St Francis Catholic Primary School

St Francis Catholic Primary School exists to help the parents to bring up their children in the Catholic Faith in the context of a good education. It is central to our mission that every child matters as a unique gift from God. As a Christian community we aim to develop the whole child within an ethos of faith, love, care and respect.

Our mission is to provide high quality

• Catholic teaching and learning
• Catholic worship
• Education delivered by inspirational staff
• Opportunities that encourage all to become independent and responsible

St. Francis Catholic Primary School is a two form entry primary school. The new building was built in 1970 on a site adjacent to the original St Francis School, which was a four storey Victorian building.

The school is set in pleasant grounds which consist of gardens and three playgrounds - KS2, KS1 & Nursery. In the immediate vicinity are many Local Authority Housing estates and small local shops.

At present the gender mix in school is almost equal. There are slightly more girls than boys. We have a wide cultural mix, with many children of African origin, some children of Caribbean descent and a number of South American, European and British families.

Children start the main school in Reception, during the year in which they are 5. Each September thereafter the children move to the next class in Years 1 through to 6 - this numbering system forms part of the structure of the National Curriculum. When a child completes Year 6 at St Francis they will join a secondary school for Year 7.

We are committed to provide a teaching environment conducive to learning. Each child is valued, respected and challenged regardless of ability, race, gender, religion, social background, culture or disability. The children are encouraged to develop non-discriminatory attitudes and expectations about themselves, their role in the school and in society in general.

The curriculum provided at St Francis Catholic is based on the values and aims of the school. It incorporates a strong emphasis on personal, social, health and citizenship education. The school curriculum, whilst placing a high priority on the basic skills of literacy and numeracy, is broad and balanced, promoting the spiritual, moral, social, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils through PSHCE and PE.

At St Francis, the aim is to provide the very best possible start to every child’s education and enable them to fulfil their potential. A stimulating, secure environment is provided, where children are encouraged to develop key learning skills. A broad-based, high quality curriculum is provided to all pupils based on the guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage Revised Framework.

Well-planned, structured activities and opportunities for children to discover and be curious are provided within the classroom and outdoor learning area.

Reading is key to your child making good over-all progress throughout their time in Our Early Years. The more stories we as adults share with a child the more words we are exposing them to. The more we repeat those stories and those words the more your child will pick up that language and then in turn will explore using that language. How can we expect a child to write a story of their own unless they have been exposed to lots of different stories and settings. Reading stories helps to feed your child’s imagination and also their range of language they are able to use in daily life. The more experiences we offer our children the more likely they are to question the world in which they live in and learn more!

At St Francis Catholic Primary School we believe that developing an investigative, problem solving approach to learning, assists pupils to achieve high standards and gain life skills.

At St. Francis we recognise that English is a vital component in concept formation in all areas of the curriculum. Our aim is to develop each child's ability to understand, communicate, interpret and appreciate the world around him/her. The English programme at St. Francis promotes the four key components: speaking, listening, reading and writing. We aim to teach all pupils:

• To listen attentively with understanding and appreciation.
• To speak confidently and clearly, and to use appropriate language for different occasions.
• To read fluently and accurately with understanding, enjoyment, feeling and discrimination.
• To communicate in writing with confidence, pleasure and a sense of purpose, for a wide range of audiences.

To write competently by developing the skills of handwriting, spelling, punctuation, syntax and usage. We encourage the children to use cursive script when writing.

At St. Francis, we believe that Religion is a relationship, a relationship of love between the child and God, and between the child and other people: in a community. Religious Education fosters this relationship through daily prayer, Acts of Worship and Celebrations of Liturgy. As a Catholic school we feel it is important that children learn how to co-operate with others, respect others and forgive others. Scripture, teachings of the Church and the teachers’ own witness and example are the means by which these are taught in our school.

As a whole school we follow the national Catholic R.E. scheme entitled ‘Come and See’. The aim of this programme is to explore the religious dimension of questions about life, dignity and purpose, within the Catholic tradition. Links are made with the pupils’ own experiences and with universal experience. Links are also made with the experiences of other faith traditions to promote tolerance and mutual respect. The programme is therefore both ‘objective’ and ‘subjective’. It presents a systematic presentation of the Christian event, message and way of life, in contexts appropriate to the age and stage of development of each child.