“At Erith, over a long period of time, we have worked hard to build a school of which the Governors, staff, students and parents can be proud.”
We truly value all children irrespective of ability.
At Erith, we all want to make a difference to the life chances of the students in our care. Not only have we done well in terms of examination results but also in a huge range of other activities, which develop the “whole child”. We care passionately about sport, both individual achievements and team competitions, and creativity through art, music, dance, drama. We care about enriching children’s lives through school day trips and longer journeys which improve students’ understanding of particular subjects as well as developing vital personal skills. All of these go beyond exam grades and cannot be measured in league tables.
Erith School does make a difference.
Children in our school make good progress. They gain new skills, knowledge and confidence, as they move from year to year in preparation for adult life.
Finally, we have made a difference to our physical environment year on year. We have achieved new buildings, costing over £15 million, including the David Friend Sixth Form building, simply because we believe that children and staff work best in bright, clean and tidy classrooms.
We work in a culture of success and achievement – set in a positive ethos of a firm, fair and caring staff; the success of the school is down to the hard work of many teams of staff at the school; the teachers, the support staff and the Governing Body. These teams will work very hard for you and your children.
We are ambitious for the future.
There has been an Erith School serving the local community for over 100 years. We are proud of our heritage, however, we do not stand still and have ambitious plans for the future. Erith School is not a Local Authority Maintained School; this ceased on 4th June, 2007 when Erith School became a self-governing school, firstly as a Foundation School and then as a new- style Academy. In other words, the Governors are in charge – working in partnership with teachers and support staff, parents and the local community.
Self-governance means that the Governors take on a greater strategic role in determining the direction and development of the school. At Erith School, we firmly believe that we have the strength in our Governing Body, in our senior staff and in our teachers and support staff to do this successfully. We now enjoy greater autonomy, a sense that our destiny is in our own hands.
This means that:
- The governing body of Erith School is the employer of all staff (teachers and support staff).
- The governing body of Erith School is the Admissions Authority; Governors determine our admissions policy in accordance with the national Code of Practice.
- Erith School Governors have ownership of all land and buildings on behalf of the school – the advantage being that we can be more pro-active and can progress building and maintenance work more quickly, efficiently and at a more competitive price.
- The Governors have greater freedom in determining the curriculum to ensure it will enable our students to achieve high standards.
- Erith School receives all the funding allocated by Central Government rather than a proportion being held back by the Local Authority. At times of financial difficulties in public services nationally, this means that the school can decide how it spends its budget of £12 million for the benefit of our students, rather than this being decided by the Local Authority.
And…
- We continue to serve the community.
- We continue to deliver the statutory curriculum.
- We continue to work constructively and positively with parents as an important part of the school community.
- We are a community school admitting local children.
- Parents and staff continue to be elected to the Governing Body.
We are ambitious.
We want the best for our students, staff, parents and community; we want the best for the North of Bexley.
Welcome to Erith School!
Mrs S Allen, BEd (Hons), NPQH
Headteacher
