Welcome to Richard Coates CE Primary School's website.

Richard Coates is a Church of England primary school at the heart of Ponteland and a proud member of Pele Trust. The school was established nearly 300 years ago, making it one of the oldest established schools in Northumberland. We are proud of that long history and of a community where children, families and staff know one another well and where everyone is valued as a unique individual.

Our vision, Let Your Light Shine, comes from Matthew 5:16. We believe every child brings a light of their own: a unique set of gifts that reflects God's love. Our job is to help that light shine.

We live out this vision each day through our three core values of Kindness, Respect and Perseverance. Our children can tell you what each value means and, more importantly, they can show you. Through our house system, children are recognised for living out these values and the effort, care and character they show is celebrated across the whole school.

Our curriculum is designed to engage children and inspire them to become creative, independent thinkers with a love of learning. Reading sits at its heart, beginning with carefully taught phonics in the early years so that children develop into fluent, confident readers. In mathematics, children build secure number facts step by step, giving them the confidence to reason and solve problems. Across every subject, we want lessons that bring learning to life through doing: investigating, making, performing and exploring outside the classroom. Children are encouraged to be curious and to ask big questions about the world and their place in it.

Our extensive programme of clubs and educational visits offers something for every interest and we encourage every child to get involved and contribute to the life of the school. Through our links with the local community, children learn that they have the power to make a real difference in the world beyond our gates.

Collective worship is a special part of our day, when the whole school gathers to pause, reflect and think about how we live together. Children play an active part in leading it and are challenged to carry its messages out of the hall, living them out in the classroom, on the playground and at home. Our close links with St Mary's Parish Church and Ponteland Methodist Church enrich this further.

Children thrive when they feel happy and safe and when home and school work together. We greatly value the partnership we share with our families and keep them closely involved in their children's learning, sharing in their progress and celebrating their successes together.

I am very proud to lead Richard Coates CE Primary School and we warmly welcome visitors who would like to learn more about our school community. To arrange a visit, please contact the school office at admin@richard-coates.uk.

James Watson
Headteacher