COLLECTIVE WORSHIP POLICY

Aims

To promote students’ spiritual, moral and cultural development.

To provide the opportunity for students to:

  • worship God 
  • reflect on values that are of a broadly Christian nature and on their own beliefs and the beliefs of

others

  • develop a community spirit, a common ethos and shared values 
  • consider spiritual and moral issues 
  • respond to the worship offered

Statutory Duty of the School

All maintained schools must provide daily collective worship for all registered pupils (apart from those who have been withdrawn by their parents). This is usually provided within a daily assembly.

The Headteacher is responsible (under the School Standards and Framework Act 1998) for arranging daily collective worship after consulting with the Governing Body. Daily collective worship must be wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character. The precise nature will depend on the family background, ages and abilities of the pupils. Collective worship can take place at any time in the school day and the whole school does not need to gather together at the same time. It can be organised in form groups, year groups or whatever groupings are appropriate for the school.

 Implementation

Collective worship, whether delivered through an assembly or during tutor time, will:

  • be acceptable to the whole community, staff and pupils 
  • include a variety of elements at different times 
  • involve the pupils

Organisation

Collective worship will be delivered either through an assembly or during tutor time when it will be delivered through an organised Thought for the Day.

Every effort will be made to ensure that all pupils attend those assemblies scheduled for their year group. There are times when this is not possible (for example when pupils are sitting examinations or are on residential visits). There may also be occasions when pupils miss assemblies because teachers need to discuss work and progress or other pastoral issues, or provide extra help.

School assemblies will be organised as follows:

Mondays

Upper School (Years 10 to 13)

Rest of the school has a Thought for the Day in Form bases

Tuesdays

Lower School (Years 7 to 9)

Rest of the school has a Thought for the Day in Form bases

Wednesdays

Years 10 and 11 / Years 12 and 13 (Weekly rotation)

Rest of the school has a Thought for the Day in Form bases

Thursdays

Lower School (Years 7 to 9)

Rest of the school has a Thought for the Day in Form bases

Fridays

Whole School Assembly

(Two year groups to assemble in the Performing Arts Studio for a separate group assembly. Year groups to rotate weekly through Years 7 to 13)

Assembly Content

There is no pre-determined plan for the content of assemblies. This is to allow for those leading assembly to be able to make their assemblies topical, reflect their individual enthusiasms, or to reflect a need for a particular social or moral issue to be dealt with.

Form Assemblies

Once a year, each form group is required to prepare and deliver an assembly to their peers. This should comply with the Collective Worship Policy and the theme should be chosen from the suggested list of topics.

Tutor Time and Collective Worship

When forms are not in assembly, tutors should ensure that a Thought for the Day is presented. Ideally, students in the form should organise this on a rota basis with appropriate guidance from the form tutor and/or form prefect.

The Thought for the Day booklet has a useful series of resources particularly for Years 7-9 and these could form the basis of a programme throughout the years.

In Years 10-13 students should take the lead in giving a short Thought for the Day. This presents an opportunity for students to explore their own spiritual development and reflect on their own experiences, through art, music, literature, drama or the natural world.

Record Keeping

It is the responsibility of one of the school’s Departmental Assistants to gather and record information regarding the content and effectiveness of all assemblies. This record enables subsequent leaders to avoid duplication and to follow up topics previously dealt with.

The Right of Parents to Withdraw their Child

Parents have a right to withdraw their children from Religious Education (RE) and collective worship. If a parent asks for their child to be wholly or partly excused from attending any RE or collective worship at the school, the school must comply unless the request is withdrawn.

A school remains responsible for the supervision of any child withdrawn from RE or collective worship, unless the child is lawfully receiving RE or taking part in collective worship elsewhere.

Parents do not need to explain their reasons for seeking withdrawal. The DCSF recommends that, to avoid misunderstanding, a Headteacher may wish to clarify with any parent wanting to withdraw:

  • the religious issues about which the parent would object to their child being taught
  • the practical implications of withdrawal
  • the circumstances in which it would be reasonable to accommodate parents’ wishes
  • if a parent will require any advanced notice of such issue in the future and if so, how much.

 

Teachers

Teachers are not required to lead collective worship but are expected to attend assemblies and to sit with and supervise their form during assemblies.

Staff who feel able to volunteer to lead collective worship are much appreciated as this provides a varied diet and different perspectives for the pupils.

Form Tutor support for the preparation and delivery of Form Assemblies is also highly valued.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Review

The school will review this policy annually and assess its implementation and effectiveness. The policy will be promoted and implemented throughout the school.

PROCEDURES: GENERAL

Pastoral Leaders assist in management of assemblies when their year is in assembly.

There should be silence after the Assembly Bell has been rung. Prompt arrival is important. Girls go to the Hall in pairs, in silence, accompanied by Form Tutors and remain in silence in the Hall. Prefects wait in silence in the Entrance Hall. After Assembly, girls dismiss from the Hall in pairs and remain silent until they have cleared the Entrance Hall area. Staff need to ensure that girls come promptly to assembly.

Meetings should not be called at the end of assembly.

Form Tutors go back to Form Rooms with the girls and remain with them until the next bell rings.

Registers are returned before Assembly. All members of the Teaching Staff are expected to attend Assembly, Form Tutors should sit with their forms along the sides of the Hall.

Notices to be read out in Assembly should be written clearly, signed dated and placed in the basket by the Head’s door.

Form Assembly Topics

 

Year 7

 

Nature Respect

Tolerance Stories from Bible

Health

Thankfulness

 

Year 8

Why bother with justice?

Leaving revision to the last minute

Discrimination and accepting people

Disability

Courtesy

Year 9

Getting on with parents

Elderly people (empathy and respect)

Role models

Self/image/self confidence

Years 10-13

Education through the ages and what its aims have been

The role of women in society past and present

Role models

Community work

Work of charities

Environmental issues, re-cycling etc

Being prepared

Doing justice to yourself

Life just isn’t fair

A just world

How to get what we deserve

Living in a community

Stores from other cultures

Beginnings and endings

Value of Work Experience (Year 10)

Natural hazards (Year 11)

 

The form leading assembly should prepare it, in conjunction with their Form Tutor. Please check that the assembly complies with legal requirements of collective worship.

Form Tutors please see Deputy Head in advance for form assembly to confirm assembly topic.

The form is also expected to arrange the music. The hymn should be accompanied by a member (or members) of the form. Girls should ask, in advance, a sixth former, or other older pupil, to play if for any reason they cannot provide musicians from within the form.

A copy of the Hymn Book music is available from music staff. Books should be returned on the day of the assembly.

Pianists should make sure that they allow enough time to practise the hymn beforehand. Music staff recommend that the pianist take home a copy of the chosen hymn about two or three weeks before the date of the assembly, and that they practise it for about 10 minutes at a time every day. They should also make time to try it out on the appropriate school piano, as this can feel very different from the instrument on which regular practice at home is done.

KS3 Assembly Themes for Citizenship: for staff presenting assembly in summer term

The work of community based, national or international voluntary groups.

The diversity of national, regional, religious and ethnic identities in the UK and the need for mutual respect and understanding.

The significance of the media in society.

The work of the European Union.

The Commonwealth.

The United Nations.

Global politics.

Global economics; international finance, exchange rates, the arms trade, third world debt.

Global environmental issues; species extinction, deforestation, global warming, GM crops.

Global social problems, population growth, poverty, world hunger.

Curriculum Leader for PSHCE will need to give guidance on areas to be covered.

Resources for assemblies

Books are available in the staff section in the library.

RS department also has material for assemblies.

Useful website: www.assemblies.org