Bantock Primary School

Faced with a complex, ever-shifting pupil base, Bantock’s leadership set out to establish a robust, inclusive, and relational school ethos. Their core intention was to meet families where they are, understanding their contexts, needs, and challenges, and building systems of support that make school feel like an extension of home. They recognised that parents are essential partners in their children's success and sought to empower them, particularly those who might otherwise struggle to engage due to cultural, linguistic, or economic barriers. This meant not only improving communication but also creating meaningful, two-way relationships where families felt heard, welcomed, and safe.

Bantock Primary School, located in the heart of Wolverhampton, serves a richly diverse community, with over 700 pupils from Early Years to Year 6. Approximately 60% of its students are classified as disadvantaged, and a significant proportion are pupils with English as an Additional Language (EAL). The school community includes new arrivals to the UK who face multiple layers of vulnerability — including language barriers, limited understanding of UK systems, and economic hardship.

Due to the highly mobile nature of the community, around 50% of the pupil population turns over each year. Despite this, Bantock is now a fully subscribed school with a growing waiting list, demonstrating the trust and value families place in the education and care provided. Parents often make significant efforts to keep their children at Bantock, even if it means long commutes involving two buses.

Induction for Parents and Pupils

Every new pupil goes through a thorough induction process alongside their parents. The induction is comprehensive and tailored to families often unfamiliar with the UK education system. Topics include:

School ethos and values

Safeguarding procedures

Attendance and punctuality expectations

Medical protocols and how to report concerns

School uniforms and wraparound care

Timetables, meals, digital learning systems, and communications

Inductions are hosted in the school’s central hub and facilitated by staff and parent ambassadors — trusted community members who speak up to nine languages, including those spoken by Roma, Romanian, and Czech Roma families. These parent ambassadors play a pivotal role in breaking down cultural and linguistic barriers.

Over 107 new pupils have joined the school in just the current academic year, each receiving this tailored induction.

Building Daily Relationships

For the past 13 years, the school’s leaders, including Headteacher Ms. Sarai and Deputy Headteacher Mr Thomas, have greeted families at the school gates every morning and afternoon. This daily ritual fosters a culture of openness, trust, and personal connection. Over time, it has created a school environment where parents feel welcome and proactively greet staff, reinforcing the strength of these relationships.

When parents face challenges, they now approach the school with trust, knowing they’ll be listened to. Even when tensions arise — such as a recent incident where a parent swore at a teacher in frustration — the school chose a restorative approach. A support worker from the same community explained the school’s efforts to the parent, who later returned to apologise. This approach turns conflict into connection.

Transformative Parents’ Evenings

Parents’ evenings at Bantock are not just academic consultations — they are community celebrations. Held three times a year, each event spans two evenings and transforms the school into a community hub. Features include:

Catered meals, offering families a chance to sample school food and enjoy a shared meal.

Book fairs, enabling families, many of whom may struggle to access bookstores, to purchase quality books.

School nurse consultations and vaccination outreach, supporting health awareness and public health initiatives.

Wolves Foundation representatives, using the draw of local football to connect with fathers and older boys.

Uniform shop with minimal branded items to reduce cost.

Digital safeguarding workshops, where a technology lead inspects devices with parents and helps them ensure proper safety settings are enabled.

The events are well-attended and inclusive, offering multiple layers of support, celebration, and learning. Parent ambassadors attend to provide live translation and cultural liaisons. Children are encouraged to attend with their parents, especially important when children are needed to translate.

Digital Access and Safety

Bantock is a Microsoft Showcase School and provides a 1:1 device for every child in Key Stage 2. Devices are filtered and monitored and are central to home learning. After COVID, the school recognised the need to upskill parents and now regularly offers workshops to ensure safe digital practices at home.

If children attempt to access inappropriate content, staff are alerted and work with children and parents to address issues. The school’s approach to digital education is proactive, integrated, and constantly evolving.

Impact

Exceptional Parental Engagement

The most recent parents’ evening saw 90% parental attendance — a remarkable figure in any context, let alone in a school with such high mobility and linguistic diversity.

This increase from an already strong 82–83% attendance in previous years reflects growing trust and deepened relationships with families.

Remarkably Low Exclusion Rates

Zero suspensions or exclusions have been recorded in the current year.

Notably, in 13 years, the school has never excluded a GRT pupil despite this group being nationally overrepresented in exclusion statistics.

This is a direct result of Bantock’s preventive, relationship-based approach and commitment to inclusion and early intervention.

Powerful Alumni Outcomes

One former pupil, who later became a victim of gang violence and was stabbed at 14, has now turned his life around and speaks publicly as an anti-knife crime advocate. His time at Bantock was described as pivotal to his development, as he stayed the course with the close connection and support from the whole school team. While his secondary school experience lacked the same support Bantock provided, his early foundation helped anchor him through adversity.

Responsive Leadership

Annual parent surveys include both Ofsted-style and school-specific questions. When parents identified a desire for more after-school clubs, leadership acknowledged this and began working creatively — despite staffing and budget constraints — to provide more enrichment opportunities.