Opened in 1937, our school is situated in the residential area of Hall Green, close to its boundary with Sparkhill. Being very close to the main Stratford Road, it is easily accessible and well served by public transport. Currently a two-form entry school, Yorkmead can admit 60 pupils into its Reception classes. At present, there are 470 pupils on the roll, organized into 14 classes of mixed ability, determined by age. Our nursery unit opened in February 2002. This was formerly the caretaker’s house and was re-designed and refurbished to provide 52 part-time places.
Our School Motto is ‘Self-belief is the key to success.’ We believe that our main aim at Yorkmead is to unlock the potential in every child so that they can succeed and become the best they can be. Encouraging and equipping children to have a positive attitude about themselves and towards their learning is at the heart of everything we do at school. We believe that the school lies at the center of the community and we set out to contribute to our community and, in turn, we look for its support and its respect.
Developing close links with the community and with parents, in particular, is one of our main aims. We recognize that education must be a partnership if we are to ensure our pupils make good progress, realize their full potential, and enjoy their time at school.
We believe that:
- Everyone has the right to be treated with courtesy and respect regardless of race, gender, ability, sexuality, or religion.
- We are individuals with differences, but we can still learn from each other.
- Every person at Yorkmead is of equal importance.
- We should always try to understand other people’s points of view, even though we may not agree with them.
- We should behave in a way that is not destructive to other people’s feelings, or beliefs.
- Everyone is here to work hard and to give their best.
- All subjects taught in school have equal value, although Maths, English, and Science are given a greater time allocation than other subjects.
We believe that the school lies at the center of the community and we set out to contribute to our community and, in turn, we look for its support and its respect.
The school follows the National Curriculum set out by the Department for Education (DFE). The curriculum at Yorkmead aims to provide children with exciting, stimulating learning opportunities which broaden their life experiences whilst providing them with the essential knowledge as set out in the new curriculum implemented in September 2014. English and Maths still retain their high focus at Yorkmead and are taught discreetly and as part of the wider curriculum.
Our school approach since 2010 has been to teach the foundation subjects in a thematic approach to ensure that a creative and skills-based approach to teaching and learning is experienced by all pupils from Year 1 to Year 6. The curriculum map has been devised in line with the National Curriculum (2014) to ensure that children are being taught the necessary knowledge as expected for their age. Coupled with this, the schools’ curriculum team has ensured that each “topic” pupils experience not only provides each of them with essential knowledge but also skills relating to specific areas of learning whilst promoting cross-curricular links with other subjects. The expectation of the “Creative Curriculum” is to provide our pupils with a wide range of learning experiences that broaden their life experiences and foster enthusiasm for learning.
