School Values
At St. Peter’s Elwick Church of England Primary we are committed to nurturing and developing children as rounded human beings who understand their role as members of the wider communities: locally, nationally and globally.
Children and adults in our school are proud and truly live out our values which are rooted in theology, relevant to our unique context and integral to daily life here at St. Peter’s Elwick Church of England Primary School.
Service
Words relating to ‘servant’ and ‘service’ are central in Christian theology. Some of the most important prophecies in Isaiah speak of the coming of the ‘Servant of the Lord’ and his role as a ‘suffering servant.’ That is why Jesus said that he ‘came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’ Jesus washed the feet of his disciples at the Last Supper. This turned upside down the normal relationship between master and disciple, leader and follower. In many ways, this astonishing action symbolizes the essence of the Incarnation: God stooping to share the human condition. Jesus is very clear about the meaning of his action: ‘Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done.’ Serving God means serving others, not to gain an advantage for ourselves but in recognition that it is in service that we become truly free.
At St. Peter’s, we recognise that the original purpose of the Church school was to serve all children of the parish and to enable them to flourish and we aim to strive to continue this original purpose.
Service in action at St. Peter’s
- Pupils in years 5 and 6 help our younger children to learn table manners and etiquette during Family Dining.
- Pupils across school take on many and varied leadership roles from our Early Years safety officers to our Junior Leadership Team. See our ‘Pupil Leadership’ page for more information.
- Pupils serve our community through beach and community litter picks and selling crafts to support local charities.
- Pupils in years 3 and 4 collect food for the Foodbank throughout the year and deliver it in person to see the positive impact it has.
Friendship and Trust
Friendship is an undisputed value in our society, with children often spending more time with their friends than with family. The barriers between people are broken down in a loving community and do not work when others refuse to recognise that all are included in a community of friendship.
Friends are not afraid to tell each other the truth and a friend’s loving criticism is worth more than the empty compliments of someone who does not really care for you. Teaching in the Bible recognise that friendship is not easy and at times needs deliberate effort.
Trust, feeling comfortable in each other’s company, being able to share joys and sorrows are all features of friendship and these are things of immense value. True friendship enables each person to grow and ensures that the unique individuality of each person is recognised.
As a small, rural school, St Peter’s recognises that by working in successful, open and honest partnerships (friendships) with others grow and flourish. At St. Peter’s we have lots of solid, trusting partnerships with parents, stakeholders, schools, agencies and businesses (e.g Ministry of Defence Grant, Science Hub for Ogden Trust ).
Friendship and Trust in action at St. Peter’s Elwick
After our Collective worship based on the story of Jesus calming the storm, Mark 4:35-41, pupils were asked to think about our school value and how we show this in school.
Isabelle – “Friendship is helping and being kind to others. We are always kind in our school”.
Compassion
‘Compassion’ and ‘sympathy’ have much in common and both are stronger in meaning than simply ‘feeling sorry for’ someone. The words have their roots in the idea of ‘suffering with’ someone, putting yourself in someone else’s shoes and experiencing what they experience. This leads to a desire to act, to do something. We teach our pupils that it is not to be patronizing. It is not about ‘doing good’ from a position of strength or ‘remembering those less fortunate than ourselves’. Compassion requires an act of imagination and humility to share in the lives of others, the recognition of injustice and the courage to act.
The children of St. Peter’s are offered a range of experience both in school and, for some, at home too. We value thankfulness as we are not entitled to any of these experiences and recognise that they may not be available for all in our society and in our world. We believe thankfulness is the habit of the successful and want our children to have the ability to see the positive in situations and give hope.
Compassion in action at St. Peter’s Elwick
Compassion is shown in our school by everybody. Pupils understand what compassion is and how others have shown compassion to them.
Examples of compassion from Year One and Two.
Indi – “In our school we show compassion in lots of different ways. We can be good neighbours and listen carefully to other. We respect everyone”.
Miss Pickles – “Harry has shown great compassion in class, helping others in a very caring manner”.
Thankfulness
Thankfulness is an approach that we want our pupils to have to all aspects of life. We encourage our pupils to approach life as a gift and not as a right. We encourage pupils and adults to appreciate and express gratitude towards others and the natural world and demonstrate this thanks through praise to God, stewardship for his creation and care towards others.
Our Learning Powers help our pupils to work with a growth mindset, rather than a fixed mindset. We aim to develop resilience in our pupils and a ‘have a go’ attitude. Our Learning Powers help us all to be better learners.
Thankfulness in action at St. Peter’s Elwick
We all have things we are grateful for. Our school thought carefully about what we are thankful to God for.
Percy – “We are thankful for everything we have. We are thankful to God and those who care for us”.
We also promote British Values and the important voice our pupils have in their own school community. Through initiatives such as ‘School Council’, ‘Junior Leadership Team’, ‘Big Fish’ group, ‘Ask-it’ assemblies and many other ways, we ensure that the children take responsibility for their own school.
Our Learning Powers…
Don’t give up
Be co-operative
Be curious
Use your imagination
Have a go
Keep improving
