Local Community

https://fownhopeparishcouncil.gov.uk/st-marys-church

https://www.fownhoperectory.com/

St. Mary’s C.E. Primary School greatly values its role within the local community. There are strong links with St. Mary’s Church and with other members of the village community in Fownhope. We enjoy participating in Sunday services at important times of the Church Year, and we welcome members of the church community into school for collective worship and other events. We make regular use of facilities within the village such as the community library. We also regularly invite members of the local community into school throughout the year for events such as harvest lunch, coffee mornings and fundraising events. Recently we have greatly appreciated the help of local residents in helping to prepare the school grounds for the new school year during our ‘tidy-up day’.

We are very lucky to be located in an area of natural beauty. In order to make the best use of our location, we regularly organise country walks, village trails and trips to the local woods. These have huge educational benefits for our children and also help to maintain the strong links we have with our village community.

We have enjoyed participating in other local events. Our children have visited local care homes to sing Christmas carols and have recently taken part in a summer concert involving six local schools, held at a local high school. We also participate in a wealth of events involving other schools, for example maths competitions, sporting events and church services.

We highly value opportunities to link with the wider world. We offer a broad range of experiences which aim to broaden the children’s knowledge of locations further afield, including curriculum-linked visits and visitors, themed weeks and working with a variety of specialists. Trips to places of worship and multi-cultural locations are also regularly organised in order to increase the children’s breadth of understanding. Our residential visits to London and Pembrokeshire are fantastic learning experiences for the children and a chance to glimpse the world beyond Herefordshire.

The school has worked hard since the last inspection to improve its provision as a Church school. This is very apparent in the links that the school has forged in the local community. This too is reflected in the vision. The school has good links with the local church and the vicar is a regular and welcome visitor to school. St Mary’s works with a local residential home, Brockhampton Court, in imaginative art and music projects. (SIAMS Inspection: June 2019)