Being a Church School

Collective Worship

“inclusive, invitational, inspiring”

As a Church School, we hold a daily act of Collective Worship for our pupils where we gather, engage, respond and send. Worship is Christian in nature and has regard for the family background and the ages and aptitudes of our pupils.

Collective Worship provides the opportunity to worship God within the rich tradition of Christian prayer and worship. We aim to foster a sense of fellowship by bringing all members of our school community together each day for times of celebrating, sharing, reflecting, responding and praying in an open and sensitive climate. Individuals are invited to explore and deepen their spirituality and to respond both in their own lives and within the community.

Through Collective Worship at Freeman’s, we aim to strengthen a sense of belonging and a sharing of values, including Christian, School and British Values. In addition, we aim to stimulate the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of our pupils. Through Worship, individuals will develop an understanding of God as revealed in Jesus Christ, hear and respond to the teachings of the Bible, experience prayer and prepare for their daily experiences and responsibilities with the belief that God is involved in every area of life.

Our Acts of Worship contain elements of the following:

Consideration of, and response to, the life and teaching of Jesus Christ.
Knowledge and appreciation of the Bible.
Praise and prayer to God.
Exploration of the symbolism within the Christian faith and the Anglican tradition.
Respect and tolerance for people of all faiths, races and cultures.
Promotion of fundamental British Values.
Participation in hymns and songs.
Invitations to participate and observe.
Recognition of, and response to, the spiritual dimension of human experience.
Ritual and ceremony, stillness and reflection.

Worship is led by a wide range of members of our teaching and leadership team with contributions also being made by the children, including our Year 6 Worship Leaders. We benefit from regular Christian visitors who lead our worship, including staff from St Barnabas Church, the CSALT team (Christian School Assembly Link Team) and the CAT team (Christian Assemblies Team). Pupils and staff are involved in evaluating the effectiveness of Worship.

Some of our Acts of Worship take place at St Barnabas Church, where parents are invited to join us as we celebrate important times in the school and Church year, including Harvest Festival, Christmas and Easter.

If a parent of a pupil requests that their child be wholly or partly excused from attendance at religious worship at the school, the pupil will be excused until the request is withdrawn.

Collective Worship Documents

Christian Distinctiveness

Freeman’s is a Christian School, and its values are based upon Biblical texts and Christian principles. At the heart of our School community we wish to affirm these beliefs and values.

Inclusion

Men and women, boys and girls are all created in God’s image and likeness. (Genesis 1.27)

Our understanding of this is that everyone has a Spiritual, moral and ethical dimension, and all people irrespective of gender, religion, ethnic grouping, class or race should be respected and treaty justly and equally. The apostle Paul (Acts 17.26) states that God made from one stock every race of humans to live on the face of the earth. This being so, we believe that there should be no distinction, and within our School family, all are welcome and none are excluded. Exclusion should only come about because someone excludes themselves through behaviour that is potentially or actually dangerous and inappropriate.

Bias towards the disadvantaged

Scripture is full of references that indicate that God has a bias towards the poor and disadvantaged. When God is presented as being angry it is almost invariably in the context of vulnerable people being taken advantage of, and being exploited. When Job is accused by his friends of being a hypocrite he is able to respond that he has never turned away the orphan, the homeless, the hungry, and the destitute, and has never taken advantage of a person’s vulnerability. (Job 31.16ff) As a Christian School, it is our aim to be watchful on behalf of all our members, and do our uttermost to ensure that ALL pupils are able to take advantage of learning opportunities and pastoral care. This care is also extended to support parents who struggle with their responsibilities as the result of illness, or for other reasons.

It is our policy that ALL children have access to the curriculum provided by the best qualified staff that we employ. We endeavour to create a balance in which children who are LESS able, either physically or academically are able to access the curriculum, and that equally very able pupils are encouraged to work towards their potential, and are not held back.

Forgiveness

The Bible enjoins us to forgive others their misdeeds, because God forgives us when through ignorance, weakness or our own deliberate fault, we act selfishly to the detriment of others, and before God. Luke 15 repeatedly reminds us that people lose their way in a number of ways, but there is always joy in heaven when someone is rescued or returns.

We believe that there is a proper place for the School to show its disapproval of bad behaviour, but we also believe that this should be linked to forgiveness.

Affirming both children and teachers

Scripture is consistently concerned that each of us should use the talents, gifts and opportunities that we have. The parable of the talents affirms and rewards the right use of gifts and opportunities, and the lazy person is held to account for wasting the talents and opportunities that she/he has. (Matthew 25 verses 14-30) As a School we aim to celebrate, congratulate and affirm the successes and achievements of our pupils and staff, regularly recognising successes in sport, service, academic, music and within clubs and groups in and outside the School.

Respect for each other

We are concerned when we encounter instances in which children become the casualties of adult behaviour or peer group pressure or behaviour that is inappropriate and damaging. Mutual respect between adults and children is at the heart of our School community. Some children have always been at a distinct disadvantage, and we always endeavour to compensate for this by our care for the children in our charge. At the same time we wish every child on leaving our School to have a clear understanding of what is appropriate behaviour. The reciprocal respect between staff and pupils is based very much on Christian values. (James 2 verses 1 – 13)

Collective worship

There is an act of collective worship every day in School, and each Act of Worship is monitored, and planned ahead and includes prayers, hymns/songs, music, reflection, and reading. Collective worship is delivered by a team of teaching staff, children under guidance, a monthly visit from the Wellingborough Christian Assembly team, and our Vicar. Occasionally we have visitors. Careful planning ensures that there is a balance of themes, and we are especially committed to communicating the Christian year and the liturgical colours, and key concepts such as the doctrine of the Trinity.

The chief festivals of the Christian year are celebrated and these include Harvest Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. All-School events are also supplemented with visits to the Church for ‘Celebrate Easter’ and a School leavers Service. All our acts of collective worship are attended by a substantial number of teaching staff and classroom assistants.

Safeguarding

All our staff are trained and encouraged to be diligent in observing and following up children who appear distressed, unkempt, very tired, or withdrawn. Any signs of bruising or unexplained injuries are also followed up. The classroom teacher is primarily responsible for the well-being of the children in their care, but our safeguarding team and our Special Needs Co-ordinators work collaboratively to ensure that every child is safe. Our premises are regularly inspected, and a member of the Governing Body is involved in this.

We hold before us the words of Matthew 18 verses 1 – 7.

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