Dorney School Vision

At Dorney School we believe in striving for the highest possible standards in everything we do. Our vision is based on the concepts of respect, collaboration and growth. We believe that everyone should be treated with respect.

School Values

Our curriculum is underpinned by our core values of respect, collaborate and grow.  Through a range of activities embedded into school life, it will teach our pupils to:

Respect

Our curriculum will teach our pupils to respect others, which begins with ensuring that pupils value themselves, others and the wider world.

This begins with our first theme within our Early Years provision, which focuses upon what makes each of our pupils special and unique. We then develop this through our PSHE lessons, which open with a whole school assembly and are built upon in individual classes with a range of follow-up activities. At the end of each week, teachers celebrate successes with a weekly certificate given to children within the class.

Our School Council ensures that the voices of our pupils is heard and that children have an opportunity to help make decisions across the school. We believe that in order to be able to respect and value themselves and others, our pupils must see themselves reflected within the curriculum.

Our library aims to include books which share stories and tell the histories of influential figures from different races, backgrounds and gender. Our Y6 pupils will also take part in the highly successful Community Cards scheme each summer, provided by the local PCSO, which teaches the children about different aspects of our local community such as the fire or police service.

Collaborate

Our pupils will learn to collaborate and contribute positively to society. 

Our pupils are taught to share and work together to achieve goals. Whether this is within the free-flow, collaborative approach to Early Years, the annual Big Science Event where pupils work together to investigate a question or the team coding challenges undertaken by our Year 5 & 6 pupils under the direction of Heathrow employees, we always aim to encourage collaboration to enhance learning.

Children of all ages work well together at Dorney, with Year 6 pupils acting as Buddies for our youngest pupils, Dinner Helpers who support our lunchtime team with supporting delivery of our meals and the Junior Road Safety Officers who help ensure that children are safe throughout our Walk to School programme.

Grow

Our pupils will grow and find their place in the world.

Dorney pupils will encounter inspiration and positivity throughout their time at the school. A wide range of learning experiences will provide pupils with the chance to see the world and grow towards their aims. Visitors to the school, such as Reverend La from St James the Less Church, topical guests such as Paralympic swimmers supporting Sports Relief or regular visitors including students from Burnham Grammar School and Eton College will provide our pupils with positive role models from a range of backgrounds. 

We also intend to develop links with local businesses, such as Heathrow or the Slough Business Estate, to ensure that children connect with and learn from some of the greatest minds in business. 

The school instils a growth mind-set and positivity into all of our lessons, by teaching the children to use the 5 Bs and develop independence and a resilient approach to their learning.

School Aims

Our aims are to provide children in our care with all the necessary skills to continue their learning and development once they leave us. The staff and governors, in partnership with parents, are committed to offering a safe, secure and exciting learning environment in which our children can grow and flourish and reach their full potential.
 

We aim to achieve this by:

• Creating a love of learning and an enjoyable experience of school life.
• Encouraging independence and a lively enquiring mind.
• Developing confidence to try new tasks without fear of failure.
• Supporting children and celebrating their achievement.
• Helping children understand the wider world in which they live.
• Encouraging respect for others and different ways of life.
• Ensuring children acquire knowledge and life skills to become valuable and responsible citizens.
• Employing a Growth Mindset so that we enjoy challenge and learn from mistakes.