Our Christian Distinctiveness: Rooted in History, Flourishing in Faith
All Saints’ Church of England Primary School has a proud heritage that dates back to around 1854, when it was established by All Saints’ Church under a Trust Deed with a clear and compassionate mission: to provide education for the working-class and poor families of the local area. The Deed emphasised religious instruction alongside essential skills such as reading, writing, and arithmetic, all firmly grounded in the principles of the Church of England. Children were to be nurtured in the Christian faith through the liturgy and Catechism, shaping not only their minds but also their moral character.
This founding purpose continues to inspire and guide us today. We remain deeply committed to serving our local community and supporting our most vulnerable families, just as we did over 170 years ago. At the heart of our school is a rich, inclusive curriculum rooted in Christian values: Curiosity, Kindness, Respect, Courageous Determination, and Joyfulness. These values are lived out daily in our relationships, our learning, and our collective aspiration to help every child flourish — academically, socially, emotionally, and spiritually.
Our historic foundation and our ongoing commitment to our theologically rooted Christian vision enable us to offer an education that is both distinctive and inclusive — preparing children not just for exams, but for life.
A Journey Through The Forest
I approached the school, as I had done on many previous occasions. But this time, much to my surprise, I found my way blocked by a large forest, which seemed to have grown up around the school ……
My only chance of reaching school seemed to be through a narrow entrance into the forest. I stepped through and followed the forest path, trusting that it would take me to the school. I noticed that by the side of the path, someone had placed a sign which read “The All Saints’ Way”, so I was encouraged to continue on my journey.
As I rounded a bend in the path, a shaft of sunlight burst through the trees and illuminated the way ahead of me. The path had previously seemed dark and uninviting but now I could see some words on the ground in front of me, words which had been scorched into the earth beneath my feet. The words were familiar to me and gave me a sense of reassurance. They were from Psalm 32 V8: “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life”.
As I continued along the forest path, the sun faded from view and I could hear the gentle patter of rain on the trees above me. I noticed a small copse ahead which contained three tall trees – much taller than all the rest of the trees in the forest. As I approached them, I noticed that the owner of the forest had attached labels to the base of each of the trees. The first tree was labeled ‘The Tree of Discovery”, the second one “The Tree of Learning” and the third one “The Tree of Achievement”.
As I looked at each of the trees, I saw that - higher up their trunks - someone had carved some words into them. On the Tree of Discovery, the words “Discovering God” had been carved; on the Tree of Learning, the words “Learning Together”; and on the Tree of Achievement, the words “Achieving Our Best”.
As I stood there, thinking about the words in front of me, another shaft of sunlight broke through the dense canopy of the forest. The rain was still coming down and I could see a rainbow forming in the sky above me. Beneath my feet, however, the sunlight that had created the rainbow seemed to penetrate the very ground on which I stood, and the roots of the three trees somehow became visible to my eyes. The roots went deep into the earth, and as I looked more closely I could see that they had become twisted around the pages of a book, one which I soon recognised as a copy of the Bible.
Under the Tree of Discovery, where “Discovering God” had been carved, I could just make out some words from a page in the book of Jeremiah in the Old Testament: “You will seek me and you will find me when you seek me with all your heart”.
Then, beneath the Tree of Learning, where “Learning Together” had been carved, I saw some words from a page of Matthew’s gospel account of the life of Jesus: “Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart”.
Finally, under the Tree of Achievement, where “Achieving our Best” had been carved. I could clearly see the words from a page of Paul’s New Testament Letter to the Colossians “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart”.
As my eyes rested on the roots of this third tree, the light faded. The words which I had seen so clearly only a few moments ago were now no longer visible. All I could see was the earth beneath my feet.
As I stood there, my gaze moved from the base of the trees to the top. As the rainbow illuminated the sky, another shaft of sunlight broke through the canopy of the forest. This time I could see, high up, blossom and fruit on the branches of the trees. On the Tree of Discovery, I could see Curiosity blossoming in abundance; on the Tree of Learning, the fruits of Kindness and Respect were developing and maturing; and on the Tree of Achievement, Courageous Determination was blossoming into the fruit of Joyfulness.
I had never seen trees like this before. Where had they come from? And who had planted them?
So many thoughts were racing through my mind. In my heart, I wanted to stay in that copse of trees, but I knew that I needed to move on and find my way out of the forest. I continued on the All Saints’ Way, reflecting on everything I had seen so far. There was too much detail for me to remember it all, but I held on to the three words I could recall:
Discover, Learn, Achieve.
Then, the words carved into the trees came back to me: Discovering God, Learning Together, Achieving Our Best. These words filled my mind, and I began to realise that this was really the All Saints’ Way. Not just a path that I was travelling on through the forest, but much more - a way of living, a way of behaving, a way of being.
I continued on and, as I followed the next bend in the path, I could see the exit from the forest ahead of me and, beyond that, the familiar outline of the school.
Soon I stepped out of the forest into the comforting light of day.
As I did so, I turned to see if those three tall trees were visible above the canopy of the forest. But, somehow, the forest had disappeared. And all that remained to remind me of the All Saints’ Way was the rainbow in the sky…
