Shottery St Andrew's Prospectus

Shottery St Andrew's Primary School

Our Aims

Admissions

New Entrants

Transfer to Secondary School

Attendance

Absences

Parents

National Curriculum

Subject Allocation

Shottery St Andrew's Primary School

Shottery Primary School enjoys a unique situation, in a listed Tudor building in the heart of the Shottery Conservation Area. It was erected on this site in 1870, when it became a National School. The fabric of the building was moved piece by piece from its previous location, where it served as a farm building.

The school is warm and friendly and, here, the personal touch is all important. Children at Shottery will benefit from sound educational practice, developing their learning in a caring, family atmosphere.

The school is dedicated to St. Andrew, as is the village church which was built in the same year. Shottery School is a Voluntary Controlled Church of England School.

The school caters for approximately 70 children, divided by age into 3 classes. Our standard intake for reception is 10. As a general rule, children will spend 2 or 3 years with each teacher allowing staff get to know their children thoroughly, so they can help them make progress effectively

We believe that the relationship between staff and pupil is the most important element of a child's educational development and we aim to build up each child's confidence in a secure environment.

This prospectus provides an insight into how we work as a school, our values and vision as well as providing information on key policies and procedures.

If you have any questions about information within this brochure or would like to visit Shottery Primary School please telephone (01789) 551 508 to make an appointment. Back to top

Our Aims

Shottery Primary School aims to:

☺ provide a high quality teaching and learning enhanced through quality resources;

☺ ensure all pupils develop in confidence and are able to make the best progress possible with good understanding of the subjects taught;

☺ work in partnership with families and the local community to develop respect and caring attitudes towards others;


☺ provide a happy and supportive environment in which staff, pupils and parents feel valued;

☺ promote a positive and stimulating environment which is both conducive to and encourages good behaviour and positive attitudes to learning. Back to top

Admissions

AT 4+

1. Admissions for children starting school for the first time are processed centrally by WCC Admissions Service. If your child will be 5 during the forthcoming academic year you will need to apply for a school place by October of the previous year.

2. If you live in Warwickshire and your child is due to start school in September 2008 it is now possible for you to apply online at www.warwickshire.gov.uk/admissions. For further information please contact the school admissions department on 02936 742047. WCC will distribute admissions pack in September. School places will be offered by WCC around March, prior to September entry.

3. Places will be offered strictly according to the County Education Authority's Admissions Policy. There are 4 criteria to determine how places are offered:

first children in the care of, or provided with accommodation by, a local authority
then brothers or sisters of children already attending Shottery School who live in the priority area
then other priority area children
then children who are brothers or sisters of children already attending Shottery School, but who live outside the priority area
then all others, allocated by distance from school Back to top

New Entrants

Parents who are considering sending their children to Shottery School are welcome to come along to discuss details with the headteacher and to see the school in action. We like prospective pupils to visit us, in the company of their parents, before they actually join the school. An admission form should be completed for all new entrants.

In the case of new entrants into the Reception Year, arrangements are made for parents and children to visit the school and meet both staff and children, in an informal atmosphere, one morning in the June prior to their September entry. Back to top

Transfer to Secondary School

Children at Shottery, like others in Stratford upon Avon, transfer to a secondary school at the beginning of the year after their 11th birthday.

The schools available for local children are:

King Edward VI Grammar School for Boys
Stratford upon Avon Girls' Grammar School
Alcester GMS Grammar School (both sexes)
Stratford upon Avon High School
Kineton High School
Alcester High School
St. Benedict's RC High School, Alcester
Studley GMS High School
Henley in Arden High School
Stour Valley Community High School, Shipston.
(all high schools take both sexes)

In addition, parents may apply out of the South Warwickshire area for a place for their child.

In the Autumn Term of children's last year at primary school choice cards have to be filled in. Parents are given the choice of entering their child for the secondary selection tests (the "eleven plus" exams.), if a grammar school place is preferred. Schools are no longer involved in the preparation of or testing of children in verbal reasoning tests. All children will travel to test centres and parents, once registered, will be provided with a full practice paper to prepare their own children. Parents are also asked to state their preferred high school. If children do not enter for the eleven plus tests, they will automatically be given a place at a high school. During that term parents and children are encouraged to visit local secondary schools, which organise open evenings for that purpose, before completing their choice cards.
After the testing process children are selected for grammar or high school places, based on their performance in the tests. Pupils in private schools and pupils from outside Warwickshire are also entitled to compete for these places. As a result, the percentage of children gaining a grammar school place is quite small. However, local high schools have earned a good reputation and achieve very high standards. Back to top

Attendance

SCHOOL OPENING HOURS

The school day is as follows:

Key Stage One (Years R, 1 and 2 )

Morning 8.55 am to 12.00 pm

Afternoon 1.05 pm to 3.15 pm (Years 1 & 2)
1.25 pm to 3.15 pm (Year R)


Key Stage Two (Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 )

Morning 8.55 am to 12.00 pm

Afternoon 1.05 pm to 3.20 pm

At the start of the school day we will take responsibility for pupils from 8.45 am. It is expected that they will not arrive before this time. Should they do so, they should wait at the gate with their parent(s). After 8.45 am children should come straight to their classroom where their teacher will greet them. Children should not play in the playground without teacher supervision.

Parents who are picking up their children at the end of the school day should wait on the pavement outside school.

For the sake of pupil safety it would be helpful if parents could avoid parking on the yellow lines outside school and on the road opposite school, whilst waiting for their children.

We would also urge parents to consider our neighbours and avoid parking across their drives. Back to top

Absences

It is the parents' responsibility to ensure that their children attend school, unless there is a good reason for absence. However, there are a number of occasions when children might need to be away from school.

If a child is absent from school, parents should phone school with a message by 9.15 am. Please leave a message on the answerphone if no one is available to take your call.

If a satisfactory explanation is made for a child's absence, this will be recorded as an "authorised" absence. Otherwise it will be recorded as an "unauthorised" absence.

Authorised absences can be for the following reasons:
sickness, medical appointment, annual holiday (see below)

Absences for most other reasons will have to be recorded as unauthorised absences.

If a family has to take its annual holiday during term time, parents may apply to the school for their child to be absent from school. It is at the headteacher's discretion to grant leave of absence for this reason, so no booking arrangements should be made until leave of absence has been granted. If permission is not received before a holiday is taken, such an absence will be recorded as unauthorised. Under regulation 12 of Education Regulations 1981, holiday leave will not normally be granted for more than 2 weeks in an academic year. Parents should read the enclosed statement regarding absences. This statement has been written in response to the growing number of absences for family holidays in term time and has been agreed by all schools in Stratford-upon-Avon.

Attendance during 2006/07 was 96 %. The rate of authorised absence was 4%. The rate of unauthorised absence was 0.

If the school has concerns about a child's attendance then, in the first instance, parents will be contacted. If the difficulties persist, the school will reserve the right to contact the Educational Social Worker Back to top

Parents

Parents play a large part in the success of Shottery School.

We welcome parents who show an interest in what their children do at school, in their children's work, in their achievements and in their problems. We hope that parents feel able to call into school or make an appointment, to talk to the headteacher or class teacher about their child's progress or about anxieties which may arise. However, we would ask parents to avoid speaking with teachers between 8.45 and 8.55 am, when they have taken responsibility for their class. If you need to come on site during the day, please report to the school office, rather than going directly to classrooms.

As well as this, built into the school calendar, are 2 parents' consultation evenings, when appointments can be made to discuss individual children's progress on a confidential basis.

Each summer there is an open evening with a display of work and a school concert, when written end-of-year reports are given to parents.

Parents play a large part in the raising of funds for school. The PTA Committee is chosen at the Annual General Meeting and a programme of social and fund-raising events is organised by them.

We also rely on parents to provide voluntary help in a number of ways, all of which are vital to the well being of the school. Parents are sometimes asked to run stalls at events, to help with transporting pupils, to help supervise children on visits, to help with jobs in the classroom, and so on. New parents who wish to help in this way will be very welcome.

The smooth running of the school is considerably enhanced by effective parent governors. Neil Broady, Steve Cooper, Russ Jones and John Townsend have been elected to serve in this capacity and will gladly act on your behalf in a number of ways. Back to top

National Curriculum

During their time with us children will be taught The National Curriculum subjects of: English, Mathematics, Science, Information Technology, Design and Technology, History, Geography, Music, Art, Physical Education and PSHE+C (Personal, Social, Health Education and Citizenship).


All state-school children have a right to be taught these subjects, alongside Religious Education.


At Key stage 1 (Years 1 and 2) children generally work between the levels of 1-3. At the end of the key stage they are formally assessed for Mathematics and English in national tests called SATs (Standard Assessment Tasks). The expected attainment for most children at the age of 7 is level 2, your child?s results will be reported to you.

At Key stage 2 (Years 3,4,5 and 6) children generally work within levels 2-5. The expected attainment for the majority of year 6 pupils when they take their SATs in May is level 4. The school?s most recent results are shown on the following pages

Throughout their time at Shottery School teachers are continually assessing your child's attainment, this ensures the work your child is set is appropriate to their needs. In addition to this pupils in Years 3, 4 and 5 take end-of-year tests in English and Mathematics. Back to top

Subject Allocation

Shottery School believes that there should be an emphasis on the development in children of the basic skills in language and number. These subjects will be taught as skills in their own right and will also be reinforced during other subjects. For example in science, Years 5 and 6 may use their data handling skills to plot a graph of sunrise and sunset times, whilst in history, Years 3 and 4 may develop their literacy skills by writing a list of instructions for mummifying a body.

Children's ability to understand and use language is vital in every aspect of life, so reading, writing and speaking and listening are all important aspects in the English curriculum at Shottery.

We have adopted the Oxford Reading Tree scheme to enable the structured teaching of reading, and children are encouraged to take home their reading books. Spelling lists are a feature of children?s weekly routine as they move into the junior classes and homework becomes a regular feature in Years 5 and 6.

Weekly homework is set for the older children in Mathematics and English and weekly table or mental arithmetic tests are important for all children of junior age. The numeracy lesson places great emphasis on mental mathematics and children grow in confidence as they learn the thinking and communicating skills which follow from this approach.


Foundation Stage works under the headings of Personal, Social and Emotional development; Communication, Language and Literacy; Mathematical development; Knowledge and Understanding of the World; Physical development and Creative development. Back to top