Wimbledon Chase has been listed 3 times by Ofsted as a particularly successful school. We were one of only 26 schools in the country at the time to have achieved this honor. We were also the first school in the Borough of Merton to become a Beacon School in 1996 and maintained this standard for 5 years.
We believe at Wimbledon Chase Primary School that learning occurs best when the children are motivated and interested. Within Nursery and Reception, the adult plays a crucial role in planning and resourcing play activities and also knowing when to intervene to extend children’s spontaneous play. The Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum is organized into 7 areas of learning. Activities are planned to be challenging but achievable.
Merton commits to provide all children with free part-time education in the term after their 4th birthday. All LEA nursery classes and many registered private and voluntary providers provide 3 hours per day, five times a week. All children entering the Nursery are offered a Home Visit from the Nursery Teacher and/or Nursery Nurses.
Children are admitted to the Nursery Unit during the term after their third birthday. Children either join in the Autumn, Spring, or Summer term. Children are admitted to Reception classes during the academic year in which they become five. The academic year runs from 1st September to 31st August the following year. All Reception children start during September, attending school for half-day sessions. By the end of September, all children will stay at school for the full day. Application forms are available in October and should be submitted by mid-December. If the school is over-subscribed, the Borough’s Admission Policy comes into operation, using set criteria to allocate places. Please refer to the London Borough of Merton website for more information.
We are fortunate to have beautiful grounds and excellent facilities, including extensive sports fields, two up-to-date ICT suites, a spacious library, a cookery room, a music room, a nursery for 104 children, and a well-equipped gymnasium. We have a separate Dining Hall and Hall, with a purpose-built stage, which we use for our regular musical concerts and school productions.
We are a very popular school and due to increasing demand, we have been gradually expanding to 3 Forms of Entry over the last 6 years. This process was completed in September 2014 and we now have 630 pupils plus the nursery. To house the extra children, a new wing was built onto the school. This two-story building opened in September 2011 and provides classrooms for Reception and Year 2, plus a new Music Room, second ICT suite, a cookery room, and a Wrap Around Centre for Nursery and After School Club. A lift has been installed and the playground re-landscaped. We are grateful for these exciting developments to the school.
We pride ourselves on being an inclusive school, not only for the children in our Additionally Resourced Provision but also for any children with special needs or learning difficulties. Our ARP currently has 16 pupils with speech, language, and communication needs.
Pupils at Wimbledon Chase achieve KS2 SATs results above national and local averages each year. Our teachers are talented and committed. We have received many awards in recent years including the Basic Skills Quality Mark, the Sports Active Mark Gold, Effective Early Learning, Enhanced Healthy School Status, Sustained Travel Plan Status, and the Arts Mark Gold. We have also been awarded Intermediate Level for the International Schools Award.
We provide a very wide variety of over 50 extra-curricular clubs and activities before school, during lunchtime, and after school. Examples of clubs include tennis, ballet, football, tag rugby, cricket, hockey, Aikido, street dance, computers, choir, orchestra, brass, drums, recorders, gardening, and film club. Wimbledon Chase has excellent links with parents and we believe that children work best if there is a good partnership with parents. This was recognized by Ofsted as a strength of the school. It is part of our vision to ensure that we work together to enable children to achieve their full potential in a happy and secure environment.
We recognize that the unique trademark of Wimbledon Chase can be summed up in 3 words: Opportunity, Inspiration, and Celebration. The children are inspired to explore their talents and abilities they are given many opportunities to develop these talents and as a school, we celebrate and enjoy our achievements whenever we can.
