TEY 13.2

MEET THE CARLTON MILLS EARLY YEARS TEAM Sarah Walker – Reception teacher Sarah joined Carlton Mills as a teaching assistant in 2010. She completed her teacher training during the Covid pandemic and has overseen the running of the early years team for the last three years. Una Gulbe – Nursery teacher Having completed a three-year primary education course, Una became a member of the Carlton Mills early years team in 2023 and was responsible for opening the school’s new nursery. Satvinder Kaur – Early years practitioner Satvinder has worked in the early years team for 18 years and has made a real difference to every child in the school, giving them the opportunity to flourish in all areas. Kiran Mahmood – Learning assistant Kiran joined the team in March 2024. Although she has only been at Carlton Mills for a short while, she has already signed up to complete a foundation degree in Early Years. C arlton Mills, where I oversee the running of the early years team, is a two-form-entry primary school with nursery provision in Manningham, which was the area affected by the 2001 Bradford riots. The school’s location deprivation indicator is in Quintile 5, meaning it is among the most deprived of all education establishments in the country, with its pupil base in Quintile 4. For many years, Carlton Mills had falling student numbers and a long record of poor academic outcomes, SARAH WALKER IS A RECEPTION TEACHER AT CARLTON MILLS PRIMARY SCHOOL “The ambition we have for our children is limitless” 14 Teachearlyyears.com SarahWalker explains what makes the award-winning early years provision at Carlton Mills Primary School so special… being rated either Inadequate or Requires Improvement for over a decade. Since becoming part of the Carlton Academy Trust, however, it has rapidly improved, gaining a Good overall Ofsted rating in 2023 and Outstanding for early years. And in 2024, we were thrilled to be named the T&A Primary School of the Year as well as Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Setting of the Year at the annual Tes Schools Awards! A large majority of our children (99%) are from minority ethnic groups, whose first language is often not English (73%). Nursery baseline assessments indicate that attainment on entry is very low. Most children have limited skills and prior experience in key areas such as speaking and listening, hearing stories, visiting places of interest and physical development, with a high proportion of children having limited or no English. Moreover, the school community is extremely transient. Due to not being fully subscribed, we regularly admit children new to the area, often from abroad, who don’t stay at the school very long. Despite these challenges, we take great pride in our trust and school ethos of “Excellence for All”, and in our commitment to developing the whole child. We celebrate our vibrant, diverse community and ensure all children understand equality and respect, equipping them to succeed within their community, modern Britain, and beyond. THE EYFS ENVIRONMENT Our EYFS provision is based on a child-centred approach and word-rich, spiral curriculum, which is built on what the children already know and is structured to ensure progression in skills and knowledge while providing our children with the cultural literacy to succeed throughout their lives. The ambition that we have for our children and families is limitless; by the end of early years, Carlton Mills pupils have the language needed to communicate effectively and the social and emotional foundations to achieve their potential throughout school. Creating an EYFS environment that fosters curiosity and creativity involves a blend of thoughtful physical space design, engaging and diverse