Alderman Davies CIW Primary School

We are a Primary School in Neath, Wales for 3-11 year old children. The school is situated within the Diocese of Llandaff. We are a voluntary aided school, in Neath Port Talbot County Borough. We are located in the centre of Neath adjacent to St. David's Church.

We believe that Church schools are special; they have everything a Local Education Authority school has to offer and present the full Christian faith at the same time. Only a Church school is allowed to give specific church teaching and through our school, children come into close contact with the clergy, forming friendly links with our school church, St. David’s. As a Church School we receive advice from the Diocesan Council for Education. In addition we benefit from the support services of the Local Education Authority. Our school governors and staff believe that you, as parents/carers, have a vital role to play in your children’s education. We look forward to developing a long lasting partnership with you. We hope that you will find children at our school are happy as part of a caring Christian community in which they can grow and flourish.

Through careful organisation and planning, we attempt to provide the best possible education for all pupils. In all our activities we try to work as a family, where members have sense of purpose, a sense of belonging and a feeling of being responsible to the school and the community. At Alderman Davies Church in Wales Primary School the health and safety of all children is of paramount importance. Parents send their children to school each day with the expectation that the school will provide a secure environment in which their children can flourish. The Governing Body and school staff, therefore, make every effort to ensure that this expectation becomes a reality.

At Key Stage 2, from 7-11 years, our children follow the national curriculum We aim to give all our pupils equal access to broad, balanced, relevant learning activities that include all aspects of the National Curriculum. We place a great deal of emphasis on the development of skills across the curriculum. The National Curriculum is made up of core and foundation subjects, with objectives set for learning and programes of study stating essential teaching.

The core subjects are Mathematics, English, Science and Religious Education which is a basic subject, but in a church school has the same status as the core subjects. The foundation subjects are Geography, History, Information Technology, Design Technology, Welsh, Art, Music and Physical Education. Personal and Social Education is a very important part of our curriculum. Whenever appropriate, we link areas of learning to the child’s interest via a theme or topic.

A range of teaching and learning approaches are used as appropriate and we recognise that learning is a continuous process and chidren acquire knowledge at varying speeds. Opportunities are provided to broaden experiences through visits to places of educationl interest, linked with the class learning. We also encourage visitors from the locality and the community to foster links with our school. We have high expectation of all our pupils, recognising differing skills and abilities,which help to prepare them for full and responsible lives.

Mission statement, vision and aims

As governors, staff and parents, we will co-operate to:-

• Create a school community with a Christian ethos in which all are happy, secure and valued.
• Provide a school environment which is welcoming, orderly and stimulating.
• Plan and implement a broad and balanced curriculum which meets statutory requirements and offers a wide range of learning experiences to support the development of the whole child.
• Promote and support effective teaching and learning in order to assist our children in achieving the highest standards of which they are capable.
• Ensure efficient use of resources.
• Foster sound links with parents, the community and outside agencies in order to support our children’s
• development and enhance their learning.
  Evaluate our work in order to promote development and improvement.