Our Pupils
Welcome to our Pupils' Page
Our Mission: Children and Young People at the heart of all we do.
Our Ethos: Work Hard, Be Kind, Have Fun & Stay Safe
Our Vision: To give all our children and young people opportunities to engage, explore, discover and develop their independence – to become confident, resilient, happy and well prepared for a positive and meaningful future.
Phase 4 Art Exhibition at the Trinity Theatre in Tunbridge Wells
Transition Strategy
Transitions can be particularly challenging for some of our children and young people. We work closely with our pupils, Parents/Carers to provide a personalised approach and resources to support them in preparation for the next phase of their learning. We achieve this by:-
- Parent/Carer tours of the school
- Pupils having the opportunity to visit their new classroom/Phase/site
- Taster days - personalised to meet the needs of each pupil
- Joint Annual Reviews with previous setting/school
- Collaboration between settings ('old' and 'new' school/class)
- New Parent/Carer meetings
- Personalised transition booklets which include photos of new Class Team and environment
- Personalised resources including visuals, social stories etc
- Home visits including: establishing preferred method of communication with home, routines, likes/dislikes etc
School Council
We have an active School Council which consists of a group of pupils who have been elected by their classes to represent the views of the pupils and come up with ideas to improve our school.
Thrive
Thrive is an approach to support the mental health and wellbeing of our pupils across the school. We started Thrive last year, in the middle of the pandemic and it is having a great impact across our school community. As a result many children are happier and more able to express their emotions freely.
Thrive is a whole school approach and every day your children are receiving Thrive either as a class group or individually. Thrive helps pupils to learn to regulate their emotional responses through fun art based activities, play, mindfulness, dance, music and so much more, plus they are having so much fun with it.
In September 2022 we also started delivering Thrive Parent Workshops where our Thrive Practitioners teach parents and carers about brain development and how to help support their child’s emotional development using the Thrive Approach.
After School Clubs
After School Clubs currently run on the following days:
Phase 2 - Tuesdays on the Tunbridge Wells site
Phase 3 - Thursdays on the Tunbridge Wells site
and
Phase 4 - Thursdays on the Tonbridge site.
Activities include art, crafts, baking, music/dance, games and in the warmer months, trips out in the local community e.g. Aspens, park etc.
Clubs run from 3.15pm to 5.00pm. Pupils attending can bring a change of clothes. A drink and snack will be provided. Children need collecting from school promptly at 5pm. The cost is £3 per week for each child attending. This can be paid weekly or in advance, whichever is easier.
Each term we write to parents inviting them to sign up for after school club. Places are limited and will be allocated on a first come first served basis initially and then on a rota basis.
Lunch Clubs
We also run lunch clubs on our Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge sites for those pupils who have special interests or want to do something quieter and calmer than play outside on the playground or MUGA.
On our Tonbridge site we offer:-
| Day of the Week | Lunch Club |
| Monday | Drama Club |
| Tuesday | Singing Hands Club and Rainbow Club (calm activities) |
| Wednesday | Spanish Club |
| Thursday | Art Club |
| Friday | THRIVE Club |
On our Tunbridge Wells site we offer:-
| Day of the Week | Lunch Club |
| Tuesday | THRIVE for Phase 2 |
| Wednesday | Music & Makaton Singing |
| Friday | THRIVE for Phase 3 |
Eco School
Oakley was first awarded the highly prestigious green flag award in 2013 in recognition of our commitment to the underlying principles of the Eco Schools award. We achieved International Eco School status in July 2021.
The underlying principles are Global citizenship, Waste, Litter, Transport, Water, Healthy Living, Biodiversity, School grounds and Energy.
This commitment is shared by pupils, staff and parents and underpins what we do in school. It is reflected in the nature of the school curriculum, especially in science, PE and outdoor learning. However it is also displayed through our extra-curricular activities, for example in the Duke of Edinburgh Award. Members of the school’s Eco Committee are drawn from every class and meet regularly to plan activities that further develop Oakley’s sustainable profile.
