Bedgrove Junior School, part of Great Learners Trust, has been recognised as a Voice 21 Oracy Centre of Excellence for its work developing children’s skills to become confident speakers, listeners and communicators to succeed in both school and in later life.

Voice 21 is the UK’s oracy education charity, working with schools nationwide to transform the learning and life chances of young people through talk, and campaigning for oracy to have a higher status in the education system. Its Oracy Centres of Excellence are “leading the way in providing a high-quality oracy education for their students, acting as beacons of good practice for oracy across the school system”.

Bedgrove Junior received the Oracy Centre of Excellence status after an assessment process – application, evidence sharing and review days – to celebrate the school’s successes, showcase excellence and signal possible areas for further development. It had to demonstrate how five Oracy Benchmarks, Voice 21’s nationally recognised standard for oracy education, were “fully embedded” in the school: an ambitious vision for oracy, builds a culture of oracy, has a sustained and wide-ranging curriculum for oracy, recognises oracy as central to learning, and is accountable for the impact of oracy.

“Our aim is for all children to be inspired to communicate in different ways and for different purposes,” said the Aylesbury school’s Headteacher Harry Hillier. “This involves being able to respond to social cues and act in a respectful way whilst engaging in meaningful and purposeful discussions. Children are challenged to think critically to succeed, preparing themselves for future in a fast-moving, diverse world.

“As a Voice 21 Oracy Centre of Excellence, we put oracy at the heart of teaching and learning across all subjects. Research shows that speaking and listening play a key role in developing critical thinking and deeper understanding, helping children strengthen their knowledge via meaningful talk in the classroom. We support children to become articulate and effective communicators who are able to present themselves confidently across a range of settings and contexts, from group discussions to formal presentations.”

The Oracy Framework used by the school is broken down into four distinct strands – physical, cognitive, linguistic and social and emotional. “Within the classroom, we use a variety of strategies and resources to promote a culture for oracy including setting oracy guidelines with our classes based on the framework,” Harry continued.

“In short, oracy is now integral to everything we do. It actually started as a teacher-led initiative. One of our teachers had researched oracy independently, was inspired by the evidence behind it, and began trialling strategies with her class. Before I became Head here, I visited the school as a deputy head from another setting. I came specifically to look at English teaching. I was invited into that teacher’s classroom and it was genuinely the best lesson I had seen in a decade. The children were interacting respectfully, using incredibly high-level language. The teacher was not scrambling for answers – she was facilitating. It was a completely different classroom dynamic. That experience stayed with me. Two years later, when the headship came up at Bedgrove, I knew I wanted to be part of this school.”

On arrival, Harry worked with colleagues who has been trained in oracy – observing lessons, understanding the strategies, and leadership approach.

“It was clear there was something powerful going on here,” Harry recalled. “We began by embedding oracy into our Healthy Minds curriculum (formerly PSHE), increasing structured discussion and explicitly teaching speaking and listening strategies. Once it was embedded in PSHE, we moved it into guided reading, then beyond that. Eventually, we reached a turning point: oracy was not an ‘add-on’ subject. It needed to be woven through everything. Now, it is embedded in our mission, our intent statements, our curriculum design. I am confident you could walk into any classroom at any time and see oracy in action. Some teachers are flying with it; others are still developing – but it is everywhere.

“As part of that journey, a development partner from Voice 21 told us our practice was exceptionally strong – comparable with their flagship schools – and we were still in our early phase. They then encouraged us to pursue accreditation.”

Impacts within the school are already evidenced and are a contributor to Bedgrove Junior being recognised as a Voice 21 Oracy Centre of Excellence.

Harry summarised: “Our greater depth readers have improved year-on-year since embedding oracy. In guided reading, pupils debate character motivation, author intent, inference – they really interrogate texts. That live discussion deepens understanding far beyond silent reading. What is powerful is that even pupils not yet at age-related expectations can contribute meaningfully. They may not decode fluently, but they can form opinions, articulate reasoning and engage in discussion – and that accelerates understanding. Beyond data, there is the qualitative impact: confidence, articulation, resilience. We run public speaking competitions. We submitted pupil voice videos as part of accreditation. One phrase a child used, ‘Oracy helps me be brave’, is now featured on the Voice 21 website.”

Then there are the many wonderful anecdotes, as remembered by Harry. “After one oracy open morning, a parent told me her daughter had just moved to the area and had grown enormously in confidence. She said, ‘Now I understand where that confidence is coming from’. At a summer event, a local business owner shook my hand and said: ‘You’re explicitly teaching skills businesses desperately need – eye contact, articulation, confidence’. But perhaps the most powerful feedback came from secondary headteachers – both selective and non-selective – who said: “You can tell which pupils are from Bedgrove. They’re engaged. They contribute. They’re not afraid to fail’. That, for me, has been the ultimate endorsement.”

Sarah Baber, CEO of Great Learners Trust, said: “A huge congratulations to Bedgrove Junior School for their outstanding work in driving oracy across the school. They have truly become a flagship for excellence in oracy and Bedgrove is now leading the way across the Trust. At our recent Trust-wide Inspiration Day, colleagues shared the school’s inspiring journey on building confident communicators, and staff regularly visit other schools to support and strengthen teaching and learning for pupils across the Trust.”