21017 Broadwater Prospectus

Broadwater offers a genuine commitment to the needs of all children.  Year 7 parent

At Broadwater, our aim is to inspire exceptional progress through critical, caring, collaborative and creative thinking.

Broadwater is a community in which happiness and care for others permeate the corridors. As a small school we know and value every one of our students. Our aim is to ensure that our young people make the very best of the opportunities we provide for them because we want them to leave school with not only great academic results, but also with a self-confidence and a belief that they are important members of society who have even more to offer. To this end, we value and encourage the qualities of pride, resilience and self-respect.

As a ‘Philosophy 4 Children’ Lead School, the skills of the 4Cs: critical, creative, collaborative and caring thinking, are at the heart of everything we do. We are proud to have been awarded the Gold award for our work with P4C; we are only the second secondary school nationally to have achieved this recognition.

This prospectus aims to give you a flavour of all the opportunities that are on offer, but we really do urge you to come and visit during the school day, so that you can witness for yourselves the joy of learning and the pride that are both evident within our community. Do please come and join us anytime.

Lizzi Matthews, Headteacher

I am proud to be part of Broadwater School. In my role I am fortunate to be able to visit regularly, and the ethos is apparent from the moment you walk through the door. Staff are enthusiastic and dedicated, and students are welcoming and proud of their achievements. I strongly encourage you to visit and see what this small but individual school can offer to its students and their families, and look forward to meeting you.

Debi Lawson, Chair of Governors

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caring Thinking

Staff are highly committed, caring and will always go the extra mile.  Year 11 parent

It matters to us that our students are happy.

We have excellent communication with our primary partner schools to establish a good transition to secondary school. We work hard to ensure that any anxiety or fears are allayed and students are excited to be joining Broadwater School.

Each student is assigned a house and the vertical tutor groups enable new students to be nurtured and mentored by older students in the group. Our merit and praise system enhances the sense of pride our students have in their school, their house, and themselves.

02

We are a fully inclusive school, and our curriculum is designed to challenge our students to achieve the very best they can. In partnership work with our Federation schools we are able to provide an even broader range of courses with opportunities to undertake courses in Year 10 and 11 at Godalming College.

Collaborative Thinking Are two heads better than one? At Broadwater we understand the many complex reasons as to why students should learn how to collaborate with one another.

Collaboration develops higher level thinking skills; it increases knowledge retention, builds self-esteem and enhances pure enjoyment of learning.

Our PE department has a wide and varied curriculum.

We successfully compete within the county in a wide range of sports. In total over 30 different sports are currently taught.

Our students’ voice matters. We listen to our students; we model the behaviours we want them to exhibit; and we encourage them to make decisions about their school.

Student bodies such as the School Council, Learning Ambassadors, and Philosophy Champions meet regularly with staff and share their ideas about how we, as a community, can achieve at the highest level.

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I’m so proud to be a student here, I love this school.  Year 8 student

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Critical Thinking Students are taught how to be critical of ideas, not of people.

To access the very highest marks, students need to be able to evaluate, analyse and challenge. Students in English, Humanities, Maths and Science learn how to harness these life skills in order to succeed now and in their future lives.

Our teachers have the highest level of training, which, through careful facilitation and questioning, ensures that students’ learning and thinking moves rapidly from superficial to insightful, thoughtful, and reflective. We teach them how to face challenges, how to learn facts, how to progress when they are stuck, and how to be resilient when confronted with obstacles. Through systematic monitoring our teachers critically assess the needs of our students, providing reflective advice on how to improve their learning.

05

Collaborative Thinking Are two heads better than one? At Broadwater we understand the many complex reasons as to why students should learn how to collaborate with one another.

Collaboration develops higher level thinking skills; it increases knowledge retention, builds self-esteem and enhances pure enjoyment of learning.

Our PE department has a wide and varied curriculum.

We successfully compete within the county in a wide range of sports. In total over 30 different sports are currently taught.

Our students’ voice matters. We listen to our students; we model the behaviours we want them to exhibit; and we encourage them to make decisions about their school.

Student bodies such as the School Council, Learning Ambassadors, and Philosophy Champions meet regularly with staff and share their ideas about how we, as a community, can achieve at the highest level.

06

We look out for each other and the teachers look after us.

Year 7 student

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Creative Thinking We offer a vast array of extra-curricular creative opportunities, from school productions to choir, orchestra, art club, photography club, to name but a few.

It is, however, in the planning of lessons that our emphasis on creativity really comes to the fore.

Our teachers have the very highest of standards and a will to engage and captivate our students with passion for their subject areas. We encourage our students to imagine and wonder about the world around them. We present them with problems and ask them to solve them. They are challenged to provide explanations, comparisons and alternatives.

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We inspire our students to develop their own creativity in preparation for their future careers.

As Pablo Picasso famously said, ‘Every child is an artist’. Our exceptional resources include a 3D printer, laser cutter, and kiln within our Art and Technology department, ensuring that our students’ creative aspirations are realised, and enabling them to attain the highest level of skill. When you visit, do ensure that you come and speak to the students and hear about their vision.

The range of opportunities and extra-curricular activities are outstanding.  Year 9 parent

Summers Road, Godalming, Surrey GU7 3BW Tel: 01483 414516 Email: admin@broadwater.surrey.sch.uk

www.broadwater.surrey.sch.uk