St Luke's C of E Primary School

Trust in God
and give of your best

"For each one of us to shine as a light believing
we can make a difference in the world." Matthew 5:16

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Religious Education

The school has a core Christian foundation; our whole school vision and nine Christian values of Faith, Love, Hope, Trust, Forgiveness, Friendship, Respect, Courage and Peace play a central part in the life of the school. Our school community, including staff and pupils, are all encouraged and inspired ‘to shine as a light believing we can make a difference in the world’.

At All Saints Carshalton we:

  • Celebrate being part of a Christian community, where each child and adult has a sense of belonging, is valued and cared for and takes an active part
  • Provide pupils with a safe space to explore their own religious ways of seeing, believing
  • Enable opportunities for every child to flourish
  • Lead the children to an awareness of God revealed in the person of Jesus and to help them to understand his life and ministry
  • Encourage the children to explore the spiritual dimension of life and worship and to provide an environment in which they can experience an awareness of God
  • Develop in the children a respect for the beliefs and customs of others while developing their own.

Through Collective Worship, the children value the opportunity to join with the school community in song, reflection and prayer. The children have an opportunity to lead collective worship through Year Group Worship, which parents are very welcome to join us. On special occasions such as Harvest, All Saints' Day, Ash Wednesday, Ascension Day and at Christmas, a Junior Carol service is held in our parish church and parents and friends are invited to join us at these. The Rector of All Saints visits the school regularly, leading worship alternatively each week in Key Stage 1 and 2. Children in Year 6 are prepared for Confirmation in the Autumn term and towards the end of the summer term, they attend a special service for leavers held in Southwark Cathedral and have sometimes led part of the service.

Visits are made to local places of worship such as All Saints Church and Sutton Synagogue and those further afield such as Southwark Cathedral and visitors and speakers in school enhance the children’s learning. Our Christian vision inspires the whole school community to engage in social action and to be courageous advocates for change in their local, national and global communities. Each year a local and national/international charity are chosen by the children and fund raising events are organised and run by the chosen charities ambassadors.

The teaching of Religious Education within the school supports our vision, mission statement and the CofE Statement of Entitlement. As a school we follow the Southwark Diocesan Religious Education Guidelines and Syllabus. Through the RE teaching, the school will:

  • Introduce the children to the life and teaching of Jesus
  • Give children a basic knowledge of the Bible and stories handed down to us through the Old and New Testaments
  • Create in them an awareness of the Church as a continuing manifestation of God’s work
  • Teach them about the importance of religious and, in particular, Christian festivals support this through attendance at church services
  • Introduce the children to the lives of significant individuals who have influenced the way Christians believe and live
  • Teach the children about the different elements of worship as practised at the church services they attend and help to plan in the school
  • Acquaint them with the symbolism which lies behind church buildings and their furnishings
  • Explore other ways of worshipping and to learn to respect these
  • Lay foundations of knowledge and respect for other world faiths and in particular to explore Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Islam
  • Nurture in the children an understanding of their own individual worth and potential for growth
  • Help them realise how important it is to belong to a family and to groups within the wider community
  • Help them realise that belonging means caring for and showing respect for each other, but also taking on responsibility for those less fortunate than themselves
  • Open up the children’s minds to the needs of God’s world

Under the terms of Section 9 of the 1988 Education Act, parents have the right to withdraw their children from the collective act of worship and/or Religious Education. Parents wishing to exercise this right must notify the Head teacher in writing.