About
Values and Ethos

Our Mission

We exist to give children every possible life chance through education.

Our Vision

Every young person achieves their true potential. 

This means:

We are consistent, insistent and persistent in upholding a culture of high expectations.  These expectations are reflected in the highest standards of conduct, appearance, attendance and punctuality.

Outcomes are strong across the curriculum.  Curriculum leaders drive outcomes.

No student is left behind.

No student is held back by an inability to read at an age appropriate level.

No learning time is lost due to disruption or disorganisation.

Our community shares a love of learning.

This means:

We are committed to an ambitious curriculum for all students. The curriculum is planned and sequenced to facilitate the progress of all students in all subjects.

Students acquire strong subject knowledge as well as a broad general knowledge (that can be defined as cultural capital).  All teachers have excellent subject knowledge.

An evidence-based strategy for effective teaching is in place and is evident in every lesson every day. Students are taught in a way that ensures learning is retained.

There is a strong culture of professional learning and continuous improvement amongst staff. 

All members of the College community, including parents and carers, demonstrate positive attitudes to learning and to the College.

Our students are involved in every aspect of college life beyond the classroom.

This means:

Extra-curricular provision is of a high quality.  Participation rates are very high and the standard of all forms of performance is exceptional.

Students take an active role in shaping the future of the College through a wide range of student leadership opportunities and activities.

Students leave the College as rounded, confident, independent, young adults, fully prepared for life in modern Britain and equipped to compete on an equal footing.

Our community is characterised by an ethos of inclusivity, tolerance and respect.

This means:

We are always inclusive. We believe that all young people, irrespective of background or prior attainment will be successful at Unity College. Our work to support our most vulnerable children to succeed and overcome barriers to learning is recognised as exemplary.

Students feel safe and bullying, aggression, discrimination and derogatory language are never tolerated.  Students actively support the wellbeing of others and understand and celebrate diversity. 

We foster authentic, positive relationships which are based on respect, listening, kindness, support and constructive challenge. All staff benefit from a culture in which mental, physical and emotional wellbeing is taken seriously, is supported, and which enables them to carry out their duties effectively. 

Our Values

Everything we do to achieve our vision is underpinned by our values.   Students are rewarded for demonstrating the College’s values.

Unity 

Students demonstrate unity when they are a kind, considerate, compassionate, empathetic and tolerant member of our community.

What does this look like? What do we reward?

• Students are considerate of other people’s ideas and beliefs and discuss them with tolerance and understanding. They demonstrate empathy when exploring other points of view, whether belonging to people in the room or to ideas shared in texts or other resources.
• Students are aware of the impact of their actions, however small, and will try to support their teachers and peers in contributing to a positive atmosphere.
• Students use appropriate language and tone in and beyond the classroom and will listen to others without interrupting them. They may reference another student’s ideas to acknowledge their work.

Passion

Students demonstrate passion when they are ambitious, creative and resilient in their learning – both within and beyond the classroom. 

Students who demonstrate their passion for learning strive to always produce their very best work, understanding that this is the only work that fairly represents them. They want to succeed and know that this success will support success throughout their lives: the knowledge, skills and behaviours they learn here develop their character and their talents, opening doors and experiences in college and beyond.  They demonstrate the ability to think about a task or a problem in a new or different way and use their imagination to generate new ideas. They understand how to solve complex problems or find interesting ways to approach tasks. They understand the value of using existing knowledge to find patterns and make connections to find opportunities. They ask pertinent questions to develop their understanding, make observations and are confident to experiment.  They understand the importance of getting things wrong and know that it is better to try and fail than to not try at all; they accept that knowledge is gained in the process and is often deepened by dealing with misconceptions and mistakes. They see feedback as a tool used to support them and accept that constructive criticism is part of that support.

What does this look like? What do we reward?

• Students engage with all aspects of the process of learning: they listen well to instruction, explanations, questions and others’ responses. They think deeply about what they hear and are shown and make every effort to use this to develop their own ideas.
• Students actively engage in discussion and make contributions that support their own learning as well as contributing positively to the learning environment. They ask questions that clarify ideas and extend them.
• Students want to achieve as highly as they are able; they will not accept a mediocre response as ‘good enough’ but will always ask, ‘Is this my very best?’ They do not submit work that contains errors they are capable of correcting themselves.
• Students want to learn as much as possible in their time with us and make the most of the support available to them.
• Students make mistakes and persevere in order to improve.
• Students show a positive attitude to learning and to any form of feedback, using this to support them in trying again.
• Students do not let setbacks and mistakes deter them from continuing to work to the best of their ability.
• Students do not stop at the moment of misunderstanding but continue to think and to rethink until they begin to form a foundation for understanding.
• Students enthusiastically ask questions that expand their thinking; they make connections with prior learning and wider reading through their exploratory questions.
• Students do not simply accept one interpretation or idea but try to think about alternative ways of viewing a problem or concept.
• Students experiment with language choices, challenging themselves to learn new vocabulary that most effectively conveys their ideas.
• Students work hard on drafting work so that their ideas are expressed in the best possible way.

Respect

Students demonstrate respect when they respect themselves and their attitudes to their own learning.  They understand and respect the effort that their teachers put into planning their lessons and they respond accordingly.  Respect for others is a minimum expectation at Unity College.

Students who respect themselves, their teachers and their learning know that success cannot be achieved with a less-than-best effort. They expect to find work challenging and to have to try hard in order to complete it. They complete all work on time and know that this is their responsibility. They know that all aspects of learning, in all their subjects, should require hard-work: thinking, reading, planning, writing, re-drafting all need full focus and concentration.  They understand that ultimately their success depends on them and that their input is directly responsible for their outcomes. They know that their teachers are essential in their learning but that they cannot do the work for them or make the knowledge ‘stick’. They are empowered by the understanding that they can have the most impact on themselves and, through working with teachers, can be their own best resource.

What does this look like? What do we reward?

• Students consistently demonstrate a best effort; their work represents an impressive level of thought and care.
• Students are meticulous in their re-drafting of work and will strive to improve within lessons and across lessons.
• Students demonstrate self-motivation and seek opportunities to learn and progress.
• Students complete homework on time and to the same standard as their best class work.
• Students take responsibility for their equipment and class work.
• Students manage their learning effectively and are prompt in approaching tasks and following instructions; they don’t need to be reminded by teachers to begin working when that is clearly the expectation.
• Students make every effort to pursue wider knowledge outside of lessons, to research key topics and ask deeper questions.