"St Peter's shines like a beacon of excellence, living out its Christian distinctiveness through its vision and values..... pupils and staff  are enabled to flourish..... Strong relationships, underpinned by Christian values, guide each individual to love and respect others..... Creatively, the school is transforming lives.  They teach their pupils to overcome barriers and flourish as responsible young citizens..... There is a relentless focus on the needs of the child."     

SIAMS Church School Inspection March 2020.

Our Vision

We are a welcoming, inclusive family with a strong Christian ethos. We continually aim to be an excellent school where people care more than others think is wise, risk more than others think is safe, dream more than others think is practical and expect more than others think is possible.  

Inspired by the life of St Peter, we aspire for every member of our school community to ‘Step out in Faith’ so that they can experience life in all its fullness.  

Peter had a sense of a purpose (Luke 5: 1-11) 

 When we first meet Peter, he is a fisherman. Jesus sees him by the side of a lake and invites Peter to follow him with the words, 'from now on you will be a fisher of men'. Peter was seen and noticed by Jesus and given a new purpose.  

  We want everyone In the St Peter's School community to know that that they have an intrinsic dignity and worth; that they know they loved and valued and have a sense of purpose. Stepping out in faith is about excellence in who we are and recognising, and celebrating, our unique gifts and passions, and knowing that we have the potential to make a positive difference in our world.  

Peter was part of a community 

 By following Jesus, Peter joined a group of 12 people known as the disciples who journeyed with Jesus throughout his life and shared experiences together.   

  As St Peter's School we recognise the value in each individual whilst also knowing that we are not alone; we are part of an interdependent community who journey, learn and flourish together. Stepping out in faith is striving for excellence in our service with others whilst also knowing there are times when we need to be supported and cared for by those around us.  

Peter took risks (Matthew 14: 22-33) 

 One day, when the disciples are out on the lake, they see Jesus walking towards them on the water. Jesus invites Peter to step out of the boat and walk towards him, which Peter does! Peter took a risk to step out of the boat and, even though he may have been afraid, and he wobbled, he was curious and brave enough to follow Jesus’ invitation.  

  We want a community in which we are not afraid to be curious and courageous, to take risks and step out of our comfort zone. Stepping out in faith is about stepping out of the boat, 'risking more than others think is safe', and being open to new horizons and the possibility of more.  

Peter made mistakes (Mark 14: 66-72) 

When we take risks, there is always the possibility that we won't get it right. Peter made some big mistakes. He famously denied three times that he knew Jesus.  We recognise that in our lives we won't always get things right but that stepping out in faith is living with the freedom that we can try things, and that even if we get it wrong it can lead to learning and growth.  

Peter was forgiven and offered new opportunities (John 21: 1-19) 

Even though Peter denied Jesus, and let down his friend, Jesus still had a purpose for Peter. Making mistakes didn't mean that Jesus loved Peter any less. After Jesus' resurrection Peter was given a new purpose to lead the church. Peter means ‘rock’ and Jesus said to him ‘You are Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my church’.  

 At St Peter's School we know that our mistakes don't define us. Stepping out in faith is about knowing that we can overcome setbacks, learn from our mistakes and move forward with a new sense of hopefulness about what is to come.  

Being a Church School

Being a Church School is really important to us.  We have been serving the Portishead Community for over 200 years and want to continue to do so many years to come.  Our partnership with Portishead Church of England, and in particular with, St Peter’s Parish Church is active and strong, and enriches the lives of all in our community. In our most recent Church school inspection we were graded as an Excellent Church School.  You can read this report below.

We welcome all regardless of faith or belief.  We aim to value faith and encourage reflection on Christian values and tradition within the wider context of collective worship and the whole curriculum.

Collective worship is a very important part of each day and we have a variety of different types of events during the week (whole school, key stage, and class).  Please see our collective worship policy for more details.

We embed Christian values within our curriculum and also in our collective worship.  Every term, children in each year group explore 3 values and consider how, through living out these values in our daily lives, we can be excellent in the way we live, as individuals, and with others. 

We regularly welcome clergy from the parish in to school for collective worship and RE lessons and we regularly visit St Peter’s Church for festivals, RE and other cross curricular events.