Our vision is centred on being an inclusive, kind and compassionate community, which is summed up by the word ‘PRIDE’. We want everyone connected to the Pendock community to aspire to have pride in themselves, have pride in one another, have pride in our school and have pride in the community. Each letter of the word PRIDE stands for one of our core values:

• Positive Attitude (we find good in all people and situations);
• Respect (we treat everyone with kind words and actions);
• Individuality (we believe in ourselves and celebrate differences);
• Determination (we welcome challenges and always try our hardest);
• Excellence (we strive to be the best that we can).

We use this as the basis for our Collective Worship every day - a mix of teacher-led, pupil-led, community-led, Reverend-led and the well-loved I Sing Pop videos, which are all based around a theme. Each half-term the theme changes. We have good links with the local church, Pendock Cross, holding Harvest, Easter and Christmas celebrations.

Our vision is inspired by St Paul’s description of the body of Christ in his letter to the Corinthians, in particular chapter 12 verses 12 to 27 where he describes each part of the body as being vital to the smooth working of the whole.  At Pendock, our vision is to enable and encourage EVERYONE to be the best that they can be and to play their part in the smooth running of the school, to respect each other, support each other, appreciate each other’s qualities.  As St Paul puts it in verse 26 “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it, if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it.”  We believe that every member of the community deserves the chance to realise their full potential, to be appreciated for what they can contribute and it is this positive attitude and determination to respect every individual that enables us to strive for and achieve all round excellence, or life in all its fullness.

Each of our PRIDE values has a link to the bible which we use to reflect on how Jesus taught us/showed us a way of showing that value and how we can relate our actions to his guidance.

Positive Attitude - Spies in Canaan.  This story is taken from Chapter 13 of the Book of Numbers in the Old Testament. Like Joshua and Caleb, with a positive can-do attitude, rooted and grounded in faith and truth, you can move mountains.  A negative attitude, rooted in lies and exaggeration, can bring everyone around you down, and prevent them from fulfilling their true potential.

Respect - Zacheus the Tax Collector – Luke 19:1-10 Just like Jesus showing respect to Zacheus, we should show respect to all our fellow members of the Pendock School community, regardless of what we think of them or their behaviour, because it is only by respecting each other and spending time together that we will learn from and transform each other.

Individuality – The Good Shepherd. This story is found in the gospels of both Luke and Matthew, and is one of the best-known stories in the bible. Just like the lost sheep who mattered to the shepherd, everyone matters to God: rich or poor, male or female, child or adult, he knows us all as individuals, he cares about us as individuals, and he always wants to steer us back to safety and the group or family to which we belong.  In the same way, at Pendock we look at each pupil as an individual and want to enable and empower them to be the best that they can be.

Determination - The story of Josiah, who became King at the age of 8 and ruled for 31 years is taken from the second book of Kings in the Old Testament.  Josiah faced huge challenges and obstacles at a very young age, but with courage, determination and a good team of people, he achieved much during his rule.  The message of the story is that challenges can look daunting but if you get the right support, the right people and have a strong sense of purpose you can overcome even the most daunting challenge.

Excellence - The Parable of the Talents is taken from Matthew’s gospel. God gives us all different skills, talents and intelligence.  What we then make of the talents we’ve been given is down to how hard we work and how brave we are about pushing ourselves outside our comfort zones.  The lazy servant didn’t want the work, and feared the reaction of the rich man, so buried the money entrusted to him and made nothing with it.

We too can bury our talents deep and never work to improve them. This is not life in all its fullness.  Life in all its fullness involves using all the talents which God has given us. As we work hard and keep going, God blesses us with more talents so that we can be the best that we can be.  Excellence is encouraged and rewarded at Pendock, where we want all pupils and staff to be enabled and empowered to develop all the skills and talents they have been given gifted.