Ethos, values and Vision
OUR ETHOS
We value everyone, nurture their strengths and enable them to flourish.
OUR VALUES
Caring, Curious, Confident
Caring ~ how we treat people and our world.
It means showing compassion, kindness, nurture and support, while valuing others through respect, inclusion and tolerance. Caring also involves honesty, trustworthiness and fairness and being helpful, thoughtful, welcoming and safe. It extends to eco‑awareness, good citizenship and looking after our community so everyone can thrive.
Curious ~ how we learn, think and imagine.
It places learning at the heart of our school, celebrating creativity, exploration and ambition. Being curious means showing inquisitiveness, questioning and a love of discovery, while using creativity, imagination and innovation to understand the world more deeply. It encourages deep thinking, big dreams, endless possibilities and embracing our uniqueness as learners.
learning and life.
It means showing resilience, perseverance and patience, while growing in bravery, independence and self-belief. Being confident also involves adaptability, sensible risk‑taking and consistent effort, as well as taking responsibility and making good choices. With positivity, reflection and resourcefulness, confidence helps us move forward and thrive.
OUR VISION
Empower everyone to discover their potential, develop the skills to thrive with confidence and compassion, and make a positive difference in the world.
At the heart of our vision are our three key drivers:
People, Planet and Potential
People: we put people first. Kindness, inclusion, respect and support are the golden threads that run through our school day. Our school community is ambitious yet supportive; a place where everyone is valued and belongs.
Planet: We care deeply about our planet and our responsibility to protect it. We learn together how to make choices that are sustainable, kind, and thoughtful—helping children become global citizens who care about the world around them.
Potential: We believe every child and adult in our school community has unique potential, and it's our job to nurture it—whether that’s academic, creative, social or emotional. We are an ambitious, supportive community where success is celebrated in all its forms.
OUR AIMS
To achieve this vision, the governing board are committed to the following aims:
1. Children and adults experience a safe learning environment in which their safety, welfare and wellbeing is paramount.
2. Children, staff, parents and carers experience effective school management and use of financial resources.
3. Children are prepared for their future learning because of an effective and appropriate curriculum.
4. Children’s progress and attainment (in terms of nationally measured knowledge and skills) is consistently above national year on year standards.
5. Children possess knowledge and awareness of the world they live in, together with the steps they can take to make a positive impact on it. Children experience Ashdown Primary School as an integral part of its local community. Children express informed attitudes and opinions on current global issues such as pollution, climate change, plastics use and health etc. and consider these in terms of their own actions and the impacts they have as global citizens.
6. Children demonstrate positive behaviours and attitudes to keeping themselves and others safe, because of both their taught curriculum and in school experiences designed to build personal resilience.
7. Children understand and express British values, attitudes, and behaviours towards fellow citizens, both within our local community and importantly, across the whole nation, recognising that our local community does not reflect the full ethnic and cultural diversity of the UK.
8. Children engage in a wide range of enrichment activities. These include the arts, music, sport, dance and other after school teams and clubs.
9. Because we have two sites’ children experience a developmentally appropriate ‘two stage culture’, that first nurtures them at the beginning of their school lives and then prepares them for the next step into secondary education at the end of their time at Ashdown.
10. Children are taught by and interact with highly trained and well-motivated staff who benefit from high quality, relevant continuing professional development, aligning with the requirements of the curriculum, pupil progress, attainment, safeguarding, their professional performance and career pathways.
11. Children, their parents and carers enjoy the highest standards of information and communications from the school. This is further reinforced by the development of a strong brand image for the school, ensuring we remain the school of choice in Crowborough.
12. Children, parents and carers have total confidence in the school through the effective management of their concerns and complaints using robust processes and policies.
Equal Opportunities
At Ashdown Primary School we believe that all children, regardless of first language, disability, race, gender, cultural or socio-economic background, should receive equal access to the full school curriculum.
Disability Statement
Ashdown Primary School is proud to be an inclusive school. We are able to offer access to the full curriculum for children who have a physical disability.
We have full access to the infant building, partial access (full access to all areas for compulsory learning eg IT suite and swimming pool) and have disabled toilet facilities at both sites.
As with any additional needs the schools work closely with parents and appropriate outside agencies
