School Ethos

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize” - 1 Corinthians 9 v 24

Christianity teaches us to strive for excellence in everything that we do - whether that is work, spiritual matters or our relationships with other people. We are a school which believes in excellence as a principle. We believe that young people should always be nurtured, helped and encouraged to reach their full potential.

Academically, all pupils in the Upper School (usually age 9+) have specialist subject teachers for every subject. Where social skills allow, pupils are streamed by ability rather than age. This means that more able pupils are often able to take GCSE examinations 1 or 2 years early. Small class sizes are a great help in ensuring that our pupils live up to their potential.

Whilst we expect high standards of discipline, our staff are also caring and approachable. We place great emphasis on pupils’ well-being and emotional development, as well as providing individual attention to help pupils who are struggling academically.

Unlike many independent schools, we are passionately non-selective. Our greatest triumphs are not always those pupils who achieve A* grades in most of their subjects. Most of our real success stories are those pupils who find learning difficult but through their own hard work and their teachers’ commitment, manage to achieve 5 GCSEs at C grade or above.

Finally, Christianity is never forced upon our pupils. Christianity underpins our curriculum, but children must be allowed the opportunity to make up their own minds.