Welcome to Shaftesbury School. As the Headteacher I am both delighted and immensely proud to lead the school as we strive for excellence.
Each child arrives as an individual, and the school’s heart and soul goes into developing that individuality together with a sense of social and moral responsibility and a love of learning, encouraging children to live life in all its fullness. The school we are building together is based upon our three core values of aspiration, action and achievement and are underpinned by the Christian foundation centred on Galatians 5:22-23, which is communicated and lived out through the Fruit of the Spirit. Where every member of the community is encouraged ‘to be the best they can be’. These core values, along with the staff having the highest expectations of every student, guide my desire to ensure that we can inspire confident learners, who will leave Shaftesbury School with a really good level of knowledge, skills, and experience to flourish in an ever-changing world.
By providing new opportunities and challenges throughout their time in the school, we aim to teach our children how to learn and to think about the possibilities in their intellectual, physical, and social surroundings. In achieving this we aim to support the intellectual, emotional, and personal development of all our pupils. In practice this means providing them with the literacy, numeracy, practical and problem-solving skills necessary in gaining the highest possible academic qualifications, and in providing the very best personal, social, health and citizenship education, alongside the highest quality pastoral support.
The curriculum allows all pupils the opportunity to develop their talents and skills and discover new interests; opportunities that will stretch and challenge their capacity to think for themselves, develop their confidence and provide them with a safe environment in which they can a step outside of their comfort zone.
The school works because of the commitment from the team of people who run it. We have a clear, shared vision, personalisation through inclusion: all children are valued for who they are and what they bring. We are a school with a sense of fun. Children enjoy coming here – and we know they do because they tell us they do. We actively encourage aspects such as wonder, curiosity, adventure, bravery, and resilience. We ask our children to take responsibility and take decisions that make a difference.
A strong partnership with young people and their families is the lifeblood of a warm and happy school, knowing together we can build the foundation of a successful and boundless future for the students we serve. We are a happy school, one where pupils feel nurtured and challenged, one that values all members of the community and our growing success and reputation is built on professionalism and the strong partnership of pupils, staff, parents, governors, and schools within the Shaftesbury community.
I trust that this website will serve to provide you with a sense of what it means to be a member of our school.
Mrs DM London-Hill
Headteacher Shaftesbury School