New headteacher is hitting the human nature jackpot at Quinton Primary School

GIVEN that an understanding of human nature is a crucial skill for a schoolteacher, Charlotte Hopkins can claim to have hit the jackpot.

For Charlotte – who recently took over as head of Quinton Primary School and Nursery in Lower Quinton – has a degree in psychology as well as the required teaching qualifications. And this degree is proving to be a huge boon for the pupils and staff at the school, where an ethos known as “Aspiration, Bravery and Compassion” – ABC for short – is the order of the day.

“Our motto is ‘Growing Lifelong Learning’, and we just want to raise children who fully enjoy their time of being children here – and absorb ABC,” Charlotte told the Herald.

Fifteen years ago there were only 70 pupils at Quinton. Today there are 231. This increase has involved building additional accommodation over the years to make space not only for infants and juniors but also the addition of a pre-school facility, meaning that the age range at the school is now from three to 11.

Charlotte, who has taken over from the previous head, David Skelcher, is 41 and was born and bred in Warwick. She obtained her degree in psychology from the University of Leeds before acquiring her teaching qualifications at the University of Warwick. And she is married to Alex, a surveyor, and has two children, a boy and a girl aged five and eight.

Following teaching posts in Wellesbourne and Rugby, Charlotte arrived at Quinton as assistant head 11 years ago. She then became deputy head before taking on the top job, heading a team of 34 teachers and teaching assistants.

She clearly loves her job. “As a small, welcoming village school, we’re passionate about creating an environment where children arrive each morning excited and leave with memories that last a lifetime,” she said.

A key feature of the school’s focus is its ability to deal with what it calls ACES – adverse childhood experiences. Although Charlotte is quick to emphasise that not all children have psychological problems, those that do are fortunate in having someone with her training in psychology looking after them during school hours.

But what are these adverse childhood experiences? “They’re wide-ranging,” said Charlotte. “It can be when parents have separated or where children have been victims of abuse, or when they’ve moved many times. If children have experienced things like this they’re more likely to struggle academically and socially.”

Charlotte believes that if she and her colleagues can intervene early it can help the children, especially as they prepare for secondary schools.

But what do they actually do to assist children with these sorts of problems? “We work really closely with families and we have an open-door policy, and anything they’re struggling with we can help them go in the right direction,” she said. “We have a mentor who comes in every Tuesday who can help any child who might have a problem. This is to make them feel comfortable and know we care about them as individuals.

“We’ve got the best team of professionals who care about the pupils and the school and love working here. And we all work together to make all of this successful.”

She added: “We feel our school is going places and that it’s a positive place to be. We want to create this family feeling so that it’s a place where children love coming every day.”

And in a telling observation she said: “We hear about doom and gloom, about budget cuts and people leaving the profession. That’s not our experience at this school.”