Mistley Norman Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

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Mistley Norman C of E Primary School

Remercie Road

Mistley

Manningtree

Essex

CO11 1LS

Tel: 01206 392675

Fax: 01206 391037

Dear Parents/Carers

Welcome to the Mistley Norman School Prospectus for 2006/2007.

This prospectus is packed with useful information about the school, the curriculum, the academic results and the wider aspects of school life. But there is nothing like seeing for yourself, so please do pay the school a visit – our Headteacher, Mrs Braithwaite, will be delighted to show you around.

We have made many improvements to the school building and grounds and also various internal improvements. More importantly the school received an excellent Ofsted and the children attain well.

Mistley Norman School has always had a high reputation for its caring, inclusive family ethos based on Christian principles. The governors are all actively involved in the life of the school and we are grateful to all the support given by parents and local people.

Mistley Norman is a school that our community can be very proud of.

Mrs Sarah Potter

Chair of Governors

School Aims

Mistley Norman School aims to preserve and develop its religious character in accordance with the principles of the Church of England and in partnership with the Church at Parish and Diocesan level.

Our school aims to:

provide a quality education within the context of Christian belief and practice
promote the well being and self esteem of everyone in school
encourage an understanding of the meaning and significance of faith
promote Christian values through the experiences offered to all pupils

How the school got its name

The school is named after Canon Edward Norman who gave the original school in School Lane to the village of Mistley in 1856. The original school was a ‘National’ School, providing ‘the religious education of the Established Church’. In 1952 it became a church school controlled by the local education authority, but still legally owned by the Trustees as a Church Foundation. The ‘new’ building was opened in 1981. Mistley Norman is a voluntary controlled Church of England Primary School, serving the village of Mistley.

Buildings and grounds

The school building is set in very attractive grounds, which have been the focus of extensive development in recent years. There is a small section separated from the main grounds by a fence or a gate. This area is used for play by our younger children. There is a willow dome and a play house, grassed and hard play areas. The main grounds have a marked running track, sports area; climbing frame and a playground with interactive markings to encourage children to be active. Inside, there are five teaching areas and a library leading off a large, airy hall. This is used for assemblies, PE, dance and drama lessons and serves as a dining hall. The school has its own kitchen next to the hall. The usual administrative offices complete the accommodation. We have recently completely rebuilt two annexes. These are now multipurpose art and teaching areas.

Admissions

Entry to School

Children are admitted in the September of the year in which they are five. This follows a recent review of

the admissions policy, which led us to requesting the LEA to change the entry pattern of our children. By doing

this we give our children access to high quality provision and education for the full reception year, hence a really

sound start.

Ethnic data

We are required to collect information on children’s ethnic origin when they start school. We appreciate

parents’ co-operation with this.

School Organisation

The children are organised in classes by age. Children have opportunities to work individually and in groups of

various sizes. As they move up through the school, they are encouraged to take progressively more

responsibility for their own learning, and to develop the ability to make worthwhile choices and decisions.

The school day:

The bell rings at 8.50 am.
All children should be in class for registration at 9.00 am. Morning session: 9.00 a.m. – 12.15 p.m.
Lunch break: 12.15 p.m. – 1.15 p.m.
Afternoon session: 1.15 p.m. - 3.15 p.m.
Please inform your child’s Class Teacher and the school office if your child comes to school or walks home alone or with another person under the age of 18.
If you are delayed, please telephone if possible. We shall keep your child in school until we hear from you. We are not able to let your child go home with anyone else unless your permission has been given in advance. If you ask another parent to collect your child from school, please let us know in advance.
If you need to collect your child from the school at any other time, please come to the school office.
If you wish to take your child on holiday (up to ten consecutive school days only in a school year), please request permission using a holiday form.

Attendance

Parents are encouraged to see that their child has good attendance at school.
Absences for illness and medical treatment are authorised.
Please inform the school by telephone on the first day of your child’s absence, and send a letter of explanation when your child returns to school. If we do not hear from you your child will have an unauthorised mark in their records.

Unauthorised absence

We are required to publish our rates of unauthorised absence. It is important that parents let us know why a child is away from school so that we can calculate these percentages accurately.
For the period September 2005 to May 2006 The percentage of pupils with unauthorised absences was 0% and pupils having authorised absences for the same period was 5.9%.

Severe weather arrangements /emergency closure

Should we have a heavy snowfall and / or impossible road conditions, the school may have to be closed.
In the case of emergency closure of the school we shall inform all parents:
Through local radio and / or TV
By telephone
There will also be a notice placed outside the school. Please accompany your child to school on these days so that you know exactly what the situation is.

Security

Security and safety are vital aspects of our schoo
All visitors are asked to report to the school office to sign in. For security reasons no one should go directly to a classroom
All outside doors have daytime security locks.
The Governors are always seeking ways of improving security. We have
recently improved the fencing and gates around our school.

Friendly reminders

Our buildings and our grounds are No Smoking Areas.
Please do not bring your dog onto our site for health and safety reasons.
Please do not allow children to play on the site or on our climbing frame after school or at weekends.
We do not have facilities for bicycles. Please do not allow children to cycle on the school site.

Snack

We aim to develop the children’s knowledge of healthy eating and work with you to ensure the children have a

healthy balanced diet. Free fruit is available at playtime for Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 We ask you not to

send crisps, sweets or chocolate. In line with Government initiatives the school no longer sells crisps due to

their high fat and salt content.

Lunches

We provide a hot cooked lunch, in line with government directives and advice which is prepared by an outside caterer and delivered daily. The meal is good value at the current price of £2.00. Meals must be ordered in advance. Meals are nutritious and include a drink.
Please send dinner money for the meals you intend your child to have that week (cash or cheque in a named envelope) on Monday morning. If your child is absent later in the week, the money will be automatically credited so less money will need to be sent on the next occasion.
Parents in receipt of Income Support or Income Based Job Seekers Allowance qualify for Free School Meals for their children. Application forms are available from the school office.
Packed lunches may be brought to school for lunchtime.
Milk and fruit juice may be purchased by children bringing packed lunches - water is always available.

The Children

Behaviour: Code of Conduct

At the beginning of each school year, each teacher discusses with his or her class, the need for agreed class rules for the smooth running of the class and for the happiness and well-being of everyone in it. These rules are shared with the parents of the children in each class so that a wider understanding of the code of behaviour is fostered. The school council meets regularly and discusses areas which consolidate good behaviour. In this way, we seek to provide a secure and happy environment where children can develop confidence and achieve independence and maturity.

We have a Whole School Behaviour Policy, which is known and shared by children, parents and staff.

Child protection

At Mistley Norman the Headteacher is the designated member of staff for Child Protection procedures.

We follow the Area County Child Protection Guidelines for Essex.

Our school holds information as required by the “Freedom of Information Act” 2005. Parents are informed of our system when their child joins our school and all information is available and accessible for inspection at anytime.

Pastoral care

The welfare and happiness of each child is of great importance. Parents/carers are asked to contact their child’s teacher in the first instance concerning any matter relating to their child. The Headteacher is always happy to meet with parents to discuss any aspect of a child’s education and welfare. Mrs Kay Chapman is our Educational Welfare Officer and her help may be enlisted through the Headteacher.

Uniform

White shirts

Black or Grey trousers, skirts or shorts

School burgundy sweatshirt or cardigan

Blue and white school summer dresses

School baseball caps

School shoes or sandals

Burgundy Fleece for outer wear

PE KIT

Dark blue or black shorts )

Light blue T shirt ) in a drawstring bag

Plimsolls )

Some items of uniform are available in stock or can be ordered from the school office.

Please make sure all items are clearly named. Thank you

Medicines

Members of staff are not allowed to give medicines to children. However staff will oversee the administration of medicines by arrangement.

Parents are asked to complete the appropriate form and to hand in all medicines to the school secretary.

Accidents

Please ensure we have an emergency contact name and number in case of accidents.

If an accident happens, we will try to contact parents immediately. We will always act in the best interest of the child.

First Aid

We have several appointed first aiders on our staff, including our mid-day staff.

Parents will be contacted if the first aider cannot deal with a problem.

Health Matters

Our School Nurse makes regular checks of hearing and sight and other routine inspections. She contributes to our Health Education programme.
Our school doctor visits termly and the school dentist visits once a year. Parents are informed of these visits in advance.
If a child has a medical condition, which may affect his or her education, it would be helpful if parents could let us know.
If your child requires time out of school for a dental or hospital appointment, a note informing us allows your child’s absence to be recorded as such on the register.
If your child is unwell, please keep him or her off school until you are satisfied that he or she is completely recovered. If your child has sickness and/or diarrhoea please keep him or her at home until he or she has been free of symptoms for 24 hours. We have no facilities for sick children and the best place for a child who is unwell is at home. Please send an explanatory note on his or her return to school. If your child becomes ill while at school or has an accident, we will do our best to contact you.

The Curriculum

The taught curriculum covers all National Curriculum subjects plus RE and personal and social development. We aim for the curriculum to be broad and balanced and to ensure that literacy and numeracy skills are well taught.

ENGLISH - English is given high priority, with reading and writing activities taught daily. We use a mix of phonic and whole word approaches to reading. Neat, legible, joined up

writing is encouraged from Early Years onward. Spelling is consistently taught throughout the school.

MATHS - Numeracy is taught daily with emphasis on tables, mental maths, investigations and problem solving. Children are encouraged to use apparatus in their practical work.

SCIENCE - We aim for our children to gain first hand, practical experiences, using our local environment, school grounds and field trips. Children test ideas, observe, record, analyse and predict, studying areas such as life processes, plant growth, forces, communications and electricity, the Earth and beyond.

ICT - We expect every child to achieve highly developed ICT skills, using our multi-media computers. Basic keyboard skills are taught and children are able to access CD-ROMs efficiently to gather information.

GEOGRAPHY - Children start by learning about their immediate locality and then go on to develop their knowledge of the UK, Europe and the wider world. They learn about people, places, weather and environmental change.

HISTORY - Children are given the opportunity to develop an awareness of the past, using the local environment, visits and artefacts whenever possible. A number of periods of history are studied.

ART and DESIGN - In art our children are able to express themselves using a wide range of materials. We encourage them to display their work throughout the school, making it a visually exciting place in which to learn.

RE - Using the Essex Agreed Syllabus for RE as a basis for our RE teaching, we aim to help the children learn about and understand different religious beliefs and practices. We aim to develop in the children, respect for the right of others to hold beliefs different from their own and to foster the values of tolerance, concern and caring.

MUSIC – Children enjoy a variety of musical activities, which include composition, performing, listening, working with percussion, singing, recorder playing and musical appreciation.

PE – Children are taught to develop skills in movement, dance, athletics, outdoor activities and games. We aim that every child will learn to swim before the end of Year 6. All children are encouraged to keep fit and enjoy sport. Opportunities arise for netball, football, rounders, athletics and cricket during the school year, sometimes competing against other small schools in the Tendring Cluster.

PSHE – All children follow a Personal Social and Health Education programme, which includes safety, hygiene, keeping fit and healthy, good citizenship and making friends.

Teaching methods

Teaching at Mistley Norman is carefully planned and well structured. Whole class lessons take place, as well as small group or individual work when appropriate. We encourage our children to become independent learners by giving opportunities for practical and investigational work.

Visits

Educational visits can make a positive contribution to learning and social development, and visits are made to link with class work.

Health and sex education

Our policy is available for parents to see.
We base our teaching on the Science National Curriculum and ‘Health for Life’, recommended by the Health Authority.
Our teaching programme begins in Year R and ensures the pupils in Year 6 are ready to transfer to secondary education.
Parents have the right to withdraw their child from Sex Education. Please see the Headteacher if you wish to discuss this.

Spiritual, moral and cultural

We aim to help children:

acquire knowledge and understanding of religious and moral values
tolerance and regard of those who are of different ethnic origin, have different religious beliefs different lifestyles

We aim to develop in all children:

self-awareness, self respect and respect for other people
self confidence and the ability to express views sensitively
a sense of responsibility towards others

We aim to demonstrate and develop tolerance, respect and consideration for others in all our relationships. We give children opportunities to reflect on these values in assemblies and in the classroom

Special Educational Needs

Children with any kind of educational need are supported by a system called the Essex Stages of Assessment.
Children have their own Individual Education Programme (IEP) when appropriate.
Parents are involved in reviewing their child's progress.
We review our policy annually.
Our policy is reviewed annually so that it reflects the Governments changes to the Codes of Practice

Able children

Work is adapted to meet the needs of all, and especially those with exceptional abilities.

Physical impairment

Our school is designed to provide easy access for everyone.
We call on other agencies (e.g. Health Authority) and the Education Authority to support us with the education of any child with a physical impairment.

Homework

Your child will be expected to do some homework. This will include reading, learning spellings, learning multiplication tables and researching for projects. The amount of time spent on work at home will increase, as your child gets older.

Home School Reading Diaries

The younger children have a Home/School Reading Diary, which needs to be kept with your child’s reading book in his or her book bag. Your child will benefit from reading to you regularly.

Please date and sign the Home/School Reading Diary every time you hear your child read and write a comment if you wish. If your child reads other books at home please write the date and title in the Home/School Reading Diary. Your child needs to have his or her book bag in school every day. You may also write any comments or concerns you want us to be aware of or to deal with in the Home/School Diary. Parents of the older children receive a weekly letter and have a system of to and fro liaison. We value close partnership in the children’s education.

Each child is supplied with a plastic zip wallet in which to carry books, including their Home School Diary and letters.

Stronger book bags are available in school colours from our school office.

Extra curricular activities

Whenever possible we offer a range of clubs. Over the year these vary. In the summer we have a variety of sports and team clubs. We also offer the service of a peripatetic music teacher.

Equal opportunities

All our pupils are regarded equally.
We avoid stereotyping in work or play situations, or in our language.
We encourage understanding and appreciation of other cultures.
We deal with any incident of cultural, racial, physical, mental or verbal abuse or prejudice and keep parents fully informed.
We have an inclusion policy which is available for parents to read or request.

Collective Worship

Collective Worship takes place within the daily assembly. For some assemblies we meet as a whole school; some are Key Stage Assemblies and some are Class Assemblies. The majority of our worship is Christian, but we do take time to consider the main festivals of other faiths.

Parents have the right to withdraw their child from Collective Worship, and should see the Headteacher if they wish to do so.

As a Church school we maintain Christian values. We want our children to take an active part in their education in a stimulating and structured environment. Our aim is for them to feel secure, happy and to reach their full personal, social and academic potential.

We regard ourselves as a small school but a large family! We currently have seventy-seven children attending our school.

Achievements

The positive climate within school celebrates achievement of every kind. Each week at our special achievement assembly, children receive certificates for work, behaviour and effort.

The way we respond to children, their behaviour and their work is important in developing self-esteem and positive attitudes to learning and living. We plan to provide activities for the children that are appropriate to their needs, promote learning and provide opportunities for every child to achieve success. Emphasis is placed on achieving rather than winning.

We aim to develop self-discipline and self esteem through praise and encouragement and by focusing on the positive.

These tables show the percentage of pupils at the end of KS1 achieving each level in the school in 2006.

Key Stage 1 – 13 children in cohort

% of children gaining levels (1 child = 8%). Figures may not add to 100% due to rounding.

W represents children who are working towards level 1 but have not yet achieved the standards needed for level 1

Teacher assessment	W	1c	1b	1a	2c	2b	2a	3
English Speaking and listening	0	8	0	0	0	92	0	0
Reading	0	8	0	0	0	48	48	0
Writing	8	0	0	8	8	56	24	0
Mathematics	0	0	0	0	16	32	56	0
Science	0	8	0	0	88	0	0	8

Test results	W	1c	1b	1a	2c	2b	2a	3
English Speaking and listening	0	8	0	0	0	40	58	0
Reading	0	8	0	0	0	48	48	0
Writing	0	8	0	8	8	24	56	0
Mathematics	0	0	0	0	0	56	32	0
Science	0	8	0	0	0	0	0	0

National Results

This table shows the percentage of eligible pupils achieving each level at the end of Key Stage 1 2005

RESULTS OF TEACHER ASSESSMENT 2005
	Percentage at each level
	W	1	2	2c	2b	2a	3 or above	Disapplied children	Absent children
Speaking and listening	2	10	65				23	0	0
Reading	3	11		13	23	23	27	0	0
Writing	5	12		21	26	20	15	0	0
Mathematics	2	7		17	24	27	23	0	0
Science	2	8	65				25	0

These tables show the percentage of pupils at the end of KS2 achieving each level in the school in 2006.

Key Stage 2 – 10 children in cohort

W represents children who are working towards level 1 but have not yet achieved the standards needed for level 1

TEACHER ASSESSMENT
	Percentage at each level
	W	1	2	3	4	5	6	Disapplied children	Absent children
English	0	0	10	30	40	20	0	0	0
Speaking and listening	0	0	20	30	30	20	0	0	0
Reading	0	0	20	20	30	30	0	0	0
Writing	0	0	10	30	30	30	0	0	0
Mathematics	0	0	10	40	40	10	0	0	0
Science	0	0	12	25	37	25	0	0

TEST RESULTS
	Percentage at each level
	Below level 3*	3	4	5	Pupils not entered	Pupils absent
English	0	30	30	30	0	1
Reading	20	10	30	30	0	1
Writing	0	30	30	30	0	1
Mathematics	20	30	40	0	0	1
Science	10	20	30	20	0	2

National Results

This table shows the percentage Yr 6 pupils achieving each level at the end of Key Stage 2 2005

Figures may not total 100%

TEACHER ASSESSMENT
	Percentage at each level
	W	1	2	3	4	5	6	Disapplied children	Absent children
English	1	1	5	18	49	36	0	0	0
Mathematics	0	1	4	18	46	30	0	0	0
Science	0	0	3	13	47	36	0	0	0

TEST RESULTS
	Percentage at each level
	Below level 3*	3	4	5	Pupils not entered	Pupils absent
English	6	14	52	27	0	1
Reading	7	7	42	43	0	1
Writing	7	29	48	15	0	1
Mathematics	6	18	44	31	0	1
Science	3	10	40	47	0	1

	Agreed Policies	The school maintains and develops a range of policies concerned with the curriculum, welfare of the children and running of the school. Parents are welcome to inspect these.
	Charging Policy	When visits and activities are arranged to enrich children's learning, and the school cannot meet the full cost, parents are invited to make a voluntary contribution.
	Complaints	The Governing Body hopes that, if parents have any concerns or complaints, they will discuss them in the first instance with their child's Classteacher or with the Headteacher so that efforts can be made to resolve the matter as quickly and as informally as possible. Complaints of a serious nature are referred to the Governing Body and/or the LEA.
Viewing of documents		Agendas and minutes of Governors meetings are available for parents to view. Policy Documents may be viewed on application to the school during normal working hours. If parents wish to obtain their own photocopy of a document, they may do so, provided that copying does not constitute a breach of copyright.
“The Friends”		Mistley Norman has an active “Friends of Mistley Norman Association”. All parents are automatically part of this group. “The Friends” raise money to enhance provision for the children. The parents decide on the focus of fundraising and what they wish to provide. The parents aim to purchase extras which are not part of the schools budget allocation.

The Parents

We aim to establish a real partnership with parents, so that every child feels secure in the knowledge that we are working together. We hope every child is happy in school. Parents are welcome in school and contribute to the running of the school.

Parents often come in to help in a class and with an activity that they feel comfortable with. Having parents in school means children having more opportunities for talking with adults. The staff greatly value parental involvement.

Parents receive regular newsletters to keep them informed of events at school.

We offer termly consultation evenings for parents and class teachers. We arrange a number of opportunities for parents to visit school throughout the year.

The wider community

Church links

As a Church of England Controlled School, we link with the parish church of St Mary & St Michael Mistley. The church is represented on the Governing Body by two Foundation Governors, including the Rector, who takes a very active part in all areas of school life including worship.

Charities

We are pleased to support the work of various charities each year. We aim to support one charity per term. We particularly enjoy supporting charities which our parents are connected with or ones the children want to support and use their initiative to do so

Moving on
Manningtree High School	Mistley Norman is a contributory feeder school of Manningtree High School and the majority of our Year 6 children go on to Manningtree High. Teachers liaise on all matters affecting the transition of pupils from primary to secondary to ensure continuity for the pupils and as smooth and happy a transition as possible.
Tendring Cluster	We belong to the Tendring Small Schools’ Cluster. Children benefit from taking part in cluster sports and games, music, literacy and other activities. We share resources. Staff have opportunities for joint training and support.
and finally………..	We hope that this Prospectus has given you ‘a feel’ for the school and the information you need. If there are questions unanswered, please do not hesitate to contact us for further information. We are pleased to welcome your child as a pupil of Mistley Norman Church of England Primary School. We will enjoy working with you and will endeavour to ensure your child has the very best education available. The quotations at the foot of the pages are taken from inspectors’ reports and parents’ comments.