William Davies Primary School

William Davies is a special place, developing resilient learners who are confident and adaptable. We offer a curriculum which is broad, balanced and promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, social and physical development of our children. It prepares them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life.

Our bespoke programme of education comprises the national curriculum as well as additional varied learning opportunities and experiences. ‘The Questioning Curriculum’ encourages enquiry and promotes independent learning in order to develop self-confidence and resilience. We provide personal, social and health education and promote independent thought through ‘Philosophy for Children.’ We recognise the importance of developing confident speakers and active listeners so that children are successful learners.

Our experienced and dedicated staff respond to the needs of the learners and teachers are creative in how this happens. A commitment to excellent professional development for all staff ensures teaching is of a high standard. We have high expectations for all our children both in their learning and behaviour and expect them to make a contribution to the school and wider community through celebration, awareness of others and citizenship.

At William Davies we aim to develop resilient learners who are confident and adaptable. As most of our children are learning English as an additional language we ensure that our broad and balanced curriculum has speaking as one of the most important aspects of developing our learners.

We offer a curriculum which is broad, balanced and promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of our pupils. It aims to prepare pupils for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life.

We have designed our own programme of education which comprises the national curriculum as well as other learning opportunities and experiences appropriate to the needs of our community. ‘The Questioning Curriculum’ encourages enquiry and promotes independent learning in order to develop self-confidence and resilience.

Our curriculum also provides personal, social and health education. It promotes independent thought through ‘Philosophy for Children’ and develops speaking and listening skills.Religious education is a compulsory subject as set out in the National Curriculum. Our Religious Education curriculum is taken from Newham’s Agreed Syllabus and Guidance which has been discussed, agreed and ratified by Newham Council, local teachers and representatives of all the major faiths and denominations in our area.

At William Davies Primary, staff and Governors are concerned that all aspects of school life are ‘fair’ and ‘safe’ for pupils, staff, parents, carers and visitors.Safeguarding our children means adopting pro-active measures to ensure that all systems and structures within our school minimise the risk of harm to our pupils.All those who come into contact with children and families in their everyday work, including people who do not have a specific role in relation to child protection, have a duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.

Our school has a very high proportion children who are learning English as an additional language, children who have special educational needs and children with a wide range of barriers to learning. To meet their wide range of learning needs and to overcome the passive nature of some children, it is essential to use interactive and visual teaching strategies to engage all children in their learning. We encourage children to be independent, evaluative and self-aware in their learning. These skills will be developed with the pupils over their time in school and be age appropriate. We encourage focussed speaking and listening activities in all year groups as well as providing opportunities for real experiences to develop language skills. Educational visits are organised to both enhance learning and broaden the horizons of our pupils.