Introduction

At St Francis Xavier we are 'Being the Best that We Can Be'

St Francis Xavier Catholic Primary School, Oldbury is situated in Sandwell LA and serves the parishes of St Francis Xavier and English Martyrs and is part of Emmaus Catholic Academy.

We are a thriving, multicultural school welcoming over 200 children from Reception to Year 6. We also have a Nursery for children aged three and above.

Our school motto is 'Jesus holds us in the palm of his hand', and our warm, caring ethos based on our strong Catholic faith is evident as you walk around our school.

We are an inclusive Catholic community that celebrates both diversity and the uniqueness of the individual. We work hard to ensure the entire community is able to grow and learn together.

We look forward to welcoming you and your children to our school.

At the heart of what we do is the belief that each one of us, adult and child, is made in God's image and likeness and is well loved by Him. We believe also that each one of us is equal in God's sight. This is the core of Christ's message and it underlies all that we seek to do here in school.

We aim to develop a whole school community that is centred on God; where the Catholic faith, its Christian values, doctrines and attitudes to life will be fostered; where the religious and spiritual life of the child will be nurtured, and where the child will learn to play a part both in the parish and in the wider community of different races and faiths; where they will learn to love and respect themselves and other people.

Our mission and values are taught to us by Jesus Christ - what He said, what he did and what He told us to do. These values are:

Respect for others, respect for the school building, respect for the values and beliefs of others, respect for ourselves, respect for our Catholic community, respect for other religions, countries and cultures.

Following Jesus' teachings by seeking to reconcile our differences, by saying sorry and by forgiving others and giving opportunities to make things better.

Knowing that telling the truth and being honest is always the right way.

Trying our best to show kindness to others in all that we say and do, having kind hands and kind words for everyone - even those we find it hard to get on with sometimes.

Every human being is equal and valuable and loved by God. Everyone in our school is equal, unique and special and we treat everyone fairly. Everyone is equally special regardless of their gender, religion, ethnicity or cultural background.

The school also promotes British Values which are central to our school values, ethos and mission. These include:

We teach our children to understand the meaning of democracy and promote respect for public institutions and services eg. visits to Parliament, MP visits into school, visits to/from Fire Service, Local Councillors, visits to town hall, debates. We support children in understanding how they can influence decision making through the democratic process eg. School council, suggestion boxes. Further, we encourage our pupils to express themselves, make decisions and recognise they have a valid contribution to make to school life.

We actively promote and model the rule of law by: ensuring the school rules are clear and fair eg. the behaviour policy is followed consistently; by helping children to distinguish between right from wrong eg. by using the example of Christ when dealing with behaviour that is not acceptable; promoting respect for the law and the basis on which it is made eg. through visitors to school; supporting children to understand that living under the rule of law protects individuals eg through our RE curriculum, theme weeks and visitors to school.

We actively promote and model individual liberty by: Supporting pupils to develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem and self-confidence eg. through our Catholic ethos, our way of treating people, by meeting the needs of all of the children, by providing equality of opportunity and by knowing and understanding the needs of all our children.

We encourage pupils to take responsibility for their behaviour as well as knowing their rights eg. through linking rights with responsibilities, by having a fair and consistent Behaviour Policy.

We support the pupils in challenging stereotypes eg., visitors into school, anti-bullying and anti-racism learning and other faiths fortnight.

We strive to promote respect for individual differences eg. through assemblies and Masses, the RE curriculum, multicultural learning, multi faith week and through our Catholic ethos. We help children to acquire an understanding of and respect for their own and other cultures and ways of life eg through Geography, International Links and Religious Education. During Multi Faith week for example, children visit different places of worship eg. Church, Gurdwara, synagogue, mosque and Hindu Temple. We discuss and celebrate the differences between people such as differences of faith, ethnicity, disability, gender and different family situations such as looked after children, young carers.

We strive to promote respect for individual differences eg. through assemblies and Masses, the RE curriculum, multicultural learning, many faiths fortnight and through our Catholic ethos. We help children to acquire an understanding of and respect for their own and other cultures and ways of life eg through Geography, International Links and Religious Education. During Multi Faith week for example, children visit different places of worship eg. Church, Gurdwara, synagogue, mosque and Hindu Temple. We discuss and celebrate the differences between people such as differences of faith, ethnicity, disability, gender and different family situations such as looked after children, young carers