Leading the way with computing education

Walford Nursery and Primary School in the tiny village of Walford might be in an idyllic rural location, but it’s also leading the way in computing education. It’s been one of the first schools to gain the NCCE Computing Quality Mark, recognising excellence of computing provision in seven key aspects of the curriculum.

^{Written by Victoria Temple, press and community engagement officer, NCCE}

At Walford Nursery and Primary School in Herefordshire, children and staff are getting ready for their summer festival with a difference. They’ll be celebrating their achievements in computing.
    
Walford Nursery and Primary School in the tiny village of Walford, near Ross-on-Wye, might be in an idyllic rural location, but it’s also leading the way in computing education.

It’s been one of the first schools to gain the NCCE Computing Quality Mark, recognising excellence of computing provision in seven key aspects of the curriculum.
    
It completed the National Centre for Computing Education’s new Computing Quality Framework earlier this year, and was among the first 20 schools nationally to gain the Computing Quality Mark.
    
Funded by the Department for Education, the CQF provides a framework for primary and secondary schools to track their progress to deliver excellent computing education. Hundreds of schools have now registered, since its launch this year.

Walford’s headteacher, Louise George, explained that the school and nursery has a great track record in delivering computing education and technical skills. As a regional training centre for Apple over the past ten years, and through keen fundraising, the school has built up an impressive array of technical resources, including iPads, Apple TVs, Micro:Bits, Spheros, Green Screens, etc.,  which all enhance learning for every child.  

The school regularly provides support and CPD for many visiting schools, throughout the county of Herefordshire and beyond.  

Well prepared for lockdown

Staff and pupils’ technological expertise meant that the school was well prepared and ready to cope with the challenges posed by the Covid lockdown.
    
“In the school’s 2021 Remote Learning Parent/Carer Questionnaire, 100 per cent of our parents / carers reported that they were happy with the school’s remote learning strategy.  We were able to set up learning and teaching online from day one and improved further as time went on through the enforced lockdowns. Teachers delivered three live lessons a day for all children and engagement was high,” said Ms George.
    
“Getting the status as regional training centre for Apple made us think about using technology more. We believe that anything you do - do it with passion and commitment and it will grow,” she said.

Computing Quality Framework

When Claire Weyman, Year 1 teacher and Computing Lead at Walford, suggested the school become one of the first to register with the new Computing Quality Framework, headteacher Louise George welcomed the initiative.

Claire Weyman explained that the CQF tracks computing provision across seven different aspects. “It has provided us with a good steer for further improvement in computing,” said Claire. “The CQF has really helped us to focus on the different areas we need to work on and identify targets and priorities for further development. We were pleased to see that we are delivering the computing curriculum well, using the Teach Computing resources and lesson plans from the NCCE. For us, one of the priority areas identified by the CQF was to look at careers and bring industry into the school, therefore, we have created opportunities to develop children’s career aspirations. In addition, we are ensuring equality so that SEND and pupils receiving Pupil Premium funding are well-supported and experience success.  
    
“Walford prioritises STEM subjects across all year groups, including Nursery. The school recently took part in the Primary Leaders Young Engineers Award and, out of 33,000 entries, eight children from across the school won this prestigious award for their year group.
    
“Our computing lessons are not ‘stand-alone’. Computing is woven into all the subjects in order to enhance children’s learning. We have ensured that all staff have a high standard of computing and technical skills to support all learners and Teach Computing Resources have further supported our teaching, learning and assessment procedures,” she said.

Partnership benefits

Walford’s CQF journey has been well supported through a close partnership with its local NCCE Hub, based at The Chase School in Malvern.

“I’ve undertaken face-to-face training with the Hub and completed the Primary Computing Certificate through the NCCE. A number of our staff team have also undertaken useful online training,” said Claire. “The NCCE has really helped us on our computing journey, helping us to look carefully at our computing provision and what our next steps should be.”
    
“We regularly monitor the quality of our computing provision but it is particularly rewarding to achieve this external validation.”
    
Now, the school is looking forward to celebrating their success and creativity with the annual Summer Festival of Computing.
 
“Representatives from every class across the school will demonstrate a range of computing skills such as, animation, coding, robotics and CAD design to showcase their learning in computing throughout the year,” said Claire.
    
“We want to inspire young learners and enable them to be confident and creative users of technology which will form such an important part of their future. The festival is a real celebration of our journey together.”