Headteacher's Welcome Message
Welcome everyone to the Stokes Wood website where you will get a real taste of what it is like to attend our school. On it, you should find out about everything that is excellent at Stokes Wood Primary School: our lovely children, friendly staff and supportive governors and families.
Stokes Wood is a Primary School in a rich and diverse community which values every person as special and we do everything possible to ensure that each individual achieves their potential and is happy and excited by learning activities on a daily basis. Everyone is welcome at Stokes Wood whatever their faith, culture, colour, background, gender, disability or other special characteristic. There are no outsiders at Stokes Wood and we will do everything we can to support pupils in their learning journey as well as in their personal development.
I hope you enjoy looking round our website. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like any further information.
Paper copies of documents on the website are available from the school office by prior request.
With my very best wishes,
Jane Gadsby
Stokes Wood was opened in 1972 and is a co-educational school for nearly five hundred 3 - 11 year olds who originate from a rich, diverse ethnic and cultural background as well as from a white British background.
The school provides for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage in 2 part time Nursery classes, a full time nursery class and 2 reception classes.
The school also provides a 10 place Language and Communication DSP (Designated Specialist Provision)
The school is situated on the edge of the New Parks Council Estate close to Groby Road. The school building is spacious and well equipped. There are nineteen classrooms (a three classroom extension was completed in August 2014 and two classrooms in a temporary mobile building were added in August 2017), activity areas, foundation areas, intervention rooms, a main hall, gym and administration areas.
At an interim Design & Technology OFSTED inspection in February 2011, the school was judged to be good and in a full OFSTED inspection in November 2013 and again in May 2018, the school was once again judged to be good.
A little history of Stokes Wood Primary School
The school was built in 1972 as a temporary school for those families who moved into the Stokes Drive Estate. Many years on, the school is the wonderful school it is today.
The land used to be a Forest!! (As in Leicester Forest).
Birds Nest Lodge was the forest lodge where the Earl of Leicester hunted in 13th,14th and 15th centuries.
In 1526 during the reign of Henry VIII the property became the forest of the crown and the administration went to the Duchy of Lancaster who separated New Parks with a boundary from the rest of the forest.
In 1832 the Leicester to Swannington railway opened, including the Glenfield Tunnel, hence all the road names Stephenson, Brunel, Darlington, Copeland etc. who were Victorian inventors and designers. Comet, Samson, Phoenix were names of the locomotives and Jowett and Stenson were the architects.
The railway line ran along the bottom of the school playing field and the course can be followed towards the city (Forest Way, The Rally Park where a siding can be seen) and away from the city where 2 air shafts and the tunnel end at Copeland, Amhurst/Jowett, New Parks Boulevard can still be seen.
Between 1933 and 1937 Leicester Corporation bought most of New Parks. By 1938 the city of Leicester had begun to spread into New Parks, and the south-east of the parish had become a residential area. Starting in 1945 and into the 1950s council houses, including pre-fabs were built. In 1956 the flats were built.
Between 1950 and 1957 Aikman Avenue shops were built and received a design award from the Royal Institute of British Architects.
During 1958 and 1959 St Aidan’s Church was built. The architect was Sir Basil Spence of Coventry Cathedral fame.