United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) articles supported by our Religious Education:

Our Mission Statement

Our Mission statement is re-affirmed by staff, parents, governors and children working together. It brings together their beliefs of the purpose and daily mission at the heart of our school.

‘Love one another as I have loved you’

In March 2023 the school was inspected under Section 48 Catholic Schools Inspection process. The outcome in all areas was 'Outstanding'. The report is available for you to read at the bottom of this page as an attachment.

Catholic Life and Mission

Section 48 March 2023

'Pupil leadership and the commitment to the mission statement of the school underpins the success of this school community for every member – pupils, parents, staff and the wider community. Pupils are very happy, confident and feel secure.'  

We put Jesus at the centre of everything we do and reach out and celebrate the diverse needs of our community. Our Mission Statement is evident through all that we do and say. 

Gospel values are understood and evidenced in policies and procedures of the school. Scripture is read during collective worship and child led worship. This impacts significantly on learning and the life of the school.  The behaviour of pupils is good and often outstanding.  In lessons and around school pupils are courteous and considerate. Children at St Mary’s tell us they value the adults who work with them in school and come to school wanting to learn. They feel safe because they know that adults will keep them safe in school. Pupils know about different forms of bullying and are aware of a range of prejudices. They agree that bullying is rare since new behaviour-management systems and lunch time activities were introduced in conjunction with their views. The St Mary’s Learning Powers that have developed over the last year have made a significant impact on pupils learning and development and each ‘power’ has been closely linked to a Bible story to bring its core back to our living faith.

We “feel the presence of Christ’s love in the warmth of our welcome as we open our doors, our hearts and our minds to serve, strengthen and encourage all “ who visit or work with our school and Parish community. Everybody is treated with dignity and we reach out with ‘open hands’ as we live our Mission daily.  This can be witnessed in the joy around the school and the respect adults and children show to each other.

Our Inclusion practice is evidence that the explicitly Christ centred ethos is loving, creative, compassionate, highly positive and fosters a high level of understanding, empathy, forgiveness and respect for all. There have been no permanent exclusions at the school over the past 4 years and only a few children have been instructed to take short fixed term exclusions – these exclusions were decided upon in order to plan suitable programmes of support for the child and family. Parents have been fully supportive and included in decision making. The outcomes of this have been highly successful resulting in the children achieving well academically, socially and emotionally.

Religious Education

Section 48 March 2023

"There is a strong commitment by all to meet the needs of all learners and the school routinely and robustly challenges itself to do this effectively. Leaders within school and potential leaders identified, are supported by the Executive Headteacher and the Federation lead for religious education to effectively improve teaching and learning. The quality of subject leadership is very high and the school offers support to other schools and leaders as a beacon of best practice. Through the development of their outdoor provision, particularly the forest school, their work has been recognised and valued beyond the community resulting in achieving Live Simply award as well as supporting the diocese with the development at the Laudato Si centre, Wardley Hall. There are clear and rigorous monitoring systems in place by leaders at all levels which enables excellent outcomes. If anything, the school doesn’t recognise the full value and impact of the excellent work they do."

We listen to and are a part of the story of Jesus Christ, as the centre of everything in our school and challenge ourselves by the power of his word.

Our rich curriculum embraces our Catholicity at its heart and complies with the Religious Education Directory requirements.

Children currently follow the 'Come and see' scheme alongside the 'Caritas in Action' programme which looks at the social teachings of the church. Children learn about stories and passages from the Bible. We promote Gospel values and their relevance to everyday life and living. Gods word is central to our faith and the lives we are called to lead as followers of Christ. Scripture is used as a starting point for whole school and class led prayer and worship and Gods word is often the focus of prayer and thought. Prayer and worship session always include Scripture. Our Peace Garden is a place for meditative contemplation as well as worship and words form Scripture inspire the pupils to think deeply.

Summary of key findings: What the school does well

1. Care and compassion for one another and the wider, global community underpin everything within school including the learning, prayer and liturgy and commitment to the Common Good.

2. The curriculum design embraces the Catholic charism of the school with an emphasis on Catholic Social Teaching, wellbeing and learning powers which are clearly and consistently embedded across school.

3. The mission of the school is understood, embraced and celebrated by all, informing all decisions and enabling the school to offer support to others; this is evidenced in the school environment, particularly in the development of the outdoor provision.

Come and See

As a school we follow the Come and See scheme of work.
 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church addresses the search for meaning in life.  God’s initiative in Revelation who comes to meet us and our response of faith. This pattern guides the structure of the programme and informs the process of each topic, opened up through; Explore, Reveal and Respond.

The Come and See scheme is an invitation for everyone to “Come and See”. We are invited to invite others and children are especially welcome. “Let the children come to me.” Children come and see the wonder that is within them and beyond them.

All classes throughout the school are studying the same fundamental topic with a differentiated theme suited to their age.

The main themes are:

The Church          The Sacraments          Christian Living

Dignity

Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.

Jeremiah 1:5

We believe very human person is made in the image and likeness of God. This is a gift that we all share as fellow human beings; we are all infinitely loved by our Creator. God is present in every human person, regardless of religion, culture, nationality, orientation or economic standing. Each one of us is unique and beautiful. We are called to treat every person and every creature with loving respect. 

Solidarity

In truth I tell you, in so far as you did this to one of the least of these brothers [or sisters] of mine, you did it to me.  Matthew 25:40

Solidarity arises when we remember that we belong to each other. We reflect on this in a special way at Mass. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “The Eucharist commits us to the poor. To receive in truth the Body and Blood of Christ given up for us, we must recognise Christ in the poorest.”

Common good

You are not making a gift of your possessions to the poor person. You are handing over to them what is theirs.

Saint Ambrose (340-397 AD)

The common good means that the fruits of the earth belong to everyone. No one should be excluded from the gifts of creation. Pope Paul VI spoke about this 50 years ago in his encyclical Populorum Progressio.

Option for the poor

The spirit of the Lord is on me, for he has anointed me to bring the good news to the afflicted. He has sent me… to let the oppressed go free.

Luke 4:18

The option for the poor reminds us of God’s preferential love for the poorest and most vulnerable people. God’s love is universal; he does not side with oppressors, but loves the humble.

Peace

Peace… is an order that is founded in truth, nurtured and animated by charity, and brought into effect under the auspices of freedom.

Pacem in Terris, 1963, #167

Peace is a cornerstone of our faith. Christ, the Prince of Peace, sacrificed himself with love on the cross.  

Creation and environment 

Who turned the wonderworld of the seas into underwater cemeteries bereft of colour and life?

Catholic Bishops of the Philippines, 1988

In the first pages of the Bible we read how God created the sun and the stars, the water and earth, and every creature. We believe Christ is the redeemer of all creation. In 2015, Pope Francis brought together decades of Church teaching in the encyclical, Laudato Si’. In this deeply influential letter, Pope Francis invites everyone on the planet to consider how our actions are affecting the earth and the poorest people. Everything is interconnected, and all of creation praises God. It is our Christian vocation to care for creation.   

Subsidiarity and participation (the dignity of work)

A small number of very rich men have been able to lay upon the teeming masses of the laboring poor a yoke little better than that of slavery itself.

Rerum Novarum, 1891, #3

The dignity of work has been a key principle of Catholic social teaching from the very beginning. In 1891, Pope Leo XIII issued Rerum Novarum (On Capital and Labour). He shone a light on the injustice and exploitation of workers by the rich during the Industrial Revolution. He advocated for workers to join forces and fight against inhuman conditions.Since then, Church teaching has upheld the dignity of work and participation. The human person should always come before the pursuit of profit. Workers have the right to join trade unions, to a just wage, to spend time with their families and to rest. Work is an essential part of our human dignity and everyone has the right to participate.

Collective Worship

Opportunities are provided to use the Scriptures to celebrate and gather together so we can demonstrate the glory of God in our lives.

Our Chaplaincy team take a lead in preparing pupil prayer groups which enables pupils to be actively prayerful during the significant dates of the liturgical calendar.

Our beautiful grounds give us the opportunity to reflect on the awe and wonder of Creation and we use them regularly to pray and worship together and to reflect  and contemplate.

Each class gathers for Collective Worship each week and the theme is introduced to the children during Assembly on a Friday. We are actively engaged with the Parish in the Sacramental programme and work closely with them to ensure the triangle of home school and Parish support children in their sacramental journey.

We have our Wednesday Worship assemblies to which families are invited and a range of celebrations through the year which involve both parish and family in worshipping together.

We work with the Parish closely to support our many children with additional needs (especially those with ASD) so that they can access the sacramental programme in a way that is enabling and meaningful for them and their family.

Geraldine from CAFOD came in to deliver a special assembly to Key Stage 1 and 2. She outlined the role of CAFOD and explained their role in supporting Pope Francis' encyclical, Laudato Si' - a profound invitation to everyone on the planet to care for our common home.

Chaplaincy Team Training Day

A group of Chaplains went to St Peter's RC High School for a training day with other Chaplaincy teams from our local area. The Just Youth group led us in reflections based on the messages we must consider during the Lenten season. It was a very rewarding day and next week the children will be visiting classes around school to continue and pass on the message. It was a very fulfilling and reflective day for all of us.