At St Michael’s Catholic School our mission is to develop each member of our school community so that everyone can reach their full potential in the teachings of Christ and with the values from the Gospel. We, the staff, children and governors fully commit to living out the Gospel values fully embracing our school mission statement:

Vision

Our staff dedicate their time to provide the children in their care with the best possible academic education. However, we work equally hard to bring out all those hidden God-given gifts and talents in each and every child, to teach them good values by which to live, and to prepare them for the fast-changing world around them.

We consider our children as individuals and value the uniqueness of each and every pupil. We fully appreciate our role in preparing children for the future challenges they may face in an ever-changing world and therefore endeavour to prepare them for secondary school and beyond once they leave us in Year 6. By making their learning experiences enjoyable, rich and tailored to their needs, we hope they leave St. Michael’s with their own personal aspirations and self-worth.

St Michael’s School is very much a family school with strong relationships at the heart of all that we do.

We work together to promote Catholic values based on the teachings of Christ and to bring all members of the school community – staff, children, parents and governors – closer to God through the daily practice of those values in all areas of school activity and through the school curriculum.

Christ is at the centre of all we do at St Michael’s School.

Our pupils’ backgrounds, our culture and our climate for learning provide the following drivers that underpin our curriculum and our vision:

• Catholic values – we instil in the children key Gospel values which helps pupils grow spiritually and become respectful, caring citizens
• Holistic- we ensure our children leave us as well-rounded, happy and socially competent individuals
• Resilience – we equip our children with coping mechanisms so that they can flourish in an ever-demanding world
• Independence – we empower children to be in control of their learning and decision making
• Subject knowledge and skills – which help pupils develop their academic skills and give them knowledge for life
• Tolerance – respecting and valuing the beliefs, values, choices and opinions of others

At St Michael’s Catholic Primary School we want all children to experience:

• Success and having their success celebrated
• Resilience, perseverance, challenge and support so they have the confidence to aim high and aspire to more
• Spiritual, moral, social and cultural experiences threaded through all we do which will facilitate them with all they need to face the any and all futures
• Feeling safe and knowing what to do to keep safe and what to do if they don’t feel safe
• Cultural opportunities that they may not experience outside of school
• The history and beauty of the city of Durham and their local environment
• High expectations leading to high quality outcomes
• Being part of community as a class, school, village, parish, nation and family group
• First hand learning experiences that inspire and engage the children in new learning and encourage them to try new things.

At St Michael’s School we recognise that not all the children have the same experiences in life and therefore may be at a disadvantage with regard to using this experience to support them with their learning.

As a result of this, the school in committed to providing curriculum enhancement opportunities throughout their time at St Michael’s which not only support their education, but personal development as well, such as: trips, visitors, residentials, sporting experiences and regular visits to church.