Introduction
Castle Primary School in Stoke Sub Hamdon Somerset TA14 6RE is part of the Redstart Learning Partnership and caters for children aged 2 to 11 years.
This worship policy has been designed with our school population in mind. It is written in accordance with Somerset’s SACRE guidance for collective worship.
(SACRE is the Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education. All local authorities are required by law to have a SACRE to advice on matters concerning the teaching of Religious Education and Collective Acts of Worship and make determinations of cases in which the requirement for Christian collective worship is not to apply).
In implementing this policy due consideration to equal opportunities, with regard to race, gender, religion and ability, should be ensured with reference to the Race Relation Amendment Act 2000 (as amended) and other relevant legislation.
Policy Statement
This worship policy
a) Reflects the law
b) Strengthens the community ethos of the school.
Collective worship will take place daily and will be appropriate to all children of any religion or none, to enable them to be present and take part as appropriate. It is an opportunity for children to celebrate their own achievements, those of the school and the community.
All present should feel valued whatever their faith or personal beliefs.
Under no circumstances will children be asked to accept beliefs that are contrary to their family background.
Acts of Collective Worship will:
- take place at clearly designated times of day and will take place daily, sometimes as a whole school, or as a key stage, year group or class.
- reflect the beliefs and backgrounds of individual children and encourage a voluntary response from children,
- acknowledge and respect the responses of individual children and provide opportunities for them to express their feelings such as delight at life, wonder, joy, rejoicing and sorrow,
- not assume a shared religious or Faith commitment, and
- will encourage children to consider their own place in the community; help understand the importance of British Values and how they shape us in terms of being responsible citizens.
The Legal Requirements
All maintained schools must provide Collective Worship for all pupils.
- Collective Worship must be offered daily, but may be offered at any time during the school day
- It can be a single act for all children, or separate acts for any normal grouping e.g. a class, key stage, or a year group
- The head of school, in consultation with the Teaching & Learning Committee, has the responsibility for making arrangements for worship
- Most of the acts of worship in any one term must be of a wholly, or mainly, of a broadly Christian character
- The way in which this ‘Christian character’ is defined must be decided by each individual school, with regard to the children’s family background, ages and aptitude
- No acts of worship should be distinctive of any particular (Christian) denomination e.g. it should not have a strong Church of England content, or Catholic content – it should be ‘ecumenical’
- Acts of worship can include worship which is of a broadly Christian character; which is broadly in the tradition of another religion (as long as this is only a minority of acts of worship in any one school term); which contain elements drawn from a number of faiths
Parents may withdraw their children from Collective Worship on grounds of conscience, should they wish to do so, but we believe that Collective Worship is inclusive on beneficial for all children. It is hoped that no child will have to be withdrawn from Collective Worship. If parents/carers wish to withdraw their child they should discuss this with the head of school. Where a decision is made to withdraw, arrangements will be made for the child to be supervised elsewhere during the act of worship.
Content of Collective Worship
Collective Worship may include the following:
- Personal reflection and self-expression
- Exploration of the many values and beliefs which, although Christian, are also reflected in society at large and held as important by members of other world religions e.g. a sense of awe at the natural world (cultural)
- Personal recognition of right and wrong (moral)
- The capacity to flourish as a human being (spiritual)
The content of Collective Worship will be designed to enhance the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils and the Low Ash ‘Our Values’ theme, to provide opportunities for reflection, to celebrate the good, praise achievements and promote recognition of each pupil’s own worth and potential.
Acts of collective worship will reflect the broad tradition of Christian belief (reflecting Christianity’s multi-cultural and pluralist nature) and promote a positive ethos and community values. They will draw on the values and traditions of other religions as appropriate, helping to promote confidence in a pupil’s own traditions and the ability to see value in the traditions of others.
The school has close links with [INSERT CHURCH NAME HERE IF APPLICABLE], and a number of services are held in the Church each year.
Policy Review
This policy will be reviewed every two years by the Teaching and Learning Committee or earlier if appropriate.
Appendix 1 – Key Principles Underpinning Effective Collective Worship
Collective worship should be educational, inclusive and an active as opposed to passive activity.
- When planning it is a good idea to bear the following in mind:
- A meaningful act of worship needs to be allowed a reasonable amount of time
- Collective worship should engage children’s minds as well as their hearts and spirits
- There needs to be a sense of occasion for worship
- Worship should have a clear beginning and an end
- Although worship is separate and additional to RE and the National Curriculum there should be links to the wider life of the school
- Worship should be distinct from administration, it is not just ‘assembly’
- Language, content and the theology (the way God is described and talked about) need to be appropriate for the age and abilities of children
- Children should be encouraged to make contributions to worship
- A variety of resources connected to themes and occasions are useful
- Worship works best when a variety of experiences are provided. You may find it useful to adopt some of the approaches below
- Tell a story
- Describe a situation or event
- Drama and part speaking e.g. involve children in telling a story through movement, actions or words
- Visual aids and artefacts
- Music. Not just singing. A well-chosen piece of music can help create an atmosphere for worship and reflection
- Silence…..important for allowing time for thought and reflection
- Child participation
- Visitors. Remember visitors need to have a clear brief, they need to be informed about the traditions and customs of a school and they usually welcome clear feedback.
Collective worship should always engage children in a reflective, open ended experience.
A variety of responses should be recognised and encouraged e.g.
‘I am going to say a prayer…….’ Some will share the prayer, some will understand the prayer in terms of their own religion, some will think about what it says, some might like to say a prayer of their own. It is not appropriate to assume that all children will join in prayer, but they must be given the opportunity to do so.
Appendix 2 – Usual Pattern of acts of worship
[Amend as appropriate to individual school context]
