At West Tytherley Primary School, we believe it is vital to support children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, ensuring they develop their own principles, beliefs and values whilst respecting those of others. We encourage our children to develop a reflective approach to life, enriching this process through the study of living faiths.

In our school, children are involved in a daily act of collective worship based on a weekly theme. James Pitkin is the vicar of our local parish church, St Peter’s, and is an integral part of our school. He leads an assembly each week, is a Foundation Governor and is always present at our end of term services. As a Church of England school, we celebrate all major Christian festivals and have special services at Christmas and Easter which are often held in St Peter’s Church. We also have a service at harvest time and our Year 6 children are involved in a leavers’ service held in Winchester Cathedral each year.

All classes at West Tytherley School have a reflection area and children say a short prayer giving thanks for their food at lunchtime. They may also say a prayer before leaving school at the end of the day.

Religious Education lessons in our school follow the guidance received from the Diocese of Winchester and the agreed syllabuses of Hampshire Local Authority called “Living Difference” and “Understanding Christianity”. The agreed syllabus reflects the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are, in the main, Christian, whilst taking account of the teaching and practices of other principal religions represented in our country. As West Tytherley is a Church of England School, we provide children with an education based on Christian Values.

Collective Worship

We have a strong Christian ethos and place emphasis on teaching children to value the enduring beliefs of Christian life which include such moral values as respect for one another, truthfulness, honesty, forgiveness and love. Collective worship takes place on a daily basis in the form of a School Act of Worship and reflects traditions of the Christian faith. Our aim is to provide opportunities for children and staff to worship God and learn how others worship. On some occasions we explore aspects of other world religions in the promotion of moral values and spiritual insights.

It is our expectation that all children will be present at acts of worship, but we are committed to respect each individual child’s faith stance. (As with RE, parents have the right to withdraw their children from all acts of collective worship; requests for withdrawal from these activities must be made to the Headteacher in writing).