Sparkwell All Saints Primary School, in Devon, has been nominated for a Happiest School Award 2017
Francesca McLoughlin, Headteacher, for Sparkwell All Saints Primary School, said in her nomination:
'Ours is the happiest school I have worked in and I am proud to lead a happy team who want to make school an incredible place for our pupils where happy memories are made!
'We have an amazing staff team who enjoy each other's company, even out of school (we went canoeing in an Indian canoe on our last INSET day which raised a lot of laughs) and pupils who go out of their way to make each other happy!
We have had a weekly 'happy award' for the last year (and 'Happy' is a song we love singing!) and we have Luna the school dog and guinea pigs Fudge & Snowy who keep all of us happy.
All the children go to Forest School every week and are very happy climbing trees and cooking on the fire and we go to Dartmoor Zoo up the road each month and love seeing the funny animals!
'The children work on projects that are planned with their ideas and they can choose ways of working such as lying on the floor, standing, sitting on the sofa or a gym ball. We do lots of outside sports and enjoy playing against other schools, knowing that it doesn't matter if we don't win (and we usually don’t!).
'We are learning about Growth Mindset and that it is important to have a go and we love our Golden Apple assembly on a Friday where children receive awards for being kind, happy and resilient. We are working with a local mental health provider, and School Council have adopted a daily 'Take Ten' for each class that includes having fun and for the staff there is half termly training and supervision sessions.
'We love music and art and are working towards our Artsmark Gold Award, and we value the environment and have awards from Eco Active, and we were the first Primary School in the UK to get the Registered Provider status from the Forest School Association. We go out on lots of trips, and in the Summer the whole school went on a boat to a local island and enjoyed time on the beach.
'We spread happiness in our community by running sessions in the woods for pre-schoolers and supporting local events such as organising a fancy dress parade to start the Summer Fair and showing our maypole dancing skills.
'Parents share special moments out of school through an online learning journal that we use, and we have an Instagram account to share all those daily happy moments. We all get on so well with our families that each year in June we hold a family weekend camp that has become known as ‘Sparkfest.' Children of all ages get on well together and like playing together and supporting each other.
'Parents often say that children don't want to come home or ask to come to Breakfast Club as they love being at school so much and we are rightly proud of our small, but happy school!
'In the words of a parent: "You have a happy, caring ethos and Sparkwell is the closest we will get to being perfect for our child.”
I could go on forever, but that’s 500 words...!'
Don't forget to nominate your school for a National Happiness Award 2017.
There is over £5000 worth of prizes to be won for the winners and runners-up.
The awards receive national coverage and will help raise the profile of your school and put wellbeing and happiness at the heart of your curriculum.
Nominations close at midnight on Friday, 20th October. Winners and runners-up will receive their prizes at a happiness-studded ceremony in London on Friday, 17th November.
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