A church school - for all faiths and none
Our school has a long history of serving its community. St Wilfrid’s was established as a Church of England school in 1857 and we moved to our present site in 1951. Our Christian ethos means that we welcome children and families of all faiths and none. We promote the wellbeing and academic, emotional, social and physical development of every child in our care.
We do not have a catchment area. Our children mostly live very locally. Further information about our admissions process can be found here.
Ethos
Our ethos is summarised in our strapline: Growing Success, Rooted in Faith. The full version of our Ethos Statement is here:
Recognising its historic foundation, St Wilfrid’s will preserve and develop its religious character in accordance with the principles of the Church of England and in partnership with our town parishes and the diocese of Chichester.
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. Further information about education in a Church of England school and our local diocese of Chichester can be found here and here.
Collective Worship / Assembly
Collective Worship takes place every day in school and reflects both the church year and our School Values (rotated half-termly), which are rooted in scripture and linked to real-life situations. This approach enables the children to reflect on their own lives which supports their personal growth and the way they develop their relationships with others. This provides a firm, spiritual foundation to enable them to take their place in a modern, multi-cultural society.
Church Links
We have strong links with our local Anglican churches: St Wilfrid’s, The Ascension and St Richard’s, as well as working closely with other Christian churches in the town. Father Edward at St Wilfrid’s, Reverend Martin at The Ascension and Father Chris at St Richard’s are all an integral part of our school community and are regular visitors in school to lead Collective Worship. They also welcome the school to their churches during the year.
Through our church links we support the following charities: Haywards Heath Food Bank, Family Support Work Sussex and the Children’s Society. We are also a member of the School Friends of Chichester Cathedral partnership.
Church Inspection: SIAMS
As a Church of England school we receive a SIAMS (Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools) inspection through our Diocese every five years to assess our effectiveness as a church school. Our most recent inspection was in October 2019 when we were pleased to be assessed as ‘Good’ and we are now on our journey to ‘Excellent’. The report can be found under the Ofsted and Church Inspection tab here.
