ABOUT US
Christleton High School is an ambitious, forward thinking and successful 11-18 school with over 1350 on roll including 282 in 6th form. It is three miles from the centre of Chester and serves a community of small villages and housing on the east side of the city.
Academic standards at the school are high and frequently the highest in the region, thanks to highly motivated staff, children who wish to learn and parents who support them. More than this though there is a shared belief that everyone has talent. The talented and committed staff team constantly strive to provide inspiring learning and extra-curricular initiatives with the focus on working with every student to nurture their individual abilities and equip them for success on their pathway through life.
The school has undergone a number of major refurbishments in the last five years to continually improve its excellent facilities for learning. All windows have been replaced, buildings have been re-faced and a complete re-signing of the front of the school has been set off with a striking new copper frontage, adding to its recent iResearch Centre. There is also a large Leisure Centre, indoor swimming pool and 3G pitch, which are jointly managed and available for use by students and staff during the day.
Staff Behavioural Expectations - the 5C’s
Caring is a central quality of human relationships. Caring goes beyond a particular behaviour or action provided on behalf of others. Caring also goes beyond feelings of concern and sentiment about others. It refers to the matter, manner, and motivation of personal and professional actions and interactions. We understand and recognise that students are the focus of our work, caring for students lies at the heart of effective schooling and good school leadership.
This means being dedicated to the welfare and success of all in our school. We believe that every student can achieve great things. So we set exceptionally high expectations for all our students, and we do whatever it takes to meet them. Our aspirations are no lower for our most vulnerable students. We hold ourselves accountable and take ownership of those things for which we are responsible.
Creativity is a set of beliefs and attitudes as much as it is a toolbox of skills and knowledge. A creative outlook leads naturally to high quality classroom activities carried out by creative learners. Creativity can also be evolutionary, being an innovative changer and adapting what you do, to develop rather than invent something new. To succeed in a world characterised by rapid change and increased complexity, it is vital that Christleton High School grows, develops, adapts creatively to, and takes charge of change so that we can create our own preferable future. Continual improvement – we are a learning organisation that strives always to ‘make our best better.’ We want our school to fizz with new ideas and fresh thinking. We will empower people to use their imagination, give them the freedom to explore, take risks and experiment.
The needs of our students cannot be met by schools and teachers working alone. Complex needs require collaborative solutions. Effective collaboration improve staff performance, but it will also improve student performance. Collaboration begins with finding time to connect with colleagues, to share thoughts, and provide support. We can have a bigger impact when we work with others, such as government and education organisations, as well as people at a local level too. From having key members of the community as governors, to engaging parents and taking part in local events, our school works with others to create happy, safe communities.
The Learning Trust
Based in Chester, The Learning Trust currently consists of Christleton High School and:
- Queen’s Park High School: a smaller than average 11-18 school, located to the south of the River Dee in the heart of Chester. The school joined the Trust in 2017 and under the leadership of Lyndsay Watterson, Secondary School Headteacher of the Year 2017, and with the support of the Trust the school is now emerging from a period of declining student numbers.
- Chester International School: a new 14-19 school offering a unique learning pathway including both the International Baccalaureate Diploma and Career-related Programmes. Soon to be situated in a purpose-built world-class facility, School Principal Kate Unsworth is developing a school which is unparalleled in its capacity for innovation, enabling students to go into the world with confidence, skills and a broad range of experience.
The Trust is actively seeking to grow through closer partnerships with other primary and secondary schools in the Chester area and beyond.
The Trust was founded on the principle that individual schools are generally best placed to understand and meet the need of their students and local communities. As such Headteachers and their Governing Bodies are given a high degree of autonomy. Local Governing Bodies are responsible for the strategic oversight and performance management of their school’s Headteacher and accountable to the Trust for achieving the desired outcomes. However, the Trust also believes that there are great mutual benefits to be derived from joint-working across the Trust to share expertise and resources and to give students and staff the opportunity to experience a range of learning environments. The CEO leads this joint-working, advises Trustees and Governors on performance matters and opportunities for improvement and supports individual schools as required. Headteachers are expected to work pro-actively and collaboratively in the interests of all students across the Trust.
In summary, the Trust aims to provide the following to Headteachers and schools:
- Mutual support network, within a framework of autonomy
- High quality service provision meaning that the Headteacher can concentrate fully on standards and experience of students and staff
- Opportunity to share and transfer success
- Further, continuous and ongoing career development and opportunity
- Diverse school communities within the Trust to challenge orthodoxy
- Pool of experience and trust networking to draw on
- Solvency, low central costs and financial security
Further information can be found at www.christletonhigh.co.uk and www.tltrust.co.uk
