Whitefield Primary School

Welcome to Whitefield School. At Whitefield our first responsibility is to provide a happy and safe environment which helps all our children to succeed and meet or exceed national expectations.

We know our pupils well and we do our very best to make sure every child is provided for as an individual. We have high expectations and aspirational aims for our school and for our children.

Our school is a place where everyone is treated equally, encouraged and respected. We believe that all children should be able to achieve their full potential academically, socially and emotionally. We are committed to our school being a safe and inclusive place where learning is nurtured and encouraged in a happy, caring and fun environment. We all work for our school to be a happy place where good behaviour is expected and all children enjoy their educational journey. At Whitefield we believe in nothing but the best.

To value everyone equally in an inclusive environment. To value, listen to and act upon the voice and views of our children. To take a positive approach to developing the self confidence and self esteem of all the children at our school. To help pupils to develop lively, enquiring minds and the ability to question and argue rationally. To provide a curriculum which is creative, broadly based, relevant and meets the needs of individual children. To bring out the best in children at our school and support the development of life skills for a successful future. To ensure the development and consolidation of basic skills in Literacy and Mathematics. To allow each child the opportunity to meet their potential in happy, caring and fun surroundings, promoting high standards for all. To create a stimulating and challenging environment which is supportive, secure and caring. To help pupils understand the world they live in and our part in the local, national and global community. To listen to and value the views of parents and to work in partnership with them. To enable all members of the school community to participate in aspects of school life.

At Whitefield Primary School we believe that reading for pleasure is key to success. All children are encouraged to love reading a wide variety of material of books, magazines, newspapers and to read online. A love of reading is shared by all.

At Whitefield Primary School, we teach a high quality, daily, discrete phonics session from FS1 to Year 2, and where it is needed in other year groups. Primarily, we follow the Read, Write Inc. scheme which is tailored to the needs of individuals and groups of learners. Learning is multi-sensory. The children are assessed half termly to track their progress. Appropriate interventions are implemented to accelerate progress for individual children.

At Whitefield Primary School reading is taught daily. Children are taught to read in guided reading sessions. Children are taught in groups or individually and have access to a wide range of interventions, including Reading Recovery. Children are also able to apply learned skills in a variety of activities.

Our book organisation system is based on Book Bands and Reading Recovery levels up to Lime level. This includes a coloured band & number which correspond to reading levels. Each level has carefully chosen words, phrases, phonics, and comprehension .At Key Stage 2 books are organised into year groups with an appropriate range of challenge and content.

The children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development plays a significant role in their ability to achieve and learn, as well as their ability to contribute to the local and wider community. The curriculum is planned to engage our pupils, have a positive impact on their behaviour and safety and help them to attain highly in all areas of their learning. All areas of the curriculum will make a contribution to the child’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. We want our pupils to flourish as reflective, thoughtful and responsible individuals who are curious about the world around them.

Mission
Our school is a place where everyone is treated equally, encouraged and respected.  We believe that all children should be able to achieve their full potential academically, socially and emotionally.  We are committed to our school being a safe and inclusive place where learning is nurtured and encouraged in a happy, caring and fun environment.  We all work for our school to be a happy place where  good behaviour is expected and all children enjoy their educational journey.