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The School’s Mission Statement “Christ is the centre of our school community where we live, love and learn together” is an ideal we try to live out every day.
Religious education is compulsory for all pupils and everyone is entered for GCSE in Year 11. All students in the Sixth Form also follow a general R.E. course. The whole school celebrates Mass together on several occasions each year and there is a weekly voluntary Mass each Wednesday morning. The Chaplaincy Team includes a local priest as well as a number of key teaching staff.
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Pupils frequently go on residential retreats to the Diocesan centres at Alton Castle and Soli House. Charities are also an important aspect of school life and all Year groups give generously, especially in the seasons of Advent and Lent. Pupils frequently go on residential retreats to the Diocesan centres at Alton Castle and Soli House. Charities are also an important aspect of school life and all Year groups give generously, especially in the seasons of Advent and Lent.
Pastoral System
At St Thomas Aquinas, we place great emphasis on our pastoral system. The- role of the Form Tutor is vital and all pupils from Year 7 to Year 11 spend 30 minutes each day with their tutor. In addition all pupils from Year 7 to 11 have a one-hour lesson with their Form teacher each week when they follow a tutor programme designed for their year. In Year 7, pupils are allocated to mixed ability tutor groups which are drawn up after detailed discussion with feeder primary schools. The Year 7 tutor team is an experienced group of staff specially chosen for their skills with younger pupils and their knowledge of the primary transfer process. From Year 8 onwards, tutors progress through the school with their tutor group and consequently get to know their pupils extremely well. In the Sixth Form, another specialist team has responsibility for students’ progress at that stage.
There are seven Heads of Year in the school, each of whom leads a tutor team and who has overall responsibility for a particular year group. Whilst St Thomas Aquinas is a large school with all the benefits that brings, it is never an impersonal one. The pastoral system ensures that each child is known and cared for on a daily basis.
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