Our School values are: 

Love 

Trust 

Hope 

Community - Koinonia 

Service

Love – Agape 

Love underpins all other values.  It is compassion, respect, affection, benevolence, goodwill and concern for the welfare of those we love.  It is selfless and means putting others before oneself. It is unearned and is for all, not just those we think deserve love - just as God’s love was unearned so that he sent his only son to die on a cross for humanity. In school, we learn to love each other and value each other irrespective of our difference.  We forgive and we learn to show remorse for our poor choices.   We recognise that everyone is a product of their environment, and some have more challenges than others and that they are worthy of our love, kindness and compassion no matter the choices made. 

1 Corinthians 13: 4-7:  Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 

Trust 

Trust is central to civilised society and our school in order to function. We need it to live together in harmony and to be successful in our learning and playing.  Trust in God rather than ‘wealth and princes’1. Through wisdom, we can learn to trust each other. Jesus gave us his example of trusting his mission to those not in society’s mainstream and ultimately to us.   Adults model to children how to behave in a way that builds trust and model how to rebuild it where it has been broken.  

Isaiah 26:3-4: You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock. 

Hope 

Hope is more than hope for a better future.  It is based in the trustworthiness in God that he is there supporting those who are suffering and ultimately a hope to be joined with Him through humanity’s salvation through Jesus’ sacrifice.   In school, it is through hope and  growing in spirituality we will grow in love for each other and in build trust so that we will all have a safe place to grow, learn and make mistakes. 

Isaiah 30: 41 But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

Community - Koinonia 

Koinonia, the Doric Greek word, is about a community working together in partnership and sharing the burden (like yoked animals). In Romans, community is described as body parts all different, with different purposes but working together – making one family.  It can also be described as partnership - a shared oneness. The example to us in school is that of Jesus’ shared life, shared meals and shared possessions and support for those in need. Being one inclusive community both within and without the school boundary, oneness with each other, our families, PTA, governors, local community and global community – stewardship of creation and environmental responsibilities.   

Romans 12:4-5: For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 

Service 

Service is not being selfish; it is acting for others before yourself. Encouraging children to act in a way that will improve a situation or the happiness of others.  Jesus tells us he came ‘to serve not to be served’ and demonstrated this when he washed the feet of his disciples before the last supper.  It is about not acting in a way that meets our immediate needs.  The opposite of selfishness. Being kind, generous and thoughtful without the expectation we will be rewarded for it. If we all put others before ourselves, all our needs will be met.  We encourage charitable giving; helping out for the good of everyone, understanding the value of buying Fairtrade or sustainably sourced goods and thinking about who might lose out/suffer if everything is sold as cheaply as possible. 

Galatians 5:13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.