The governors and staff believe that every child is entitled to an education that is rich, relevent, broad and balanced. They aim to prepare pupils for adult life by promoting their intellectual, spiritual, cultural and physical development.

The school offers a rich, broad, balanced and relevant curriculum made up of that which is included in the NATIONAL CURRICULUM:

•  All children from the age of 5 work on the National Curriculum. Key Stage 1 being to the end of Y2 and Key Stage2 to the end of Y6.

• We aim to develop the concepts, skills, knowledge and attitudes, which are necessary to tackle the diversity of a changing world in a practical and positive way.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

The school follows the Wigan agreed syllabus for Religious Education. An act of collective worship is held daily during assemblies. As a school community we strive to contribute to the spiritual and moral formation of the children as well as to their intellectual and physical development. Parents have the right to withdraw their children from lessons in religious education and acts of religious worship.

SEX EDUCATION

Sex education is taught as part of a broad social and health education programme in line with the policy set down by the school governors.

When the children enter Y6 there is an aspect of the sex education programme that is delivered by the school nurse. The aims of this part of the programme are to enable our pupils to cope with the physical and emotional changing of growing up and to provide an elementary understanding of human reproduction. Children will learn of the main stages of the human lifecycle, specifically the body changes in both boys and girls from childhood, through adolescence to early adulthood.

For girls this area of study will include menstruation, personal hygiene and the importance of rubella vaccinations. Children will also learn of the human life cycle from conception to birth and be given an acceptable vocabulary for parts of the body.

Parents have the right to ask that their children are not included in the sex education programme.

SPORTING PROVISION AND AFTER SCHOOL CLUBS

Every class has at least one period each week when they can enjoy organised sporting activities. The aim of this work is to increase the physical fitness of pupils whilst developing specific sporting skills. Promoting social and co-operative skills needed for personal development is given a high priority.

Sports offered include cricket, football, netball, cross- country, athletics, gymnastics and dance. The children in Y3 attend weekly swimming lessons with a specialist teacher.

Seasonal extra curricular clubs exist for football, netball, cross-country and cricket. Teams regularly compete against other schools.

Meadowbank has a large hall available for indoor sessions, hard standing areas and extensive playing fields.

ARRANGEMENTS FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

All children have needs but some children have special educational needs. All our children are treated with the same care and concern in order that each can achieve his/ her own potential. The aim of this school is to identify all children with special needs as soon as possible in order to select a range and type of appropriate learning experiences. The procedure for the identification and assessment of children with special needs and any subsequent action follows the guidelines laid down by the special needs code of practice. All parents are kept fully informed of their children’s progress and are welcome and encouraged to come in and discuss any concerns they have.

The special educational needs co-ordinator is the person in the school responsible for monitoring the work and progress of these children. Meadowbank school governors have committed as high a portion of the school budget as possible to ensure these children often receive adult attention individually and in small groups. All support staff are either teachers or qualified NNEB assistants.

For the majority of each day children with special needs work in class alongside their peers following the same basic curriculum adapted to meet their needs. Staff are skilled at finding areas in which each and every child at Meadowbank can feel a deep personal pride in their own achievements.