The values of Christianity flourish through all
St Mary’s is a Church of England School with a strong connection to St Mary’s Church and our local community. Our vision of compassion and excellence shine through in all we do. Christian values guide us and help us live out our Bible scripture: ‘True loves shows itself in action’. This enables every child to flourish. Through this approach, we aspire for everyone in our school community to feel touched by the love of God – whatever their beliefs and background.
Courageous Advocacy
Compassion is at the heart of our school vision and all we do at St Mary’s; we challenge ourselves to step into other people’s shoes but also to stand up for what we believe in, looking outwards. St Mary’s children learn that, however young they are, they have a voice and can make a difference through their actions.
We readily support national charitable events like Comic and Sports Relief, Remembrance Day and Christmas Jumper Day, as well as national or international crises that may need our support.
We also have two charities for whom we particularly support. SPEAR London is a charity that focuses its energy on improving the lives of those whom are homeless (https://www.spearlondon.org/); it is important to us that we support those in need in our local area and community. Nourish Eco Village (https://www.nourishecovillage.com/about) is a not for profit organisation in South Africa, based in and focused on the rural villages and communities in Mpumalanga, one of the most poverty stricken and under-served areas; we work closely with the school in the village sharing our learning on environmental sustainability and conservation, areas in which our children, staff and school community are passionate.
Adoption Friendly School- “It takes a village to raise a child”
St Mary’s is committed to being fully inclusive and we believe in working with the whole family to achieve the greatest outcomes for our children. We are proud to receive our accreditation as an Adoption Friendly School..
Partnership with The Anna Freud – The National Centre for Children and Families
One in ten children and young people between the ages of five and 16 have a clinically diagnosed mental health disorder. For many problems persist into adulthood. Yet in the UK, children and young people receive less than 5% of mental health care funding.
At St Mary’s we are committed to good mental health and believe it is the key to success; we show compassion for those who face these challenges and support them through the Anna Freud outreach service, which provides systemic family psychotherapy. Working in collaboration with our school Learning Mentor, our therapist meets weekly in a multi-family group setting. Support is provided to both the child and their family within the non-stigmatising environment of the school.
Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS)
At St Mary’s, the PATHS programme is explored as part of our PSHE learning but also forms the basis of our whole school approach to managing emotions and working together in harmony. After three years of embracing PATHS at St Mary’s, we became a PATHS accredited school in 2021.
PATHS® is an evidence-based social and emotional learning programme aimed at 4 – 11 year olds that teaches pro-social skills, emotion understanding, social problem-solving and self-control. It covers five domains of social and emotional development:
- Self-control
- Emotional understanding
- Positive self-esteem
- Relationships
- Interpersonal
- problem-solving
Through this approach, we equip young people with the necessary skills of conflict resolution and dialogue to negotiate the challenges of our world. Our children understand and relish their role as global citizens, striving for peace on our planet.
