Sharing Best Practice
This section of the website is dedicated to showcasing examples of best practise, which may be of interest to our colleagues, partners and the wider educational community.
La Retraite Roman Catholic Girls School praised by Osaka University for closing achievement gaps and inclusion success
On the 14th of September 2022, La Retraite Roman Catholic Girls School welcomed researchers, professors and academics from Osaka University, Fukuoka University of Education and Matsuyama Shinonome College. La Retraite was chosen to be the subject of their case study, as the team were impressed by the success of the school’s inclusion and the closing of achievement gaps, whilst situated in an area with some of the high rates of child poverty in the UK.
The team met with students and staff across the school, including the Safeguarding, SEND and EAL Departments, alongside visiting reading intervention sessions and lessons. Following their visit, feedback shared with the school praised the intelligent and highly motivated students, overwhelmingly caring atmosphere, meaningful observations and important work actioned by the school to help improve student outcomes.
“Your pastoral and safeguarding team, especially learning mentors, gave us a good overview of your students' support work, which was very impressive. Our project leader, Ko, was very impressed by the idea that La Retraite gives more priority to students' well-being rather than their achievement. This visit was a very precious experience for us. We cannot thank you enough, but I still have to say thank you once again for making our visit so productive and all the best for the continued success of your work”. Hayashizaki Kazuhiko, Associate Professor at Fukuoka University of Education.
Investors in Careers
Our Steps to Success careers programme is designed to develop the skills and attributes required for the world of work, as well as offering experiences and exposure to a range of industries, to broaden horizons and ensure students are excited by their future.
As a school and Sixth Form, we are committed to ensuring all students receive an outstanding Careers Curriculum so we have applied for re-designation of the Investors in Careers Award, to celebrate our provision.