Religious Education

Religious Education Intent 

At the SJC Federation we believe that it is vital for all our pupils to learn from and about the Christian religion alongside other world faiths, so that they can understand and appreciate the world around them. Our federation reflects our multicultural community and we are extremely proud of the diversity that formulates our federation.

Within our RE curriculum, we teach the world’s major religions: Christianity, Sikhism, Judaism, Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism. Our aim is that our children develop a respect for other belief’s and gain a broad understanding of the world’s religions. RE is taught through an engaging curriculum and regular collective worship. Children are provided with opportunities to experience other people’s cultures and faiths, whilst sharing and celebrating their own knowledge and beliefs.

The federation provides a Christian understanding of the world and the place of humanity reflected in worship and the everyday life of the school. Children are encouraged to become leaders of worship that model the core Christian values of our federation. Empathy and tolerance to other faiths is promoted through reflective discussion with an emphasis on respectful communication. Children are provided with the skills needed from EYFS onwards to incorporate their views of the world around us and their personal experiences. Throughout KS1 and KS2 children are inspired to be good, reflective citizens, who are equipped with the skills needed to build a respectful community.

We promote the celebration of the diversity in our school and the city around us through ensuring children have opportunities to visit a range of places of worship throughout their school life. In addition to this, we invite inspirational figures from the local community into school to share their experiences of their faith with the children. Our aim is for children to leave school with empathy and tolerance to all faiths of the world and an ability to reflect on the values that are distinctly Christian.

Our curriculum is also based on and intends to embed our Christian Distinctiveness. Our behaviour policy is based on ‘3 Rs (Respect Ourselves, Respect Each other and Respect Property). The school has recently achieved the Bronze Award for Rights Respecting Schools and will be striving to achieve the Silver Award as soon as possible. We believe that Rights Respecting Schools will embellish our Christian Distinctiveness.

We follow the Manchester agreed syllabus RE Today as well as Heart Smart which incorporates SMSC values.

A2 The aim(s) of RE
The threefold aim of RE elaborates the principal aim.
The curriculum for RE aims to ensure that all pupils:

1.Know about and understand a range of religions and worldviews so that they can:

• describe, explain and analyse beliefs and practices, recognising the diversity which exists within and between communities and amongst individuals 
• identify, investigate and respond to questions posed, and responses offered by some of the sources of wisdom found in religions and worldviews.
• appreciate and appraise the nature, significance and impact of different ways of life and ways of expressing meaning.

2.Express ideas and insights about the nature, significance and impact of religions and worldviews, so
that they can: 

• explain reasonably their ideas about how beliefs, practices and forms of expression influence individuals and communities
• express with increasing discernment their personal reflections and critical responses to questions and teachings about identity, diversity, meaning and value, including ethical issues
• appreciate and appraise varied dimensions of religion.
  
  3. Gain and deploy the skills needed to engage seriously with religions and worldviews, so that they
  can:
• find out about and investigate key concepts and questions of belonging, meaning, purpose and truth, responding creatively
• enquire into what enables different individuals and communities to live together respectfully for the wellbeing of all
• articulate beliefs, values and commitments clearly in order to explain why they may be important in their own and other people’s lives 
  
  

Throughout schooling, teachers should consider how their teaching contributes towards the principal aim of RE in the local area, and how they help pupils to achieve the threefold aim.

Files to Download

St Chrysostom's CofE SIAMS Inspect Report 

St John's CofE SIAMS Inspect Report