WHITESHEET VISION STATEMENT

 'Climbing to New Heights Together'.

Our vision and values are at the core of all we do. They underpin our teaching, learning and daily relationships, creating a welcoming and inclusive learning environment for all. Our aim is to provide a happy and caring community where every child is known and feels special. We are rightly proud of our pupils, their understanding of the world around them, their achievements, and the way they live out our values.

Theology

Our biblical underpinning is taken from the book of Matthew. It is where we see Jesus go up a mountain to reflect, pray and be with God. Here we see him begin to teach people the ‘Beatitudes’ where he impresses on us the importance of peace making, righteousness and forgiveness. The image of the mountain is represented by our hillock, where we identify as a learners, understanding from Jesus how to live life in all its fullness and together going forth to spread his word.

'When Jesus saw the crowds of people there, he went up on a hill and sat down. His followers came and sat next to him. Then Jesus began teaching the people.'

Values

We uphold our chosen Christian values which provide the focus for our worships and times of reflection whilst being interweaved within our daily actions. They enable our pupils to leave our school with a rich tapestry of core skills and knowledge resulting in a passion of lifelong learning and the belief that they can achieve anything.

Community- I have a sense of belonging.

Being located in a small village, community is inherently important to us. It is the understanding that it takes a village to raise a child and that there is a shared responsibility for our future generations to grow into life-long learners. With love we actively make positive contributions to our communities enabling them to thrive.

‘So in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others’. (Romans 12:5)

Hope – I am optimistic.

Through our vision, children are encouraged to aspire to achieve the greatest of things and refusing to accept there are any limits on what they can do. That they have the power to enable change and carry with them hope for the best outcomes and brightest future for themselves, others, the world and beyond.

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. (Hebrews 6:19)

Friendship – I am a good friend to everyone.

We show friendship through love for our peers, developing relationships across mixed aged classes and working together to ensure everyone can flourish in an environment where everyone is welcome and everyone belongs.

‘Love is patient, love is kind’. (1 Corinthians 13)

Respect – I treat others how I wish to be treated.

We respect everyone in our school community, regardless of faith, need or whatever protective characteristics they may have. Our children know their rights and exercise them in a mindful and respective manner. They are courageous advocates for the rights of others.

Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honour, then honour. (Romans 13:7)

Resilience – I don’t give up; I learn from my mistakes.

Our children understand that risk taking is a natural part of learning, that they will experience success after failure that it is through mistakes they learn the most powerful lessons and as a result that they will always succeed and go beyond expectations if they always try their very best and apply themselves to every challenge they face.

‘Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart’ (Colossians 3:23)

Wisdom – I seek knowledge to empower my choices.

King Solomon encouraged his readers to ‘get wisdom, get understanding’. (Proverbs 4) In school, we learn a lot but we need to apply our knowledge wisely. We are responsible for the flourishing of everyone in our learning community. For example, to emphasise the power of collaboration and collective wisdom, we have set times to learn in our House Teams (vertical groups) mixing our oldest and youngest learners.