Witton Church C of E Primary School (Voluntary Aided)

St. Helen's Church school Church Walk
Northwich
CW9 5QQ

Head teacher

Mrs Kathryn Magiera - Head teacher

Church of England Schools

All Church schools have in their Instrument of Government, an ethos statement. In the Chester Diocese all schools have adopted the following statement, or one very similar:

Recognising its historic foundation, the school will preserve and develop its religious character in accordance with the principles of the Church of England and in partnership with the churches at parish and diocesan level. The school aims to serve its community by providing an education of the highest quality within the context of Christian belief and practice. It encourages an understanding of the meaning and significance of faith and promotes Christian values through the experience it offers to all its pupils.

However, the school ethos is not something written on a piece of paper. It embodies the values advocated by the school's communities and provides the atmosphere for life in and beyond the school itself. The ethos statement acts as a focus for the unity of values and purpose among the diversity of the members of the school communities. The Christian ethos of a Church school should infuse the whole of the school curriculum and school life.

Diocese of Chester Religious Education Guidelines

Admission Policy

The admission policy for the school has been revised (March 2009). Anyone can ask to see the new policy at school during term time.

Diocese of Chester Religious Education Guidelines

One of the major responsibilities of the governing body of a Church school is the nurture of the staff of the school. Governors must rely on the staff to:

Creating policies for the selection the staff and their professional development is arguably one of the most important tasks that governors undertake.

All of the tasks in relation to staff need to be undertaken in a context of a clear understanding of the nature of Christian leadership and of the priority of the school to serve the pupils. Christian leadership takes as its model the leadership of Christ and places the needs of others above selfish needs. It combines facing the difficult issues with courage and determination and with sensitivity to the needs and feelings of those affected by decisions that have to be made. Prayer sustains Christian leadership. The prayer life of the leader is important but so are the prayers of those who are supporting that leadership. Governors, the head teacher and members of the senior management team are all in positions of Christian leadership. They will need to reflect, from time to time, on the extent to which their leadership is exercised in accordance with this prayerful servant model.

Foundation Governors have a vital role in supporting and developing the Christian foundation of the school. Such governors must be regular church attenders as well as having an interest in schools.

For more information see: Church of England schools in the Diocese of Chester.

Governing body

Schools are run by a governing body working with the head teacher and senior management team to ensure pupils get a good education. All types of people can become school governors. No special qualifications are required, but you must be 18 or over on the date that you are elected or appointed.

Enthusiasm, commitment and an interest in education are the most important qualities. You don't need to have a child at the school. Governors tend to have transferable skills developed at work, or have a particularly good understanding of the community served by the school. Becoming a governor could be a way of contributing to your local school and learning new skills. For more information, see Directgov: Becoming a school governor.

The governing body has a range of duties and powers and a general responsibility for the conduct of the school with a view to promoting high standards of educational achievement including setting targets for pupil achievement, managing the school's finances, making sure the curriculum is balanced and broadly based, appointing staff and reviewing staff performance and pay and many more.

In C of E voluntary aided schools, the governing body controls the religious education and this be according to the rites, practices and principles of the Church in England or Church in Wales.

Types of Governor

For more information about the role and responsibility of school governors, see GovernorNet.

As a church school, St Helen's Church School's governing body has fourteen members:

With the exception of the Parish Vicar and the Head Teacher, who serve as long as they hold their positions, all governors are appointed for a four year period but there is no limit to the number of terms they can serve. Our longest serving governor has been with us for over 17 years.

The governors may be contacted via the school administration office
Email: admin@wittonwalk.cheshire.sch.uk

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