Iffley Academy Partnership

This project has made a significant and sustained impact on both the school as a whole, individual teachers and on students. It has been recognised as an essential vehicle for school improvement.” Tom Procter-Legg, Head Teacher, Iffley Academy

Next steps

2023 is another exciting year for the partnership. The Co-curate programme established in 2022 continues with two new exhibitions working with OUMNH and the Ashmolean. The Co-curate programme situates a mini museum in a museum grade case at the heart of the school for students to curate their own exhibitions of GLAM objects working with the support of GLAM staff. We are also continuing our ambitions programme of outdoor learning supported by Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum. This work funded by the Rothschild Foundation and called GROW, aims to support young people’s mental health and wellbeing, via a range of creative and nature related activities.

Impact

Alongside practical outcomes, such as the achievement of Arts Award qualifications by all those students involved with project work, the programme has had a significant impact on the day-to-day lives of the students. Using the cultural opportunities created by the programme, they have explored relationships in order to enhance their social skills and self-confidence, with the result that they place greater value on social interactions over processes and projects. 

The project has also transformed teaching practice at the school. Cultural learning now lies at the heart of the curriculum, while many teachers plan their own trips to the museums and engage directly with the venues to develop their own projects. They have gained a sense of ownership of their local cultural spaces and are more confident about the contributions they and their students can make to the cultural sector. In 2021 the school received a Platinum Artsmark (the highest Artsmark grading) from Arts Council England one of only six schools in the country to achieve this that year.

For Gardens, Libraries, and Museums (GLAM), the partnership has resulted in a more diverse audience of young people, and a greater focus on making the venues more accessible and welcoming to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) children and their families. With the help of Iffley Academy students and staff, all of the GLAM venues are developing Easy Read guides to support all visitors with learning disabilities and special needs, along with their families and carers to plan and make the most of their visits.

“The arts project allowed the pupils to explore different types of roles within their relationships, providing confidence and self-worth to those who find social interactions a challenge. The support they gave each other through the thrills and failures that occurred in the creative processes were heart-warming and genuine.” Nicola Baptie, Teacher, Iffley Academy

Best-practice case study

The partnership has been cited as a best practice case study in the Durham Commission Report on Creativity and Education (October 2019). The report describes the partnership as a "consilient model of arts and science learning, which demonstrates how children can acquire knowledge, come up with new ideas, work with their hands and feel ownership of the cultural institutions in their local community".

Read the Durham Commission report

Publications

A range of articles about the Iffley Academy partnership have been published in educational journals and websites. We would like to thank the publishers for allowing us to reproduce copies here. A full list of credits is available below:

• Romans Revealed: A co-curated exhibition by Iffley Academy and the Ashmolean Museum to display Roman Artefacts at the heart of a Special School setting (Ashmolean magazine, Issue 87, Spring 2024).
• Social Impact - How can young people with SEND demonstrate social impact by being involved in meaningful consultation around inclusion and accessibility with cultural venues? (GEM Case Studies, Volume 31, December 2023)

• Cultural Spaces as Generators of Social Change - Museum-iD 

• Iffley Academy Partnership: Last Supper in Pompeii (Ashmolean Magazine, Issue 79, Spring 2020)

• Building Trust in Co-production: Equal Partnerships for Social Justice (Museum iD, 23.03.20)

• Beautiful Bacteria - Science, Art and SEND (AD Magazine, NSEAD, January 2020)

  Beautiful Bacteria - Science, Art and SEND (AD Magazine, NSEAD, January 2020)

• Break down barriers to the arts for pupils with SEND (TES, January 2020)

  Break down barriers to the arts for pupils with SEND (TES, January 2020)

• How equitable partnerships can maximise creativity for SEND students (Artswork’s South East Schools Newspaper, A/W 2019)

  How equitable partnerships can maximise creativity for SEND students (Artswork’s South East Schools Newspaper, A/W 2019)

• How can creative engagement with buildings and place affect outcomes for teachers? (Artsmark blog, 07.10.19)

• If pupils can't go to a museum, bring the museum to them (TES, April 2019)

  If pupils can't go to a museum, bring the museum to them (TES, April 2019)

• Jeff Koons and the Iffley Academy Project (GEM Case Studies 156, 2019)

  Jeff Koons and the Iffley Academy Project (GEM Case Studies 156, 2019)

• How can museums work effectively with special schools (Engage 41, 2018)

  How can museums work effectively with special schools (Engage 41, 2018)

• Publication credits - GLAM and the Iffley Academy partnership

  Publication credits - GLAM and the Iffley Academy partnership

Further information

You can find out more about Iffley Academy on their webpage.