let your light shine - st matthew's primary · 2018. 10. 2. · let your light shine children...

Let Your Light Shine


I'm Tom Johnson, the Headteacher of St. Matthew's CE Primary. I am delighted

you have taken the time to learn more about our wonderful school.

Our school is a small and happy place with a nurturing atmosphere; we talk

about our school as being a family because it feels like one. We are a school

where everyone feels proud to belong.

Our children love their school and thrive. They enjoy roasting marshmallows

over a fire in the outdoor classroom, performing Shakespeare at the Royal

Exchange Theatre and spending time reading to our school dog.

This commitment to our children’s education helped St Matthew’s be

recognised by UNICEF as a school where children’s rights are valued and

promoted. We are now proud to be one of only 300 Gold UNICEF Rights

Respecting schools in the UK.

As an Outstanding Church of England School, we embody our values of

compassion, respect and peace in all we do. We welcome every family from

across Stretford into our school and are proud to be a diverse, multifaith school.

I hope this prospectus gives you a sense of St Matthew’s but to get a real feel

for who we are and what we do then please contact

school to arrange a tour; our children are always happy

to show off our school.

Tom Johnson


“A school where everyone feels proud

to belong” OFSTED


Children flourish at St. Matthew’s and we are a thriving family of children, parents, staff and governors who work together to create a fantastic school for our community. We believe this is because we have a clear vision for our school.

Let Your Light Shine Matthew 5:16

We believe all children can shine at St Matthew’s and we strive for every member of our school family to succeed and flourish with us.

At the heart of our school vision are three core values of:

Compassion Respect

Peace These core Christian values were chosen by our school family and we aim to embody them in all we do. They guide us, ground us and bind us. Therefore every family from across our community, including those of different faiths and no faith, are welcomed at St. Matthew’s. We are proud to be a diverse, multifaith school. That sense of family and our core values help us to foster the warm, nurturing atmosphere which allows our children to thrive and succeed.


'Let Your Light Shine'

Matthew 5:16

We believe all children can shine at St Matthew’s

and we strive for every member of our school family to succeed and

flourish with us

To have happy,

confident & caring

children

Every child to achieve

academic success

Embody our Christian values of

compassion, respect &

peace

Provide our children with

a primary education to remember

Build strong partnerships with families

and our community

Nurture and celebrate the whole child


At St Matthew’s our aim is to develop independent, confident and curious learners who have the highest aspirations for their future. Through engaging and varied experiences, St Matthew’s children will explore a challenging and inclusive curriculum; inspiring them to let their light shine. Our curriculum ensures children are challenged and supported to achieve. We have high aspirations for every child to leave St Matthew’s having achieved academic success. Reading, writing and maths are at the core of our curriculum and our teachers work hard to ensure every child’s individual needs are catered for. Our children’s attainment at the end of Year Six is higher than the national standard with children making excellent progress. However, St Matthew’s is not an exam factory. We believe children achieve when they are excited and engaged by their learning. Therefore we provide all children with a full, rounded education; an education that prioritises creative arts and sport and is enriched by trips, visitors and special events. Here is just an example of the curriculum enrichment available to every class.

Nursery and Reception : Weekly dance lessons

Year One : Visit Manchester Art Gallery

Year Two : Capoeira

Year Three : Learn a musical instrument

Year Four : Children’s Shakespeare Festival

Year Five : Robin Wood Residential adventure

Year Six : RNCM Children’s Opera Project

Music, drama, art and design are central to our curriculum. We dedicate Monday mornings to art and ensure every child has the opportunity to begin learning three instruments during their primary education. Our children perform Shakespeare at the Royal Exchange with the Children’s Shakespeare Festival and Opera at the RNCM. In Reception and Nursery, our youngest children have weekly dance lessons.


St. Matthew’s is surrounded by woodland, meadows, rivers and ponds. Our

incredible outdoor space means we love to learn outdoors. Outdoor learning

helps to build confidence, resilience and problem solving skills. We value these

skills and the team spirit that is created when we work together outdoors.

Despite being a small school, we provide a broad range of sporting activities for every child. From dance coaches to orienteering, children at St Matthew’s have access to as wide a range of sports as possible. We also promote physical activity and healthier lifestyles with extra-curricular clubs, extensive playground equipment and walk to school schemes. The curriculum at St Matthew’s is enriched with a range of activities and events to provide our children with the fullest education possible. This includes school trips to places such as Tatton Park, where the children spend the day as a WW2 evacuee, and exploring Roman Britain in Chester. Every term the school comes ‘off timetable’ for special events and surprises for the children. Last year the children enjoyed birds of prey flying around the school hall, learning circus skills and meeting a Viking!


St Matthew’s is a truly inclusive school. We encourage all children to develop their skills and interests to the full, whilst presenting them with opportunities to engage in activities which they might not have perhaps considered. We aim to avoid stereotyped perceptions to ensure that all pupils shine, deriving the maximum benefit according to their individual needs. St. Matthew’s is committed to valuing and respecting everybody in our school family equally. Our school is a place of compassion, respect and peace. We support our children in many ways and have a clear Anti Bullying Policy. We show ZERO TOLERANCE to any form of bullying. We are proud to have a happy, inclusive and diverse school family who are all welcomed and treated with dignity and respect.

St Matthew’s is a Gold UNICEF Rights Respecting School; the very first school in Trafford to earn this award and one of only 300 in the UK to achieve the highest standard. We are proud to have children’s rights shining out across our community. The UNICEF UK Rights Respecting Schools Award (RRSA) is based on principles


of equality, dignity, respect, non-discrimination and participation. The RRSA seeks to put the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child at the heart of a school’s ethos and culture to improve well-being and develop every child’s talents and abilities to their full potential. A rights-respecting school is a community where children’s rights are learned, taught, practised, respected, protected and promoted. Young people and the school community learn about children’s rights by putting them into practice every day. As a Church of England school, our Christian values of compassion, peace and respect underpin everything that we do and are inclusive for all members of our school family. Worship is central to school life and we believe it is vital to encourage our children’s spiritual development. At St. Matthew’s we have a school prayer and each class has their own class prayer and area for worship or reflection. Our worship leaders are actively involved in leading worship at St. Matthew’s and organise our Monday affirmation in the school courtyard.

Dear God,

May our school be welcoming,

May our school be encouraging,

Let friendship flourish here,

Let learning fill our day,

Give us the strength to do our best,

Give us the hope to carry on,

Be our guide in all that we do,

Lord, make this school your home

too,

Amen


“The distinctiveness and effectiveness of St Matthew’s as a Church of England

school are outstanding.”

SIAMS Church School

Inspection


Dear Parents, On behalf of the whole Governing Body I am pleased to extend a warm welcome to you at this crucial stage in your child’s life as they begin school. I am incredibly proud of what is achieved at St Matthew’s. We have here a small, nurturing school, and staff work hard to make every child feel safe and valued. We are convinced that a young child will only find their own path in life if they have a solid bedrock start. Mr Johnson and all the staff have created an atmosphere of warmth and welcome. I am in school often, and it is a joy to be there. Come and visit our school, and see for yourself. It would be lovely to see you. With good wishes, Mrs Bernice Garlick Chair of Governors


We welcome and encourage the involvement of parents in school life. We are lucky to have supportive and encouraging families who work with us to make our school the wonderful place it is. There are many opportunities for parents throughout the school year such as:

Assemblies

Termly concerts and performances

Regular stay and play sessions

Workshops

Volunteering opportunities

School trips

Parents evening and reports

Services at St Matthew’s Church Our staff are always available to parents and families. Mr Johnson knows the name of every child in school and is at the gate before and after school. We have an open door policy for parents so staff are on hand at the end of the day. We use texting services, emails, our website and twitter to help keep families up to date with everything that is taking place at school. Our website www.stmatthews.trafford.sch.uk is regularly updated and includes class pages, latest newsletters, links to other useful websites and forms that can be downloaded for parents to complete. The school also uses twitter @StMatthewsPri St. Matthew’s has fantastic out of hours childcare. We know this is important as it supports so many of our families and children. Therefore we are open from 7.50am until 6.00pm every day and run holiday clubs during school holidays. These services are provided by our partners, Kick-Start. They also run our holiday club. You can find more about them by looking at their website: www.wearekickstart.com Our school is incredibly lucky to be supported by our parents and friends group: St Matthew’s Friends and Family (FAF). They run activities, coffee mornings, and raise money for projects around school. In the recent years they have provided

http://www.stmatthews.trafford.sch.uk/


the school with new benches, our new stage, a path to our outdoor classroom and funds for school trips. St Matthew’s is proud to help Stretford shine. Throughout the year, our children run projects across the community: they teach residents of a local care home how to video-call relatives on iPads; help run toddler playgroups at Stretford Children’s Centre; litter pick on Stretford Meadows; and sing carols at Stretford Library. The school holds regular community coffee mornings and supports Stretford foodbank. Local people see children caring about Stretford, and the children learn the importance of giving back to their community.


“The school’s values

of ‘compassion,

respect and peace’

permeate all aspects

of school life.”

OFSTED


St Matthew’s is proud to welcome children from across Stretford into our school family. Although we are a Church of England school, St Matthew’s welcomes families from all faiths and backgrounds. We encourage families who are interested in St Matthew’s to come and have a look around and get a feel for the type of school we are. Tours with the Headteacher can be arranged by contacting the school office. Children starting school in Reception class in September, or into other classes throughout the school year, are admitted following the Trafford Policy for School Admissions. Details of admission arrangements are available from the Trafford website or by contacting Trafford Admissions Department on 0161 912 5007. Parents will be asked to apply to Trafford for the school place and list St Matthew’s as their preference. Children starting at our Nursery are admitted following our school admission policy. This means applications for a Nursery place need to be made at school. We offer part-time and full-time places. Full time places can be funded through the 30-hour scheme or by paying for top-up sessions. Our part-time places are either 5 mornings or 5 afternoon sessions.


St. Matthew’s CE Primary School Poplar Road, Stretford, M32 9AN

0161 865 1284 [email protected]

www.stmatthews.trafford.sch.uk

TWITTER @StMatthewsPri

let your light shine - st matthew's primary · 2018. 10. 2. · let your light shine children...

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