A word from Mr Hawker, Deputy Head
A warm welcome to Prep from Emma Reach, Deputy Head Academic
“Learning and developing knowledge in this school is all the more vibrant, and all the more relevant in today’s world because it is coated with a much broader brush that reaches far beyond academic attainment.”
Our mission, To develop the whole child, preparing them to make a positive influence in the world is living and breathing at the heart of this school and all of our efforts every day.
It is our driving force, but what makes it so potent is that we have a system that actively delivers this mission in a real and tangible way. That system is our Values. As parents, you will want to know what marks Salisbury Cathedral School out and to this end I ask you to look at how our Values are played out across the academic, musical and sporting spectrums, not to mention the daily flux of life here.
Throughout the Pre-Prep and Prep School our approach is to work first with the Values and then knit them into the curriculum as an intrinsic element to inspire pupils to shape their conduct and develop their talents. So our children come to know that achieving the right answers is just one of the many important dimensions to a happy and successful school life. They are encouraged to understand that there is a much bigger, more worldly picture to reach for, and that they should feel just as proud of themselves if they have demonstrated creativity, or kindness, or courage in their endeavours. There can be teamwork in learning the times-tables, resilience in mastering English grammar, leadership in allowing others to shine before us. Teachers nurture and also celebrate these qualities with the children who may often find a sticker of one of the Value symbols placed on their work to denote where they have achieved above and beyond academic attainment. How gratifying it is to hear excited voices about the school exclaiming to friends or parents over recognition for a community minded spirit or notable ability in thinking and discovery.
We believe it is vital to bring a cultural literacy into the academic realm, where children can grow up with ambitions to not just learn facts and figures or pass exams, but to become problem solvers, to work cooperatively, to really care and to give value back into the communities they find themselves in. It is why we are continuing to develop and enhance the academic backbone of our Common Entrance programme to encompass more fieldwork, presentations, collaborations and research. It is also why staff and children work so cohesively and productively together in this school, each one respecting the unifying elements of our Values that carry us all forward and help us to move continuously towards the best version of ourselves.
Emma Reach, Deputy Head Academic
