St Mary’s RC Primary School

St Mary’s Primary School is a denominational, Roman Catholic school, which serves the area of East Central Edinburgh.  It was built originally in 1833.  The pupils attending St Mary’s comprise of a broad social and cultural mix, the majority of whom are Roman Catholics. As a Catholic school we follow the guidance of the Scottish Catholic Education Service in our religious observance, further information can be found in Having Faith in the Curriculum.

St Mary’s is situated in a three storey Victorian building in East London Street.  Sharing the external parts of the building are an after-school care club and a small playgroup.  The main building comprises 14 classrooms, a large gym/ dining hall, a library, a support for learning base, a meeting room and a general-purpose room. Extensive renovations have taken place to restore the external stonework.

At St Mary’s we are dedicated to educating our young people in an inclusive, stimulating and challenging environment preparing them for life-long learning. We provide this in a secure, happy and welcoming environment where Christian and Catholic values are cherished and where staff, pupils and parents work together to achieve common goals.

Our Values: wisdom, justice, compassion, integrity, love – are all gospel values. Our gospel values are at the heart of all we do.

As a Catholic school we are committed to supporting the development of the whole pupil; spiritual, moral, social and cultural. Our school ethos, articulated in our school motto, ‘Forward Together in Christ’ gives the highest value to these aspects of development by providing an overall atmosphere that is both nurturing and challenging. Our Curriculum recognises the need to provide opportunities for the development of personal responsibility and these key human aspects of learning are supported through:

• Enriching the curriculum in all appropriate areas with an emphasis on spiritual, moral, social and cultural development
• Taking every appropriate opportunity to acknowledge, value and appreciate the various cultures of our pupils and to encourage them to appreciate and value the cultures of others
• Positive/Restorative discipline approaches
• Arranging regular events of the school as a community and using such occasions to encourage and reinforce the values on which the school is based
• Ensuring that staff and adults within the school provide positive role models for pupils
• Having high aspirations for all pupils
• Using a, ‘Growth Mindset’ approach
• Key emphasis on the acquisition of literacy and numeracy skills