|
Contents: -
Click on an item above to view.
Our School
Our school is in the village of Tipton St. John next door to the church. It is situated on two sites divided by a road. The youngest children are based in the building on the lower site. The two older classes are based in the original main building which was refurbished in 1992. The school office is on the lower site. The village hall is used for PE, school lunches, assemblies and extra-curricular music lessons.
The school site includes playgrounds and a large grassed area. Our gardening club takes responsibility for developing the grounds. Recent additions have included a willow dome and willow tunnels. We make regular use of the village facilities, the church, village hall, playing fields and the river as well as the village environment itself. We also take visits further afield to provide a variety of learning experiences. The school serves the village of Tipton St John and surrounding villages and rural area. In addition a number of children travel from outside the designated catchment area.
The Foundation & Early History
of the School
In 1843, in the fifth year of the reign of Queen Victoria, Tipton St John National School was opened under the auspices of Sarah Ireland. About 500 people lived in the village and prior to that date the teaching had been 'conducted in a poor cottage' and had been ' mainly supported by subscription of persons resident outside of the district'. The site for the building had been given by the Vicar of Ottery St Mary, the Revd. S.V. Cornish and £158.7s.11d had been raised towards the estimated total cost of £240.00. The Church of England National Society had donated £25.00 and the Honiton Board of Education £10.00. An application was made to the committee of the Council of Education (now the DCSF) for the balance, since the population of Tipton at that time was very poor and there was no possibility of raising any money from this quarter.
When the school opened the infants were upstairs and the juniors on the ground floor but in 1890 the stairs and the upper floor were removed and an extension built on the back to house the infants. It was thanks to the Church of England that Tipton got its school. The Church has always been close to its school both physically and spiritually. It was entirely appropriate therefore that in 1953 the school took its present status of 'Voluntary Aided'. The school was completely re-furbished in 1992 with the upstairs being re-built. Following the refurbishment, the school increased to three classes. Increased numbers and additional funding permitted the creation of an Early Years base, with children in the Foundation Stage and Years 1 and 2 working together in the two lower site classrooms with two teachers and 2 part-time learning support assistants.
Responsibility at Tipton
The school at Tipton St John, embracing children and staff, families, governors, the church, the village and the local area, is privileged to be both a large community and a mini-society. Children are invited to take on a range of responsibilities – and the attendant workload – such as librarian, lunchtime telephone team member or lunchtime playleader. For these roles, applications have to be made and children undergo formal interviews with the Headteacher and governors. In order to join the Gardening Club, children are required to submit plans and state their vision for developing the school grounds.
Family Groups
All children are assigned to a “Family Group”. Each group is made up of children from all year-groups, from Reception to Year 6, with one or two members of staff. Meeting fortnightly, the groups play games and talk together. These groups provide a forum for discussion; decisions about improvements to the school often have their beginnings in our Family Groups. The groups enable children from across the school to get to know children outside their own immediate circle of friends. Older children “keep an eye out” for the little ones from their Family Group and the younger children come to realise that big children need looking-after too.
Extra-Curricular Activities
We encourage children to develop interests through clubs arranged by school and other organisations. We recognise the importance of supporting pupils in their out-of-school activities and celebrating their successes. Some children have instrumental music tuition, for which there is a charge. From time to time we have a school band which provides opportunities for children who play an instrument to perform with others. As part of our curriculum music this year, every child in the school has started to learn the recorder. Swimming lessons are provided for children in Years 3 and 4 as part of the PE curriculum. We have a very keen gardening club. Recently we have run a choir, an art club, gardening club, an ICT club, KS1 hockey, multi-skills, netball, recorders and a sports club. Children have also participated in staff meetings.
Admissions
For information on applying for your child to attend Tipton St John Primary School, please visit Devon County Council's Admissions & Transfers page.
|
