School Vision & Development Plan

"Loved, Inspired, Shining"

“There is no fear in love, perfect love drives out all fear.” 1 John 4:18 

 

School Development Plan 2026-27

This academic year the key areas of our School Plan will fall into the acronym CREATE. We hope that this will help our whole community to understand what it is that we are working on so that we can all work together to achieve even greater things for our amazing children. We have explained in more detail what each of the letters stands for below:

Creativity and Curiosity

Retrieval of Learning

Engaging Curriculum

Awe, Wonder and Spirituality

Tremendous maths

Excellent Writing

Creativity and Curiosity: As you are all fully aware, we are passionate about the power of creativity and the impact that this can have on our children’s learning. Our curriculum is rich with opportunities for our children to develop their natural curiosity and drive, to ask big questions, explore and deepen their learning and understanding of the world around them. This year, we will be re-applying for our Artsmark status demonstrating how we have continued to enhance our already outstanding practice since we were last awarded in 2024. We are also entering the second year of our funded research project with the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, working alongside our long-standing art partners Animate Arts Company. We are supporting twelve teachers in six schools across Kent to explore how visual arts and dance can impact teaching and learning in Maths across the Primary age range. This year, we will be working with professional dancers and visual artists to further explore creative ways to deliver Maths concepts.                                        

Retrieval of Learning: This year, we will be further focusing on research around learning and memory in order to help our children with retrieving previous learning and making connections to new learning. We have made adaptations to our curriculum to ensure the sequence of learning is woven through and concepts and knowledge can be revisited and cemented in their long-term memory

 

Engaging Curriculum: We are so proud of our outstanding curriculum offer which ensures that all children have access to a broad and balanced curriculum which inspires them and harnesses their interests, providing aspiration in all subjects. Last year, we completed a full curriculum review to ensure that inclusion, diversity and equality were placed at the heart of the children’s learning in all subjects. This is reflected in the artists, musicians, sports personalities and significant people or moments in history that the children learn about throughout the year. We have also carefully considered the

texts that the children are exposed to in both our English curriculum and our reading for pleasure sessions to ensure that children can see themselves represented in literature whilst providing a window into the lives and cultures of others.

Awe, Wonder and Spirituality: Wellbeing and belonging have always been at the heart of our school community and we strive to ensure that everyone has the chance to flourish during their time at our school. Our curriculum has been carefully designed to ensure moments of awe and wonder, creating opportunities for our children to experience the joy of learning. Spirituality is a source of creativity that is open to us all. It is in those moments of awe and wonder, where we feel alive. We want to create learning opportunities that spark inquiry, ideas, observations, insights, empathy, artistic expression and playfulness. Spirituality is a thread which runs through all of our lives, bringing hope, compassion, thankfulness, courage, peace and a sense of purpose and meaning to everyday. Among other areas of the curriculum, we will be harnessing our expertise within outdoor learning, the arts, creativity and music to further enhance our children’s spiritual development.

Tremendous Maths: Our Maths curriculum is broad and rich and uses a range of creative approaches to inspire delivery. We are entering into the second year of our research project with the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, looking at how dance and visual arts can enhance the delivery of the Maths curriculum. We have seen a real impact of the work in the first year, engaging our children and those in our partner schools in rich and memorable experiences that bring learning to life. We look forward to sharing the outcomes of this research with you at the end of this year. We will also be holding parent workshops next term to share with you our approach to the teaching of Maths, so we hope that you can join us for this session.

Excellent Writing: This year, we will be continuing to build on our work around reading and phonics to focus on strengthening our children’s love of writing. Whether this be children taking their first steps into mark making, or producing beautiful written gems for others to discover! Our English Leader will be running parent information sessions next term to explain how we teach writing and ways that you can support your child at home.