St Margaret’s C of E Junior School is a happy and vibrant school where all children are challenged to take an active interest in learning about the world and themselves. We work together to provide a caring, secure and nurturing environment, rooted in Christian beliefs, in which everyone is valued and respected.

Our Aims

• To provide a rich, relevant curriculum that inspires and engages all
• To inspire a positive and committed attitude to learning enabling children to believe in themselves and find their own voice
• To encourage individuality, initiative, creativity, independence and enquiry
• To inspire each child to be the best they can within a happy safe and stimulating environment
• To produce sociable well rounded individuals who will make a difference in their community
• To provide a secure, safe and healthy school where responsible behaviour and attitudes can flourish within a Christian ethos
• To encourage parents and carers to play their part in the education of their children
• To prepare children for the next step in their education and the wider world

British Values

What are British values?

Oftsed states that British values are:

• democracy
• the rule of law
• individual liberty
• mutual respect for and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs and for those without faith

At St Margaret’s CofE Junior School we promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural education, incorporating fundamental British values. This permeates the school’s entire curriculum and supports the development of the whole child. We meet daily for an act of collective worship, establishing weekly themes that support our school ethos of both Christian and British values. These themes are supported by effective relationships throughout the school. Children are taught a variety of traditional British hymns and carols and perform these in assembly as well as at traditional church services. We follow guidance set out in the DfE’s document ‘Promoting fundamental values as part of SMSC in schools’

At St Margaret’s CofE Junior School, we work hard to develop our pupils’ values and attitudes. British values are promoted by all the staff and provide a model of behaviour for our pupils. They are embedded in all areas of the curriculum; planning reflects opportunities to develop our pupils’ understanding of each strand of British values regularly. Additionally we celebrate national days such as Remembrance Day, St George’s Day, the Queen’s Jubilee and birthday etc. 

Democracy:

In addition to ensuring that democracy is taught through our curriculum, at St Margaret’s CofE Junior School we ensure that pupils are given a democratic voice through our school council. Every year, each class asks pupils to nominate themselves for school council. A class election is then held, with each pupil voting for their preferred candidate. The results are counted and a Class School Councillor and Deputy are elected to serve for half of the year, swapping roles after the February half term holiday. School council meet monthly and pupils act as Chairperson, Secretary and Treasurer. Each Class has an ‘Ideas Box’ in which pupils put their suggestions for improvement. These are discussed by School Council who decide what will be acted upon. By valuing each pupils’ voice and by listening and responding to them we demonstrate that we support democracy and liberty.

Rule of Law:

In addition to ensuring that rule of law is taught through our curriculum, every school year starts by involving pupils in setting codes of behaviour for their year group; helping pupils to make decisions and choices that are acceptable to the St Margaret’s CofE School community and society at large. Our pupils understand that they need rules to help lessons and playtimes run smoothly. Particular emphasis is given to rules in PE and DT when equipment is being used and in Computing, especially rules concerning E-safety and internet use. Pupils learn that laws govern and protect us and what the consequences are when laws are broken. Visits from authorities such as the Police and Fire Service help reinforce this message.

Pupils are helped to learn to manage their behaviour and take responsibility for their actions.  Staff are committed to providing a consistent environment within the school and when we venture into the wider community on educational visits.  We can help pupils to understand the connection between their behaviour in the classroom and the need to look after the school environment (both inside and out), keeping it tidy, respecting its equipment and resources which promotes the optimum conditions for learning to take place. Our Tidy Team of Year Six pupils do daily checks of the school environment to ensure it is being kept tidy, in addition to a collection of responsible Year Six monitors.

Individual Liberty:

Pupils at St Margaret’s CofE Junior School are encouraged to become good and valued citizens, through their curriculum learning as well as our general ethos. We do this by supporting each pupil to become as independent as possible. As a school, we provide boundaries for our pupils to make choices safely through a planned curriculum. We empower our pupils by giving them opportunities to make choices about their learning and they are also encouraged to sign themselves up for extra-curricular clubs. We endeavour to demonstrate that everyone has rights and with this come responsibilities.  Our PSHE work on ‘Protective Behaviours’ across the whole school every Spring looks in detail at children’s rights and responsibilities. The pupils are given the choice to support others in the wider British community by participating in charitable events such as Red Nose Day/Comic Relief, Children in Need and Save the Children’s Christmas Jumper Day.  At St Margaret’s CofE Junior School we believe that by engendering a caring and helpful environment and by learning to be independent we can boost and nurture a healthy self-esteem in our pupils. 

Mutual respect for and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs and for those without faith:

St Margaret’s CofE Junior School serves a multi-faith community where each person is respected and valued equally without regard to ability, gender, sexuality, faith, heritage or ethnicity. Mutual respect is embedded in our curriculum by promoting each pupil’s inclusion in lessons as well as a range of extra-curricular activities, educational visits and enrichment days. Pupils learn that their behaviours have an effect on their own rights and those of others. All members of the school community treat each other with respect and we work together to help one another. For example, our Year 6 pupils act as buddies to the Year 3 pupils on entry to St Margaret’s CofE Junior School and support them throughout their first year with us, modelling respect and tolerance. Through our link with BDEC Messima School in Bo, Sierra Leone, our pupils demonstrate a respect and understanding of children’s lives in very different circumstances to their own. Cultural appreciation and development forms part of our curriculum. We place great emphasis on providing encounters and participation in events and celebrations to broaden all pupils’ experiences and awareness of others. Pupils learn about other faiths through our daily act of collective worship, with stories and visitors from world religions. Pupils are given opportunities to talk to their class about their beliefs and religions. Opportunities are given in each year group for children to meet visitors from many faiths or attend educational visits to local places of worship for different faiths.

The staff work closely with parents, carers and other professionals to ensure that the pupils at St Margaret’s CofE Junior School are happy, well cared for and enabled to learn the skills they need to live a fulfilling life as part of their community.