Yaxley primary school wins prestigious national art award

Pupils and staff at a Yaxley primary school are celebrating after receiving an eminent art award.

Fourfields Community Primary School, on Bentley Road, was bestowed with an Artsmark Award for developing and broadening its art curriculum.

The school’s Head teacher, Sue Blyth said Fourfields was “extremely proud of achieving our Artsmark Gold Award.”

Ms Blyth – who was declared ‘Head Teacher of the Year’ at the School Superheroes Awards in 2021 – noted: “This is our first Artsmark award - to go straight from zero to gold is a pretty good achievement.”

She added: “We are committed to delivering a high-quality arts and cultural education and we look forward to continuing to grow with Artsmark.”

Fully accredited by Arts Council England, the Artsmark Award is the only creative quality standard for schools. Its aim is to develop and celebrate arts and cultural education by putting creativity and wellbeing at the heart of the curriculum.

In order to gain their Artsmark Award, Fourfields had to develop its arts and culture provision to embed a broad and ambitious curriculum. This was achieved by creating an overall plan that was committed to and rolled-out across the whole school.

Artsmark assessors were impressed by Fourfields’ “long-term commitment to arts and culture which is beginning to have measurable effects on staff and pupils.”

The assessors also noted that, at Fourfields: “All pupils can access a consistent and relevant range of arts and cultural provision through work with local arts and cultural organisations, both in school and on visits outside the classroom, which leads to showcasing in school and the local community.”

“I would like to congratulate Fourfields on their Artsmark Award, “ said the Arts Council’s chief executive, Dr Darren Henley CBE.

“Becoming an Artsmark school demonstrates that through offering a broad, ambitious, and creative curriculum, every pupil can develop character and resilience, increasing their knowledge, curiosity and skills that will remain with them through to adult life.”

Fourfields was supported in planning and developing its objectives by Festival Bridge, one of ten Bridge Organisations which works nationally with investment from Arts Council England and the Department for Education.