Collective Worship
Intent
'Learning Together for Life in all its Fullness'.
(based on John 10:10)
Collective worship is central to the life of our school. It shapes our relationship with God and each other and influences all daily school life.
Collective Worship is a time when we come together as a community to:
- Foster a sense of a Christian, caring community where God is worshipped and every child and adult is acknowledged and valued
- Frequently share and discuss stories from the Bible and discover the meaning and learning of these stories.
- Provide an opportunity for prayer, reflection and spiritual growth
- Explore the meaning of each School Christian Value and express what this means to them.
- Build strong relationships with members of the school, church and local community
- Encourage the children to think about current issues in the world and what they can do to contribute to the healing or improvement of this (charity work/prayer/changing their actions etc.)
- Explore with the children the power of faith and how this can guide and support them in all that they do.
- Submerge the children in the joy of singing God’s words.
- Create opportunities for the children to explore that of other faiths and gain a good understanding and mutual respect of their beliefs, culture and traditions.
- Allow the children to connect with God and welcome him into their life if they choose to do so.
Sometimes these sessions happen in our school hall and on other days in classrooms.
Implementation:
All classes have a daily collective worship experience. There are 3 whole school assemblies, a key stage worship assembly and a class worship assembly. Worship is interactive and captures the children’s thoughts and minds. We create an appropriate atmosphere by using music, candles, pictures or other objects that act as a focal point for attention and thought. We hold great importance in singing a wide range of hymns, using drama and also having a range of child and adult-led prayer sessions. We plan weekly themes for our time together for the whole school year and link it to Christian teaching and to a different Christian Value termly. We often reflect the festivals and events of the Christian calendar in our weekly themes (Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, Ascension, Saints days etc.) and visit our affiliated churches at some of these times for special services. The school has developed its own communion service which is held annually.
Groups of children participate in arranging Collective Worship and plan and lead it on a regular basis. We encourage the children to show their work to the other children, read and write prayers, play instruments, sing or be part of a whole-class leading Worship. There are at least two Year 6 Worship monitors who are in charge of setting the hall up, ready for Worship to begin. These monitors open Worship with responses and the atmosphere is set for contribution. A weekly celebration time offers an opportunity to acknowledge and reward children for their achievements both in and out of school.
The school gives opportunities for children, staff, parents and governors to evaluate Worship. Each class records thoughts about daily worship in their class Collective Worship books and Worship monitors select classes across the school to add to the whole-school Worship portfolio that encompasses thoughts, prayers, pictures and photos of worship. Views are also gathered and acted on through Collective Worship Pupil Voice and other stakeholder questionnaires. Leaders of worship, including clergy, have access to regular training through RE network meetings, watching each other lead worship, visiting other schools and through Continuing Professional Development (CPD) opportunities.
Local clergy contribute at least weekly to Worship and lead readings, prayers and biblical talks with the whole-school community. We feel that it is important to involve as many members of our church community as possible. Local parishioners are invited into school for services such as Harvest Festival and Communion and are also encouraged to support at special events such as Prayer Space days. A range of ministers lead Worship when the whole-school visit the churches affiliated to the school for Remembrance, Christmas, Easter and Ascension services. The school also invites members of our community to attend Worship at Education Sunday and Operation Christmas Child services. Recent developments include members of the school choir joining with the church choir at the church’s own Harvest Festival and Remembrance services. Members of the school also join the congregations of multiple churches in the area at the annual Sea Sunday service, leading aspects of worship at this event.
Impact
The impact of our Collective Worship Programme is that our children will:
- be able to connect with God and welcome Him into their life, if they choose to do so.
- have a good understanding of the Christian Values and use these when making decisions and within their everyday actions in relation to others and the world that they live in.
- have a sense of belonging and become a valuable member of both our school community and the wider community.
- have a good understanding of other faiths so that they show respect.
- have developed skills to pray and reflect.
- have a secure understanding of the teaching of the Bible and Gods words.