Lea Manor High School: remodelling an existing school to enhance extended provision

Case study

Remodelling its school buildings has allowed Lea Manor to pursue its goals of maximising its constrained site and promoting inclusivity in its very diverse population in both the school and local community.

Key facts

Type of school: full-service extended community secondary
Number on roll: 1,250
Age range: 11–16
Cost of development: £17.5 million
Date completed: Due for completion September 2011

Background

Situated on the outskirts of Luton, Lea Manor High School serves a diverse population, with 46 per cent of its students coming from ethnic minority backgrounds. The school came out of special measures in 2002 and has been making consistent progress ever since under a strong leadership team. The constrained site means the remodelling process is being completed in five phases. A close working relationship with Luton Borough Council and Marsh Farm Community Development Trust has ensured that local facilities – youth centre, community library, police base, community theatre, early years centre and adult education provision – are an essential part of the new development.

Vision

Inclusivity is at the heart of everything the school does, with ‘learning for life’ being the school motto. High standards in behaviour, learning, relationships and attitudes are always required, and there is a belief in high aspirations for everyone, including members of the local community through links with the community development trust. There is a belief that the school forms one part of the life-long learning journey, so relationships with pre- and postlearning institutions are of great importance.

Stakeholders

The staff are a crucial group of stakeholders, but students are also closely involved in decisions about the learning process. Parents are considered key agents too as their support is required if improved attainment is to be achieved. A parent voice group has been established and is regularly consulted. Marsh Farm Community Development Trust, which has the confidence of the majority of the community, enjoys a mutually beneficial, two-way relationship with the school. This view is clearly expressed in the video by the trust’s partnership manager.

Consultation

A good working relationship has already developed with local primary schools as crossphase consultation was a priority. The parent voice group prefers to use informal networks, and the school values these opportunities highly as they open up dialogue. The regular, community-wide newsletter produced by the school was also used to canvass for ideas about the future of the school, which has a prominent place within the community.

Transformational change

The Key Stage 3 curriculum has been modelled on the RSA Opening Minds curriculum, with Year 7 pupils being targeted in this work. The school has worked with primary practitioners, leading to valuable support for Key Stage 3 staff. The remodelling of the building has provided heart spaces – big teaching areas with mobile ICT and flexible furniture arrangements that allow large groups to benefit from demonstration lessons. These areas are surrounded by classroom-sized rooms and smaller group rooms. This offers maximum flexibility for a variety of teaching styles and increased personalisation for students. The cross-agency nature of the school has made it easier to focus on the whole child. The focus on raising standards and achieving the Every Child Matters outcomes has led to a shift in curriculum planning, and this has in turn led to decisions about the links between the different spaces within the school. An example of this in the video is the early years centre, which provides opportunities for learning, as well as demonstrating the school’s commitment to the 0–19 (and beyond) approach to learning.

Lessons learned

Don’t underestimate the amount of time necessary to really embed change, and don’t expect there to be a clear finishing point. It is important to recognise the pressure on staff while things are changing or there is construction happening on site, as at Lea Manor. It is important to devote time to keeping up morale. Plan the decant procedure carefully.

Impact

Although the school is still hugely disrupted by the building process, there is already a dramatic effect on attitudes to learning, and mid-term targets have been exceeded. Community pride in the school has increased which has had a major impact on aspirations. Informal conversations between site users helps to solve problems in a low-key way, so less time is spent solving major problems.

Next steps

Continue to plan for the remaining phases of the construction project, and plan for completion at the start of the school year 2011-12.
Increase liaison with the business community and enhance work-related learning.
Continue to maintain stability for the current student body at this time of increased turbulence and ensure that standards continue to rise.
Continue to encourage positive relationships between the many users of the site.