As a parent myself, we know that choosing the right school for your child is a very important decision. So, with that in mind, we've written this website to tell you a little bit about who we are, invite you to come and have a look around our school and meet our wonderful pupils and staff. By visiting Westbridge, you will be able to observe our lovely school for yourself and see our ethos in action.
At Westbridge, we are passionate about education and the power it has to improve children’s life chances. As such, we have high aspirations and ambitions for the future and a commitment to providing the opportunity for every child to fulfill his or her full potential. We have high expectations of all pupils and ensure they enjoy a stimulating and balanced curriculum to engage, enthuse and encourage a life-long love of learning.
We focus on raising achievement and accelerating pupils’ progress through the provision of a high-quality teaching and learning environment. Our staff, parents and pupils form an important partnership and work together to ensure that each pupil learns in a nurturing, stimulating, and positive environment where pupils can be happy, safe, and successful.
Our vision is We want to transform the lives of our pupils and their communities by helping them achieve their utmost, celebrate their talents, and become the best that they can be. We focus on developing the whole person by not only concentrating on high academic expectations but also focusing on our pupil’s key life skills and personal and social development.
We aim to build a lifelong love of learning in our pupils and a set of moral values that will enable them to make a positive contribution to the community and a rapidly changing society. We're enhanced by the rich cultural heritage of our school community. With over fourteen different nationalities and eighteen different home languages, learning together and promoting community is a key element of life at Westbridge.
At Westbridge, we use Letters and Sounds, as our preferred method of delivering high-quality synthetic phonics. Letters and Sounds is a phonics resource published by the Department for Education and Skills in 2007. It aims to develop pupils speaking and listening skills and to prepare pupils for learning to read by developing their phonic knowledge and skills.
We take our responsibility to prepare children for life in modern Britain very seriously. We do this through our values-based approach to education, and by active and thoughtful involvement with our community. We wish to ensure that our school becomes and remains a positive force for Grace, Love, and Fellowship.
Our 4P’s (positivity, perseverance, pride, and potential) help to guide us in our lives and determine our thinking and behavior. We ensure that fundamental British values are embedded in all aspects of school life. We aim to help all our children discover and aspire to be the very best they can be and to prepare them for the life of work and enable their development as good citizens. We actively promote British values through our school vision, ethos, agreed rules, curriculum, teaching, educational visits, and activities, and through the continuous professional development of our staff and governors and workshops for children and families.
Staff help pupils develop an understanding of what fairness is and ensure that in addition, pupils are encouraged to respect the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs. At Westbridge, these values are reinforced regularly and in the following ways.
Democracy: We have a school council that meets every month to discuss issues raised in class meetings. Every child on the school council is voted in by their class. Children have an annual questionnaire and subject-specific surveys where they can put forward their views about the school.
The Rule of Law: Pupils are taught about the Westbridge Golden Rules when they join our school. Pupils are taught the value and reasons behind rules and laws, the responsibilities that this involves, and the consequences when laws are broken. Regular visits from the Community Police help to reinforce this message.
Individual Liberty: Pupils are actively encouraged to make choices, knowing that they are in a safe and supportive environment. As a school, we educate and provide boundaries for pupils to make informed choices in a variety of ways, e.g. through our assemblies, E-Safety, and PSHE lessons.
Mutual Respect: Mutual respect is at the heart of our school ethos of Grace, Love, and Fellowship. Pupils learn that their behaviors affect their rights and those of others. We actively encourage all members of the school community to treat each other with respect.
Tolerance: Westbridge is a diverse school and as such, we actively promote diversity through our celebrations of different faiths and cultures. Our school ethos, assemblies, Religious Education lessons, and PSHE lessons reinforce messages of tolerance and respect for others. Our pupils have regular opportunities to visit places of worship that are important to different faiths.
