About Thornton

Thornton Primary School has been serving the local community in Ward End since 1930. Generations of families have entrusted the education of their children to the school which is very popular and oversubscribed in every year group. The school is unique in as much as we have a one form entry Key Stage 1 but in Key Stage 2 we have five forms of entry (150 children in each year group) as we take 120 children each year from Sladefield Infant School. Over time the school will become once again a Junior School as, following consultation, we no longer take children into Thornton in the Early years. 

Last year, the children’s playgrounds had a complete refurbishment, in order to create a safe and exciting place for the children to play and have their PE lessons. We have also installed new fencing around the school site to improve security and further developed the school reception, outdoor spaces, corridors and classrooms.  We now have an amazing school library, stocked with a wide range of splendid books.  We are thankful to the Foyle foundation for providing a grant of £5,000 to enable this dream to be realised.

At Thornton, we are very proud of the relationship that has developed between the parents and the school. We welcome parents’ views and support and have an open door policy. Parent workshops are a regular feature of our work and we also have lots of parent volunteers who support teachers in class. The Headteacher, Mrs Sue Simmons, holds regular coffee mornings for parents and there is also a parent group – The Friends of Thornton – who actively support the school in a range of ways, including recently leading two Eid Mela events which were incredibly well supported and raised over £300 for charity.

Over the past two years the school staffing structure has been developed; a Pastoral Manager, Learning Mentor, Sports Coach and School Nurse have all been appointed to provide enhanced support for pupils’ personal development, behaviour and welfare. The introduction of these staff members also helps to ensure the overall health and well-being of all the pupils in school. For example, the quality of Sports both within the curriculum and also extra-curricular activities, has also been vastly improved by our Sports Coach and a healthy lifestyle is strongly encouraged for both staff and pupils. Weekly Tea parties, held by the Head teacher for Star Pupils, are designed to motivate children in positive ways and promote overall high expectations.

Our computer hardware and software is constantly being updated to ensure that children have access to the latest technology. Every class has a 75” interactive, touch screen computer and 15 iPads so that technology is a high focus in class teaching. We also have a well-equipped ICT suite where children can develop their IT and computing skills.

At Thornton Primary School we pride ourselves on a friendly environment where all staff and pupils treat one another with respect and form positive relationships which ensure a happy and safe atmosphere.