Collective Worship

At St. Anne’s C of E Primary School, the daily act of collective worship is viewed as an integral and important part of school life.

Through this and in the general ethos of the school we seek to promote our mission:

'You are the light of the world'

It is a time where we come together to share our love of God and celebrate our achievements together.

The worship of the school is based on promoting the Christian values which permeate the ethos of the school. As such, the contributions of
staff, pupils, church clergy and other visitors are valued highly.

Christian Values

These values include respect, commitment, courage, forgiveness, honesty and wisdom. Values Education is at the heart of our acts of Collective Worship and the ‘Values for Life’ which direct the termly themes have been formulated by the school community.

These values are embodied in the words Jesus said to his disciples.

'You are the light of the world'  (Matthew 5:14)

We aim to provide a variety of worship experiences for the children. Our current schedule is as follows:

Monday:
Whole school worship on the half-termly value theme led by the Headteacher. A
member of the school’s SLT may stand in if required.

Tuesday:
Phase collective worship to include prayers led by children, celebrating
birthdays (KS1/FS) and out of school achievements.

Wednesday:
Open the Book CW led by St Anne’s Church or other local denominational church.

Summer term – class/pupil-led collective worship based on the
half term’s value

Thursday:
Whole school worship led by the Assistant Headteacher and the music leader including
teaching hymns/songs related to the half termly theme.

Friday:
Class collective worship based on the weekly Discipleship target

Monthly: 
Achievers assembly led by the Headteacher or a member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT)

St Anne’s minister and congregation (including the Family and Young people’s worker) support collective worship as part of the Open the Book programme and guides us in preparation for and eadership of Worship at key points in the church calendar.

In addition to this, visiting groups and individuals are occasionally welcomed into the school to lead worship.

Themes include stories told by Jesus and we aim that all children have an awareness and understanding of their importance by the end of
their time in school The act of collective worship should last approximately 15 minutes, except on Friday afternoons when a longer period is required in order to celebrate the week’s achievements. Planning, Content and Detail

The themes for Monday’s
collective worship reflect the Church calendar, our school agreed values (half termly values programme) and current events. The worship begins with the children entering the hall accompanied by a piece of music for the week. The
title of this piece of music is displayed for the children to see throughout the week and could come from a variety of cultures.

The candle on the altar table is lit and the worship often begins with the children singing a hymn or faith-based song.

The children are involved in the worship throughout and this finishes with a time of reflection or prayer, including the School Prayer. The candles are then blown out before any messages are given. This allows for us to make a
clear distinction between worship and assembly.

The children then lead out quietly as the music is played.

Foundation Stage/Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 have planned themes for their acts of collective worship on Tuesdays. The format is similar to Monday’s whole school worship, although, no hymn is sung. Thursday’s hymn practice includes the lighting of
candles to focus the children’s attention and aims to develop the children’s understanding of new hymns as well as learning them. The session ends with a time for reflection or a prayer before the candles are blown out and messages
are given. The children leave in the same way as before.

The school prayer is used regularly to ‘round off’ the Monday,
Tuesday and Friday collective worship and a child is invited to lead us in this
prayer.

On Fridays, parents are invited (by letter on Thursday) to watch their children receive their achievers’ certificates. Normally, teachers choose one or two members of their class to receive a special mention and certificate. Certificates are also given out to children who have demonstrated one of the school values. This takes place after the Headteacher rounds off the week’s
theme, has a moment of reflection and blows out the candle.

Collective worship always includes a time of prayer and/or reflection, including hymn practice. A range of prayers is used including
the Lord’s Prayer, extempore prayers, prayers written by the children and
others. They are introduced in an appropriate manner with a short time of quiet. At the beginning of the whole school worship led by the Headteacher or Assistant  Headteacher, a time of reflection and quiet is encouraged by the lighting of a candle. A cross is also displayed above or on the altar table.

At the beginning of the lunch hour, grace is said by either an adult or child in each class. Teachers make an individual decision about
whether to say a prayer with their class at the end of the school day.

Other Faiths - Although our worship reflects our Christian beliefs and values, we are committed to respecting each other’s faith stance and culture, showing tolerance and understanding regardless of pupils’ beliefs. The class-led acts of worship may portray other cultures and beliefs as they reflect the RE studied as part of the curriculum requirements. Stories and
events from other faiths which reflect the value theme are used to represent other faiths and belief systems.

Visits and visitors - As part of the curriculum, St Anne’s School ensures that appropriate visits are made available for the children in order for them to have first-hand experiences and gain a greater understanding of various places of worship. Visitors to the school are welcomed and enabled to share their experiences and knowledge – their role is to educate, not to evangelise. St Anne’s Church is our most valuable and frequently used resource, with the whole school attending and contributing towards annual Harvest, Christmas, Easter and Leavers’ Services.

Our School Prayer

This is our school,
May we all live here happily together
May our school be full of joy
May love dwell here amongst us
Love of one another
Love of people everywhere
Love of life itself
And love of God.
Let us remember that
As many hands build a house
Every child can make this school a wonderful place.

Amen