About the School - West Coker Primary School

Our School

We are a 2-class village school on the outskirts of Yeovil, with around 30 pupils aged 4 to 11.

Values and Ethos:

Our children are happy learners.
Our children feel safe and secure and behave well.
Our children are proud of their school and enjoy their learning.

We aim for high standards in everything we do; to instil in children the desire to succeed and a love of learning. We believe that children learn best in an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect. It is our desire that every child will grow in confidence as a successful learner, valuing the achievements and wisdom of others. We value, and place an emphasis on, the importance of developing the ‘whole child’. We prepare children to be conscientious, well-equipped citizens of the future, through our roots in the Core Christian Values and our ethos of collaboration. We teach children how these values, rooted in the Christian story, are relevant to their modern lives and are at the heart of everything we do.

Our School Day

We have the option for your child to come in at 8am to join our Breakfast Club, where they can enjoy breakfast and some activities with their friends before the school day starts.

Our school day begins at 8.35am when the original school bell is rung by a member of our Voyagers Class.

All children enjoy 2 morning breaks for 10 minutes at 9.50am and 10.45am then lunch is from 11.55am -12.45pm.

KS1 children also have a break and fruit in the afternoon.

There is Collective Worship daily. This includes class, singing and celebration assemblies on different days of the week.

School finishes at 3.15pm, but there is always the option of an after school club which can run up until 5pm Monday to Thursday and 4.15pm on a Friday.

West Coker C of E VC Primary School aims to develop strong links with the Church and the wider community.

We welcome the interest and support of parents in all aspects of the school life. We aim to keep you well informed about your child’s education so that we develop a partnership between home and school.

You are encouraged to keep in regular contact with your child’s class teacher and to ‘pop in’ for a quick word now and again at the end of school. Teachers will always be pleased to spare a few moments, unless they have other engagements. If you would prefer a longer discussion with the teacher, this can be arranged.

Formal consultations with parents are arranged in the Autumn and Spring Terms when children’s progress is discussed. All children receive an end of year report from their teacher.

It is important that you keep the school informed of any important changes that may affect your child. Please let us know promptly about any medical, physical or emotional difficulties and advise us of changes of address, telephone number, contact/child-minder, etc.

Our aim is to provide equal opportunities for all children. We recognise how important it is for each individual to have a positive perception of their role in life and the possibilities open to them.

West Coker C of E Primary School is a school for children between the ages of four and eleven years. As a voluntary controlled school the Church of England is represented on the Governing Body.

Safeguarding/Child Protection

The safety of the children at West Coker School is a priority. All staff recieve regular awareness training, including Prevent training, which is aimed at stopping radicalisation. The Headteacher has specific responsibilities regarding the school’s Child Protection Policy. We appreciate that such matters are sensitive but it is our duty to pass on any concerns if we think a child has been mistreated, either physically, emotionally, sexually or by neglect. This policy is implemented in the best interests of the children. All adults who work in our school must successfully go through the DBS (Disclosure and Barring System).

History of the school

The first school in West Coker, which is now known as The Old School Room, came into use in 1850. It was built and owned by the Reverend Charles Penny who subsequently gave it to the parish in 1858.

In 1869-70 the school building became too small and the same Rector, the Reverend Charles Penny, was responsible for the building of this school. The site was given by a churchwarden, Mr Moore. A visit to the parish church, provides lots more information about the family and their bequests to this parish.

The foundation stone of this school was laid by Mrs Penny, wife of the Reverend Charles Penny, in 1874 and the trowel presented to her at the time found its way back to the school in 1961 when a member of the Penny family visited the village and gave it to the then Rector Reverend E Miller.

On 15 July 1949 this school became Voluntary Controlled. The managers applied for this status under the 1944 Education Act as the repairing and developing of the school was too heavy a burden for the church. The Local Education Authority became responsible for the repair and maintenance of the school but the building still remains the property of the present trustees, the Rector of this parish and the National Society of the Church of England.

Behaviour

As a school, we feel it is important to promote a caring and supportive environment to enable all members of the school community to feel secure, respected and therefore promote good behaviour in others. We aim, through our school’s Golden Rules to be fair, ensure consistency, to treat all with respect and to have clear expectations.

We offer incentives to positive behaviour through warm relationships, a stimulating curriculum and positive role models reinforced by the awarding of merit points. These accumulate until a merit certificate is awarded. Good work and behaviour are celebrated in Collective Worship at the end of each week. Every child is rewarded for good behaviour through ‘Golden Time’, a 30 minute period each week, when children have the opportunity to take part in a planned activity of their choice.

We have sanctions when the Golden Rules are broken. These range from low-key class practice or loss of Golden Time minutes, to the Headteacher and parents being involved when more serious displays of unacceptable behaviour (such as defiance or bullying) occur. Exclusion would only be considered where all strategies fail and there is long-term serious misbehaving.

We also believe that its success is dependent upon your support. Helping your child to arrive calmly on time in the morning having had a good breakfast, with the correct equipment for the day, is essential.

Please use your child’s class teacher as the first point of contact with the school. If the teacher contacts you about behaviour, please support your child and work with the school in order to overcome this difficulty.

We see it as vital that the home and school work together to support success and overcome problems should they occur. We will share our successes and achievements with you and likewise our concerns.

Ethos and Aims

We always treat children with consideration and respect. As a result, we hope they will learn to respect other people and have a responsible attitude to the general care of the school. We believe the development of self-control and an acceptance of the responsibility for their actions is essential if children are to live happily in a community.

We also have a number of school rules of which the children will be reminded from time to time. These are designed to ensure a safe and orderly environment.

Our School Ethos Statement is:

“Recognising its historic foundation, the school will 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.

The school aims to serve its community by providing an education of the highest quality within the context of Christian belief and practice. It encourages an understanding of the meaning and significance of faith, and promotes Christian values through the experience it offers to all its pupils”.

Our School Aims are:

To cater for the needs of every child in a happy, secure and stimulating environment.
To provide a broad, balanced and challenging curriculum, appropriate to the needs of each child.
To enable children to develop skills, attitudes and values and to achieve their full potential.
To enable children to become responsible, independent members of the community showing understanding and sensitivity to others.

Complaints

We aim to be fair, open and honest when dealing with any concern or complaint. We give careful consideration to all complaints, and deal with them as swiftly as possible. We aim to resolve any complaint through dialogue and mutual understanding.

Concerns would usually, in the first instance, be discussed with the Class Teacher. In our experience, most issues can be resolved positively in this way. If the matter has not been satisfactorily resolved, an appointment should be made to discuss it with the Headteacher, who will consider any concern or complaint seriously and investigate the case thoroughly.

Only if an informal complaint procedure fails to resolve the matter, should a formal complaint be made to the governing body. This complaint must then be made in writing to the Chair of Governors, stating the nature of the complaint, and how the school has handled it so far.

For further information, please see our policy for parental complaints.

If the complaint is still not resolved, representation may be made directly to the Secretary of State for Education. This should be a last resort, and you should highlight in your letter the steps you have already taken to resolve the problem. Guidance can be found on the Directgov website.

Equality Objectives

At West Coker Primary School, we are committed to ensuring equality of education and opportunity for all pupils, staff, parents and carers, irrespective of race, gender, disability, belief, religion or socio-economic background.

Please refer to our Equality and Diversity Policy and Staff Code of Conduct for further information.