Our Christian Vision and Values
The Church of England asks schools to consider three questions when creating a vision statement that is rooted in theology.
1. Who are we as a school?
2. Why are we here?
3. How then do we live?
At Ide Hill Church of England Primary School, Our vision and values are make us all that we are. They are at the heart of all our words and actions, they permeate every aspect of school life and together they provide us with the tools to create a very nurturing learning environment.
"Do everything in Love"
At Ide Hill Church of England Primary School we seek the 'abundant life' that Jesus promised for all. Pupils, staff and families flourish within the caring community of our beautiful village. All are nurtured through the learning and experiencing of respect, responsibility and love, 'and the greatest of these is love.'
Each part of our vision has been worded carefully to ensure that it reflects our school ethos, culture and philosophy for ensuring that all children are able to flourish.
We are a Church of England Primary School that is built on Christian faith.
The idyllic, peaceful location of the school and its heritage are important aspects of our culture and ethos
Indicates what the children's learning experience will be like.
Our school values demonstrate our expectations for behaviour. Relationships within the whole school community are linked together as we work like a team around each child.
Everyone is welcome and included in learning.
Delving Deeper into our Vision:
Our school vision is based upon the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37)
Within this parable, Jesus asked
"Which of these three acted like a neighbour? The man answered "The one who was kind to him."
Jesus tells us to "Go then and do the same."
Our values of Respect, Love and Responsibility are a subspecies of love:
Respect is the outworking of love in all our relationships. We develop our spirituality through our reverence for God, for the world and for others. Like the Good Samaritan, we believe that all have the capacity to reflect God's generous love through our words and actions, day by day. We learn to love ourselves and others, embracing everyone's uniqueness.
Love "We love because God first loved us" 1 John 4:19. We learn to love by first receiving God's love through the love of others. We seek to reflect this love in our appreciation of God's creation and to be inquisitive. We learn to show kindness, gentleness and patience to others and to ourselves. (Galatians 5:22). Love is the power to show compassion and to forgive. Love lies at the heart of our school.
Responsibility The Good Samaritan refused to pass by on the other side. His heart was "filled with pity" and "he took care of the man." He showed love and respect for his neighbour by taking responsibility. At Ide Hill School we take responsibility for ourselves and for others in all our learning, through relationships with the wider community, in word and action.
In May 2019, Ofsted inspected our school and we were delighted that the lead inspector made the following comments:
"Ide Hill Church of England Primary is a friendly, inclusive community. Parents speak highly of the school. They value the varied opportunities and wide range of support the school has to offer. As one parent stated: 'Ide Hill is an extremely nurturing school with an ethos on striving to do your best.' Pupils say that it is a happy, friendly place and that they enjoy coming to school. Consequently, pupils are thriving."