GREAT GADDESDEN CHURCH OF ENGLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL in Hertfordshire, Hemel Hempstead

Education Centre Information: Great Gaddesden Church of England Primary School:

Establishment Type:Voluntary Aided School
Phase of Education: Primary
Status: Open
Local Authority: Hertfordshire
Boarders: No Boarders
Sixth Form: Does not have a sixth form
Urban/Rural Description: Village - less sparse
Special Classes: No Special Classes
Religious Character: Church of England
Diocese: Diocese of St Albans
Nursery Provider: No Nursery Classes
Total Pupils: 61
Number of boys: 33
Number of girls: 28
Age Range: 4-11
Gender: Mixed
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Background:

Built as a church school in 1857, Great Gaddesden School's motto, 'Think before you speak', is taken from the coat of arms of the Halsey family of Great Gaddesden which has been associated with the school from its inception. This small rural village school is situated in the 'lovely and picturesque' Gade Valley, next to Great Goddesden's church, and further accommodation was added to the originial building in 1895, 1961 and 1998. The school describes its standards as 'high' and strives to give its children 'the very best education possible'. Despite its size, it runs football and netball teams, chess clubs, French clubs, a choir, recorders and gardening of which it says, 'We compete against large schools - and frequently lose' Not always, though, and this summer the school won the Hemel Hempstead inter-schools chess tournament and got through to the last round of a national competition to compose a song for the millennium. Charity fund-raising 'features largely' in the school throughout the year and apart from annual events such as Children in Need, Jeans for Genes (Great Ormond Street Hospital), Red Nose Day and the Poppy Appeal, it also raises money for the Hospice of St Francis, the National Childrens Society, Help the Aged and local charities. Great Gaddesden has 'close links' with its village and church and an 'active and hard-working' parents association raises 'much-needed' funds. The school has a higher than average special needs statistic as, about once every two years, the governors' policy is to admit a disabled child who needs a small, mainstream school environment and it is felt that this 'enriches the life of the school'. The school currently has children with haemophilia, spina-bifida, aperts syndrome and scoliosis and a boy with Down's syndrome is about to join the school.