Welcome…. …….from The Roman Catholic Diocese of East Anglia The Sisters of the Sacred Heart, and Governors of the Sacred Heart School ….. to our drop-in consultation event on a possible new primary school in Swaffham. www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

Format of the event Informal, but a very important part of our new school planning process Short presentation on the half hour– general areas for questioning One-to-one questions to our team at any time Please fill in comment forms before you go www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

Our vision To provide parents in the mid-Norfolk area with the choice of an Outstanding state-funded Catholic primary school for their children To build on the spiritual and educational tradition of the existing Sacred Heart school To safeguard the excellent facilities at the school for the long-term benefit of children and the wider community www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

But… …we cannot just dream – we have to demonstrate that the school will be successful by: Being attractive to enough parents and pupils to generate, in time, a roll of 210 pupils Having from the start high quality leadership, staff and governors to provide an excellent education for all pupils Gaining a Good or Outstanding rating from OFSTED on their first visit so….we need your thoughts to help us to make the vision a reality. www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

Where we are now.. The Diocese is leading the legal process to establish the new school The law requires Norfolk County Council to make the decision on whether the new school can go ahead We would like this decision by the end of April so we can open the new school in September 2019 The first stage is the current consultation between now and February 15th Full details are set out in our paper- and web-based consultation documents These have been sent out to anyone we think has an interest in the school or will be affected by it www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

How will the new school operate? 210 places (one form in each primary year group) This number of places will help meet the demand from new housing Voluntary Aided A faith school run locally by locally-appointed governors, supported by the Diocese An admissions policy which reflects this faith basis State-funded By replacing a fee-paying school the new school will become available to more families, but still be available to existing pupils With a pre-school group Governors will manage the existing Little Pedlars pre-school Able to use all the facilities of the existing school Governors will look to extend community use www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

A school in the Catholic faith tradition We have a strong track record of successful state schools We offer clear, faith-based values for all staff and pupils in our learning communities Senior leaders in other Catholic schools will support the new school Pupils’ spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development will be at the heart of the school’s work The RE curriculum will offer a wide range of learning experiences about all faiths, as well as about the Catholic faith We will put into practice the strong Catholic commitment to ethnic, racial and cultural diversity, and to an inclusive education for all pupils www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

How you can help us Give a general opinion of whether you support the idea of a new school Give your ideas and suggestions about how our proposal can be improved so that it is as strong as possible Challenge and question us to test how strong our plans are Let us know if you think you would like your child/children to have a place at the new school in September www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

How to respond to us Give your comments now or individually to one of our team Fill in the form before you go Send us an online response when you have thought more about the proposal www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva

What happens next? The consultation runs until February 15th We will then decide whether to publish a formal proposal We will let everyone know our decision at this stage The formal proposal is published in the press and is open for public comments At the end of four weeks we will prepare a submission for the County Council Within two months – but we hope by the end of April – the County Council has to make a decision We will then, if the proposal is approved, recruit senior staff and an interim governing body to carry out detailed planning for the opening in September www.rcdea.org.uk/sacredheartva