Welcome to St Mary Magdalene CE Primary School. We recognize that every individual is created in the image of God. We seek to nurture each member of our school community to develop his or her skills and abilities in a positive and ordered learning environment so that children mature into responsible and caring citizens. It is our aim that each member of the school community recognizes the value of every individual.
As a Church of England School, we wish children to grow in the Christian faith. While being firmly committed to this, we encourage an understanding of and respect for other faiths. The principle of Christian stewardship underpins our approach to the use of the School’s resources. Our approach to our relationships is based on the Christian view of God’s love for each of His children and of Jesus’ command to forgive and love our fellows. We base our approach to achievement and the provision of opportunities for development on Jesus’ statement that he came to offer ‘life in all its fullness.
We aim to give the highest priority to academic excellence through a broad-based, balanced, exciting, and creative curriculum as well as a keen focus on the performing arts and sports.
Our main aim as a school is to give each child an education of real worth one which will equip him or her to take a place in society as a responsible, informed person who has high self-esteem and respect for others. We firmly believe that a child’s education must include the widest range of opportunities, be they artistic, sporting, cultural, recreational, or social.
Our school has stimulating resources for teaching a creative curriculum and especially Information and Communication Technology (ICT). We now have a very modern, multipurpose computer suite which is being used well by children during and after school. In addition, each class has access to 5 laptops, 6 iPads, and an interactive whiteboard with a projector. These are used effectively throughout the school to enhance teaching and learning resources.
St Mary Magdalene CE Primary School is a one-form entry school located in the flourishing and diverse area of Peckham.
Our mission is to make school a calm but exciting place to be, where children feel safe and special. Our Motto, “Be the best I can be”, children and staff are encouraged to:
- Be encouraged to do their best
- Be enabled to learn and enjoy all school activities
- Be confident enough to make choices
- Be proud of what they do
As a Church of England School, we recognize that each person is valuable, precious, and unique before God. Our school is a community based on trust, honesty, and love. We aim to live in peace with each other and to forgive those who have wronged us, as taught and demonstrated in the life of Jesus.
We, therefore, strive to ensure that our delivery of the curriculum meets the needs of each individual and helps foster an environment where the motivation for all to achieve and reach their full potential is at the core of our commitment.
We take our responsibility to prepare children for life in modern multicultural Britain very seriously. We ensure that the fundamental British Values are introduced, discussed, and lived out through the ethos and work of the school. All curriculum areas provide a vehicle for furthering understanding of these concepts and in particular, our RE, SMSC, and Philosophy lessons provide excellent opportunities to deepen and develop understanding. Children embrace concepts of Mutual Respect, Acceptance of different faiths and beliefs, Democracy, The Rule of Law, and Individual Liberty, with pride and we continuously encourage them to demonstrate a good understanding of the application of these to their own lives.
Generating a buzz and excitement around learning is vital if children are going to develop their literacy and numeracy skills, their understanding of science and ICT, as well as develop their wider skills and knowledge. For many years at St Mary Magdalene, we have used a cross-curricular topic-based approach to learning which has been positively acknowledged by OFSTED (2013) and ARTSMARK (2013)
We believe that children should have the benefit of a broad and balanced curriculum. We are particularly keen to develop children’s interest in music, art, drama, theatre, and dance.
Our curriculum has been designed to help children learn essential knowledge and skills which draw upon creativity and develop the ability to become independent learners. We want our children to always be ‘The Best That They Can Be’ and equip them to be successful citizens.
