Leatherhead Parish Church

from the February 2006 Parish Mgazine
LEATHERHEAD TRINITY
Plans are now coming together for the opening of a new Church school in Leatherhead later this year. In September the three existing schools for primary age children will officially close and the new Leatherhead Trinity Primary School and Children's Centre will come into being. The new Head Teacher, Alison Edwards, has been appointed and is beginning to assume responsibilities in her new role. Initially the new school will be on the three existing sites at St. Mary's, All Saints and The Woodville.

But come September 2007 the hope is that the new buildings on one site will be completed where the present Woodville School is situated.

What will open in September 2006 is the Leatherhead Trinity Children's Centre. Children's Centres are new and some 8,000 are due to be created across the country, just over 40 of these in Surrey. They are particularly focused on areas of disadvantage but aim to serve the whole community where they are located.

The Leatherhead Children's Centre will be on the present All Saints' site in Aperdele Road. It will bring together on one site a range of Children's Services.

Education will be one provision with a Nursery class and Reception class and part of the overall Leatherhead Trinity School; Day-care will also be present for children from 0-4 years as well as wrap-around care before and after school; The All Saints' Family Project which offers a variety of family and educational support, including pre-school preparation through play, will be on site and some Health Care services will also be available.

To deliver these services a charitable company is being set up. This will be partly directly funded by public money but will also receive revenue from day-care services offered.

Leatherhead Trinity and Children's Centre aims to make a new start for the delivery of primary education and pre-school provision in Leatherhead. Three local Churches - Anglican, Methodist and United Reformed - all of whom have places on the Governing body, uniquely support it.

It is a voluntary-controlled school with a Church foundation. The Church was instrumental in establishing education in Leatherhead in the Victorian and Edwardian eras. It is appropriate that we are still seeking to support education in this new development. Sometimes faith schools can be thought to be controversial. This is because they can become narrowly focused on a particular faith community for admissions. This will not be the case for Leatherhead Trinity. The Churches believe in an open door approach and a school, which will serve the whole community where families of all faiths and none are welcome.

For the existing schools, to their staff and parents this transition means upheaval and some uncertainty. Please pray for them as the school comes into being and support those known to you. And, also take an interest and concern for the school itself, which will welcome support from the wider community it serves. David Eaton