Virtual Tour
Welcome to The Willows
Please note, whilst this video is still relevant and tells you all about our wonderful school, it is now out of date. We have made a number of changes throughout school since recording which will not be reflected in this video.
Evie and Isaac have put together this stunning video. Together, they explain what life is like for a child in Reception at The Willows.
We are incredibly proud of the wonderful job they have done telling you all about our wonderful Willows Family.
We are incredibly proud of every single one of our children at The Willows. We truly feel blessed and privileged that parents choose us to take care of their most precious gift.
We aim to create a learning environment that is exciting, challenging, safe and happy. Our dedicated staff work together to ensure that every child is valued and supported to achieve all that they can, both in their learning and in their development as young people.We firmly believe every child has the potential to achieve great things. Through working together with our families, every child’s educational journey will be a success – filled with lots of happy and life long memories.
Ordinarily, around this time of year, we invite families into school to have a look round and see what our school is like.
However, we’re sure you can appreciate, given the current pandemic, we are limiting the number of visitors we have in school. This is so we can make sure our children are as safe as possible. We hope you understand our reasoning but hope you very much enjoy watching our video.
Once you have watched our video, if you would like to talk to Mrs. Barnett, our Headteacher, please call the Mrs. Barnes in the office – 01772 684371 – and we will make an appointment for you to have a chat. We can either do this over the phone or, if you have a Microsoft account, we can use Teams for a video call.
We kindly ask that you do not share this video on any social media platforms. We do not post any pictures of our children online, other than to our website, to protect their identities.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Does my child have to be Catholic to come to The Willows?
No, your child does not need to be a Catholic to join our family. As a Catholic school, we welcome children of all faiths and backgrounds into our community in accordance with our Admissions Policy.
What is the criteria to get into The Willows?
You can download our Admissions Policy which details this criteria. Click here.
How does The Willows support a child’s transition into school?
In the May/June before your child is due to start school, parents are invited to attend a meeting. This provides an opportunity for you to meet Mrs Barnett, the Headteacher, the Staff, and the Parents of the other children who will be starting school with your child. Following this, we hold three sessions where your child will come and visit us, spending time getting to know staff and the other children. These sessions are spent in the Reception classroom, so that the children gain confidence in their new surroundings. Staff will then visit your child at their nursery, play-group, child-minder or at home so that they can meet your child in a familiar setting. In September, we operate a phased-entry, which helps the children settle into school life. On the first two days staff hold individual meetings with you as parents so that they can build up the best picture possible of your child and their interests. For the next few days, half of the class attend morning sessions, whilst the other half attend afternoon sessions. For the following few days, the groups change from mornings to afternoons, and vice versa. At the end of the second week, all Reception children start school full-time. We aim to do this on a Friday as they are often very tired and it then gives them the weekend to recover from all the excitement.
How do you settle a child if they seem upset?
We do understand that this can be an unsettling time for parents too. If you feel that your child is experiencing any difficulties, or is particularly upset, please let us know and we will do everything we can to make their start as enjoyable as possible. Generally all children settle quickly after their parents drop them off, but if you are at all worried, then please pick up the phone and call us. We would rather check on your child and reassure you, than have you worrying about your child. When your child starts at The Willows initially they will play with their class mates in the Reception Outdoor Area before being introduced to breaktime on the playground. They will also have a buddy from Year 6 who will play with them at playtimes and sit with them when we go to church. Its amazing how all the children in school remember their buddy from when they started school and many lasting friendships have been formed.
Are there any before and after school clubs?
Here at The Willows we feel that complete wrap around care for all children is extremely important; that is why we run our own Breakfast and After School Club. As the club is owned and run by the school we can ensure excellent value for money whilst keeping the cost to parents as low as possible by offering discount for siblings. Our Breakfast Club opens at 7:30am with a balanced and varied breakfast served at 8:00am. At 8:30am we also offer a ‘Drop Off’ facility so that parents can drop their children at school slightly earlier than the normal time. The After School Club runs from 3:30pm to 6:00pm with a snack being offered to all children at around 4:00pm. You can find out more about our club by following the link here.
