Pupil at St Thomas CE Primary School
Hero slider graphic

Vision & Values

Values Hand

St Thomas's Values Hand

Trust, Friendship,
Respect, Kindness

‘With God all things are possible’ Matthew 19:26

Our Vision

Our vision is to inspire, believe, and achieve through a strong foundation of Christian values. We provide enriching experiences, believing in the potential of every learner. Through trust, friendship, respect, and kindness, we create a learning community where both adults and children can flourish academically, socially, and spiritually.

The school's vision is deeply theological as it is rooted in strong Christian values and references biblical verses that guide and inspire the school community. The quote “With God all things are possible” from Matthew 19:26, highlights the belief in the limitless potential and strength that comes from faith in God. 

This biblical verse serves as a foundation for the school's vision, instilling hope, resilience, and a sense of possibility even in challenging circumstances. Our offer is closely aligned to the Church of England vision of ‘Life in all its fullness” John 10:10.

The vision and core values provide a framework for nurturing the spiritual development, character formation, and ethical behaviour of both pupils and staff, fostering a supportive and flourishing learning community.

At St Thomas’s our strong vision support a curriculum that aims to 

Inspire - All learners through the places they visit and the people they meet

Believe - That even in the face of adversity, anything is possible. 

Achieve - Through what we know, learn and understand 

Our School Values

We are a learning community built on our core values of:

  • Trust
  • Friendship
  • Respect
  • Kindness


Our Aims

We aim:
 
To Inspire all children through the places they go and the people they meet. We Inspire learners through a range of rich and varied curriculum enrichment opportunities. These include visits to museums and cinemas, visitors to school, after school clubs, Forest School, enterprise projects, themed weeks and other experiences as set out in the St Thomas's Charter 
 
To Believe that even when faced with great adversity anything is possible. This is underpinned through our strong christian value "With God all things are possible" Matthew 19:26. Our curriculum reflects the needs of our school community and aims to ensure all learners believe that they can succeed in life. We believe in an inclusive school where all children are given equal opportunity regardless of gender, need, disability,race or wealth.
 
To Achieve through what we know, learn and understand. Our children make progress through knowing more and remembering more. This is achieved through a sequential and progressive curriculum that ensures that learners meet people from a range of cultures and backgrounds and visit places that are inspirational and deeply thought provoking. Children leave us at the end year six multi-lingual, able to read, write and calculate and equipped for the next stage in their education.

British Values

In accordance with The Department for Education we aim to actively promote British values in schools to ‘create and enforce a clear and rigorous expectation on all schools to promote the fundamental British Values of Democracy, The Rule of Law, Individual Liberty and Mutual Respect and Tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.’  These British Values are taught to ensure young people leave school prepared for life in modern Britain. Pupils are encouraged to regard people of all faiths, races and cultures with respect and tolerance and understand that while different people may hold different views about what is ‘right’ and ‘wrong’, all people living in England are subject to its law.

At St Thomas’s Church of England Primary School these values are reinforced in the following ways:

Democracy

Children are listened to and are taught to listen carefully to others. Children are taught to respect the right of individuals to have their voices and opinions heard. They are taught to discuss issues in a balanced and calm way.

The School Council meets regularly and discusses issues raised in a class or as a whole school. Each council member is voted for by their own class.

The Rule of Law

The importance of laws, whether they be those that govern the class, the school or the country are consistently reinforced at St Thomas’s.

Pupils are taught from an early age the value of our school rules and children's rights. Children are taught the value and reason behind rules and laws, that they govern and protect us, the responsibility this involves and the consequence when laws are broken. Visits from authorities help to reinforce this message.

Individual Liberty

At St Thomas’s Church of England Primary School, children are actively encouraged to make the right choices, knowing they are safe and supportive environment. Children are expected to take responsibility for their own actions and to understand the consequence their actions might have. We educate and provide boundaries for children to enable them to make informed choices, through a safe and supportive environment. The understanding of rights and responsibilities are promoted through acts of collective worship, online safety, PSHE.

Mutual Respect

Mutual respect is central to life at St Thomas’s. Children learn that their behaviours have an effect on their own rights and those of others. All members of the school community treat each other with respect.

Tolerance of those with different Faiths and Beliefs

St Thomas’s Church of England Primary School is situated in Bury. The school recognises its role in preparing children for life in modern Britain. We actively promote celebrations of different faiths and cultures. The Religious Education Syllabus is the Manchester Diocesan Syllabus. Through RE and Personal & Social Education we reinforce messages of tolerance and respect.

The Curriculum

Staff regularly review the curriculum to ensure that it promotes that areas above. It also ensures that pupils are taught about key events and figures in history. Events during the year celebrate culturally diverse occasions and memorable events taking place in the country.

At St Thomas’s Church of England we will actively challenge children, staff or parents who express opinions that are contrary to fundamental British Values, including extremist views.

Equality

At St Thomas's CE Primary School, we are committed to ensuring equality of opportunity for all pupils, staff, parents and carers irrespective of race, gender, disability, belief, sexual orientation, age or socio-economic background. We aim to develop a culture of inclusion and diversity in which all those connected to the school feel proud of their identity and ability to participate fully in school life.

We tackle discrimination through the positive promotion of equality, by challenging bullying and stereotypes and by creating an environment which champions respect for all.

At St Thomas's CE Primary School, we believe that diversity is a strength which should be respected and celebrated by all those who learn, teach and visit us.

Equality in Teaching and learning

We provide all our pupils with the opportunity to succeed and to reach the highest level of personal achievement. We do this by:

  • Ensuring equality of access for all pupils and preparing them for life in a diverse society
  • Promoting attitudes and values that challenge any discriminatory behaviour or prejudice
  • Providing opportunities for pupils to appreciate their own culture and celebrate the diversity of other cultures
  • Seeking to involve all parents in supporting their child’s education
  • Utilising teaching approaches appropriate for the whole school population which are inclusive and reflective of our pupils.

Equality in Admissions and Exclusions

Our admissions arrangements are fair and transparent and do not discriminate on the grounds of race, gender, religion, belief, disability and/or socio-economic background.

Equal Opportunities for Staff

All staff appointments and promotions are made on the basis of merit and ability and in compliance with the law. We are keen to ensure that the staffing of the school reflects the diversity of our community.