Foundation
We are a Church of England School in the Salisbury Diocese and welcome those of any or no religious faith as the community school for Sherborne.
Our School is highly inclusive. The school is proud of its caring and supportive philosophy with children and adults which it seeks to maintain to the highest level. There is a special Gryphon ethos, based upon the Christian values of our Church of England Foundation, of calmness where everyone matters and cares for each other. This helps create an understanding community across the whole school.
The school chaplain provides support working in school for 3 days a week. She was appointed in 2011 in partnership with the local church and Salisbury Diocese. Her husband is an associate vicar of Sherborne Abbey with a particular ministry to St Paul's Church. St Paul’s services are based in our B&E conference centre every Sunday.
There is a high quality Act of Worship for each year group lead by the Chaplain or an external speaker. There is also a year based assembly each week.
There are excellent links with Sherborne Abbey where the annual Prize Giving takes place in September on a Saturday morning. We also hold The Carol Service at The Abbey; this is an exceptional community event which often gathers more than a thousand in the congregation.
The SIAS Inspection in 2010 stated that:
'The distinctiveness and effectiveness of The Gryphon CE VC School as a Church of England school are outstanding,' and 'The school, through its distinctive Christian character, is outstanding at meeting the needs of all learners'
It says, 'The Gryphon successfully interprets its Christian vision so that it has relevance and impact on the lives of the students. Its distinctive Christian character has evolved to reflect the school's own context and is therefore an integral part of the overall ethos. The effect of this is to have created an environment in which students are at ease to engage in discussion and exploration of matters to do with faith and belief.'
'Students understand that this makes an important contribution to the atmosphere in the school. This is very evident in their relationships across the school community, in the way that both adults and children in school give their time freely and willingly and show concern for others.'
Established strengths:
- The extent to which students are treated with respect and dignity
- The success of the school chaplaincy in bringing a meaningful and appropriate Christian message to the school community
- The clarity of the leadership and management's articulation of the purpose of the school's Christian foundation
The full report can be seen below.