Chapmanslade CE VA Primary School
COLLECTIVE WORSHIP POLICY
October 2013
Review October 2015
This policy is rooted in the Christian Aims and Values on which our school is
founded.
This Policy has been drawn up by the Governors of the school in partnership with the
Head teacher, ex officio Governor responsible for Collective Worship and the Staff.
Chapmanslade C of E Primary School is a Voluntary Aided Church of England
School and as such it has a Trust Deed which states that worship should be ‘in
accordance with the principles and practices of the Church of England’.
Worship is integral to the life of the school and is a vital part of the ethos and daily life
of the school. It supports the school’s mission statement:
“All learning together in a Christian community, nurturing and developing
lively minds in a caring environment.”
Worship is at the heart of the Christian values on which the school is based.
In accordance with legal requirements (School Standards & Framework Act 1998) an
act of collective worship, taking account of the age, aptitude and background of
pupils, is provided daily for all pupils except those withdrawn by parents. The school
expects that withdrawal will only be made following discussions with the
Headteacher, followed by written confirmation of withdrawal. In an aided school the
staff are expected to regularly attend the acts of collective worship, but the
Headteacher may apportion some of this time to other tasks for staff.
Rationale
Collective Worship in Chapmanslade School aims to strengthen the life of the school
in its purpose to achieve its mission statement –
“All learning together in a Christian community, nurturing and developing
lively minds in a caring environment.”
Aims and Objectives of Collective Worship
At Chapmanslade School the Collective Worship Aims and Objectives are:
 To strengthen and support the school ethos and community and celebrate each
unique individual member as made in the image of God.
 To provide an opportunity and experience of giving praise to God and the
experience of drawing near to God in stillness and quiet and prayer.
1




To encourage reflection and response to fundamental questions of life and those
things that are of eternal concern and value to human beings
To foster and enable a concern for the needs of others – recognition of God’s
concern for every individual and the ways that we can contribute to expressing
this compassion.
To foster concern for the needs of the world and a sense of wonder and
compassion for the whole of Creation.
To contribute to the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils,
developing their understanding and practice of key Values
To provide members of the school community with the opportunity to: Become confident in worship, both individual and corporate.
 Respond to Christian language and symbolism and explore, reflect upon and
respond to the the mystery and meaning of the Christian faith.
 Experience a variety of forms of prayer and meditation. This might includepraise, seeking forgiveness, asking on behalf of self and others, and quiet
reflection.
 To understand the nature and purpose of worship and enjoy taking part.
 Provide a foundation for a mature understanding and practice of worship in the
future.
 To deepen understanding of Christian Values
 To make links with local, wider and worldwide communities.
 To celebrate and give thanks for achievements within the school and local and
international communities.
 To foster an understanding of how other faiths share fundamental similarities with
Christianity.
Structure
Worship is held daily in a variety of spaces (the school hall, specific classrooms, the
church, the field) as is appropriate to the specific act or worship planned, and as a
mechanism to support the aims and objectives. Worship last for 20 minutes.
Mondays = Whole school theme
Tuesdays = Termly theme taken from Values for Life, led by the clergy
Wednesdays = Whole school / Key Stage / Class based worship based on a
combination of whole school theme and opportunities for pupils to lead
(Ambassadors Assembly)
Thursdays = Singing
Fridays = celebration (leaves)
Children participate in all acts of collective worship and in some instances in leading
worship as a class, as groups and as individuals.
Planning
Planning of collective worship takes a sensitive and flexible approach to the needs of
all pupils and staff and is inclusive and understanding of all those of differing
backgrounds and faiths.
Planning combines the following resources:
 the Gloucestershire Diocese Values for Life scheme
 opportunities for key moments in the Anglican Tradition to be observed
 Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) scheme
 school, regional, national issues and events to included
 opportunities to make links with other faiths
2
 opportunities for celebration of pupils achievements
 opportunities for pupils to lead and share their achievements
 opportunities for visitors to enhance pupils learning
Planning across the year is balanced to include –
 Creation of an atmosphere for worship by the use of appropriate music, visual
foci and symbols with expectation of quietness and stillness suitable for all ages
and abilities.
 Acknowledgement of God at the heart of every act of worship, reflecting
compassion, love, inclusion, care for every individual, of all backgrounds and
faiths, - in school and local community and the world wide community.
 Use of appropriate, varied and creative approaches to the themes.
 Enabling those present to draw near to God in prayer and stillness; developing
personal and corporate spiritual depth and understanding.
 Observing the cycle of the church’s year – selecting themes appropriate to this
and the pupil’s aptitude and ability as well as Christian Values.
 Reflecting broad Anglican heritage in the use of known responses to begin and
end worship and prayers incl. the Lord’s prayer and the Grace.
 To encourage familiarity and understanding of the cycle of the Church Year – it’s
holy days and festivals.
 Familiarity with silence and meditation used in a church setting.
 To increase familiarity and understanding of our part with the local church and
community – the Diocese, Cathedral, Church and Community worldwide
 Time to reflect on the truth sought through stories and teaching of the Bible and
the interpretation of how this may relate to ourselves.
 Time and flexibility to respond to individual and corporate pastoral issues.
 Acknowledgement of the central part the Eucharist plays in Anglican worship, as
appropriate.
 Recognising the breadth and strength of commitment in the Anglican Church to
ecumenism, which may be expressed through the range of visitors who are
invited to contribute to collective worship.
 Recognising the breadth and strength that visitors can bring to the enhance the
life opportunities for all children (e.g. Wiltshire Library Services, Guide Dogs,
Food Bank, Book Week, Role models from industry, etc)
 Opportunities for the school to explore its ethos through responding to school /
regional / national issues (e.g. School Council Elections, Red Nose day, etc)
 Opportunity for children to make connections between Christianity and other
faiths in order to foster understanding and acceptance.
An annual overview identifies the key themes for each term.
Each term is then broken down into an outline of each daily act of collective worship
– but allows the flexibility to respond to any school / regional / national / global issue
that may arise.
Monitoring and Evaluation
 Is ongoing and is achieved by discussion with pupils, staff, any parents,
Governor or visitor present, to enable assessment to be made as to the value
of the worship for those present.
 Written records will be kept.
 May highlight the need for change or inclusion of topics omitted etc. and
cause changes to be made to future planning.
3

A written report is presented by the ex officio governor or governor with
responsibility for monitoring collective worship, to the full Governing Body
ensuring that we are meeting the requirements of law and the Trust Deed are
being met.
Appendix 1 Visitors
The following guidance is taken from the Salisbury Diocesan Board of Education
Collective Worship Policy Guidelines 1995 produced by Sharon Hallis.
Visitors leading an act of worship must be given precise instructions concerning age
and ability of pupils, purpose of occasion and appropriate delivery (content and
material used). The Board of Education is able to offer helpful advice on visitors in
school. It may be useful to consider the following questions:
 What are the visitor’s connections with the school, e.g. parent, charity
representative, clergy from other denomination, adviser, and colleague?
 What brought the visitor to school, e.g. did the visitor approach the school or
vice versa?
 Why has the school chosen the visitor to lead this particular act of worship?
 What is the aim and content of the visitor’s act of worship?
 Does it fit into the overall scheme for Collective Worship?
 Does the visitor’s method, approach or style maintain the respect for, and is it
sensitive to, all those involved in worship?
 Will the school prepare beforehand or follow up after the visit with the pupils?
 Has the visitor been recommended by colleagues, Board of Education etc?
 What does the school hope to achieve by having the visitor lead and act of
worship?
 What effect will the visitor have on the pupils spiritually, educationally,
emotionally?
Signed
Dated
4