Roselyn House School and The RHISE Service

COLLECTIVE WORSHIP POLICY

AND GUIDANCE

 

MISSION STATEMENT

 

Moving forwards together to a positive future

 

Aspects of this policy are adopted through the PSHEE, SMSC and CCC Curriculum Policy.

 

This policy outlines The value and purpose of collective worship in the life of ROSELYN HOUSE SCHOOL and gives practical guidance to those leading

 

The nature and purpose of collective worship

 

Why do we have collective worship in school?

 

It is, of course, a legal requirement but we believe that its value extends so much further.

 

Collective worship can both reinforce and contribute to the ethos of the school, in addition to offering a unique occasion in the school day to pause and explore life beyond the prescribed curriculum and offer a time of reflection and calm for our young people in order to provide a positive setting through which to begin the school day.

 

It encourages members of the whole school community, teachers, learning support mentors and learners together, to challenge assumptions and reflect upon issues which transcend normal day to day experiences, thus broadening understanding and contributing to our search for knowledge and meaning of who we are. By enabling students to acknowledge the value of diversity in terms of race, gender, culture and differing abilities, it fosters inclusion and breeds tolerance.

 

It provides an opportunity for the whole school to be brought together as a community and develop respect for others.

 

Government guidance circular 1/94 states:

 

Collective worship in schools should aim:

 

• to provide the opportunity for students to worship God, to consider spiritual and moral issues and to explore their own beliefs;

• to encourage participation and response, whether through active involvement in the presentation of worship or through listening to and joining in the worship offered; and

• to develop community spirit, promote a common ethos and shared values, and reinforce positive attitudes.

 

 

 

At Roselyn House School and The RHISE Service we have themed based collective worship. These themes are planned in advance and represent areas of life which are relevant to the young people or based around a particular celebration event. They have spiritual, moral, social and cultural reference. Often these are organised by senior members of staff within the school, but can involve any staff and often involve group or individual participation from the students. Students are encouraged to join in where appropriate. There is also a system of reward for participation. This encourages students to follow the school’s behaviour policy, to develop in confidence and to be mindful of others. There are often challenges for students in order to gain additional reward. Friday afternoon is a celebration of student’s achievement through the week and certificates are given out for students to take home. The Headteacher’s Award is given for Learning Achievement throughout the week and work displayed on the Headteacher’s Board.

 

Whose responsibility is it?

At Roselyn House School and The RHISE Service the arrangements for collective worship are the responsibility of the Headteacher and co-ordinated by the Deputy Headteacher, Mr Birkenhead.

 

Withdrawals

In accordance with legal requirements, Parents/ Carers have the right to withdraw their children from acts of collective worship on religious grounds. Parents/ Carers should make their wishes known to the Headteacher who will ensure that any students who are withdrawn are appropriately supervised while the act of collective worship takes place. Students can be withdrawn wholly or partly from acts of collective worship only by parents/ carers. Staff at the school cannot withdraw students from acts of collective worship for other activities. However, if their behaviour is deemed as inappropriate then they will be asked to leave and supervised elsewhere by a member of staff.

 

Determinations

Collective worship at Roselyn House School and The RHISE Service is aimed to be appropriate to the family backgrounds, ages and aptitudes of the students within our school. They are determined to be fun, informative and thought provoking.

 

When is it assembly and when is it collective worship?

 

Assemblies can incorporate collective worship, but there is a distinction between the two. A report on sporting achievements may come under ‘assembly’ but using the students’ sporting achievements to explore and reflect on human potential, determination, loyalty, courage could be the stimulus for a ‘worshipful response’ and therefore could constitute collective worship.

 

 

There are ‘special’ end of term assemblies to celebrate achievement and in addition following Sports Day in the Summer Term, where an engraved trophy is presented to the overall winner. There is also a Literacy trophy at the end of the year for the student has made the most progress.

 

School notices are often delivered at a brief grouping after lunch.

 

What makes a good act of collective worship?

 

At Roselyn House School/ The RHISE Service we believe:

• When it involves staff and students alike

• When everyone feels included and is engaged

• When there is strong eye contact between the person leading the worship and the audience

• When it is relevant, useful or informative to our students

• When it is humorous

• When it is thought provoking

• When it asks you to question/ think about moral values

• When it promotes positives

• When it changes prejudice

• When students are rewarded for participation

• When students are realising the ‘theme of the week’

• When the act itself extends into discussion throughout the school day/ week.

 

What OFSTED has to say . . .

Characteristics of the best acts of worship included:

• a good variety of stimuli including drama, music, literature, artefacts and pictures, which captured and sustained the attention of students of all ages;

• relevant content which promoted the spiritual growth and development of the students;

• questioning which elicited thoughtful and extended responses;

• opportunities for quiet reflection as well as prayer;

• and the involvement of the students in the planning and presentation of worship.”

 

At Roselyn House School/ The RHISE Service we structure our acts of worship where:

• We meet together in a variety of groupings, including form groups and class groups.

• We have a ‘theme’ which provides a clear focus on important issues or concepts such as morals, community, forgiveness, sharing, peace etc.

• We attempt to connect with our students through themes and approaches.

• We offer time for reflection at the end of the act of worship which helps provide a calm atmosphere before students are dismissed to lessons.

• We encourage students to talk about the ‘theme’ throughout the day/ week usually at break times so as not to distract from lessons or if it can be incorporated into Spiritual, Moral and Social planning of lessons then this is appropriate.

• We encourage students to guess the ‘theme’ and reward with additional points.

• We always applaud the person who delivers the act of worship and thank them after.

• We take part in focus days/ weeks/ month.

 

Our guidelines for acts of worship are:

 

• Plenty of participation… both active and passive, by students and adults. This is a time for building up the sense of community and promoting the ethos of a school. It is clearly important therefore, that staff as well as students are in attendance.

• Wide variety of approaches... dramatic, readings, pictures, photographs, stories, music, dance, silence, reflections, songs, prayers, mime, visual images and artefacts that could used as a focus for worship.

• Variety of leaders… every member of staff is invited to contribute to the theme of their choice and on occasions, usually within ‘focus weeks’ we include visitors from outside the school – local people from faith and community groups, representatives of charitable activities, involved agencies with the school, representatives from minority groups and parents/ carers.

• … we include various ‘faith’ stories, teachings and perspectives and we mark special days and seasons within religious calendars.

• ... which are relevant to the everyday lives of our students which are pre planned.

 

Some appropriate themes suitable for development over a week or longer

 

 

Achievement

Adventure

Aggression and hate

Aims and ambitions

All Saints

Ambitions

A time for everyone

Autumn

Barriers

Beauty

Beginnings

Big and small

Blindness & sight

Books

Bravery

Bridges

British Values

Building relationships

Care and caring

Challenge

Change

Charity

Children

Choice/Choices

Christmas

Citizenship

Communication

Communion

Compassion

Conservation

Courage

Creation

Culture

Day and night

Democracy and Government

Desert Island Discs

Differences

Disability

Discipleship

Discovery

Diversity

Dreams

Easter

Education and learning

Education and life

Enjoyment

Epiphany

Experience

Exploring the future

Exploring the past

Faith

Fame

Fantasy

Films I have seen

Finding your way

Food for thought

Forgiveness

Freedom and  responsibility

Freedom and slavery

Friends/

Friendships

Gifts

Giving up and going on

Global issues

God and gods

God’s world

Good and evil

Good news

Green issues

Growing

Guiding light

Guilt and suffering

Handicaps

Happiness is…

Hardship

Harvest

Haves and Have-nots

Health

Helping Hands

Heroes and heroines

Hobbies

Holidays and travel

Homes and families

Homelessness

Hope and despair

Human vices

Human virtues

Humility

Humour

I believe…

Illusion and reality

Imagination

Influences and

indoctrination

Invitations

Jesus

Journeys

Joy and happiness

Joy and sorrow

Justice and fair play

Just thinking about it

Key people

Language

Laws and rules

Leaders and leadership

Learning

Leisure

Lent

LGBT issues

Life and death

Life’s challenge

Life’s ups and downs

Light

Listen

Living and loving

Living with tomorrow

Love and hate

Memories and reflections

Messages and messengers

Method and madness

Miracles

Mothering Sunday

My favourite music

My favourite poem

Myself and others

Neighbours

New life

News

New school year

New year resolutions

Obedience

Obstacles

Old age

Old and new

One world

Opportunity/ies

Optimism and hope

Parables

Parents and children

Passover

Past and future

Peace (and tranquillity)

Personal qualities

People I have met

Pilgrimage

Places of worship

Planet earth

Poetry

Power and spirit

Praise

Prayer and meditation

Prejudice

Preparations

Pride

Proverbs and sayings

Race

Rebirth

Red letter days

Relationships

Responsibilities

Reward and punishment

Rhyme and reason

Riches

Rights and responsibilities

Roots

Sacrifice

Saving life

School and community

School and opportunity

School and tradition

Science

Seeing the light

Serving and service

Signs and symbols

Sound of silence

Special books

Special interests

Special people

Special places

Stepping stones and stumbling blocks

Stories from the lives of great leaders

Stories from the New Testament.

Stories from the Old Testament

Strain and stress

Strength and weakness

Success and failure

Taking risks

Talk, talk, talk

Thanks

Thanksgiving

The apostles

The Arts

The future

The good things in life

The message

The natural world

The outsider

The still, small voice

The unexpected

The world about us

Things to avoid

Treasures

Turning points

Us and them

Victory and defeat

Views of education

Visits and visitors

Voices

Voices from the past

War and peace

Wealth and poverty

Wealth, money and riches

What God doesn’t

tolerate

What’s it worth?

Why are we here?

Windows

Wisdom

Wise and foolish

Witness

Wonder and awe

Words, words, words

Work and play

Worship

Youth

 

 

 

 

 

Breaking down a Theme

One theme can deliver a variety of foci for collective worship. It is important not to exhaust a theme, but equally important not to overlook the opportunities it may offer.  The easiest way to ‘break down’ a theme is to brainstorm it with colleagues, selecting those aspects most suitable for promoting school issues and concerns, whilst taking account of the ages, ability and aptitudes of the students.

 

For example a brainstorm on the theme of ‘Love’ might include:

 

• Sacrificial love

• Love of neighbour

• ​

• Erotic love

• All types of family relationships

• Relationships which include trans people

• Love of possessions

• ​

• Love of God

• Unconditional Love

• Love of Self

• Same sex relationships

 

 

 

Some aspects on this list may not be considered appropriate but others may form the basis of a week’s collective worship. Future planning may therefore use the same theme again but explore a different aspect. Materials from religious and non-religious sources may be used to support the theme.

 

Strategies for collective worship

Any strategies used in a classroom situation can be applied in an assembly/ acts of worship. It is very important to vary the strategies that we use so that our students do not become bored with the same diet and disengage. Using a variety of strategies enriches the stimulus material and so makes the opportunity for response (perhaps worshipful) more likely.

 

The following is not an exhaustive list of possible strategies, but it may encourage leaders to try something new. As in a lesson, a particular strategy should only be used if it actually enables students to reach the intended outcome.

 

Artefacts

There are rules of respect and sensitivity to observe when using artefacts, but they are excellent windows into a faith. Use them as you would in the classroom – to stimulate interest, to provoke questions, to illustrate an aspect of faith, to provide a sensory experience. An artefact may provide a focus for worship but they should not be used only as a ‘display item’ without students understanding what it is and its significance.

 

Bible / Sacred Text

Looking at the Bible or other sacred text, exploring its significance to believers, may be the focus for acts of worship or assembly. At times, it will be useful to read directly from the text, at others it may be appropriate to retell a story in your own words. It is useful to explore concepts and issues found in the Bible and other sacred text which have some relevance, relationship or impact on students’ lives today.

 

Buzz Groups / Pairs

Allowing students to talk to each other in assembly/ collective worship gives every student the opportunity to participate. This may require patience if you have never tried it before, but once the skills and the process have been learned and practised, it is a very effective strategy. Give students only 2–3 minutes to talk about a given subject (favourite things, why they like their best friend, who they turn to in times of trouble etc.)  Feedback will include obvious answers which you can supplement. Their experiences provide the bridge to their understanding of the concept you are exploring. 

 

Current News

As you read the newspapers cut out and preserve ‘gems’ for the future. If you are addressing a current issue use a video clip (BBC’s Newsround) or newspaper cutting.  Remember:

• you should select a piece that can be easily read, understood, talked about.

• you will need time to think it through

• ask yourself: ‘Why do I want to share this with my students?’ - your aim

• be aware that your selection may or may not directly affect your students

• introduce the article with a general chat about what is happening

• focus on the article read / show / talk about

• encourage reflection by asking for their impressions. For example: What would be their response in a similar situation?What do they think will / should happen next?Who else should be involved?Use question and answer technique or as you speak, write up questions on OHT, for the students to discuss in pairs.

• if you have given yourself enough time, you may be able to add another dimension by using a reading/ quote/ religious teaching to further explore or reflect on the issue.

 

Discussion Groups / Pairs

Give students 3–5 minutes and visit each group. They can discuss issues such as the world we live in, what matters to me, forgiveness means... etc. The discussion itself and/or the points raised may constitute a worship/ ‘reflection time’. 

 

Everyday Objects

Using ordinary everyday objects as visual aids can be particularly effective and it is surprising just how many opportunities there are using this particular strategy. The next time you have an assembly planning meeting with other members of staff, bring along 10 items you’ve picked up around the home or classroom. Consider how you would use each item separately in different acts of worship and see what you come up with. Here are three examples and a few objects for you to think about:

 

• a bruised apple doesn’t mean it is all bad (good and bad in everyone)

• a tube of Smarties contains lots of different coloured shells, same chocolate (one world, lots of different people essentially the same)

• lots of different sizes and shaped candles, light them and the flame is the same (we may look different but our spirit is the same)