UPTON MEADOWS PRIMARY SCHOOL Prospectus Creating Super Stars of the Future 1
Meadows Primary School Page: Contents: 3. School Aims 4. About Us 5. Curriculum 6. Our Classes 7. Admissions 8. School Day 9. Pastoral Care 10. Food 11. Uniform 12. Partnership 13. Contact Details Creating Super Stars of the Future Meadows Primary 2
School Aims At Meadows we believe in and are commi ed to: Opening minds for the future. Working together to create a caring, co-operative and welcoming community. S uccess in all we do U nique in all we do P ositive in all we do E xcellence in all we do R esponsible in all we do S ensitive in all we do T olerant in all we do A chieving in all we do R espectful in all we do S upported in all we do Promoting a healthy lifestyle. Creating a partnership between home, the wider community and school. Encouraging children to understand the need for high standards in all aspects of school. Developing within every child respect and a sense of responsibility. Promoting inclusive practice in all aspects of school life. Providing high quality education. Creating Super Stars of the Future 3
About Us Meadows Primary School is a newly built school on the outskirts of Northampton. The school was built to serve the community of and Banbury Lane and is at the centre of a new housing development which was started in May 2005. The Development is a model for sustainable growth. The Housing and Community Agency together with The Prince s Foundation and Northampton Borough Council prepared the design codes for the development. The school caters for children from 4+ to 11 years and initially opened in 2006. As the houses are built the school will grow and finally, after a second phase of building, our roll will increase to 420. Meadows Primary All groups of children learn well in lessons, make good progress and achieve well. Ofsted March 2011 4
Curriculum Curriculum At, we aim to provide an exciting, relevant and creative curriculum, which promotes the development of children and prepares them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of adult life. The school follows the National Curriculum (2000), which consists of ten subjects in the primary phase. The subjects of the National Curriculum are: - English Design & Technology (DT) History Mathematics Geography Art & Design Science Music Physical Education Information & Communication Technology (ICT) In addition to these statutory National Curriculum subjects, Citizenship and Personal, Social, Health Education (PSHE) is taught in every year group and French is taught once a week to children in Key Stage 2. A unit of work on Puberty and Sex Education is taught to year 5 and 6 pupils in the Summer Term. Parents are invited to view material used and to discuss the content of the unit. Meadows Primary Religious Education is not a National Curriculum subject and the school follows the curriculum set out in the Northampton Agreed Syllabus. Teachers use a range of organisational and teaching strategies to teach this subject. The school is involved in collective worship or assembly most days based on religious and moral themes. Parents have the right to request that their child is partly or wholly excused from assemblies and RE lessons. Parents should contact the Headteacher personally if such a request is to be made. 5
Our Classes The school curriculum at Meadows is divided into three stages. The Foundation Stage Curriculum applies to all children from the age of three to five. When children complete the Foundation Stage they progress into Key Stage 1 which includes years 1 and 2. This is followed by Key Stage 2 which encompasses years 3, 4, 5 and 6. Year Age of children Stage R 4-5 YEARS OLD FOUNDATION 1 5-6 YEARS OLD 2 6-7 YEARS OLD 3 7-8 YEARS OLD 4 8-9 YEARS OLD 5 9-10 YEARS OLD 6 10-11 YEARS OLD KEY STAGE 1 KEY STAGE 2 Each of these stages has its own separate curriculum which is designed to meet the needs of the children at that age. The transition between stages is made seamless through good communication, excellent pre-transition work in the summer term and planning in the autumn term to ensure the needs of all are met. Meadows Primary Class sizes and groupings will vary from year to year according to the numbers of pupils on roll. Parents will be informed of all class arrangements for the following academic year during the summer term. 6
Admission Arrangements Children living on the development, Grange and Banbury Lane are eligible to a end Meadows Primary School. Parents of children under the age of 5 must apply for their first primary school place using the Local Authority s admission procedure. Admissions for year groups 1 to 6 are also dealt with directly by the Local Authority s admission department. Our PAN is currently 60. To view the admission arrangements, including selection and oversubscription criteria., visit www.northamptonshire.gov.uk admissions page. Equal Opportunity The school ensures equality of access to the whole curriculum for pupils, in accordance with our Equal Opportunity Policy. Homework The school operates a homework policy and values the support of parents. Children are encouraged to take reading books home regularly and have weekly spellings and tables to learn at home as they progress through the school. Assessment Children are statutorily assessed at the end of the Foundation Stage, in Year 2 and Year 6; parents are informed of their child s a ainment. A wri en report on each child is sent home three times per year at the end of each term. Each report is followed by a formal meeting between the school and parents. Meadows Primary Children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) The identification and learning support programs for these children are the responsibility of the class teacher and Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO). These children are fully integrated into school life receiving expertise and assistance from various outside agencies that work with the school. The school has a register of all the children receiving extra support through the school s SEN policy. The school also believes that gifted and talented children have special needs and the school endeavours to provide opportunities for them. 7
School Times Morning session Years 1 to 6 8.55 to 12:15 including a 15 minute break Morning session Foundation Stage 8.55 to 12.00 including a 15 minute break Afternoon session Years 1 to 6 1:05 to 3:15 including a 15 minute break for Key Stage 1 children. Afternoon session Foundation Stage 12.50 to 3.15 including a 15 minute break Holidays Children will be allowed 10 days authorised absence for their annual holiday at the discretion of the Headteacher. Any holiday taken in addition of this is recorded as unauthorised. We would encourage parents not to take holidays in term time as every day at school is a valuable learning experience. Additional Learning The school day is extended through a range of activities which give the children opportunities to learn new skills and widen their knowledge. These clubs vary termly and some may require a contribution for resources or to meet the cost of an outside provider. After school clubs range from:- Art, Football, Tag Rugby, Choir, Beads and Threads, Cookery, High Fives, Hockey, Dance and Gardening. Meadows Primary In addition to this the school employs a specialist music teacher for the strings, woodwind and guitar. The school does make a charge for these lessons and it is hoped that this will be extended to other instruments as the school grows. School Access and Safety All visitors should report to the school office, where access is monitored for security reasons, this includes parents collecting children during school hours. 8
Pastoral Care If a child is ill or has an accident at school, every effort is made to contact the parents. Parents are requested to give the school a daytime and/or emergency contact phone number and notify the office of any changes. Only prescribed medicine may be administered at school and a Medicines in School form must be completed and accompany the medicine. Medicines need to be handed in to the school office so that they can be kept in a lockable cabinet. Parents must collect the medicine from the office at the end of the school day. The school has a number of qualified first aiders who deal with any child who is injured or becomes unwell at school. Behaviour We expect high standards of behaviour from our children at all times. This includes children going to and from school. The children are regularly reminded that they are here to learn in a happy, well ordered community, with courtesy and politeness at all times. The school operates a range of incentive schemes where children can earn stickers or certificates. Parents are informed of any serious case of indiscipline and invited to take part in discussions with the Headteacher and class teacher. Educational Visits Visits are extremely valuable experiences allowing children to learn through first hand experiences. We always ensure that visits are linked to curriculum work within the classes. A risk assessment is completed for all visits and the school always ensures that the adult to pupil ratio meets the requirements of the activity taking place. Vehicles used for transporting children will always have safety belts fi ed. The cost of these visits is met by voluntary contributions by parents; without this support visits might not take place. The Educational Visits Coordinator monitors all aspects of school educational visits. Money Any money sent to the school must be in a named envelope and handed into the school office with an indication of what the money is for. Cheques should be made payable to Meadows Primary School. 9
Food Hot meals are provided by Kingswood Catering and details are available from the school office or parents can provide a packed lunch for their children. Lunchtime supervisors, under the direction of the Headteacher, care for children staying in school at lunchtime. Sandwich meals should be brought into school in a sealed container. Drinks, not fizzy, should be brought in a leak proof container (no glass bo les or cans). Sweets are not allowed. The school encourages a healthy snack at morning break. The snack may be fruit, or raw vegetables. No chocolate bars, biscuits or crisps are allowed. Reception and Key Stage 1 children will receive a free item of fruit each day during the morning. Free school milk is available for all children under 5 and to those receiving free school meals to enquire about eligibility for Free School Meals please contact the Local Authority on 01604 236236 or view their website at h p://www.northamptonshire.gov.uk/en/councilservices/ EducationandLearning/Parents/meals/Pages/Entitled.aspx. Parents can purchase milk for morning break from Cool Milk at School. Families on Income Support, Child Tax Credit or Jobseekers Allowance may be eligible for free school meals. Full details of entitlement and application forms may be obtained, in confidence, from the office. The curriculum is well organised, relevant to the pupils needs and contributes well to their good progress and personal development. Ofsted March 2011 Meadows Primary 10
Uniform Clothing The following items of school uniform with school logo are available from the school office:- sweatshirt, cardigan, navy polo shirt, reversible coat, PE kit, PE bag, sun hat and school reading book bag. Children are expected to wear sensible shoes; trainers are not allowed. Meadows Primary PE kit should be stored in a PE bag. Plimsolls or trainers will be needed for outdoor activities. In the winter children should bring jogging bo oms and a sweatshirt. Children with shoulder length hair or longer must tie their hair back for all activities and will need a hair bobble or similar to do this. The wearing Phone 01604 of jewellery 683850 or make-up is not allowed, except for a watch and one ear stud per ear. Studs must be removed for PE and replaced without adult help. If a child cannot do this then he/she should leave their studs at home. Children will need a swimming hat and swimming suit or trunks for when their class go swimming. 11
Partnership Parent Teacher Partnership It is our aim that your child will make the best possible progress at this school and be happy doing it. The teachers plan to provide a secure, friendly environment where the children s learning is paramount. We seek the co-operation of parents in providing the best possible foundations for each child s school career. The school does operate an open door policy where parents can discuss problems and concerns with class teachers before and after school. Parents and pupils are also invited to sign the school s home school partnership agreement. The school welcomes the active support of parents, to complement the work of the staff, by assisting the school with activities. Complaints Procedure This document is available for inspection at all schools maintained by the LA, Public Libraries and the Education Offices. A copy will be given, if desired to any person wishing to make a complaint under these arrangements, and the LA will provide information in languages other than English. Insurance - Personal Accident Parents should be aware that there is no universal personal accident cover for school children. The LA s policies do not extend to cover pupils engaged on educational visits, school journeys etc although the general liability policy protects the LA against the consequence of actions brought against it on behalf of pupils. The school takes out insurance for visits involving an overnight stay. Parents are at liberty to take out insurance on an individual basis should they want additional cover for their children. Meadows Primary Open Access to Records Information concerning pupils and their progress and achievement is maintained in Pupil Personal Files that are open to inspection by the pupils parents or guardians. The school abides by the Freedom of Information Act. The following documents are available in school if requested in writing by parents: - LA s agreed syllabus for Religious Education Statutory instruments regarding the curriculum School policies and schemes Agreed minutes of governors meetings 12
Contact Details By Post Northampton NN5 4EZ By Telephone 01604 683850 By Fax 01604 683855 By Email head@upton-pri.northants-ecl.gov.uk bursar@upton-pri.northants-ecl.gov.uk Meadows Primary Directions Website Situated on the development off A4500 Weedon Road Northampton. From the Weedon Road turn onto High Street (signposted Mill). Travel down High Street, at the second roundabout turn left onto Clover Street, left again onto Knot Tiers Drive, next right onto Barring Street and right into the car park at the rear of the school. www.uptonmeadows.co.uk 13
UPTON MEADOWS PRIMARY SCHOOL Email: head@upton-pri.northants-ecl.gov.uk 14