Religious Education

At St Agnes’ we recognise that we are building the foundations for life-long learning with Christ at the centre. We want to capture and nurture a love of learning that our children will carry with them as they grow. We strongly believe that a caring and stimulating environment is essential to the development of our children and that learning should be fun, hands on, active and challenging. Our curriculum is carefully planned to ensure that all our children are encouraged to reach their full potential. In order to achieve this the Governors, Headteacher and Staff recognise the need to constantly review our practice to ensure our goals are being achieved. Every child should be happy, secure and confident. We value every child as a unique individual and provide a supportive and secure environment in which every child can flourish and learn.

The family of St Agnes loves, learns and grows together as followers of Jesus.

Classroom Religious Education:

Religious Education is a core subject. The primary purpose of Catholic Education is the step by step study of the mystery of Christ, the teaching of the Church and its application in daily life, therefore the principal aims of the school in terms of the Religious Education which it provides are:

  • to lead the children to a deepening knowledge and understanding of the Catholic Faith.
  • to provide opportunities for the children to develop a loving relationship with God and their neighbour.
  • to encourage children to respect and be fully aware of the needs of others as equal members of God’s creation.

There are many opportunities for all children to explore their faith and deepen their relationship with Christ. This includes daily acts of worship, weekly assemblies, regular classroom/parish based liturgies and celebration of mass. The parish team works in full partnership with the school in supporting and enhancing the education and formation of our children.

At St Agnes, we aim to guide the children to become religiously literate young people who have the knowledge, understanding and skills to think spiritually and theologically and who are aware of the demands of religious commitment in everyday lives.

Religious Education is taught for at least 10% of the weekly timetable. Our Religious Education curriculum is based on the delivery of the Curriculum Directory supported by the Margaret Carswell units which are used as a guide for the teaching and learning of Religious Education throughout the school. Our Religious Education curriculum enables the children to explore key questions of life from the Christian tradition and how to put what they have learnt into context. We work closely with our local Parish to prepare liturgies and we value the partnership between home, school and parish and the wider community.

Religious Education is a core subject. The primary purpose of Catholic Education is the step by step study of the mystery of Christ, the teaching of the Church and its application in daily life, therefore the principal aims of the school in terms of the Religious Education which it provides are:

  • to lead the children to a deepening knowledge and understanding of the Catholic Faith.
  • to provide opportunities for the children to develop a loving relationship with God and their neighbour.
  • to encourage children to respect and be fully aware of the needs of others as equal members of God’s creation.

There are many opportunities for all children to explore their faith and deepen their relationship with Christ. This includes daily acts of worship, weekly assemblies, regular classroom/parish based liturgies and celebration of Mass. The parish team works in full partnership with the school in supporting and enhancing the education and formation of our children.

To help the children develop their knowledge of their faith, we use the Dr Margaret Carswell Framework Model, which is taught in a three year cycle and links to the liturgical year. The content of this Model offers a systematic programme of study which comprehensively covers all the strands and requirements of the Curriculum Directory.  Each topic plan ensures progression and depth of provision from the following areas:

  • Revelation: Story, Scripture, Memory and Tradition of the Church
  • Church: Community, Discipleship, Witness
  • Celebration: Sacrament, Ritual, Prayer, Worship, Liturgy
  • Life in Christ: Lifestyle, Morality, Values, Attitudes

Framework for Religious Education 3 Year Cycle

Other Faiths

To raise pupils’ awareness of the faith and traditions of other religious communities in order to respect and understand them, the whole school spends time learning about different beliefs and cultures preparing pupils for life in modern Britain.