Religious Education Intent Statement

RE is to develop faith and live the Gospel values with understanding.

At the heart of Catholic education at St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School is Jesus Christ and his teachings. Our Catholic school provides an educational framework within which our young people can grow in their relationship with Christ in a way that takes into account their individual human development. We profess Christ as Saviour of the World with confidence and clarity. In a spirit of openness and dialogue, we also respect the rights of all members of our school community to hold their own beliefs. 

Founded on Gospel Values

We encourage all to engage as fully as possible with every aspect of school life, including Religious Education lessons, worship, prayer and liturgy. Catholic social teaching (CST), is our moral compass, guiding us on how to live out our faith in the world. Our school routine is centered around child led prayer and liturgy with daily prayer times along with additional reflective prayer taught lessons, meditations and liturgical formation.

The outcome of excellent Religious Education is religiously literate and engaged young people
who have the knowledge, understanding and skills - appropriate to their age and capacity – to reflect spiritually, and think ethically and theologically, and who are aware of the demands of religious commitment in everyday life.
(Religious Education Curriculum Directory for Catholic Schools and Colleges – Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales 2012)

Mutual Respect 

We encourage all members of the community to engage as fully as possible with every aspect of school life, including RE  lessons and prayer and liturgy. Catholic social teaching (CST), is our moral compass, guiding us on how to live out our faith in the world. Our school routine is centred around daily child-led prayer opportunities for reflection, spiritual development and liturgical formation.

We believe that it is vital for our pupils to learn about and from religion, so that they can understand the world around them. Through Religious Education, our pupils are able to develop their knowledge of the Catholic faith and also of world faiths – enabling them to improve their understanding and awareness of the beliefs, values and traditions of other individuals, societies, communities and cultures.

Our school dedicates lessons throughout the year to deepen our understanding about other religions and worldviews. We value the regular opportunities of listening to visitors from other faiths and visiting different places of worship. These allows our children to build their understanding, compassion and respect for people of different worldviews. All pupils are invited to reflect on their own beliefs and values and to ask questions about their own faith and that of others. We appreciate the experiences and contributions that all our pupils from diverse faith backgrounds bring and work together to build a religiously literate and caring  community.

Learning and growing together with Christ