Name and address of school: Kirmington Church of England Primary School
Type of school: Primary
Status: Voluntary Controlled
Diocese: Lincoln
LEA: North Lincolnshire
Dates of inspection: 23rd and 25th May 2006
Date of last inspection: 2001
School's Unique reference number: 118014
Name of Headteacher: Mrs Elizabeth Lockwood
Inspector's name with National Society inspector's number: Paulette Bissell, 88

Kirmington Church of England Primary School is a small rural school in North Lincolnshire with 29 pupils on roll and six pupils in the foundation stage. Part-time nursery places are available. Sixty-six percent of pupils travel from outside the catchment area.

The school’s distinctiveness and effectiveness as a Church of England school is good.

• A strong sense of community where everyone feels respected and valued in a secure and beautiful environment.
• An appreciation by parents and children of the wide variety of experiences that are encouraged through curriculum areas, after school clubs and local authority initiatives to meet the needs of all the learners.
• The commitment of the headteacher to the Church of England status of the school
• The importance and impact of Collective Worship on the life of the whole school community.
• The development of positive links with the local community.

• To further embed the mission statement within the life of the school.
• Continue to develop the special nature of the Collective Worship. Consideration might be given to a greater adult presence on each occasion and ways to introduce more of the traditions of the Church of England.

The Friday worship provides an excellent time for celebrating all types of achievements in and out of school. Pupils are encouraged to be proud of themselves and each other. This has helped create an ethos where Year 6 boys and girls confidently sing in worship, and pupils as young as 7 years of age take a leading role in the school’s council.

Pupils and adults alike speak positively about the small size of the school where each person is treated as an individual, for curriculum purposes, for particular needs and the development of individual talents. The ‘family’ ethos that is celebrated at the school means that older pupils take responsibility in a meaningful way for those that are younger.

Staff feel valued through the respect they receive from pupils, parents and each other. The village community appreciates their contribution to life of the village through support for and letters of thanks at events such as the Harvest Festival. This was held in the church with refreshments at the school afterwards. Parents speak very highly of the educational provision, the relationships and the Christian ethos of the school.

The pupils, too, enjoy the worship and the many extra curricular activities that give them opportunities to develop their skills. For example, the recognised key player in the football team is a girl.

The environment of the school is beautifully maintained as a place of learning. Play and quiet areas are being developed in an imaginative way that the pupils find exciting. They are given a chance to be quiet, to play and to grow fruit and vegetables eaten at the school. The sustainable and spiritual sides of the activities are important features of these projects. Pupils are excited by them.

Worship is central to the life of the school and has a number of outstanding features.

Pupils believe it to be important and sufficiently significant to be high on the agenda of the school Council.

Through the leadership of the School Council, pupils completed a questionnaire on the most suitable timing for collective worship. The majority felt that first thing in the morning would be best as it left them feeling ‘relaxed and peaceful’. It was hoped that this would last for the rest of the day. Pupils gave similar reasons for having it at the end of the day.

Pupils experience and are conscious of Christian forms of worship. According to the pupils, everyone involved in the worship learns about God and experiences the bible narratives together with Christian songs and prayers. The festivals are celebrated in school and in church.

The excellent quality and enthusiastic contribution of the choir is appreciated by all who attend the worship. This is an important feature of the leadership in the school. Their contributions to the act of worship are appreciated by everyone. During the inspection, participants were particularly moved by the two Year 6 soloists and the choice of hymn. It made worship possible for those who wanted to do so.

The Friday celebration worship is an anticipated and important event in the life of the school community. The atmosphere embraces everyone, creating an event that some parents look forward to as a special time in their week. The large number of parents attending regularly and their positive comments testify to the extremely significant affect that this aspect of the school life has on the whole community.

The Headteacher’s firm commitment to the Church of England status is recognised and appreciated. People of faith and none expressed their approval and comfort with this situation. Parents are pleased that their children are able to tell them bible stories and sing hymns. The links with the church are growing. A set of church keys is available for the staff to use. Many curriculum areas are explored in the building. As a result the pupils feel a strong sense of belonging to the church.

The head and staff have been strongly supported by Revd David Martineau and value his pastoral role.

The vice chair who is the Foundation Governor is valued. Active links between the school and the church that help create the strong Christian ethos of this school are being consistently strengthened.

The revision of the mission statement to emphasise the Christian foundation of the school and the deliberate development of a school ethos that lives this out and demonstrates it symbolically in the foundation of the school must be attributed to the headteacher’s excellent leadership of this Church of England school.