased that we are above the
national average for pupils’ attendance, we
want to have the strongest standards here and
we will continue to work hard to continue to
improve our attendance figures.
Priorities across STEP Academy Trust
Our STEP Mission, Vision and Values continue
to be at the heart of everything we do and
guide our moral purpose. The STEP Compass
drives us forward and continues to support and
guide the Trust to be effective.
Our overarching priorities in the 2023/24
academic year are to continue to:
 Foster a strong sense of unity across
the organisation, so that all
stakeholders see themselves as being
part of the one STEP team, #STEP First.
 Ensure consistency, continue to
develop an appropriate STEP Way in
each area of the Trust that enables all
to achieve the STEP Standard, #STEP
Way.
 Generate the educational and
operational capacity required to
further drive STEP Academies and their
communities in making progress
towards the STEP Standard, #STEP Up.
 Ensure STEP Academy Trust continues
to invest in the future in preparation
for its next stage of development,
#STEP Ahead.
These priorities underpin our vision that
“Through a community of excellent academies,
underpinned by outstanding leadership,
support and develop all learners to be
successful adults in the modern World.”
Throughout the academic year we will work
together to achieve these priorities and
maintain high standards of excellence across
the Trust and within every school.
Investment in SEND
An important step in our journey this year has
been to invest significantly in our SEND
provision. This term we have appointed Karen
Harrison and Karen Hayward as our STEP SEND
Leads - both experienced inclusion leads from
across the Trust.
Karen Hayward (left) and Karen Harrison (right)
Karen and Karen have begun work to
implement a comprehensive and multi-faceted
approach towards improving SEND provision
across each school, emphasising collaboration,
innovation, and systemic change. They have
identified ten key points that will help schools
improve their delivery and ensure that pupils
with SEND receive an inclusive education that
sets them up successfully for the future:
1. Current SEND Practices and
Challenges: The discussion reveals
that the academies within the Trust
are exploring creative ways to support
children with SEND. These practices
are still in an organic, exploratory
phase, shaping the vision for SEND
provision.
2. Audit and Feedback from Academies:
An audit was conducted across 20
academies to understand their
strengths and challenges in SEND
provision. This audit highlighted the
need for more support in certain areas
and the diverse approaches across
different local authorities.
3. Emphasis on Teacher and Parent
Collaboration: A significant focus is
placed on fostering strong
partnerships between teachers and
parents of children with SEND, aiming
to improve children's outcomes.
4. Addressing Complex Needs in
Mainstream Schools: Mainstream
schools are increasingly admitting
children with complex needs,
traditionally served by special
provisions. This includes creative
resource utilisation and strong parent
engagement.
5. Professional Development and
Support for Staff: There is an ongoing
effort to provide training and support
for staff, especially SENCOs (Special
Educational Needs Coordinators), to
ensure high-quality, inclusive, and
adaptive teaching practices.
6. Innovative Approaches to Inclusion:
Initiatives like the Makaton language
program are being introduced to
improve communication and
inclusivity for all pupils. This program is
part of a broader strategy to develop
internal expertise and address gaps in
services.
7. Challenges in Current Education
System: The discussion acknowledges
the challenges faced by schools,
 including increased demands on staff enhance SEND provision, including
to cater to diverse needs and a lack of research projects and developing a
sufficient resources and funding. 'STEP Way' for Inclusion and SEND.
8. Future Plans and Strategies: The Trust
is working on various projects to
10. Evolving Role of Teaching Assistants:
There is a focus on changing the
9. Need for Systemic Change: A call is
perception of Teaching Assistants from
made for decision-makers to engage
being mere aides to children with
directly with educational professionals
SEND, to playing a more strategic role
and parents, to understand the on the
in inclusive education.
ground realities and challenges faced
in SEND provision.

Meet the Trustees

Finally, we are very pleased to introduce you to our new Chair and Vice Chair of Trustees, Ross Gardner
and Ben Bartlett. Ross is currently an employee of the Royal Bank of Canada and Ben Bartlett is the
CEO of Hinchley Wood Learning Partnership and a Director of The Schools Alliance for Excellence. You
can find out more about our Trustees here.

Ross Gardner (left) and Ben Bartlett (Right)

We are extremely pleased to have two esteemed professionals as our new Chair and Vice Chair of
Trustees, and we are confident that under their stewardship they will continue to monitor and support
STEP Academy Trust well.