Aims & Values
Our Educational Aims
We have distilled each of these six World Ready components into one over-arching strategic aim, as we look towards 2030. We aim to:
- Build a culture of care that supports every child.
- Ensure every student reaches their full academic potential.
- Enable every child to find and develop a co-curricular passion.
- Equip students with the employability and enterprise skills to succeed in a rapidly changing modern workplace.
- Help students engage constructively to form their own perspectives on complex societal issues, while always respecting other viewpoints.
- Broaden students’ horizons through meaningful connections locally and globally.
- Fulfil the College values of Engagement, Compassion, Resilience and Collaboration.
Our Supporting Aims
To support these educational aims, the College seeks to:
- Maintain a school at optimal size and with a healthy co-educational balance.
- Recruit, retain and develop outstanding staff.
- Engage parents in strong parent-school partnerships through effective communication and building high-trust relationships.
- Communicate the College’s VAT plan to mitigate the tax burden and protect the integrity of students’ school experience.
- Widen access to the College through building the endowment for means-tested bursaries.
- Invest in the campus infrastructure and facilities to deliver educational aims and ensure operational efficiency.
The College is also committed to unifying the Prep School on the Farmhouse site and aims to complete this in phases by 2030.
Our Values
Ardingly is a values-led school and World Ready is a values-led education that values above all the personal qualities of our students. The College has Christian foundations and welcomes students of all faiths and none; we seek to express Christian values in a way that is meaningful for children regardless of their personal faith.
Engagement
Ardingly students know that to be fully engaged in school life means joining in and being a team player rather than always a leader; it means valuing participation rather than just achievement. Academically, engagement means you are intellectually curious, have an open mind to new ideas, opinions and people, as well as valuing a diversity of viewpoints.
Compassion
Compassion describes the quality of seeing the world through the eyes of others and acting on it. We see compassion expressed every day at Ardingly through your daily interactions with friends and peers, by the way you are generous with your time and efforts for the benefit of others.
Resilience
Life brings challenges as well as opportunities and an Ardingly education helps you develop coping strategies and build your personal resilience. It is important you aren't afraid to be adventurous and take risks, even if you don’t succeed at first. The ability to bounce back from a set-back is a crucial life skill that will stand you in good stead in the world beyond Ardingly.
Collaboration
Good teamwork is essential to so many aspects of life at Ardingly; within the academic curriculum, in sports, performances and House life. Learning how to co-create, to be ingenious together, and knowing how and when to lead effectively are all skills we hope you will develop during your time at the College.
