Collective Worship Policy
1 Aims and purpose
1.1 The aims and purpose of collective worship are:
- to provide an opportunity for the children to worship;
- to enable children to consider spiritual and moral issues;
- to enable children to explore their own beliefs;
- to encourage participation and response;
- to develop in children a sense of community spirit;
- to promote a common ethos with shared values and to reinforce positive attitudes;
- to teach children how to worship.
2 Collective worship
2.1 We understand worship to be a special act or occasion where we celebrate people, events or things we consider worthy. This can mean paying homage to a divine power or being, but also includes the opportunity to celebrate individual and group achievements and significant occasions within the school and local community. School worship can also be a time to develop tolerance and respect for others and reflect on the lives of people who have demonstrated their courage, compassion or commitment to truth. It provides an opportunity for pupils to share experiences, beliefs, values and concerns which are important to them and offer an occasion to reflect on the things which inspire us with awe, wonder, gratitude or a sense of being a part of something much greater than ourselves. Sometimes our worship will offer an opportunity to share in a sense of grief or encourage a sense of responsibility for those in need.
2.2. Daily acts of Collective Worship should provide the opportunity to:
- praise
- reflect
- celebrate
- thank
- say sorry
- share
Worship may find expression in many different forms including:
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In line with the 1988 Education Reform Act which, states that collective worship should be ‘wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character’, we normally base our assemblies on the teachings of Christ and traditions of the Christian Church. However, we conduct our Christian assemblies in a manner that is sensitive to the individual faith and beliefs of all members of the school.
While the majority of acts of worship in our school are Christian, we also undertake assemblies that reflect other religious traditions that are represented in the school and the wider community.
3 Organization of collective worship
3.1 We hold a daily act of collective worship in our school. It involves all members of the school participating in either whole-school, departmental or class assembly. These are conducted by the head teacher, deputy-head teacher or the class teacher.
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Foundation Stage |
KS1 |
KS2 |
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Monday |
Mrs. Santus/ Mr. Wilson |
Class teachers |
Class teachers |
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Tuesday |
Class teachers |
Class teachers |
Class teachers |
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Wednesday |
Class teachers |
Mrs. Santus/ Mr. Wilson |
Class teachers |
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Thursday |
Class teachers |
Class teachers |
Mrs. Santus/ Mr. Wilson |
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Friday |
Class teachers |
Mrs. Santus/ Mr. Wilson |
Class teachers |
3.2 We conduct assemblies in a dignified and respectful way. Assemblies are a special period of calm reflection and we expect children to behave in an appropriate way. We create an appropriate atmosphere by using music and sometimes candles or other objects that act as a focal point for the attention of the children.
3.3 At Mab’s Cross Primary School we endeavour to respect the beliefs of all pupils and parents thus rather than stating “Let us pray/sing…” we would identify the religious context and provide the children with the opportunity to either:
- join in;
- listen and think about the meaning;
- respect others by sitting in silence;
3.4 We utilise a thematic approach when planning our collective worship. The themes are carefully selected to reflect religious festivals, key events locally and nationally and the school curriculum, with a particular emphasis upon PSHE & C (refer to the long term plan).
3.6 Our assemblies reflect the achievements and learning of the children. We encourage the children to participate in assemblies by showing their work to the other children and raising issues that they have discussed in their classes. Assemblies offer an opportunity to acknowledge and reward children for their achievements both in and out of schools. They play an important part in promoting the ethos of the school.
3.7 We invite parents to special assemblies as this promotes the community spirit of the school and is a practical demonstration of the way the home and the school work together to support the achievements of our children.
3.8 We welcome governors’ attendance at our assemblies at any time.
4 Resources
We will take into account the age and background of our children when choosing resources. The appropriately selected resources will either be located centrally or with the appropriate class teacher. Resources will be regularly reviewed and updated by the co-ordinator and head teacher.
5 Right of withdrawal
5.1 We expect all children to attend assembly. However, any parent can request permission for their child to be excused from attending religious worship and the school will make alternative arrangements for the supervision of the child during the period concerned. Parents do not have to explain or give reasons for this. This complies with the 1944 Education Act and was restated in the 1988 Education Reform Act.
5.2 The head teacher keeps a record of all children who withdraw from collective worship.
6 Monitoring and review
6.1 It is the role of a named school governor with responsibility for religious education and collective worship to monitor the policy and practice of collective worship. The governor concerned liaises with the head teacher before reporting to the governors on religious education and collective worship.
Signed:
Headteacher ..……………………………………
Chair of Governors ………………………………………
Date:
Review Date: July 2013