An Introduction to Collective Worship in St Denys CE Infant School
As a Church of England school collective worship is the beating heart of our school life. It brings and gives life to all we do. Collective worship is a sacred and significant time of each school day, where we gather together as a school family.
Collective worship strengthens and supports the Christian identity of our school, reaffirms our vision and associated values of Wisdom, Love, Peace, Kindness, Generosity and Courage and celebrates the central role that each pupil and adult have to play in our community.
Our acts of collective worship reflect the variety of traditions found in the Church of England and recognise and follow the Christian liturgical year. The daily Christian act of worship is central to our ethos and is supported by all staff and governors. It makes an important contribution to the overall spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of the whole school community.
Each adult and pupil will experience worship that is truly welcoming, inclusive and exemplifying the principles of Christian hospitality.
Collective Worship therefore will be:
Inclusive – Our acts of worship recognise that pupils and staff come from homes of different faith backgrounds as well as no faith backgrounds, so it will be inclusive of, and fully accessible to all. Care will be taken to ensure that language used by those facilitating worship avoids assuming faith of those participating, listening or watching.
Invitational – In our acts of worship, there is no compulsion to ‘do anything’. Rather, worship will provide the opportunity to engage whilst allowing the freedom of those of different faiths and those who profess no religious faith to be present and to engage with integrity. Pupils and adults will only be invited to pray and sing if they wish to do so.
Inspiring – By asking and discussing big questions about who we are and what we do in worship we hope to motivate pupils and adults into action. There will be opportunities to think, reflect and ponder on their and the wider community’s behaviour and actions.
Aims of Collective Worship
Collective Worship offers pupils, staff and the wider school community the opportunity to:
- Gather together to share sacred moments of joy, challenge, grief and love.
- Explore the school’s distinctive Christian vision and values in action
- Reflect on the nature of God and on the teachings of Christ through Biblical texts
- Express praise and thanksgiving to God
- Be still, pray and reflect
- Explore the big questions of life and respond to national events
- Foster respect and deepen spiritual awareness
- Explore Christian values and attitudes
- Share each other’s joys and challenges
In line with the requirements of the requirements of the Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools (SIAMS) schedule, we aim to ensure that collective worship:
- Offers the opportunity, without compulsion, to all pupils and adults to grow spiritually through experiences of prayer, stillness, worship and reflection whether they are engaged in learning in school or at home.
- Enables all pupils and adults to appreciate that Christians worship in different ways, for example using music, silence, story, prayer, reflection, the varied liturgical and other traditions of Anglican/Methodist worship, festivals and, where appropriate, the Eucharist.
- Helps pupils and adults to appreciate the relevance of faith in today’s world, to encounter the teachings of Jesus and the Bible and to develop their understanding of the Christian belief in the trinitarian nature of God and its language.
- Enables pupils as well as adults to engage in the planning, leading and evaluation of collective worship in ways that lead to improving practice. Leaders of worship, including clergy, have access to regular training.
- Encourages local church community partnerships to support the school effectively in developing its provision for collective worship.
The Planning and Implementation of Collective Worship
Collective worship is planned by a variety of stakeholders including staff, pupils, the incumbent of our local church and external visitors in consultation with the collective worship leader. This act of worship can take place at any time of the school day and in any regular school grouping e.g. whole school, year group or class.
Our school plans systematically and cohesively using Canterbury Diocesan Collective Worship Planning as a basis which is adapted and changed to meet the needs of our community. This ensures that there is a shared understanding of the long and short term planning of worship and this enables continuity. Each half term, Collective Worship will be based on one of our school values: Wisdom, Love, Peace, Kindness, Generosity and Courage.
Collective worship planning at St Denys will:
- Provide regular opportunity for pupils to plan and lead all or parts of the act of worship.
- Allow the whole school community to experience worship that is rich and vibrant and pleasing to God.
- Enable the children to begin to understand the Trinitarian nature of God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
- Allow the whole school community to engage with Bible texts, stories and teachings daily.
- Allow the whole community to encounter Christians from around the world and their similar and different worship styles.
- Provide opportunities for the whole school community to relate the stories, verses or teachings from the Bible into their own lives (application).
- Include liturgy, traditions and practices that reflect the Anglican practice of the school community.
- Provide a balance of activities and styles over time to allow all children and adults to engage with the worship.
Prayer at St Denys C of E Infant School
Christians believe that prayer is a communication process that allows them to talk directly to God, whilst spending time listening to what God has to say to them. It is a two-way process of talking to their best friend.
Pupils say prayers regularly throughout the school day:
A morning prayer Every morning once the register has been taken.
A lunchtime prayer Every lunchtime before they are released from class for lunch.
A home time prayer Every afternoon before going home.
A Collective Worship Prayer
Pupils planning and leading Collective Worship
Don’t let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. 1 Timothy 4:12
Pupil Collective Worship leaders are supported, encouraged and resourced to contribute meaningful acts of worship on a voluntary basis. They work with the Collective Worship leader once a month during lunchtime to develop their own understanding of worship and to design an act of worship to support the spiritual development of their peers.
The Church of England Vision for Education states that ‘education needs to have a core focus on relationships and commitments, participation in communities and institutions, and the qualities of character that enable people to flourish together’.
This supports the understanding that children are not empty vessels that need filling spiritually; they are already spiritual beings who are fully able to engage with worship, often leading the adults into more profound thinking and deeper spiritual experiences.
Visitors leading worship
Visitors to our school are asked to read and comply with our school visitor and safeguarding policies. This should include discussing the content of any worship with a member of the senior leadership in order to ascertain its suitability for the school community. Visitors are never left alone with children as the supervision of pupils remains the responsibility of school staff.
It is the responsibility of the Collective Worship leader and senior leaders to ensure that all visitors, who are leading worship in school, will be trained and properly briefed about the school, its pupil context and our school’s vision. They will be supported and monitored as part of the ongoing evaluation process of worship.
Parental Withdrawal
Worship is regarded as special time in our school day where we gather as a school family. Reflecting our ethos as a Church of England school, Collective Worship is an inclusive opportunity for those of all faiths and none to be present with integrity. We respect the legal right of parents to withdraw their child/children from acts of Collective Worship, so would welcome the opportunity to discuss this decision with them in terms of:
- The elements of worship in which the parent would object to the pupil taking part in.
- The practical implications of their withdrawal.
- Whether the parent will require notice in advance of such worship, and if so, what period of notice is preferred.
Following these discussions, any desire to formally withdraw children from worship must be done via a letter to the Headteacher.
Alternative arrangements will be put in place for pupils who are withdrawn from Collective Worship. Alternative arrangements may involve religious worship relevant to their particular faith or denomination provided that:
- The effect of the alternative provision would not replace the denominational Collective Worship with that of the statutory, non-denominational worship.
- Such arrangements can be made at no additional cost to the school.
- The alternative arrangements will be consistent with the overall purposes of the school curriculum.