Christian Distinctiveness
Our Christian distinctiveness is embodied in the vision for our school:
'Enjoy, explore, excel together; be amazing!'
As a Church school, our vision is drawn from the great wisdom within the Christian faith.
Our vision finds its root in Psalm 139, verse 14: ‘I will praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made’. It is derived from the fact that we are all unique, all fearfully and wonderfully made, made in God’s image with talents and dreams that we want to nurture at St Mary’s. So it is about valuing individuals, but more broadly it is about us as a community.
Following the Church of England Vision for Education (2016) we seek to offer children a glimpse of life 'in all its fullness'. Education is about the whole person - giving children experiences that will allow them to develop ability to reflect on themselves, others, the world, and the transcendent.
We recognise that children and families at St Mary's come from a wide range of faiths and worldviews. We seek to be open to all, and offer a wide welcome to everyone who comes here.
The vision is central to everything we do at St Mary's – we consider it as the basis for any decisions or plans we make.
Through our very close links with St Mary's Parish Church we have developed a range of special services and weekly themes that explore the Christian story, as well as celebrating other faiths or important national days. Through our values we explore habits and practices rooted in Christianity, but open to those of all faiths or none.