About Us

 

We hope this website helps you gain an understanding of what our school is all about, how it works and is organised, and what it offers.

We believe that there is a distinctive quality to St Michael’s School, one which can be expressed in many ways and means different things to different people. It may be its family feel, its focus on relationships, its positive approach to education, its strong connection to St Michael’s Church, the care and respect it cultivates and nurtures, or it may be our constant drive to improve, for our own sakes and for those of our children and families.

Our school continues to develop in many exciting ways so that it can continue to provide a rich and happy experience for our children.

We are both very proud to belong to a team that is committed to achieving high standards and providing the very best opportunities for the children in its care. Staff, supported by governors, work hard to deliver an inspiring and challenging curriculum, to prepare children for their next steps in education, to help them acquire the skills and confidence they need, and to inspire children to pursue learning for the rest of their lives.

The best way to find out about our school is to come and visit, to see us in action and meet staff and children. A telephone call to the school office on 01263 732260 is all that is needed to arrange this.

We look forward to welcoming you to our school, and to creating happy and successful partnerships with all our new children and families.

Our vision statement for the school fully embodies our vision for the children of St Michael’s, the staff and the community.

Our vision statement:

  Dream, Believe, Achieve

We are a school, rooted and inspired by Christian values, which nurtures children to achieve infinitely more than we might ask or they may dream; empowering them so they can flourish as confident citizens now and in the future.

  • Ephesians 3:20 “Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.”

Our aims are as follows:

Dream

  • Dream of a child that shares their dreams, hopes and aspirations
  • Dream of a school that sees the potential in every child
  • Dream of community built on mutual respect, care & love
  • Dream of a world where everyone has equality of opportunities

Believe

  • Believe that through nurture, learning, hard work anything is possible
  • Believe in a broad curriculum that seeks to develop wisdom, to enable commitment, confidence and delight in learning
  • Believe that honouring relationships, community & diversity enables people to flourish together
  • Believe that all people are created in the image of God & that we are all called to be wise stewards of our world.

Achieve

  • Achieve our goals though dealing wisely with difficulty; creatively with challenge and with resilience through adversity
  • Achieve a school built on Christian values, excellence in education & joyful encounter
  • Achieve community which reflects the love of God through service, diversity, inclusivity & respect
  • Achieve the growth of peacemakers, justice fighters, joy bringers, light bearers and hope givers for our world.

 

The personal development of children, spiritually, morally, socially and culturally, plays a significant part in their ability to learn and achieve. We therefore aim to provide an education that provides children with opportunities to explore and develop their own values and beliefs and their spiritual awareness. We enable them to develop high standards of personal behaviour and a positive, caring attitude towards other people. We make sure they are given every opportunity to develop an understanding of their social and cultural traditions and an appreciation of the diversity and richness of the cultures.

Our School was built in 1848 on land belonging to an early grammar School founded by Robert Jannys, a rich merchant from Norwich. A hundred years later the Church of England relinquished aspects of the School’s administration to the Local Education Authority, making it a Voluntary Controlled School.

Then in January 2017 we changed status and became a Voluntary Aided School and in September 2018 we changed from a Nursery and Infant School to a Primary and Nursery School. Governors’ intentions in making this change are

  • to maintain the proud tradition of St Michael’s as a Church of England School with a strong and distinctive ethos,
  • to provide the very best education we can for the children in our School
  • to preserve and increase meaningful parental choice in the primary phase in Aylsham,
  • and to build upon our strong bond with the local Church community.

There is a strong and distinctive Christian ethos at this School and we encourage children to develop important values. Children learn these values through the teachings and stories that Jesus told, and we draw on other sources and experience to help their understanding and involvement.

The Aylsham Parish Church is a short walk away from school and we make as much use of it as we can. Each class attends a special service there every term and the building itself is a rich resource for study of varying kinds. Many of our annual celebrations are held there – Harvest Festival, Nativities, and Mothering Sunday, for example. Revd Julie Boyd regularly conducts Collective Worship in school and is a frequent visitor as well as fulfilling a vital role as governor. Many children go to ‘Make and Take’ in the church after school on Thursdays.