Search the Community

This is an ambitious academy at the heart of the local community. We support our students as they develop the confidence, work ethic, and motivation they will need to thrive as adults. In September 2016 we joined the Harris Federation, one of England’s most successful groups of academies. All of our academies have been rated ‘outstanding’ or ‘good’ by Ofsted. In 2017, the Academy achieved its first set of results, with an estimated high Progress 8 score achieved. This means all students, no matter their starting point, make good or outstanding progress. Harris Academy Orpington combines the traditional values of good manners, strong discipline, and respect with excellent teaching. Our highly skilled and committed teachers inspire students to work hard and achieve their absolute best. Lessons are interesting and engaging and students are enthusiastic about learning. Your son or daughter’s education and development are important to us. Our focus is to provide a quality learning experience both inside and outside the classroom. We promote excellence, opportunity and a ‘can do’ culture. Regardless of individual ability or background, we believe that by setting high standards, praising effort, and with support and guidance, every child can excel. Our academy is a member of the Harris Federation, a group of 44 primary and secondary academies in and around London educating some 30,000 young people. The Harris Federation Teaching School Alliance enables us not only to train and develop teachers and leaders in our academies but also to do so for other schools. Each academy is led and run by its Principal and other senior leaders: we are deliberately a federation rather than a chain. What unites us is a culture that ensures the children and teenagers in our schools get an excellent education within a happy, caring, and supportive environment. As a result of this, all Harris academies so far to have been inspected by Ofsted have been rated either ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ with the vast majority being Outstanding. Many of these academies replaced schools previously considered to have been failing. The Harris Federation has been recognized as a top performer by education researchers at the Department for Education, Sutton Trust, and Education Policy Institute as well as Watchsted and PwC. We are a not-for-profit charity created by Lord Harris of Peckham. He and his family take an active interest in every Harris academy, supporting us financially and with their time. We maintain a happy, driven, and organized environment to help our students thrive. This section of our website details what life is like at Harris Academy Orpington. We want our students to feel happy and welcome from day one. The staff keeps a very close eye on students, especially in the early days of their transition into secondary education. New Year 7s are guided through their first few days with fun team-building activities to help them settle into life at the academy. Parents are encouraged to get involved with their children’s education and to visit regularly, whether for special events or to hear about their son or daughter’s progress. Reports are sent home every half term. Daily homework ensures that students continue their education outside the classroom and establishes an ongoing momentum of study that makes it much easier when the time comes to revise for exams. Harris Academy Orpington is dedicated to promoting the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs Within lessons and through our program of assemblies, drop-down days, extra-curricular activities, and school trips Harris Academy Orpington will Enable students to develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem, and self-confidence Enable students to distinguish right from wrong and to respect the civil and criminal law of England Encourage students to accept responsibility for their behavior, show initiative, and understand how they can contribute positively to the lives of those living and working in the locality of the school and to society more widely. Challenge opinions and behaviors in school that are contrary to the above fundamental British values. Enable students to acquire a broad general knowledge of and respect for public institutions and services in England. Further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling students to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own and other cultures. Encourage respect for other people Encourage respect for democracy and support for participation in the democratic processes, including respect for the basis on which the law is made and applied in England. Understand and explain how citizens can influence decision-making through the democratic process Appreciate that living under the rule of law protects individual citizens and is essential for their wellbeing and safety. Understand that there is a separation of power between the executive and the judiciary and that while some public bodies such as the police and the army can be held to account through Parliament, others such as the courts maintain independence. Understand that the freedom to choose and hold other faiths and beliefs is protected in law. Show that other people having different faiths or beliefs to oneself (or having none) should be accepted and tolerated, and should not be the cause of prejudicial or discriminatory behavior. Understand the importance of identifying and combatting discrimination. View full school

Priory Education and Children’s Services aims to make a real and lasting difference in young people’s lives through quality education, care, and health solutions leading to the very best individual outcomes. Our teams' expertise provides individuals who have experienced difficulties in mainstream or existing specialist settings, with the chance to fulfill their potential and be well-prepared for adult life. We aim to deliver high-quality, long-term solutions for young people in need of specialist support, including those who face the most challenging difficulties with highly complex needs. We support young people with autism, with emotional, behavioral, or mental health difficulties, and also specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia. Whatever an individual’s needs, our schools, colleges, and children's homes offer stable placements to help young people develop their education, social, and independence skills so they can fulfill their potential. Priory Lodge School’s Mission Statement is to Enabling pupils to become successful learners, responsible citizens, and confident individuals. The Priory Lodge School is a co-educational, purpose-built day school in South West London for young people aged 9 to 19 with mild to moderate autism, Asperger syndrome, and associated learning difficulties including ADHD, ODD, OCD, and clinical anxiety/depression. We offer a stimulating and enriched education for older primary and secondary pupils, covering entry levels, GCSEs, BTEC options, and, at post-16, some A levels. In addition, we enable students to develop life and independent living skills. The school incorporates two sites: The main school and a hospital CAMHS unit. Both sites share a vision to reflect our Mission Statement ‘Enabling pupils to become successful learners, responsible citizens, and confident individuals, we work with passion and dedication to making a real impact on improving the lives of our pupils and their families. we offer a nationwide network of services, meaning a high-quality education and care placement can be offered locally. Proven experience in delivering first-class residential care. Exceptional and quality outcomes demonstrating the lasting value of placements. A broad and balanced curriculum, including vocational routes into sustainable employment. Nationally recognized qualifications and accreditations. Onward pathways across the Priory Group into further education or supported living if required. Some of the UK’s leading experts in working with young people with autism and challenging behaviors. Modern, well-equipped facilities, designed to meet students’ holistic needs. We identify and provide the specialist support a young person needs to re-engage with learning and work towards their future aspirations. In 2015, 98.4% of our leavers successfully moved onto employment, education, training, and/or planned onward residential care pathways. We provide safe, nurturing environments where students from around the world can access a first-class British education. Set in stunning locations, our schools and colleges offer international students the chance to follow a well-rounded curriculum and achieve UK qualifications and accreditations. Our helpful Local Offer guides are specifically designed to provide you with all the key information about Priory schools and colleges. They look at everything from how our staff supports young people, to the ways we prepare them for their next step, whether this is education or independent living. Priory provides expert specialist education for young people aged 5 to 25 with a range of conditions and special education needs, including autism and social, emotional, and mental health (SEMH) difficulties, through our extensive network of schools, further education colleges, and partnerships with NHS child and adolescent mental health (CAMHS) units. With an absolute focus upon achieving the very best outcomes, our schools and colleges support young people with special educational needs to fulfill their unique potential through: Safe and nurturing educational environments that meet the full range of young people’s needs. Tailored curriculums geared around a deep understanding of young people’s challenges. Bespoke access to social skills programs. Well-equipped education and therapeutic facilities. Pathways that tackle the difficult transitional journeys from childhood to adulthood. Priory schools and colleges have a reputation for excellence in dealing with autism and challenging behavior, as reflected by our Ofsted, Estyn & CQC judgments. Priory’s regulatory outcomes significantly outperform national sector performance data with many of our services achieving the very highest accolade from regulators of ‘Outstanding’. The wide geographic spread of our schools and colleges allows us to provide local placements that meet young people’s unique education needs. Students can maintain relationships and links within their local community, in turn maximizing their chance of a smooth and successful placement. Whether a student wants to progress to university or move into employment, we will support them in pursuing their ambition. Our schools and colleges offer a broad curriculum, with the choice of both academic and vocational courses in a variety of subjects, including Accounting, Agriculture, Animal Care, Archaeology, Art, Biology, Catering, Chemistry, Construction, Drama, Engineering, English, Forestry, Graphics, Health, and Social Care. Law, Mathematics, Motor Vehicle Maintenance, Music, Physics, Politics, Retail, Sociology, and Textiles. We support students to study towards a variety of national accreditations and qualifications, including, level certificates, ASDAN qualifications, BTECs, GCSEs, AS-Levels, and A-Levels. ll young people at our schools and colleges are engaged in independence programs. We provide therapeutic and supportive environments which help students achieve their academic, independence, and social goals so that they can become successful adults. Outcomes that change lives, A Priory education delivers lasting value, helping young people to achieve outstanding outcomes and reach their potential. In 2015 98.4% of leavers successfully moved onto employment, education, training, and/or planned onward residential care pathways. 94% of students gained one or more GSCE at A* - G at sites where students were entered for GCSEs. Priory Fostering Services provides high-quality, stable foster care placements in warm and welcoming family homes in the West Midlands and South West of England for: Children and young people up to the age of 18 Sibling groups (brothers and sisters) Parent and child placements Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children By delivering a comprehensive package of support, we help vulnerable children unlock their potential and face their adult lives with confidence and a sense of worth. We believe that all children and young people have the right to grow up in a safe, supportive, and loving family. Our foster carers provide the right environment and levels of support to make a real and lasting difference in children’s lives. Together, we help young people develop a strong sense of identity, pursue a range of hobbies and interests and reach their full potential. Fostering is looking after a child or young person in your home and caring for them whilst their parents are unable to do so. Our approved foster carers provide a warm and safe home so that children can recover and thrive. We are driven by a passion to support young people in a way that best suits their individual needs and circumstances. Children and young people in foster care need to experience normal family life. As a foster carer, you will provide a stable family environment, nurturing and guiding young people to unlock their unique potential, and equipping them for a brighter future. There are several reasons why a child or young person may not be able to live with their own families, such as bereavement, illness, or family breakdown. In some cases, a child may be removed from the family home for their safety. Their local authority then becomes responsible for their welfare and they become a ‘looked after child. View full school

Our mission to ensure that all children can attend university or pursue a career of their choice is incredibly important and something that we keep at the forefront of our minds every day, through our academy values – today we lay the foundations for tomorrow’s success. Staff, children, and you, the parents, have a role in this, ensuring that your children meet their full potential and become fully engaged, responsible, and thinking citizens. We expect that everyone is focused on achieving the best possible outcome for your child – for them to excel in every aspect! That starts with everyone’s commitment to the academy, to be an active part of the academy community, to commit to the expectations the academy sets for engagement, behavior, dress, and attendance because these are the very building blocks of your child’s future success. ARK Schools stand for: High expectations Exemplary behavior Excellent teaching More time for learning Depth before breadth Knowing every child Our children arrive at ARK Priory at an early stage in their development and experience i.e., with their whole lives ahead of them. It is our responsibility to encourage, develop and inspire them to achieve early successes that are maintained in Secondary School, University, and beyond. Our values help us to achieve this. Exploration - We encourage all pupils to push and develop themselves through new experiences. Once we develop courage, independence, and curiosity we embrace the unknown and seek answers. Endeavor - Hard work and self-improvement are required to reach your goals and the sense of satisfaction and reward that follows endeavor requires courage and risk-taking – effort and progress are recognized more than just outcomes. Excellence - The culmination of exploration and endeavor – be courageous, challenge yourself, try your best and you will achieve excellence. Ark Priory Primary Academy has at its core the pursuit of the highest standards possible in education. We believe in high aspirations, high challenges, and high achievement for all. Through our extended curriculum and community life, we seek to meet the needs of the whole child. Our motto, Courage to fly! is at our core. If children are confident and willing to take risks to improve, to learn new things, and to embrace new experiences they will be resilient and equipped to deal with life and to be both successful and happy. We are committed to playing our role in helping our children play their full part in society. We will do whatever it takes to provide our children with the determination, skills, and knowledge to attend university or to follow an appropriate career path of their choice. We believe in the potential of every child who joins ARK Priory Primary Academy and we will strive to create a positive learning environment in which our pupils: Develop enthusiastic and enquiring minds Question and present rational arguments Adopt an independent, positive and engaged approach to learning Challenge themselves and others to achieve excellence We will provide high-quality learning and teaching experiences that take into account the intellectual, social, physical, ethical, and spiritual development of our pupils. View full school

Welcome to St Augustine’s Priory, Ealing’s top-performing Catholic, girls’ school. We are experts in educating girls. We are a Catholic school that welcomes girls of all faiths – this means that girls leave us rooted in values that make them effective in their personal and professional lives. Our girls are resourceful, intellectually engaged, and outward-looking. We pride ourselves on sending each girl out into the world armed with a life-long love of learning as well as with the self-knowledge and independent thinking required for her to take her place in the world. As a small school, we know each girl and want her to be true to herself. Parents and girls often speak of the secure and happy environment here in which creativity, innovation and rich inner life, and spirituality are celebrated. St Augustine’s Priory is an all-through, inclusive Catholic girls’ school. Our vision is to ensure that girls leave St Augustine’s equipped with the full range of skills required for life-long success as a woman. Our Values: Academic excellence We value academic excellence and see it as preparation for life-long learning. We treasure intellect, quality of thought, and we know how girls learn best. We seek to inspire our girls so that they see the rewards of intellectual curiosity and discovery. We want each girl to achieve her potential and more. Integrity and truth We encourage the strength of character which is enabled in a community, founded in faith, in which lessons are learned thoughtfully and through a distinct quality of relationship. When girls leave school they are rooted in values that make them effective in their personal and professional lives. Courage We encourage intellectual risk-taking, enabling girls to think and act boldly, developing the stomach for challenges that life throws at us. Through a bold approach to emotional intelligence, we build the resilience girls need to live their lives fully and with dignity. Our girls have the courage and appetite to compete and the skills to handle triumph and disaster in equal measure. Freedom We believe that each member of our community is unique, with her giftedness. As such we embed the practice of reflection, the quest for self-knowledge so that we know each girl and she knows herself. Armed in this way she can be independent-minded and able to take her place in the world. We want each girl to be true to herself. A community We are a community where respect for others and the wider community, thoughtfulness, generosity, and awareness of others have primacy. We believe that guided by the Spirit we become more than the sum of our parts. St Augustine taught that a secure and happy environment enables the best learning and our community reflects that. We are an all-through, inclusive Catholic girls’ school with boys in the Nursery. As a girls’ school, we are committed to preparing girls for life-long effectiveness and success. As part of their journey, girls will learn of intellectual risk-taking and emotional strength, reflection and self-knowledge, persuasiveness, and team building as well as a cultural curiosity for an enriched enjoyment of life. In our stunning 13 acres of grounds, girls have physical freedom unique in central London. We aim to instill in them the emotional freedom to grow intellectually and spiritually and to understand the truth about themselves, others, and our complex world. We will give them the courage to be ambitious and compassionate and we will provide a secure, happy, and nurturing community in which to explore all of the above. To this end, we seek, develop and retain the best teachers who value well-being and the individual progress of each girl as much as they are relentless in their pursuit of academic excellence. Their goal is life-long success for each girl and they set the pace of energy and dynamism within which the girls flourish. View full school

Saint Louis Priory School is a Catholic independent day school for boys in grades seven through twelve, which offers a nationally recognized accelerated curriculum designed to qualify graduates for admission to distinguished colleges and universities and to prepare them to undertake their continuing studies with success. The Mission of Saint Louis Priory School is to provide a Benedictine, Catholic, college-preparatory education of the highest excellence to help talented and motivated young men develop their full potential as children of God. We express the philosophy of our School by an explication of the key phrases of our Mission Statement: We provide a Benedictine education of the highest excellence, which teaches our students the service of the Lord according to the spirit of Saint Benedict through genuinely seeking God in prayer, through striving to grow in humility and purity of heart and so progressing toward that perfect love of God which casts out fear, and through preferring nothing to Christ and serving others in fraternal love and so fostering a spirit of family and community among those with whom they live and work. We provide a Catholic education of the highest excellence which teaches our students, according to the doctrine of the Catholic Church, the knowledge of the mystery of Christ through faith and understanding, the celebration of it through the liturgy and the sacraments, the living of it through charity and the other virtues, and the hastening of its fulfillment through prayer. We provide a college preparatory education of the highest excellence which forms our students in the intellectual skills and disciplines of a comprehensive liberal arts program of studies in the Western Christian classical cultural tradition, which prepares them for admission to appropriate distinguished colleges or universities, for the pursuit of their higher studies with success, and for continued intellectual development the moral virtues, guided by charity, which are needed for service and leadership in a free society the appreciation and practice of the fine arts as directed to beauty and the communication of moral and spiritual truths and values and the athletic skills needed for successful participation in a program of competitive sports as a means to physical fitness, active recreation and the development of the virtues of good sportsmanship, teamwork, and collaboration. We form a School community appropriate to a Benedictine school, centered in the worship of God, the celebration of the Eucharist, prayer, service, and Christian love, which will provide a nurturing environment, rooted in the vow of stability of the monks of Saint Louis Abbey and the commitment to service of the lay members of the faculty and staff, that will foster among all its members — students, faculty and staff, parents, and alumni — care, concern, and mutual support for one another and every member of the Abbey Family. At Saint Louis Priory School, our mission calls for us to provide a "college preparatory education of the highest excellence." To achieve this goal, we have designed a curriculum intended to educate the whole person. Our study's various components address each boy's development's intellectual, artistic, physical, moral, and spiritual dimensions. Put, almost everything that we do at Priory is curricular. In the early stages of their Priory experience, our students must follow a liberal arts course of study involving nine academic departments. Such a curriculum provides the foundation that prepares young men for admission to distinguished colleges and universities and, perhaps more importantly, enables them to undertake further studies with success. Within this study, we strive to impart the intellectual skills of inquiry, connection, and reflection vital for success in any endeavor. As boys progress through our program, their opportunities for variety in course selection increases. Some of our students elect to continue studying classical languages, while others choose to participate in our growing computer science program. Each boy continues to develop his craft in one of our visual, fair, or performing arts electives for a minimum of two years in high school. By the time they are juniors and seniors, many of our students are challenged by Advanced Placement (AP) work in several disciplines. In the senior year, students largely sculpt their curriculum and write a substantive thesis on a topic of their choice while working with a faculty member on an independent basis. Our Division Directors, Department Heads, and Faculty strive to work with our students to ensure that they take a healthy and varied course load, paying careful attention to each student's total school involvement, athletic and other curricular commitments, and the overall combination of classes. View full school

Woodside Priory School was founded in 1957 by a group of seven Hungarian Benedictine monks from Saint Martin's Archabbey in Pannonhalma, Hungary. Since 1974, the monks have been affiliated with Saint Anselm Abbey in Goffstown, New Hampshire. The School began as an 18-acre ranch and over the years has expanded significantly, with the campus now encompassing 51 acres. Initially, the School was an all-male boarding school, but over the years, the ratio of boarders to day students has changed to the point where today the boarding school accounts for approximately 20% of the student body. In the early 1990s, the School began admitting females to their day program, with the first co-ed class graduating in 1995. In 2004, the School expanded its boarding program to include females. Priory the only Benedictine College Preparatory school in California! Many successful people remember a time in their teenage years when an inspiring teacher, an exciting class, or an unforgettable experience made a positive difference in their lives. We think students need many of these special moments. We have thought long and hard about how to create them. An outstanding faculty and a rigorous college-prep curriculum are essential. So is the Benedictine vision of a learning community where members support one another. An upbeat campus atmosphere and the broad co-curricular program also set the stage for a balanced educational adventure. With our roots in the 1,500-year-old Catholic Benedictine education tradition, we do much more than provide an outstanding college preparatory education. We welcome young people into a community where they feel uniquely known and loved. Priory students feel free to take intellectual and creative risks, discover their passions, and grow in heart, mind, and soul. St. Benedict advised us to "listen with the ear of our hearts." As a community of educators, we continually reflect on our practices, seek out cutting-edge educational thinking, and embrace better ways to meet our students' needs. Firmly grounded in our core Benedictine values of individuality, community, integrity, hospitality, and spirituality, we face the changing demands of the 21st century with confidence and innovation. Even our campus reflects our values. Ancient redwood trees stand alongside a state-of-the-art Performing Arts Center. Our monks stroll along a trail past a vast array of solar panels. In cozy outdoor plazas, teachers and students laugh and talk together. Woodside Priory School is a Catholic Benedictine, independent college preparatory school. Our mission is to help all students create meaningful and balanced lives, develop as lifelong learners and stewards, and productively serve a world in need of their gifts. Academic rigor is part of life at Priory. Our students graduate fully prepared to enter the most selective colleges and universities. Even more important, they leave full of excitement, self-knowledge, and a passion for continuous learning. Middle and Upper School teachers are experts in their fields of study, most with advanced degrees, who love their subject matter and care deeply about students. Our classes are intentionally small—an average of twelve— and last between an hour and an hour and fifteen minutes, allowing students and teachers to engage deeply in intellectual discourse, critical thinking, and problem-solving. From sixth through tenth grades, core English, science, math, social science, theology, and world languages provide a solid foundation, while electives allow students to explore the arts. By the time they are juniors and seniors, students design much of their course of study based on their interests and passions, choosing from twenty-two Advanced Placement classes and a wide array of electives, culminating in the self-directed Senior Project. As educators, we understand that learners have different needs at different times. Whether it is adding three years of coursework beyond Calculus BC to challenge our most advanced math students adequately or offering study skills support at the Academic Resource Center, we are there for all our students throughout their academic journey at Priory. View full school