Prospectus 2014/15

Chiltern Edge School

A happy and harmonious school
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Chiltern Edge School
Reades Lane, Sonning Common, Reading, Berkshire, RG4 9LN
Vision Statement
The community as a whole will be proud of the school and will regard it
as a valued resource. It will be the school of rst choice for the majority
of children in local primaries and will be recognised as a school with
high standards and high expectations of all. Students and their parents
will play an increasingly signicant role in inuencing the future of
Chiltern Edge School.
Students learning experiences during and beyond the school day will
challenge and excite them as they prepare for adult life in an ever
changing world. Academic success will be balanced by opportunities to
shine in sports, the Arts and community service. Decisions they make
about their futures will be well judged and will make the most of their
skills and interests.
The school will continue to attract high quality sta who will make the
most of the opportunities to enhance their skills and extend
themselves professionally. They will enjoy working at the school and
will continue to explore best practice and improve on previous best.
Through their eorts the school will continue to develop as a vibrant
learning community.
Welcome to
Chiltern Edge
School
We are very proud of our school and the achievements of our students. We look forward to showing you round!
Chiltern Edge is a very distinctive and vibrant community. We believe that as the smallest
secondary school in Oxfordshire and Reading we oer a very supportive learning
environment. This enables teachers to know their students well and each young person to
feel that they can succeed and make their own contribution to school life.
Whatever your priorities, we believe that Chiltern Edge would be a very positive choice
for your child. We oer outstanding pastoral care, a competitive academic curriculum
with excellent exam results and a wide range of sporting and artistic extra-curricular
activities. As an International School we recognise the importance of an outward
looking and culturally diverse education. Community Service is a key aspect of life in
our school. The brilliant work of our Houses in fundraising for their chosen charities
and the campaigning of our active Amnesty International group demonstrates how
Chiltern Edge students learn the importance of making a signicant contribution to the
world they want to grow up in. The eorts of our anti-bullying Power Group were
recently recognised nationally when they received the prestigious Diana Award.
Thank you for considering Chiltern Edge as a choice for your son or daughter. I hope that you will take the opportunity to visit us
on our Open Evening and Open Mornings in the Autumn term to see what we have to oer. Of course we also conduct tours
throughout the school year and these can be arranged by contacting our Receptionist.
Daniel Sadler, Head Teacher
Chiltern Edge is located on a spacious eleven hectare site on the edge of Sonning
Common Village. Most of our well drained sports pitches are located in the South
Chilterns AONB. The school regularly hosts large sporting events such as the South
Oxfordshire primary school cross country series. We have excellent sports facilities
including a full size sports hall, tennis courts, gymnasium, tness training room
and squash courts.
Over ten million pounds has been spent on our site over the last decade.
Upgraded facilities include;
Performing Arts block with professional standard Dance and
Drama studios.
Dedicated Design Technology suite with specialist rooms for Food,
Textiles and Resistant Materials.
Modern Foreign Languages suite
School library
New school reception and meeting rooms
Upgraded Science labs
The school has a state of the art wireless network and computer technology is
a regular feature of learning from programming in PC suites to composing
music on mini iPads.
We have a full size lecture theatre with excellent AV equipment. This space is
used regularly for activities as wide ranging as House assemblies, visiting
speakers and the daily lunchtime Film Club. The school is wheelchair friendly
which underlines our commitment to working in partnership with the
co-located Bishopswood Special School and to making the school site
accessible to the whole community.
School
Site
Students are prepared
well for the next stage of
their education, training
or employment
- Ofsted Report

The Head teacher provides

highly efective leadership
- Ofsted Report
Students view the school
as safe and secure
- Ofsted Report
Support for
learning
At Chiltern Edge we aim to give every
learner the challenge and support they
need to make outstanding progress.
We conduct a comprehensive testing
programme on entry to ensure that we
know the potential of our year 7 students.
Challenging but achievable targets are set
for each subject and these are tracked
carefully. Students who hit their targets
early have them uplifted to ensure they
maintain momentum.
Teachers work hard to plan and deliver
interesting and varied lessons which
stretch and engage the whole class.
Intervention programmes and one to
one support ensure that students who
fall behind have the help they need to
get back on track.
Our GATE programme identies and
engages students who show high ability
in one subject or across the curriculum.
A regular programme of extra learning
opportunities such as Maths Challenges
and external visits is designed to help
these pupils aim for the top. Teachers
regularly organise activities in lessons
which take learning to another level for
GATE students. In Year 11 our PORTAL
programme has a strong track record in
helping more able students hit the top
grades. We regularly consult with GATE
students to ensure that they are
receiving the support they want.
In our Curriculum Support Department
a team of highly trained teachers and
teaching assistants work with
numerous external experts such as
Educational Psychologists to ensure
that students with SEND receive both
the academic and the pastoral help that
they need to be happy and successful.
The school provides strong support for
independent on-line learning through
excellent software packages such as
Doddle, SAM Learning and GCSE Pod.
These enable students and parents to
focus on the particular areas where
pupils need extra help or challenge.
Parents are kept well informed through
detailed progress sheets and annual
written reports.
Regular Learning Review and Subject
Teacher evenings give opportunities for
face to face conversations. Heads of
House, Tutors and Teachers meet
much more regularly with parents when
there are concerns about progress on
either side.
Throughout the school, Careers
education and work related learning
have a high prole.
This programme starts as early as Year
7 and builds to a very focused series of
guidance events in Year 11. Chiltern
Edge students move on to a wide
variety of destinations ranging from
those who gain entry to Oxbridge and
Russell Group Universities after A Level
to others who move straight into
employment through apprenticeships
with local and national employers.
Our four Houses Draco, Lyra,
Orion and Pegasus are small
communities of around 125
students led by an
experienced Head of House.
They are designed to ensure
that every student can access;
1. Skilled pastoral care
2. Academic challenge and
mentoring
3. Community activities such as
charity fundraising
4. Opportunities to compete for
the House in Sports and
other competitions
5. Student leadership roles
The Tutor groups meet for twenty
minutes at the end of each day to
review learning and focus on our
SEAL curriculum (Social and
Emotional aspects of Learning).
During this time the House Council
will also meet and other House
business such as the organisation of
sports teams takes place.Formal
House assemblies take place once
per week and range from House
celebration events to talks from
senior sta and presentations from
external speakers. Whole year group
assemblies take place periodically to
focus on specic topics such as
Option choices and Year 7 Camp.
Students who benet from an
especially nurturing environment also
receive excellent support and care in
our Curriculum Support Department
where the school Power Group
is based.
The Heads of House are supported by a strong team of specialist non-teaching sta
including our Attendance Ocer, Pastoral Manager, Counsellor, Careers Co-ordinator
and a full time School Nurse.
Students are all part of a vertical tutor group containing around ve pupils from each
year in the school. This arrangement helps to build cohesive relationships between
students of dierent ages and, for example, benets new Year 7 pupils by giving them
support from older mentor prefects in their own group.
House
System

Improvements in
students outcomes
can be attributed to
a well-planned and
evolving curriculum
that is designed to
meet their needs
- Ofsted Report
A positive atmosphere
permeates the school
- Ofsted Report

A comprehensive programme of extra-curricular visits is

designed to enrich the experiences of our pupils and to
bring their learning to life. Of course, we retain the core of
traditional residential opportunities such as the German
Exchange to Hollfeld, Year 7 camp in Henley, trips to
Kilvrough Outdoors Centre, the geography eld visit to
Yenworthy and the Austrian Ski trip whilst many more have
been added in recent years.
The Duke of Edinburgh Award programme in Year 9 brings
opportunities for expeditions in the South Chilterns and in
recent years a wide range of Performing Arts visits to
workshops and performances in the West End has inspired
our students. Another highlight in Year 7 is the day trip to
Boulogne with the legendary visit to a chocolate factory!
We aim to ensure that many trips are aordable and
accessible to all students and we work with parents to help
spread the costs when they do arise.
Sport
For many students, the most memorable and formative events
in school take place outside the classroom. At Chiltern Edge
we are passionate about getting every student involved in the
wider life of the school.
We participate in a huge range of sports xtures ranging from
Rugby and Netball to Canoeing and Triathlon In a small school
like Chiltern Edge every student has the chance of being
involved in a team if they want to. Chiltern Edge students
perform at the highest level. For instance, in 2014 one of our
girls captained the Wales U16 Football team, our Head Boy
achieved a place in the Wasps Rugby Academy and three
students were County Champions in Athletics.
Former students have gone on to Olympic and National
representation in a range of sports including Sam Townsend,
current World Cup champion in Rowing and Fran Kirby who is
part of the England Football squad. After school clubs,
practices and xtures take place on a regular basis.
All students are actively encouraged to take part in our
Inter-House competitions including Sports Day.
Performing Arts
Drama, Music and Dance play a pivotal role in life at Chiltern
Edge. Our students love to rehearse and perform.
From an outstanding series of autumn musical productions to
the vibrant summer festival organised by the students
themselves and the annual Amnesty International concert the
standard and variety of talent on display never ceases
to amaze.
As in sport, participation and excellence are the keynotes.
All who rehearse for the school production are oered a role
and leads in the show in recent years have gone on to places
in the National Youth Theatre, RADA and Trinity Laban. Former
pupils perform at the highest level. Natalie Dormer lately star
in Game of Thrones was Head Girl at Chiltern Edge.
Public Speaking
Another distinctive strand in the life of students at Chiltern
Edge is our long standing strength in Public Speaking. All
students are taught the principles in English lessons and many
take part in the school competition. Chiltern Edge students
have regularly won awards in the local Youth Speaks contest.
Beyond
the classroom

The emphasis placed on behaving well,

showing respect and being polite contributes
well to the students spiritual, moral, social
and cultural development
- Ofsted Report