Assessment is the means used to evaluate children's progress, and as such it sits at the heart of teaching and learning.  It also helps parents to understand, and participate in their children's educational journey.  Assessment can be in the form of tests, through use of questions, or by making a judgement from the work children produce.

Prior to September 2014, National Curriculum levels and level descriptors were used to describe children's attainment and progress.   However, with the introduction of a new Primary Curriculum from September 2014, the official use of these numerically-based levels was removed by The Secretary of State.  As a result, schools have developed more detailed assessment frameworks based on age-related descriptors, rather than just matching a child's achievement to a numerical level.

Children who are in Years 2 and 6 will continue be assessed as before in their statutory end of Key Stage 1 and 2 SATs during the summer term.  Their outcomes will be judged as working towards, within or at greater depth against the nationally expected standards for their age.  Therefore, although numerical data will still be relevant for measuring their progress internally, children will also be assessed against relevant national criteria of what a pupil is expected to know and be able to do in a subject, and their attainment will be assessed as working towards, within or at greater depth within the expected standard.

Our assessment framework links numerical data to a series of statements which a child is expected to achieve by the end of each year group, and will  ensure consistent and accurate judgements are made about children's progress and attainment. Moderation will also be an important part of how we use and validate assessment in school.  Our work will incorporate the following agreed principles of assessment:

• Assessment provides evidence to guide teaching and learning
• Assessment is fair, inclusive and free from bias
• Assessment outcomes are conveyed in an open and transparent way
• Assessment objectives set high expectations for learners
• Assessment is appropriate to age, to the task and to the desired feedback information
• Assessment should draw on a wide range of evidence
• Assessment is consistent, with judgements which can be moderated to ensure accuracy
• Assessment outcomes provide meaningful and understandable information