Sponsored by Shipley College, this category rewards partnerships between schools and businesses or other organisations.

SHORTLIST

Thornton Primary School 

THORNTON Primary School’s work with Historic England on a project called Knowing Our Heritage, has been recognised with a nomination in the Business in Schools category.
Julie Edwards from Historic England worked with teacher Beth Webster to devise a project that saw pupils looking at the village’s war links. 
The Year 5 Piranhas class did some work around the war, including researching families that were living in Thornton at the time who were affected. They took names from the War Memorial for each war and then looked at records and plotted where in Thornton they lived. 
This all led to some work on the memorial itself, including reporting its condition. 
The children were excited by the work, especially because they felt they had done something worthwhile for the community of Thornton and also because they were researching people who had walked the streets of Thornton, and perhaps lived in houses which are still here today. 
The War Memorial now has Grade 2 listed status and this is a direct result from the work done by the children. 
The children learned how to approach their investigations through regular workshops with Historic England staff.

Farnham Primary School and Bradford College

A TEACHER training partnership between Farnham Primary School and Bradford College has been nominated for the Business in Schools award.
The partnership sees trainee teachers honing their skills at Farnham, which was recently rated outstanding, as well as Farnham staff visiting the college to help teach trainees.
The nomination, by Paul Triner, School Partnerships Manager at the college, said: “Farnham Primary School richly deserves this year’s Business in Schools award. 
“A strong, effective business partnership is about working together for mutual benefit. The school understands this principle and invests an incredible amount of time and energy into making this happen in numerous practical ways.
“We’re in the business of teacher training in this area of the district, and Farnham absolutely embraces that principle.
“To have a school that has been rated outstanding by Ofsted as a place where students can see good practice is incredibly valuable.
“There is a real opportunity in this school for creativity which adds value to our trainees, but the partnership is a two-way thing.
“The school really wants to shape how things are, and that helps us stay grounded.”

Business Friends of Haworth Primary School

A PARTNERSHIP between Haworth Primary School and local businesses has led to the school being nominated in the Business in Schools category.
The scheme encourages businesses to support the school in any way possible to enhance the educational opportunities for the children and raise pupil aspirations. 
The initiative started when the school sent a personal invitation to all local businesses to attend an evening event to find out about the life of the school. 
Staff and children gave a presentation about the achievements and approaches of the school. A tour of the facilities was given and a range of models were explored to demonstrate how local businesses could support and get involved in the life of the school. 
Some businesses provided one-off donations or ongoing sponsorship with others providing opportunities for curriculum-linked work for classes. 
It has even seen pupils form the school running a stall in the Airedale Shopping Centre in Keighley.
Head teacher Helen Thompson said: “The generosity of the local business community has really enriched a wealth of areas within the school and provided innovative opportunities for children.”