Sheringham Primary School

Religious Education and Collective Worship Policy

Introduction

At Sheringham Primary School we believe that the learning and teaching within Religious Education (RE) plays an important part in the social, moral, spiritual and cultural development of each child.

Our scheme of work, based upon the Newham Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education 2022 ‘Exploring Beliefs, Celebrating Diversity’, is an integral aspect of our curriculum and aims to ensure that we prepare our pupils for life in modern Britain, as well as foster in our pupils an interest in the world in which they live.

Implementation

In accordance with legislation, we understand that RE should be part of the curriculum for all pupils, including Reception children. Children learn RE in blocks (usually at the start of a half term) and they share their learning with each other in pupil-led ‘sharing assemblies’. Other opportunities to include learning about religion are often included in geography and history units.

Every year, each year-group visits a place of worship, with the aim that children will have visited a range of religions by the time they leave Sheringham.  Our RE lead is responsible for mapping our curriculum coverage in accordance with Newham’s guidance; further detail and up-to-date information can be found within the curriculum section on our website.

We try to cover all of the main religious celebrations and festivals throughout the year in  whole school assemblies.

In the EYFS, children learn about special events, religious and cultural celebrations throughout the year.  

Collective Worship

In accordance with legal requirements, we provide children with an opportunity for collective worship each day. These opportunities include whole school assemblies, mixed year-group assemblies, year group assemblies and in-class assemblies.

Collective Worship at Sheringham follows Newham’s Standing Advisory Council on Religious Education (SACRE) guidelines, which provide details on the nature and recommended structure of collective worship.

Right to withdraw:

Parents have the statutory right to withdraw their children from RE and Collective Worship; any families considering this should make an appointment with the headteacher to begin the formal process.