St Matthew's CofE Nursery & Primary School

St Matthew’s Primary School provides a high standard of education within a Christian environment where every pupil is valued as an individual. It is our aim that all pupils reach their full potential, take responsibility for themselves and their actions, show respect and concern for others, and care for the natural world. Our children move on to the next stage of their education with enthusiasm, curiosity and a love of learning.

Lessons are structured to engage and challenge children so that learning progresses very quickly. Many opportunities are taken to extend learning beyond the four walls of the classroom, to our wonderful playing field, our vegetable garden, the local parks, museums, farms, theatres, galleries and later to residential trips to Dorset, Shropshire and France. Much use is made of experts who are invited into our school to share their passion and knowledge for their subject.

Building upon the very good foundations laid in the homes of our children, we work in partnership with parents so that pupils leave our school as happy, confident, healthy and responsible young people with a highly developed sense of duty.

The School admits children to the Reception class in the September of the school year in which a child attains the age of 5 years. (The school year runs from 1 September to the 31st August.) All parents/carers are entitled to a full-time place for their child in the reception class from September, but may defer entry until the beginning of the term after their child is five years old (ie, when the child reaches compulsory school age) or until the beginning of the summer term whichever is earlier. Children may attend part-time until their child reaches compulsory school age. Parents/carers who have been offered a place at the School and wish to defer entry for their child and/or attend part-time must put this in writing to the headteacher at the earliest opportunity and before the start of the autumn term. The school does not have any specific unit for pupils with particular special needs. However, the school is on a level site and all the accommodation is on one floor, with ramps at the main entrance and certain doors to the playground. All classrooms may be entered without steps, and one toilet has been specially equipped for pupils with physical disabilities. As far as possible, the school ensures that pupils with disabilities have access to the same opportunities as other pupils.

Parents/carers of pupils who have a statement of special educational needs, or Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan are required to apply for school places separately through the local authority from whom advice is available. If a child with a statement, or EHC Plan, is placed in the school by the local authority before the normal admission round, the number of places available to other applicants will be reduced. The Governors will admit all those pupils whose statement, or EHC Plan, names the School.

In the foundation stage, which covers Nursery and Reception we follow Early Years Foundation Stage Curriculum, This splits the curriculum into seven equally important areas of learning. The Early Learning Goals within each Area of Learning outline what most children should be able to achieve by the time they leave Reception at the age of 5.

As you will see when you visit the Foundation Stage, our practitioners are skilled at providing an enabling and enriching environment for the children, which plays a key role in supporting and extending children's development and learning. Children are highly engaged in purposeful play and display the characterisitcs of effective learning which underpins our teaching across the Foundation Stage.

At the heart of our curriculum in Key Stages 1 and 2 is the idea that children learn better when they are immersed in and enjoying their learning. We try to bring the curriculum to life through following a topic-based integrated curriculum, where links are made between different subjects and where teachers take every opportunity to enrich the children's learning through trips out of school and visitors coming into school.St Matthew’s Primary School are committed to providing an environment which values and includes all pupils, staff, parents and visitors regardless of their educational, physical, sensory, social, spiritual, emotional and cultural needs. We are further committed to challenging attitudes about disability and accessibility and to developing a culture of awareness, tolerance and inclusion.

We seek out opportunities to take the children out of school to enrich their learning and enable them to make connections between the classroom and the real world. Educational outings are stimulating for the children and essential to the development of an inquisitive mind. They provide hands-on experiences that help children make sense of historical, geographical, creative or scientific concepts. Many children who struggle in class are able to shine on these days. Teachers are always looking for ways to make connections with the world outside the classroom and one of the best ways of doing this is to invite specialists and experts into our classrooms to share their passions, knowledge and skills.