It’s that time of year when the kids have gone back to school and the pressure cooker of homework / exam prep / general academic stress begins to build again. However, some progressive schools, such as St Cedd’s School in Chelmsford, are approaching things a little differently – and parents and pupils are reaping the rewards. Muddy had a chat with headteacher Matthew Clarke to find out what’s going down at this non-selective pre- and prep school.

So what’s different about St Cedd’s School?

I’m a big believer in children needing skills for the 21st century rather than knowledge from the Victorian era of schooling. That means giving them a rounded education that has a high academic standard but also embraces change. This can be through learning about how to handle their future finances or looking at how we can help save the environment.

Sounds sensible. How’s that going?

Well, this year we’re trialling ‘enrichment activities’ for Year 6 pupils. By that we mean things they’re not necessarily going to learn in the classroom, such as mindfulness courses, forest school, journalism, cookery classes and philosophy. Areas that are important to their development as citizens. The aim is to nourish young minds one discovery at a time, and if it’s as successful as we believe it will be, we’ll then roll it out through the whole school.

Anything else you’re doing to help kids prep for the future?

This year we’re also really raising awareness of our school values. In my experience schools tend to list their values but that doesn’t always filter down into the classroom, playground and wider community. Our rules – be polite, work hard, be honest, be gentle, listen to people, look after property, be a good ambassador for the school and be kind and helpful – are at the very core of everything we do here. It also really helps prepare children for when they leave for secondary school and the outside world. We’re using the values as themes for our assemblies three times a week and also in the classroom. Even the youngest pupils are involved in learning about and embodying our values, we expect them all to be good ambassadors for the school whether they’re three or 11.

Is mental health an area you’re particularly interested in?

We take wellbeing seriously at St Cedd’s School. Last term we opened our Cosy Cottage (the pupils came up with the name), a furnished wooden hut next to our Wellbeing Garden. It’s a place where small groups can go to enjoy chatterbox sessions with matron, discussing anything that’s on their minds. We’ve also expanded our quiet area in the playground, so any person who doesn’t want a busy break time can sit at a picnic table and do arts and crafts or have a game of chess.
There’s also the St Cedd’s School worry monsters, which are introduced at Pre-School and continue to Year 6. There’s one in every classroom, with children encouraged to write down any concerns they have and feed it into the mouth of the monster.

But academics are still important, right?

Yes! High academic standards remain key, last year 40% of our pupils went on to get a grammar school place, while 40% went to other independent schools (a quarter with scholarships), of which we’re extremely proud. However if we can send children on from here as confident, well-rounded individuals as well as academic high achievers, so much the better.

Read the full Muddy review of St Cedd’s School or go see for yourself at the next 2024 open morning taking place on 18 Jan, 13 March, 1 May or 13 June.

St Cedd’s School: teaching life skills alongside academics

You may also like