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The remarkable work of a Lincolnbased charity Page 8
New head of Diocesan administration Page 4
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Diocese of Lincoln newspaper www.lincoln.anglican.org
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Prize crossword Page 24
crosslincs 26
No 36 AUTUMN 2012
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New Church School to welcome first pupils
Left: Values and mantras on the wall of The Heart. Right: Paul Thompson, Katie McGuire and Selina Witts. PHILIP CRAVEN Philip Craven A brand new purpose-built Church of England school opens this September in the Diocese of Lincoln. In its setting near the Scunthorpe lake with the great chimneys of the famous steelworks nearby, St Peter and St Paul’s CofE Primary School will open its doors at the beginning of September to 90 pupils from the Lakeside Estate, a development of a thousand new houses aimed at first-time buyers. The school will eventually accommodate 210 pupils. Headteacher Katie McGuire, who has been in post since January, is excited about being able to shape the school right from the start: “So far my role has been to stock
the school, to staff it, to oversee some aspects of the build and even to pick everything from taps to paint colours,” she said. “I think it’s really important that the school feels like a place that the children and the community want to come into and that it’s welcoming.” The school will take children from reception through to Year 6 and has been built to a very high standard. There are spacious and practical classrooms each with their own outdoor area, a large hall equipped with lighting and technology for shows and collective worship and a large atriumlike space, affectionately called The Heart, which runs the length of the classroom area of the school.
“The Heart is really important and we hope it will serve as a place for children to come and be quiet, to play, to use the IT, or even just for a different working environment. While St Peter and St Paul’s is a Church of England school Paul Thompson, Deputy Director of Education for the Diocese, is quick to establish that entrance is not discriminatory or based on faith. “It will have that Christian distinctiveness and character, but is an inclusive school, open to children of all faiths and none, designed for local community,” said Paul. Katie, Paul, Selina Witts (Assistant Headteacher) and others have identified the Christian values of truth, justice, generosity, forgiveness, and respect which will
run through the heart – as well as The Heart – of the school in both its education and administration. Katie is keen to get parents involved and has already organised a ceilidh for the second weekend of term. The school will be central to the foundling community and a hub for local groups. The staff and teachers are excited about the new school term and the future: “It’s the beginning of a new team. That feeling of being able to do something new and different here is really motivating for everyone involved” said Katie. “Most importantly for us is that the children don’t just leave us with a good education but also as well-rounded citizens.”