Vision & Values

On behalf of all the staff and governors, I would like to warmly welcome you to St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School and Footsteps Nursery. Our school and Nursery is situated a short walk away from the town centre of Bracknell-Forest. It serves the Parish of St Joseph’s and St. Margaret Clitherow’s in the Diocese of Portsmouth and is maintained in partnership with the Bracknell-Forest Local Authority.

We care passionately about our children’s education and go the extra mile to help every child reach their full potential. We believe that the mark of a successful school is that it values and develops the qualities of each individual. This is reflected in our outstanding behaviour and our high SATs exam results. Our staff are highly committed to teaching stimulating and engaging lessons, concentrating on making sure that children acquire all basic skills, as well as stretching every child with our rich curriculum. We are also a National Support School – where we share our skills and experience with other educational settings.

We recognise the importance of good manners and teach our children good behaviours. We also teach our children the importance of contributing to society by taking part in charity fund raising. We offer a variety of after school activities and clubs to further improve your child’s development.

School Ethos

We see God at the centre of the day-to-day life of the school and this is expressed through the concern and respect we have for the efforts and achievements of everyone. We value and develop the qualities of each unique individual and strive to enable all to live the life God created them for by ensuring:

The person of Jesus Christ is present, alive and active in our community
The values and attitudes of Christ are modelled by all adults of our school community
Pupils are encouraged to make the values and attitudes of Jesus Christ their own

School Behaviours

Our three school behaviours

Christ at the Center
Continuous Improvement
Consistency

Our behaviours are underpinned by the gospel values of service, sacrifice, truth. humility, integrity and justice.

Warmest Regards

Mrs. Juanita Dunlop

Headteacher

Contact Details

If you have any queries or questions, please do contact us by calling the school office and speaking to Mrs Baumgart (morning secretary) or Mrs. Njoku (afternoon secretary), who will be very happy to help you.

Any information found on this website can be provided in paper form free of charge. Please ask at the school office for more details.

‘We are growing together
on our journey of achievement
with Jesus in our hearts, heads and hands’.

Our journey

Our school seeks to develop the God-given gifts and talents of each pupil. We seek to form attitudes and values which are based on the gospel teaching and actions of Jesus Christ. We provide a large range of extra-curricular activities which promote the physical, creative, social, spiritual and intellectual development of the children. We encourage all in the school to learn to be the best they can be, both in their academic work and in their relationships. Service is at the heart of the school and we have taken to the heart our diocesan message to be true stewards of God’s creation by using our time, talents and treasure to serve God and one another.

Growing Together

Our school promotes the emotional and spiritual growth of all our children. We build strong and appropriate relationships with the children that go beyond academic achievements – we listen to their cares and concerns, share their hopes and fears, successes and failures and we are there for them as they journey through St. Joseph’s School. This can be seen and experienced throughout the school and especially in the welcome all visitors receive to the school, whether it is their first time visiting the school or if it is a daily experience.

Achievement

We give our pupils rich and varied ways of exploring learning and our school is a place where a spirit of enquiry and achievements are celebrated. The Religious Syllabus used throughout the school is the RE Programme, ‘God Matters’ which is recommended by the Portsmouth Diocese. The curriculum at St. Joseph’s is cross curricular and therefore Religion can be taught through other subjects i.e. English, Science, Geography, Art and Design.

Jesus in our hearts, heads and hands

Our practice of our catholic faith is not separate from the rest of our daily lives. We believe:

– in coming together in prayer
– celebrating the liturgy of the Church
– teaching about justice, acting justly and seeking to promote the common good
– reaching out to the suffering an marginalised
– in welcoming people of other faiths and of no faith

Our assemblies are a very important part of the school day. They are religious in character and regularly include readings from Scripture and well-known Catholic prayers. These are all part of the children’s faith heritage. The assemblies also try to bring home the Gospel values. A range of services, including school Masses, are regularly celebrated in school, where the children prepare these with the help of their teacher and priest. Parents are very welcome to attend Masses and Liturgies held in school. The school maintains very close links with its main feeder parish of St. Joseph and St. Margaret Clitherow.