Vision and Values
Silverwood Phase Visions
At Silverwood School, our vision “Building Community, Inspiring Learning” is central to our commitment of supporting and challenging each pupil to realise their full potential, and belong and contribute to an aspirational and inclusive community. To bring our vision to life across all stages of development, we have collaborated with colleagues, pupils and other stakeholders to create a vision for each of our four phases:
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Early Years
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Primary
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Secondary
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Sixth Form
These phases reflect the universal journey of childhood, adolescence and young adulthood, and within them, we offer tailored curriculum pathways that respond to each pupil’s unique cognitive, emotional, physical and sensory needs. By setting a clear and ambitious direction at every phase, we ensure that all our pupils experience a fulfilling, age-appropriate experience aligned with our whole-school vision and are supported to grow, learn and transition confidently, just as their mainstream peers do.
Silverwood Early Years and Foundation Stage (EYFS) has a shared identity across our campuses providing a specialist and nurturing approach. It is the foundation on which children build the rest of their education, where they are enabled to feel secure, happy and ready to learn.
Strong partnerships with families are important. Our journey begins with visiting children in their preschool settings, home visits and a range of carefully planned stay and play sessions at Silverwood; we build trusting and collaborative relationships from the start.
At Silverwood EYFS, every day is an adventure. Our inspiring environment and curriculum encourage learning through purposeful play, exploration, and meaningful social interactions. In EYFS, children are learning how to learn and to develop the confidence, curiosity and ambition to achieve their potential. Practitioners, skilled in the EYFS pedagogy, celebrate every step of the learning journey and build on each child’s unique strengths, talents and interests.
With exciting resources, including inspiring outdoor spaces, we provide opportunities for child-initiated adventure, creativity, and discovery. Silverwood EYFS equips children with the values, confidence, and foundational skills they need to thrive as they transition through Silverwood School, ready to build on the exceptional learning that begins here in EYFS.
Silverwood Primary has a shared identity across our campuses, providing a specialist and child-focused approach. Our pupils build on their journeys from EYFS developing increased independence, belief in themselves, a love of learning, and strong friendships. The primary phase sparks curiosity, encourages creativity, and nurtures aspiration.
Silverwood Primary is a vibrant space where each child thrives, with opportunities that honour individuality, collaboration and holistic development. Our well-resourced, age-appropriate, and personalised learning experiences ensure that every child feels both challenged and supported. Cross-curricular links and immersive experiences bring children’s learning to life.
Consistent with the primary model, each year, pupils are guided by a dedicated teacher and are mainly with the same class group, encouraging continuity and strong relationships. Our curriculum is broad and balanced, reflecting children’s interests, specific needs and the National Curriculum. We cultivate a sense of progression that excites pupils about their next steps, with older children serving as role models. We celebrate growth at every stage, honouring and marking significant milestones in their educational and childhood journey.
Every pupil has the time and opportunity to actively participate, supported by a thoughtfully structured timetable that prioritises child-initiated learning and exploration. Our learning experiences create energy and excitement, with total communication approaches and high aspirations empowering our pupils to achieve and grow in confidence. Staff, pupils, and families work together and take pride in this phase of learning, and children’s enjoyment, opportunities, and outcomes are enhanced through trips and community engagement.
Our primary phase transitions through a carefully planned process into the secondary phase, supporting pupils in sustaining their success at Silverwood and celebrating this important next step in their educational journey. Throughout this process, we maintain strong relationships with parents and carers, ensuring continuity and support as pupils move forward.
Silverwood Secondary, based at our Rowde campus, offers an inclusive, specialist, and aspirational environment. Pupils are empowered to discover and develop their potential, embracing who they are and who they are becoming. Whether pupils have journeyed through Silverwood’s EYFS and Primary phases or are joining us in Year 7, we celebrate their progression into secondary as a significant and exciting milestone.
Learning in our secondary phase is inspiring, engaging, and rooted in problem- solving. Our expert teachers design personalised, accessible pathways that challenge and support every learner. Achievements are celebrated through nationally recognised qualifications and our curriculum is enriched with a diverse range of community, outdoor and cultural experiences. We continue to develop and honour total communication, empowering pupils to share their inner world, build relationships, and connect with the world around them. As pupils navigate the physical, emotional, and social changes of puberty, we offer sensitive, age- appropriate support that promotes self-awareness, dignity, and wellbeing. Through our values-based education, pupils grow in confidence, resilience, and citizenship.
Silverwood Secondary celebrates individuality whilst encouraging connection and mutual respect. Friendships, joy and a deep sense of belonging are nurtured through tutor groups that offer pastoral care and a family-feel, and are strengthened by inclusive clubs, sports, and shared memorable events. As pupils grow through their teenage years, we support them in shaping their personal identity alongside developing a strong sense of community and contribution.
We are ambitious for every pupil at Silverwood. Building on the foundations of their primary years, our pupils are empowered to progress confidently through secondary and towards post-16 education. In close partnership with families, we honour each pupil’s unique journey and inspire life-long learning, personal development, and self- discovery.
Silverwood Sixth Form offers a specialist, nurturing, and aspirational environment where young people are supported to step confidently into adulthood. With a clear identity rooted in belonging, dignity, and connection, our provision empowers students to grow self-belief, communication skills and independence. Silverwood Sixth Form is based at our Chippenham and Rowde Campuses.
We recognise that the transition to adult life is a significant and personal journey. Our curriculum pathways are creative, flexible, and highly personalised to meet individual cognitive, physical, sensory, and communication needs. Learning focuses on building real-life skills, supported decision-making, and developing confidence and independence through meaningful experiences. Community inclusion, enterprise projects, supported vocational opportunities and specialist learning sessions are tailored to each learner’s strengths and needs. Students are encouraged to explore their interests and aspirations in a way that is right for them.
Friendships, enjoyment and social skills are nurtured in a specialist sixth form environment. We offer age-appropriate activities, shared spaces, and inclusive opportunities that reflect the maturity and independence of this phase. Our learners experience the unique aspects of sixth form life as they journey from adolescence to adulthood.
Silverwood Sixth Form ensures every young person is listened to, respected, and supported to make choices about their lives. From libraries to leisure centres, town centres to outdoor settings, theatres to museums, work places to sports clubs, our learners learn to be active and valued members of their communities. Students’ are empowered to develop citizenship, purpose and belonging.
Families are central to sixth form experience. Parents and carers are valued partners as we support students to step confidently into adult life. Silverwood Sixth Form is a trusted and respected choice: a place where ambition and care come together to help each young person become happy, fulfilled and successful.
Silverwood School is proud to be a Values Based Education (VBE) School. We place our shared values at the heart of everything we do. Our values are principles that guide all our actions, decisions and relationships. At Silverwood School, we have chosen cooperation, courage, honesty, perseverance, respect and kindness as our 6 shared values. VBE goes beyond learning what our values mean; it encompasses living and experiencing our values every day.
All our values are important all of the time and we focus on one each term. Together we grow our collective understanding of our values. Our values are a shared and inclusive vocabulary for ethically based living. We use many different activities to help pupils understand and live our values. VBE is for everyone in our school community and begins with our adults role modelling our values.
VBE Schools have a positive impact on the world by influencing our current community, and by sending messages to the future through our children and young people. We belong to a growing community of VBE schools. VBE was founded by Dr Neil Hawkes and is an international organisation that schools choose to belong to. We have been recognised for the quality of our values based work and we are an official advocate for VBE. We attend VBE meetings and training, and invite other schools to visit us to see our work.
Dr Hawkes’ research shows that schools who follow a values-based approach have students that take greater responsibility for their learning and behaviour. He also found a positive impact on quality of work, respect for staff and emotional maturity.
Visit valuesbasededucation.com
