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Collective Worship

        Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.               Praise the LORD.Psalm 150:6

Collective worship is the ‘heartbeat’ of our school; expressing and shaping who we are and what we do. The aim of our collective worship is to create a time to encounter and respond to God. It is a space to meet as a community; to identify, celebrate and affirm the ideals and values that are of central importance in the Church of England. Collective worship makes an important contribution to the spiritual development of all members of the school community - from all faiths and none.

 

 

What do we do in Worship?

We work to ensure that our ethos and vision underpins all we do in school.  In worship, we learn about our Christian stories and reflect on a theme which connects to our lives. At the Secondary site this is with the whole school on Monday and in our year groups / family groups on the other days in the week. On the other days of the week all pupils have the opportunity to worship and read Bible passages.  In the Primary we meet every Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday to join in Collective Worship.  Our worship throughout the school includes times of silence, singing and celebrations of school life.

We have a half termly theme which links to key Christian Values and our Trinity characteristics, and we also have weekly competitions based on the current theme at both the primary and secondary site. Worship is planned and led by many in our Trinity family, including students, staff and visitors from our local churches. Daily Worship at both sites rehearses positive relationships and themes in worship highlight this, for example ‘angels week’ focusses staff and students on how we can be more angelic to each other

To see our Collective Worship policy please see our policy page (click here to be redirected)

We have excellent connections and relationships with our Parish Churches. The Secondary school regularly go to our Parish Church of The Good Shepherd and occasionally attend for RE learning. The Primary also attend their Parish Church of St Swithun’s for relevant RE lessons and for worship.

The Eucharist is celebrated regularly at both the primary and secondary site, we have an annual through school Eucharist for advent where our year 6 pupils join our secondary pupils. Eucharist happens termly at the secondary site, in addition we also hold other services such as the year 7 welcome service, the through school carol service, harvest festival and Easter services.

Aims of Worship

  • A daily act of collective Christian worship that takes place in a variety of groups and settings LEARNING – LOVING – LIVING
  • Distinctive Christian teaching using a range of creative approaches, e.g. music, silence, drama, symbols
  • Learning that’s inspired by Scripture
  • Celebrating and exploring the Eucharist in engaging and innovative ways
  • Creating opportunities for prayer, reflection and mindfulness within the life of the school
  • Celebrating and marking key festivals and seasons in the Church’s calendar
  • Nurturing the links with our parish churches, and with the churches in our wider deanery
  • Regularly visiting our local churches for special services of worship

Why do we worship?

  • Worship provides us with an opportunity to encounter God, receive from God and respond to God. Worship fosters feelings such as awe, wonder, thankfulness, mystery and joy.
  • Worship enables us to appreciate our own worth and value to God, to respect others as children of God, and to celebrate our gifts, talents and achievements.
  • Worship helps to explore, establish and reinforce the common Christian values of our school community, such as love, peace, kindness and compassion.
  • Worship establishes a sense of community and belonging within the school. It helps to build up the community by contributing to the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of all members.
  • Worship provides an opportunity to engage with others from the wider community, to be aware of the needs of others, and invites us to love our neighbours. 
  • Worship encourages us to respect and care for God’s creation by promoting a positive attitude to local and global environmental issues.
  • Worship allows time to bring personal needs and the needs of others to God in prayer.
  • Worship enables people to reflect on their own stories, and on the big questions of life, through engagement with the Christian story as found in the Bible.

The Organisation of Collective Worship

  • We have a daily act of collective worship.
  • Worship gathers the whole school in both the Primary and Secondary phases at least once a week; at other times daily worship will be in other settings: family groups or classes, key stages, year groups, or within carousel or withdrawal groups.
  • At the beginning of worship, we create a sacred space which depending on the setting and available resources may involve candle lighting, looking at an icon or picture or symbol such as the cross, ringing a bell, standing in preparation.
  • We have a liturgical structure: we gather, receive a Bible reading, engage, have silence, respond with music and / or a prayer, and then we are dismissed.
  • Within worship, we celebrate awesome work and share information about the school community.
  • Worship is planned, resourced and led by the chaplaincy team in collaboration with staff, students, governors, local clergy, youth workers and other visitors as appropriate.
  • Worship themes are based on the church’s year, the lectionary, saints’ days, Bible stories, Bible characters, gospel values and connect to national days, British values, our local community, current affairs, learning, school life and PSHEE.
  • We have worship in our parish churches of The Good Shepherd and Saint Swithun’s which follow the Christian calendar.
  • We celebrate the Eucharist collectively at least three times a year in the Secondary; for KS2 at least two times; and at KS1 and EYFS we teach about the Eucharist in RE lessons. Preparation for Eucharist is through RE lessons and at KS2 the option of first communion classes may be provided. School Eucharists will be both in our schools and on occasion in our parish churches. In addition, we have weekly voluntary Eucharists which pupils can attend at lunchtimes.

Evaluation of Collective worship

  • The views of students, staff and visitors about Collective Worship are collected by the Chaplain on a regular basis. 
  • Examples of Collective Worship planning 

Right of Withdrawal

All pupils are expected to attend daily acts of worship and church services. The 1988 Education Reform Act gives the right for parents to request permission for their child to be excused from collective worship. Any requests for this withdrawal should be made in writing to the Headteacher.