Our Church School

Our Vision

Cultivate - Inspire - Flourish

In our distinctly rural setting, we prepare all of our school family for fruitful lives by cultivating the soil ready to inspire growth. Ultimately, leading to a successful harvest of flourishing individuals.

Our vision takes inspiration from the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-23) where Jesus helps us learn that the smallest seeds have inspirations for great potential and growth when they are given a rich and nourishing environment to thrive in. We celebrate everyone's uniqueness and enjoy blossoming together in our joyful, respectful and compassionate school community.

Our School Aims

We aim to shape the whole child through the four Church Of England principles for education:

Educating for wisdom, knowledge and skills
Educating for hope and inspiration
Educating for community and living well together
Educating for dignity and respect.

What is Spirituality?

It is very difficult to put into words what ‘spirituality’ actually is, because it is a very personal experience, each experience will be different, and experience of spirituality often changes over the course of a lifetime. Spirituality is not the same as having faith or belonging to a particular religion; a person can be spiritual without having a particular faith. Spirituality is the roots of the tree. We cannot see the roots beneath but without them the tree would not grow and flourish- it would fall. We cannot see a person's spirituality but everyone has it within them. Without our own sense of spiritual connection, like the tree, we too cannot flourish fully like God intended us to.

Everyone’s spiritual connection is different. For some people spirituality will be connecting to a faith or a religion, for others it will be making a connection to nature, others, themselves or the world around them. It may involve looking for meaning or purpose.

As a school, we have defined spirituality as:

Spirituality is not something we can see; it is something we feel inside ourselves. It is about awe and wonder, asking questions, inspiration and being aware of something ‘bigger’ outside of ourselves.

The language we use to describe spirituality is not always child-friendly, so when talking to children about it, we will refer to:

-A sense of awe and wonder – things that make us go WOW!
-Care for nature and living things
-Asking ultimate questions and being inspired to look beyond ourselves

Our Christian Values

Respect:

"Treat others as you would like them to treat you," Luke 6:31

In our school family, we respect the uniqueness of ourselves and of others.
In our school family, we respect all aspects of God's creation.

Community:

"Live in harmony with each other," Romans 12:16

Our school family is part of the community and the community is part of us.
In our school family, we watch over one another in love, doing all the good we can.

Joy:

"May God of hope fill you with joy," Romans 15:12

In our school family, we celebrate, laugh, rejoice and play together.
In our school family, we enjoy life in all its fullness.

Compassion:

"Build each other up," 1 Thessalonians 5:11

In our school family, we support, nurture and value one another.
In our school family, we care deeply for all of God's children.

Our Community

Within our small, rural community we celebrate our strong Christian ethos. We cultivate and develop the soil for each individual to enjoy life in its fullness. Our rich, abundant and inspiring learning journey ensures everyone can flourish in our family and in the wider world.

Recognising its historic foundation, the school will preserve and develop its religious character in accordance with the principles of the Church of England and in partnership with the church at parish and diocesan level.

The school aims to serve its community by providing an education of the highest quality within the context of Christian belief and practice. It encourages an understanding of the meaning and significance of faith and promotes Christian values through the experiences it offers to all pupils. We have strong links with All Saint's church with regular services throughout the year. We have whole school collective worships led by NISCU and Rev. Dr. Allison Fenton. Bi-annually we invite a local presenter in to lead the 'OT Mini' series as part of our R.E teaching.