Awards/Press

School is awarded Outstanding in OFSTED inspection

School is awarded Outstanding in OFSTED inspection in April 2019. It is judged Outstanding in all areas.

Summary of key findings for parents and pupils

This is an outstanding school

The headteacher is relentless in his drive to ensure that all pupils achieve their best. His passion and vision for developing the ‘whole child’ is infectious. He has created a staff team which shares and delivers his ambition for all pupils to thrive academically and emotionally.

Governors know the school extremely well. They are supportive but also provide highly effective challenge to school leaders. Governors ensure that additional funding is spent wisely to reduce the gaps in attainment that exist when pupils start at the school.

Teaching is highly effective and well matched to the needs of pupils. As a result, pupils make very strong and sustained progress in a range of subjects, including English and mathematics. This applies equally to pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and disadvantaged pupils.

Pupils’ outcomes from all ability groups are excellent. They make substantial progress from starting points that are well below those typically found. Progress by the end of Year 6 is consistently well above average.

Pupils’ attitudes to learning are exemplary and they attend well. They are excited about their lessons and eager to learn.

Pupils’ behaviour is exemplary in and out of lessons. They are proud to be members of the friendly and welcoming school community and are extremely polite and courteous.

Children get off to a flying start in early years and make exceptional progress. This is because they experience outstanding learning and care through a wide range of exciting activities. Children leave Reception very well prepared for Year 1.

The creative and well-thought-out curriculum, with music and drama at its core, makes a significant contribution to developing pupils’ very positive attitudes to learning and outcomes. This engaging curriculum provides pupils with a wide range of opportunities to extend their experiences and learning beyond the classroom.

Pupils’ superb spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is nurtured from the outset. Pupils develop a strong sense of pride in their community and a strong sense of social responsibility, tolerance and respect. They are well prepared for life in modern Britain .

Most pupils take great pride in their work. However, the standard of grammar, punctuation and spelling and presentation of work is not consistently high across all classes.

Mr Idrees OBE is awarded OBE for Services to Education

Mr Idrees OBE is awarded OBE for Services to Education in the Queen's honours list 2020.

Mr Idrees is awarded Headteacher of the Year by the Times Educational Supplement

Mr Idrees is awarded Headteacher of the Year by the Times Educational Supplement.

TES, June 2019

Tes awards: Headteacher of the year

'This is a headteacher who is making a huge difference to the life chances of the young people in his care': Naveed Idrees is 2019's headteacher of the year

Naveed Idrees has been headteacher at Feversham Primary Academy, in Bradford, for the past eight years, during which time he has taken the school into the top 2 per cent nationally.

The inner-city school lies in one of the most deprived areas in the UK, with high levels of unemployment and crime, and low levels of literacy. It was once “a run-down, unloved building with unhappy staff and a dry curriculum”, yet now is “a place where children achieve beyond their wildest dreams”, and which is attracting visitors from as far afield as Scandinavia and Thailand.

The transformation has been helped by the introduction of a curriculum with a heavy focus on music and drama, which helps pupils with low levels of language and social skills.

The school also provides continuing professional development, training and audits to other local schools.

The judges said of Mr Idrees: “This is a headteacher who is making a huge difference to the life chances of the young people in his care. He is a well-deserved winner."

Feversham is Shortlisted as School of the year by the Times Educational Supplement

Telegraph and Argus, May 2018

A BRADFORD school has been announced as a shortlisted nominee for two awards at the acclaimed Times Educational Supplement teaching awards.

Feversham Primary Academy is shortlisted for ‘School of the Year’ and ‘Employer of the Year’ in the awards, which will be held in London on June 22.

The school, part of Academies Enterprise Trust saw its Key Stage 2 results jump by 11 per cent in the past year.

Naveed Idrees, Headteacher said: “We are delighted, thrilled and humbled to be nominated.

Julian Drinkall, CEO of AET said: “To be shortlisted for two national awards is an absolute honour, and we are delighted that Feversham has been recognised in this way.

"Under Naveed’s leadership the academy has gone from strength to strength and we are extremely proud of him and his team. The work they are doing is truly inspirational and this recognition is richly deserved.”

Mr Rotheram (music teacher) is Shortlisted for $1m Global Education Prize

The Guardian, December 2018

Jimmy Rotheram one of three teachers from England in running for international award.

A music teacher who helped turn around a once-failing primary school in Bradford with a radical programme of music and creative education is one of three teachers from England shortlisted for a $1m global prize.

Jimmy Rotheram, of Feversham primary academy, is one of 50 teachers from around the world on the shortlist for the Varkey Foundation “best teacher” prize, selected out of more than 10,000 nominations from 179 countries. The winner will be announced next March.

His nomination for the high-profile award comes as concerns increase that music is being squeezed out of the national curriculum in England. Rotheram has gone in the opposite direction, providing his pupils with up to seven hours of music tuition a week. His work is based on the Kodály method, which is nurturing rather than critical and helps children to learn through singing and playing musical games.

The impact has been profound. As the music content increased at Feversham, its results improved and the school, which is situated in one of the most deprived areas of Bradford, went from being in special measures to the top 10% nationally for pupil progress in reading, writing and maths.

Rotheram, whose pioneering work was featured in the Guardian last year, was delighted to be shortlisted. “It’s a tremendous honour,” he said. “What I’m most happy about is that music is being recognised as a globally important subject. Music is often a subject that is swept under the carpet.”

Feversham Primary Academy praised for educational outcomes

A BRADFORD school has been awarded an SSAT Educational Outcomes Award for its results in last year’s exams.

Feversham Primary Academy, in Barkerend, has been recognised after registering outstanding results in 2018.

It will be presented with its award during a ceremony later this school year by the Schools, Students and Teachers network.

Sue Williamson, chief executive of SSAT, said: “I am delighted Feversham Primary has won an Educational Outcomes Award.

“This recognises one important aspect of the school’s work but at SSAT we believe an outstanding school has deep social justice at the heart of its plan; it subjects that plan to constant challenge and innovation; and it liberates teachers to perform brilliantly in the classroom. SSAT is pleased to recognise the quality of leadership and the hard work of all staff to ensure the success of every child.”

Mr Islam: Winner - Teacher of the Year

NAZRUL Islam received possibly the biggest cheer of the night when he was named Nursery/Primary Teacher of the Year.

The senior school improvement leader at Feversham Primary School has been treated for three types of cancer and suffered a stroke in recent years, but returned to the job he loved.

He had also been nominated for the Business in Schools Award, for his work on Dragons’ Den style enterprise projects in his school.

After being named Nursery/Primary Teacher of the Year he said: “I am lucky to be here. I didn’t think I’d be here today.

“The reason I went back to work is because I love the job. I want to carry on teaching as long as I can.”

He had taken a year-long break from teaching after his first battle with cancer, only for it to return in 2014 when he was diagnosed with cancer of the neck and thyroid.

He told the T&A he was surprised to have been nominated for two awards, let alone winning one. He said: “When I first got the email saying I’d been nominated I thought someone was pulling my leg. I didn’t believe that I’d been nominated.

“It is a great honour to get this award. I never thought I’d get here when I was having the chemotherapy and all the other treatments. I came out the other side and ended up getting a stroke too.

“People didn’t expect me to go back to my job, but I just love doing it. They let me come back because of my experience. I’m so lucky to be where I am.”

Speaking of his Business in Schools nomination, he said: “I like being a dragon every year. My first degree was in business management, so I enjoyed looking at the areas the kids can exceed in business. It is not always the brightest kids that do the best.”

Mr Islam: Nominated - Teacher of the Year Award

Nazrul Islam - Feversham Primary

NAZRUL Islam’s determination to return to teaching after two cancer scares earned him a nomination for the Nursery/Primary Teacher of the Year Award.

Mr Islam is the senior school improvement leader at Feversham Primary in Barkerend, and has even won the school’s ‘Nobel Peace Prize’ because of his diplomatic and caring skills.

Mr Islam took a year-long break from teaching after his first battle with cancer, only for it to return in 2014, when he was diagnosed with cancer of the neck and thyroid.

After getting three types of cancer, he had been advised not to teach, but wanted to return to the job he loved.

He said: “I feel very lucky to be here.

“Just before I had the cancer I had applied for other deputy headship jobs but stayed here.

“I feel very lucky to still be working here and doing the job that I am.”

He was nominated by Shakira Afzal, who pointed out the work he has done on a school business and enterprise project, which sees schoolchildren given £10 to start their own business.

She said: “It is a huge success and loved by the children and the community.

“Thanks Naz, you are brilliant.”