School Background

St. Paul's is a Catholic Primary School with a two form entry. The school is located in Thames Ditton and serves the three parishes of Cobham, Esher and Thames Ditton. Established in 1963, St. Paul's is a purpose-built Primary School. Whilst there are two playgrounds, the children often play together in the large school field which is also used for sports.

The search for excellence is seen as an integral part of the spiritual quest. Christian faith teaches us that our individual gifts are precisely that, God-given gifts to be developed to the full. In Catholic education, pupils are therefore given opportunity to develop their talents to the full.

As a Catholic school, St. Paul's is committed to catholicity, an openness to others and the inclusion of all. We aim to engender an atmosphere of trust through mutual respect, affirming the goodness in all our children and having high expectations of all members of the community. In this way pupils achieve high self-discipline and confidence. Thus we create a learning environment within which children are happy and secure.

We will endeavour to never miss an opportunity to offer praise, highlight positive behaviour and set achievement goals.

We feel that at every stage, the children in our care should be encouraged to spontaneously express their joy, wonder, awe, concern, thanks, sorrow, sadness, anger, fear and disappointment through prayer. Prayer is the natural way of expressing all of the above, through, for example, song, gesture, movement, dance, writing or silence. It is our way of communicating with God.