Artsmark is an award accredited by Arts Council England to schools who show exceptional creativity to the arts. This award is the only award for arts and culture provision in England. As well as recognising schools that are making the arts come alive, the Artsmark award is a practical and valuable tool for enriching a school’s arts provision, whatever the starting point.  It supports schools to develop and celebrate arts and cultural education, putting creativity and wellbeing at the heart of the curriculum. Artsmark ensures every young person can be creative and access a diverse, high-quality cultural education.

We are Gold!!!

Chester-le-Street CE Primary School has been awarded a prestigious Artsmark Gold Award. This is a great achievement, particularly as our journey was played out against a backdrop of COVID 19.

Artsmark is the only creative quality standard for schools and is accredited by Arts Council England.  It is awarded after a rigorous assessment process that ensures that arts, culture and creativity are embedded across the curriculum.

Highlights of our feedback from Arts Council England include:

Chester-le-Street CofE Primary School has approached its Artsmark journey with intent and energy, reshaping its curriculum so that the arts are not an add-on but an intrinsic strand of its values, teaching and community life. The Statements of Commitment and Impact align convincingly, showing how ambitions to raise the profile of the arts and celebrate diversity have been realised through rich and inclusive provision, from Carnival Day to the miners’ banner project, and from choir performances in care homes to the creation of an art gallery wall that celebrates every class’s work.

Children clearly see themselves as creators and contributors, speaking with confidence to governors and families, and their voices have helped shape both curriculum and events, embedding ownership across the school. Staff have grown in confidence too, sharing ideas and leading activities, while leaders have signalled their commitment by making creativity a driver of the School Improvement Plan and a means of inclusion for SEND pupils.

What Chester-le-Street has achieved is the establishment of embedded practice: the arts are present in the school’s ethos, in classrooms, and in the way the wider community experiences the school, not just in isolated projects or occasional showcases.