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Schools
Waterman Primary
Waterman Primary
Waterman Primary School,
The Boulevard, Rochford,
SS4 1QF
Head: Mrs.Welch
01702 546237
www.watermanprimaryschool.ik.org
admin@waterman.essex.sch.uk
admin@waterman.essex.sch.uk
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April Catch-up
Talking with Chair of Governors Alan Sparks and Kenyan visiting teacher, Agnes, at Waterman Primary School
Doing a once-a-term ‘catch-up’ at Waterman Primary we caught Alan Sparks and took the opportunity to ask him how things had been going since we first interviewed him just under a year ago. We also asked Agnes how different it was here in comparison to her own school back in Kenya.
Rochford Life: Alan, it’s been nearly a year since we last spoke. How have things changed in that time?
Alan: Well, we now have a full complement of governors, with four parent governors and a new community governor. We have a new demountable classroom coming in July ready for September. We had about 48 children and I think we’ve got sixty four now and I think we’ll have eighty plus by the start of September. That means the reception class will now be solely on their own, and where we’ve had years 4,5 and 6 as one class, all classes will then be two year groups, which will be much easier to manage. We are having discussions about academies but only because it looks like it will come in the future anyway.
RL: What does that actually mean?
Alan: It means direct funding from the Government. Rather than it be Government to Essex County Council to the school, all the money comes through to us. Also comes with it a lot of responsibility. As well I’ve got involved with the pond project out the back. We had the pond dug and it got held up but it is going ahead now. I’ve been in touch with the Woodland Trust, the Wildlife Trust, and the RSPB, and the children are also going to get involved in a small measure. We’re getting help from the Scouts to clear the ground. Then we’re looking for sponsors to try to get money to get a load of sand and then a large liner, which in itself will come to about two thousand pounds. Some of the work is being funded by the parents by things we’re doing in the school, but the Woodland Trust have agreed to plant trees free of charge and the RSPB have agreed to come over and talk with the children. We believe the Allotment Association are intending to get involved again now it is getting under way once more.
RL: So a lot has been happening. Are you new governors receiving training?
Alan: Some of them have been getting training and others will get training. I try to lead by example. I’ve done a lot of training myself. I’ve just enrolled in the Chair of Governors Performance in Leadership Programme. It’s going to take nearly a year for me to complete. There are four people - two of the Governors, the Head Teacher and the Clerk of the Governors - who I have asked to give feedback on how I do. Then there are three modules, the first one being the Role of the Chairman, and is done on a one-to-one meeting with County and then part of it is done through the Internet and I get a mentor. A lot of it is done in the school itself. I’ve given up some other things I do in life to give more time to the school and I’m semi-retired now and only really work two or three days a week so mainly Mondays and Tuesdays I can dedicate to the school and that’s how I’m taking over the pond project at the back.
RL: Agnes, if we can turn to you now. How have you found it in the time you’ve been here?
Agnes: The weather is colder and the way the children learn is different.
RL: I understand Mr. Francis Njiru your head teacher came over last year and Rachel our head teacher went over to you.
Agnes: That’s right, and so it’s my turn to be here now and Rachel and Kelly, the deputy head here, will be coming to my school in their half term shortly.
RL: Your school is a lot bigger than this school, with about six hundred pupils, I believe, so what was it like coming to a small school?
Agnes: This is very nice, because the classes are smaller. My class at home has thirty two pupils with just one teacher. Here there is a teacher plus helpers in each class which is good.
RL: What have you seen that you’ve learned about by coming here?
Agnes: I’ve seen how people live differently here and our children learn differently. We don’t have as many lessons; for example we don’t have drum lessons as they do here, and we don’t have swimming lessons as they do here and we don’t have computer lessons. A lot of our pupils walk some distance to school as well.
RL: I see from the web site that some of the children clean the school at the end of the day?
Agnes: Yes, we teach them life skills to be able to help them later in life. We train them wholly.
RL: I see also that you take children in your school up to about year 8.
Agnes: Yes, they will come to school at about 3 or 4 and stay with us until they are about 11 or 12 and then go on to Secondary school for four more classes and then maybe to college.
RL: How much longer will you be here and what has stood out to you?
Agnes: I leave on Wednesday and will have been here a week. It has been good. Going to new places means you see things you’ve never seen before and that is good. I especially like the fact that here in your classes you have more than just the one teacher so that if a pupil needs help and needs to catch up, they can do that. That is very good here.
RL: Well Agnes, thank you for that. Perhaps we might appreciate even more what we have here, having heard what you have said. Well, we hope you enjoy your remaining days here and we’ll look forward from hearing more about your school when Rachel and Kelly come back. Thank you again.
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Alan: Well, we now have a full complement of governors, with four parent governors and a new community governor. We have a new demountable classroom coming in July ready for September. We had about 48 children and I think we’ve got sixty four now and I think we’ll have eighty plus by the start of September. That means the reception class will now be solely on their own, and where we’ve had years 4,5 and 6 as one class, all classes will then be two year groups, which will be much easier to manage. We are having discussions about academies but only because it looks like it will come in the future anyway.
RL: What does that actually mean?
Alan: It means direct funding from the Government. Rather than it be Government to Essex County Council to the school, all the money comes through to us. Also comes with it a lot of responsibility. As well I’ve got involved with the pond project out the back. We had the pond dug and it got held up but it is going ahead now. I’ve been in touch with the Woodland Trust, the Wildlife Trust, and the RSPB, and the children are also going to get involved in a small measure. We’re getting help from the Scouts to clear the ground. Then we’re looking for sponsors to try to get money to get a load of sand and then a large liner, which in itself will come to about two thousand pounds. Some of the work is being funded by the parents by things we’re doing in the school, but the Woodland Trust have agreed to plant trees free of charge and the RSPB have agreed to come over and talk with the children. We believe the Allotment Association are intending to get involved again now it is getting under way once more.
RL: So a lot has been happening. Are you new governors receiving training?
Alan: Some of them have been getting training and others will get training. I try to lead by example. I’ve done a lot of training myself. I’ve just enrolled in the Chair of Governors Performance in Leadership Programme. It’s going to take nearly a year for me to complete. There are four people -
RL: Agnes, if we can turn to you now. How have you found it in the time you’ve been here?
Agnes: The weather is colder and the way the children learn is different.
RL: I understand Mr. Francis Njiru your head teacher came over last year and Rachel our head teacher went over to you.
Agnes: That’s right, and so it’s my turn to be here now and Rachel and Kelly, the deputy head here, will be coming to my school in their half term shortly.
RL: Your school is a lot bigger than this school, with about six hundred pupils, I believe, so what was it like coming to a small school?
Agnes: This is very nice, because the classes are smaller. My class at home has thirty two pupils with just one teacher. Here there is a teacher plus helpers in each class which is good.
RL: What have you seen that you’ve learned about by coming here?
Agnes: I’ve seen how people live differently here and our children learn differently. We don’t have as many lessons; for example we don’t have drum lessons as they do here, and we don’t have swimming lessons as they do here and we don’t have computer lessons. A lot of our pupils walk some distance to school as well.
RL: I see from the web site that some of the children clean the school at the end of the day?
Agnes: Yes, we teach them life skills to be able to help them later in life. We train them wholly.
RL: I see also that you take children in your school up to about year 8.
Agnes: Yes, they will come to school at about 3 or 4 and stay with us until they are about 11 or 12 and then go on to Secondary school for four more classes and then maybe to college.
RL: How much longer will you be here and what has stood out to you?
Agnes: I leave on Wednesday and will have been here a week. It has been good. Going to new places means you see things you’ve never seen before and that is good. I especially like the fact that here in your classes you have more than just the one teacher so that if a pupil needs help and needs to catch up, they can do that. That is very good here.
RL: Well Agnes, thank you for that. Perhaps we might appreciate even more what we have here, having heard what you have said. Well, we hope you enjoy your remaining days here and we’ll look forward from hearing more about your school when Rachel and Kelly come back. Thank you again.
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