Why is being a Church School so important to us?
The Church of England Vision for Education
The Church of England vision for education is deeply Christian, with Jesus' promise of 'life in all its fullness' at its heart.
In line with the Church of England's role as the established Church, our vision is for the common good of the whole community.
Educating for wisdom, knowledge and skills: enabling discipline, confidence and delight in seeking wisdom and knowledge, and developing talents in all areas of life.
Educating for hope and aspiration: enabling healing, repair and renewal, coping wisely when things go wrong, opening horizons and guiding people into ways of fulfilling them.
Educating for community and living well together: a core focus on relationships, participation in communities and the qualities of character that enable people to flourish together.
Educating for dignity and respect: the basic principle of respect for the value and preciousness of each person, treating each person as a unique individual of inherent worth.
The Big Frieze and the concept of the ‘Big Story’?
The frieze illustrates seven of the eight core concepts that are explored throughout the Understanding Christianity materials.
Effectively, this presents a view of the ‘big story’ of the Bible – an artist’s response to the approach used in the Understanding Christianity materials.
The Big Frieze is designed to give teachers the opportunity to make pupils aware of the wider context of each concept, unit and text studied in the Understanding Christianity materials.
Reminding pupils regularly of where a particular text occurs within the ‘big story’, by pointing it out on the Frieze, helps to build up a coherent understanding of the core concepts and the relationship between them.
The artwork illustrates these concepts, from Creation to Kingdom of God, presenting a Christian view of the Bible as more than a collection of different texts – one which has an overarching coherence and story.
Our Curriculum Documents
Supporting Children with SEND to learn in RE
Collective Worship
Collective worship is the unique heartbeat of a Church school and is offered as part of a wider opportunity for pupils and adults to encounter faith by engaging in conversations about God, both as individuals and together. Worship is an integral part of life at Bishopton and is a time when we want all pupils and staff to flourish and to understand that they are special in God's eyes. According to SIAMS (2023), 'Collective worship lies at the heart of each day and is a joyous expression of the Christian vision. This ensures that all are nourished spiritually'.
We meet together in daily Collective Worships to give thanks. Our aim is for our acts or worship to be inclusive, invitational and inspiring. They are usually based around one of our values: Love and Friendship, Respect and Resilience, or around a key weekly theme or big question.
Within our acts of worship, children have opportunities to reflect upon our vision and values, listen to Biblical texts or those concerned with a moral issue and reflect on what they have heard. Pupils are able to discuss key events in the world and consider how these may fit into God's plan, express their views, ask questions, join in with prayers and develop their own spirituality. When possible, pupils lead our acts of worship, supported by our Worship Group.
Children develop their understanding of prayer throughout their time at our school; there are prayer areas in each classroom and prayers are said at different times of the day.
Our local clergy from St Peter’s Church lead worship in school and we use the church for our end-of-term services and major Christian festivals.
Bishopton Redmarshall