From the moment you set foot in The Colleton Primary School you will feel the difference!

Our pupils are relaxed, confident and cheerful, but they are still expected to work hard and behave well. The positive atmosphere within our school is achieved as a result of good discipline and very thorough and detailed organisation. We are an open plan school with approximately 210 pupils and an equivalent of 7 full time teaching staff.

Every child is important to us and the demands we place upon them reflect the child's ability and personality. The work is set at the individual's level so that it is neither too easy nor too difficult.

The best way to understand what this means is to visit the school and see it at work.

Esse Quam Videri:
To be, rather than to seem to be.

This is the motto of the Colleton family. It appears on our school logo as an endorsement of our individual approach to education and the unique needs of each child.

The current descendants of the Colleton family, Lady Elizabeth and Mr Alan Godsal, generously agreed to the school using the motto.

In 1818 Charles Garth Colleton helped to found the Hurst and Ruscombe National School (now converted to private houses). He was the major local landowner who had inherited the Haines Hill Estate from his cousin, James Colleton, in 1790. The land on which the school is built, as well as much of the land on which our pupils' houses rest, was part of the Haines Hill Estate.

Colleton Drive had already been named after the family when we opened in 1973 and our governors decided to maintain the connection by naming the school 'The Colleton'.

Our building is specifically designed for the way we work. The design has evolved over the last 25 years and continues to be developed today, indeed we have modified and extended it considerably in recent years. All these improvements help to build an exciting and stimulating learning environment.

Central to the ethos of The Colleton is the individuality and independent spirit of each child.

The objective of the school dress code is to retain, as far as possible, this individuality, whilst ensuring that clothes worn to school by the children reflect respect for the school and community and are suitable for a school setting.

General requirements:

Clothing to be clean, neat and in good repair.
All clothing and personal belongings brought into school to be clearly named.
Footwear must be safe and sensible.
No jewellery to be worn other than for medical or religious reasons.
Watches may be worn, providing they are not bulky on the child's wrist.
Hairstyles to be neat and tidy, with natural colouring.
Hats are not to be worn indoors.
No make up, nail varnish or other fashion accessories to be worn.

Shirt, blouse or T shirt - without large motifs or slogans.
Trousers, jogging bottoms or shorts - fitted at the waist, with trousers
  down to the shoes and shorts just above the knee.
Skirts and dresses - to be no shorter than just above the knee and
  no longer than mid-length.
Jumpers, cardigans and sweatshirts - without large motifs or slogans.
Footwear - flat trainers, flat shoes or boots and sandals. All children
  require a change of footwear for inside school. Slippers and high heeled
  shoes are not to be worn.

Now see our CSA Parent Organisation page...

Our aim is to inspire and educate each child so that they can work within their potential, academically and socially; acquiring skills for independence that will enable them to become valued members of society.

Within Organsing Learning discover how we help children to reach their true potential at school. This section also includes subject information.

Alternatively, review the fabulous results of the children's learning experiences within our dedicated Children's Learning area.

Finally, see how the staff learn from each others' knowledge, skills and experiences, from specific training we undertake and, of course, from the children themselves.

Organising Learning at The Colleton

Our aim is to inspire and educate each child so that they can work within their potential, academically and socially; acquiring skills for independence that will enable them to become valued members of society. We operate as a team using flexible, innovative teaching methods and promote learning that is both challenging and fun. To effect this we operate a cross-curricular approach to learning with individual work programmes, tailored to each child's needs; in Key Stage 2 we call this a planner. "The school provides an outstanding curriculum that motivates the pupils and promotes their enjoyment of learning in teams ." (OFSTED 2006 report) With such a system all children, whether they be exceptionally able or with specific difficulties, may achieve their full potential. The school's curriculum policy conforms to the requirements of the 1988 Education Reform Act.   The school continually assesses the progress and attainment of each pupil to determine whether individual learning objectives have been achieved. These assessments are used to inform future programmes of study for individual children. "Teaching and learning are outstanding. Activities are interesting and teachers have high expectations of work and behaviour." (OFSTED 2006 report) Records of work covered, progress and attainment in each National Curriculum subject are kept for each pupil and these are discussed regularly at our parents' evenings. As a matter of course, parents are encouraged to raise any concerns or queries with their child's teachers at the earliest opportunity. Parents have continuous access to all curriculum policies and current curriculum material through our Parents' Information Area in reception. We also publish termly curriculum newsletters to our parents.

English
Maths
Science
ICT
Geography
History
Design & Technology
Art & Design
Music

Physical Education
Religious Education

All the children at The Colleton are special, but occasionally some of them will need additional help in all or specific areas of the curriculum. For this reason, The Colleton has a very comprehensive Special Educational Needs (SEN) Policy, a copy of which is available from the school on request.

The policy effectively raises standards of achievement within school for this 'special' group of children, whilst ensuring they are always included and confident in their learning.

We are very proud of our work with our SEN children and will continue to work very closely with children, parents and external agencies to maintain our high standards.

As we believe that each individual is special, we also believe that each individual has a talent and it is for us to help them discover and nurture this talent.

For our more ablegifted and talented pupils the combination of our cross-curricular approach to learning, good teaching, stimulating environment, individual planners and effective Gifted and Talented Child Policy ensures pupils reach their full potential and excel.

We have an ethos of achievement within school that allows individual talents to be valued and praised.

The curriculum is enriched with specialist days, including educational visits, speakers and theme days. Lessons provide the opportunity for independent learning and open-ended investigations, encouraging higher order thinking skills.