It was so lovely to see the new nursery at Greenfields Community Primary School near Shepway last week - giving local children the best possible start at school.
The school’s headteacher Mr Daniel Andrews invited me to come and see this brand new building, funded through an application to the government's School Nurseries Capital Fund. It shows the record investment going into primary schools across the country, including through pupil premium which Greenfields benefits from.
Introduced in 2011, pupil premium is extra money for schools to help disadvantaged pupils achieve their full potential, and a large number of the students at Greenfields are eligible for the funding.
The school has come on leaps and bounds in recent years, and they're doing a fantastic job of helping children gain confidence speaking, including through methods like group singing. This is common barrier to reading attainment and overcoming it is the first step to better learning.
It's brilliant to see staff and teachers doing such a good job with this funding, and children around Shepway are feeling the benefits.
It’s thanks to people like them that the UK is now up to fourth in the world for reading.
