About Edale C of E Primary School

Valuing each child as an individual

Enjoying and achieving together

Cherishing community and environment

Valuing

Our classes are very small, meaning that each child gets a level of attention bigger schools can’t provide. Our teachers are able to tailor their teaching to each child’s personality, interests and individual learning style. Outside lessons this contributes to the unique family atmosphere within the school. Each child feels cared for and valued.

Children at Edale School have quality dialogue with the adults in the classroom, which is priceless and cannot be achieved in large classes. Children of all ages play and work alongside each other, the younger children having good role models and the older children developing their skills assisting the younger ones. They are confident when talking to adults and show tolerance and understanding when dealing with problems.

Enjoying

Learning at Edale School is fun. Children have access to a wide range of activities from a very young age and are given responsibilities from the moment they enter school.

The whole school gets together for the creative elements of the curriculum such as music and art. Sport has a real focus and all children start regular swimming lessons from class 1 onwards, as well as taking part in activities aimed at a child’s emotional and spiritual development, such as tai chi and mindfulness.

Our playground garden enables the children to grow their own fruit and vegetables, which they use to learn about cooking and living healthily.

The children are also given the opportunity to make many visits to places outside Edale throughout the school year as well as regular trips locally to experience activities such as rafting, weaselling, archery, climbing and abseiling. They also regularly visit Edale Forest School (see separate web page)

Community

Edale is a small village with the school at its heart. The diverse community gets involved in the education of the children, through visits from local people (such as the author Berlie Doherty and the folksinger Bella Hardy) who often went to the school themselves, and annual events such as Edale Pantomime and Country Day at which our children play key roles. Each child is made to feel a part of life in this beautiful rural village.

Environment

The educational experience at Edale School is unique: children learn in the middle of the Peak District  National Park surrounded by the natural splendour of the Edale Valley.

Our new outdoor classroom, ‘Edale Island’ is on a beautiful piece of local farmland surrounded by a bubbling stream. Children regularly spend time here, taking advantage of weather conditions and seasonal changes to raise awareness of their surroundings. Our specialist teachers follow the Forest School ethos but go further, using our outdoor classroom to enhance the children’s learning of core curricular subjects. This gives real meaning to topics and encourages more active learning. Sheep and lambs are often keen to get involved too!

At Edale C of E Primary, the safety of our children is paramount. All staff, governors and parents are asked to work together to ensure that the school environment is a safe place to learn and to work.  We take our responsibilities for Safeguarding extremely seriously. The Designated Safeguarding Lead is the Executive Headteacher and the designated Safeguarding and Anti-Bullying Governor is Mrs Cathy Spingys.

We are a busy but friendly school, with lots going on. And we are now working in Federation with Hope Primary School from 1 September 2019, as the Valley Federation of Edale C of E and Hope Primary Schools. Our federation with Hope Primary school will allow children to socialise in bigger groups and experience the benefits a larger school can offer.

This website aims to give you a taster of the school, as well as providing up to date information for parents, pupils and the wider community. We hope that you enjoy your visit to our website, and that you find the information you are looking for. Please feel free to contact the school direct with any queries you may have.