The new £4.5million Freshwater and Yarmouth C of E Primary School was officially opened last week, with pupils taking centre stage.
The building was formally opened with an act of collective worship led by pupils and the Bishop of Portsmouth. They sang lively worship songs, recited poetry, and showcased a video that revealed their favourite bits of the new building.
Dignitaries – including the Lord Lieutenant of the Isle of Wight Susie Sheldon – joined politicians, community leaders and parents in the school hall for the celebration, which included an explanation of the school’s new logo, values, slogan and name.
The Rev Leisa Potter, team vicar of Freshwater, Yarmouth and Totland, led the school community in prayers before Bishop Jonathan Frost rounded things off with a short talk.
The new one-form entry school was created when All Saints C of E Primary in Freshwater closed. Its pupils joined Yarmouth C of E Primary, which has now moved into this new building on the former All Saints site. It is part of a federation which includes Shalfleet C of E Primary.
The new building was designed by Hampshire County Council architects and built using government funding. It was completed over the Christmas holidays, and staff and pupils have been using it since January – but it was only officially opened last week.
It includes new hard and soft play areas, a library, music room, a technology suite and a special needs resource base. All the classrooms are accessed via a single corridor, which also has multi-coloured breakout areas and roof windows.
Headteacher Elizabeth Grainger explained that among the items that would ensure continuity were a beautiful stained glass window and a safe used by Lord Tennyson, which had been in All Saints Primary. Some of the stone from the original Victorian building has also been incorporated into the new frontage. And the display boards showing the winners of the annual Effie Pitman award have been transferred from the former Yarmouth building.
Mrs Grainger has said:
“I want to say thank you to the staff. Your care for these children astounds me every day, and you performed miracles to have this school ready over the Christmas break.
“We did consult staff and children about the new name for our school, and in the end we decided that it was best to keep it simple – Freshwater and Yarmouth Primary, which reflects where we are and where we have come from. Yarmouth is a hugely important part of our history, so we wanted to acknowledge that.
“We also altered the three Christian values slightly. The children wanted something about not giving up, so they are now Respect, Resilience and Relationships.”
Religious indoctrination of our young people is terribly wrong. Teach them science based on factual truths. Church attendances are in a steep decline and this is how they bring in fresh fodder. Teaching a child that they will burn in hell is child abuse. Fact.
Surely not. You’ll be telling us Santa isn’t real next.
And what sciences is that? What facts do you think we should pass on to our young?
That Christmas celebrates the birth of Santa and Easter commemerates the death of the Easter bunny.
Was hoping for a good ol’ debate then, instead of childish rhetoric; though we’d need use of more words. I’m not deeply religious in their sense but I find it incredible that so many people base their comments on fear without realising that they live in that fear then have the audacity to pass judgement too. It’s not child abuse, let people live the way they want to. I know plenty of people who went to c of e schools and there really nice people and the irony is that most of them become atheists so your comment daveG is poisonous and reductive.