Mission Statement

‘Learning and Growing as Children of God’

Our School Vision

Through our personalised, sequenced, balanced and board curriculum at Alston Lane Catholic Primary School and Nursery, we aim to teach and develop the whole child (spiritually, morally, culturally and socially) so they have the opportunity to:

1. Develop a good character, life skills and knowledge of themselves (Character).
2. Become successful, life-long learners (Cognition).
3. Make a personal and positive impact in their local community and globally (Community).

Our Curriculum Aims

Character – Developing good character, life skills and a knowledge of themselves.

• Ensure children understand that they are made in the image and likeness of God.
• Develop a strong personal faith through our Religious Education curriculum and Catholic ethos.
• Develop good mental health, creating happy and healthy individuals, who can manage their own feelings and empathise with others, demonstrating patience and tolerance.
• Provide opportunities to build children’s self-esteem and confidence, showing responsibility for their behaviour and actions.
• Ensure children understand how to stay safe and how to share problems and worries when they arise.
• Support children to acquire life skills, good manners, respect and care and compassion for all creation.

Cognition – Become successful life-long learners.

• Seek opportunities for children to develop their God given talents.
• Provide creative and real-life learning opportunities that capture children’s interest and imagination.
• Develop a growth-mindset and an understanding of the learning process which allows children to persevere, make mistakes, show resilience and be intrinsically motivated to do their best.
• Promote self-management skills, helping children to be organised and independent learners.
• Provide opportunities for children to be active learners, working in flexible groupings or independently to achieve their goals.
• Encourage children to form opinions, communicate ideas and challenge other people’s thinking in a suitable and empathetic manner.
• Support children to be inquisitive and reflective learners, who have the skills to improve their work and the work of others.
• Provide children with the skills to communicate effectively and have the confidence to share their ideas in different ways to different audiences.
• Provide opportunities for children’s knowledge and understanding to be applied across the curriculum in different contexts.

Community – Make a personal and positive impact in their local community and globally.

• Enable children to follow the teaching and example of Jesus as expressed in the Gospels.
• Provide opportunities for pupils to develop their understanding of people from a wider range of different backgrounds, within our local community and beyond, with particular regard to Catholic Social Teaching.
• Help children to understand the communities they live in and the ways they can make a positive contribution.
• Learn about other faiths and cultures, showing sensitivity and understanding of diversity.
• Learn about the British Values and have an awareness of the Law of Democracy.
• Understand environmental issues and the role they need to play in protecting God’s creation, our common home, for future generations.
• Understand topical issues that affect others both locally and globally, developing an open-minded and compassionate response, both independently and by seeking to work with others to make a difference.