A message from the Headteacher

Welcome to the Merton Abbey website. I am delighted that you want to find out more about our school.

Our vibrant school has stood at the centre of our local community for one hundred years. We are proud to serve South Wimbledon. It’s dynamic and diverse - just like London. We are fortunate to live in one of the world’s greatest cities and we seize every opportunity to connect our children to its cultural riches.

Our school motto is ‘Working hard and caring for each other’. We teach children the value of working hard and succeeding so they can achieve everything that they are capable of - now, in secondary school and in their adult life.

As well as encouraging hard work, we also believe that caring for each other is crucial. Helping others to succeed is embedded in everything we do. It informs the way we teach and is at the heart of the way our children learn, both in the classroom and the playground. Understanding others, and helping them flourish, makes life rich and rewarding for everyone.

Our most recent Ofsted inspection was in July 2024 and confirmed that we continue to be a good school. Here are some positive comments from that report:

‘Pupils in this school feel happy and secure, as the school fosters a welcoming and inclusive environment. Leaders, staff, parents and carers, and pupils all agree that the school is a close-knit and supportive community. Pupils are well looked after and the school knows them well.’
‘Pupils are respectful. They listen to adults and follow instructions promptly. They behave well, both in and out of lessons. Leaders and staff have high expectations of pupils. They expect pupils to conduct themselves consistently well.’
‘The school places great importance on teaching pupils to read… The school fosters a genuine love of reading and books. It does this through regular library visits, storytelling sessions and by having teachers read to pupils regularly.’
‘Pupils enjoy the many opportunities that they have to support their creativity. For example, they work with specialist music tutors to take part in musical events such as forming a Blues ensemble. They also perform in concert venues like the Royal Albert Hall. Pupils enjoy working with theatre groups, drama, and dance specialists to enhance their performance skills.’

We are pleased that Ofsted recognises us as a good school and we are determined to improve our school even further.

We understand that children need a rich and varied range of opportunities to learn so we have great relationships within our local community and beyond. We have a close partnership with Merton Music Foundation (now based in our school) who help us bring the joy of music to every child during lessons and through exciting musical projects. We have a long standing partnership with Kings’ College school whose secondary pupils are currently leading reading and music projects for our pupils. Our Year 5 children make regular Friday afternoon visits to the older residents of Trellis House. We want the children to participate actively in their local community: to know that they can be agents of change and a force for good. We have a strong link with the Polka Theatre where our children are frequent visitors. We also visit Wick Court Farm in Gloucestershire, where our pupils get a real first-hand experience of working on a farm and learn where their food comes from.

We hope you will find the information on our website useful but we encourage visits from prospective parents and carers. You can organise a visit by calling Mrs Sutton or Mrs Shadrake at the school office. We look forward to welcoming you to our school.

Yours sincerely,

Michael Bradley

Headteacher