Religious Education

At St Clare’s, we strive to live out our Mission Statement,

"I have come that they may have life and have it to the full." John 10:10.

Our Mission

“I have come that they may have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10)

We aim to grow in knowledge and friendship with God
We, the governors, the Headteacher and the staff will uphold the Catholic Values of our school life
We will feel compassion for others in difficulties
We aim for a welcoming Christian atmosphere
We live our lives according to Gospel values, following the examples of the Saints
We will achieve the best we can academically, spiritually and in everything we do
We will work in partnership with our families, our parish, other schools and our diocese to create a community of faith
We welcome other faiths working in harmony with Catholic traditions
We will deliver a high standard of Religious Education which will be reflected in all of our teaching, prayer and social action
Prayer and Collective Worship will be at the heart of our school life and we will enjoy regular visits from our parish priest who guides our school community in our spiritual development
We will care for our world and everything in it, celebrating the importance of our stewardship of the Earth

Rationale of Religious Education:

At the heart of Catholic education lies the Christian vision of the human person. This vision is expressed and explored in religious education. Therefore, we believe that religious education is never simply one subject among many, but the foundation of the entire educational process.
We believe Religious Education is, then, the core subject in a Catholic school.
Religious education contributes to evangelisation and catechesis but its specific contribution to the Catholic Life of the school is primarily educational and so Religious Education will be planned, taught, assessed and monitored with the same rigour as other curriculum subjects.
We understand Religious Education to be the systematic study of the mystery of God and of Jesus Christ, of the Church, and of the central beliefs which Catholics hold.

‘ The outcome of Religious Education is religiously literate young people who have the knowledge, understanding and skills – appropriate to their age and capacity – to think spiritually, ethically and theologically, and who are aware of the demands of religious commitment in everyday life.’

The Aims of Religious Education

Religious Education is very much the core subject in our school and we affirm it as of central importance at the heart of everything we do.

to promote knowledge and understanding of Catholic faith and life
to promote knowledge and understanding of the response of faith to the ultimate questions about human life, its origin and purpose
to promote the skills required to engage in examination of and reflection upon religious belief and practice

For some in the classroom, Religious Education may well be received as catechesis, deepening and enhancing their personal faith; for some it will be evangelisation, the first time they will have been presented, personally, with the truths of living faith. Nevertheless, its primary purpose is the step by step study of the mystery of Christ, the teaching of the Church and its application in daily life. The criteria by which it is to be judged are educational.

Religious Education is planned, taught, assessed and monitored with the same rigour as other core curriculum subjects.

The outcome of 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.

At St Clare’s, Religious Education aims to:

present a comprehensive content which engages pupils and is the basis of knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith;
enable pupils continually to deepen their religious and theological understanding and be able to communicate this effectively;
present an authentic vision of the Church’s moral and social teaching so that pupils can make a critique of the underlying trends in contemporary culture and society;
raise pupils’ awareness of the faith and traditions of other religious communities in order to respect and understand them;
develop the critical faculties of pupils so that they can relate their Catholic faith to daily life;
stimulate pupils’ imagination and provoke a desire for personal meaning as revealed in the truth of the Catholic faith;
enable pupils to relate the knowledge gained through Religious Education to their understanding of other subjects in the curriculum;
bring clarity to the relationship between faith and life, and between faith and culture.

Statutory Requirements:

In line with Bishops’ Conference recommendations, 10% of curriculum time is allocated to Religious Education which does not include Collective Worship.

In EYFS and Key Stage 1 = 2 hours

In Key Stage 2 = 2 ½ hours

Curriculum Provision:

To fulfil the above aims and to address the 4 areas of study outlined in the Curriculum Directory – Revelation, Church, Celebration and Life in Christ - ‘The Way, The Truth and The Life’ programme is used as recommended by the Diocese.

This programme will be diversified and supplemented, where relevant with other appropriate resources such as ‘RE Today’. Where possible, planning will demonstrate key vocabulary, challenges to pupils for greater depth and assessment opportunities. They will use these programmes to adhere to the Curriculum Directory as agreed by the Bishop’s Conference of England and Wales.

Our starting point in Religious Education is Revelation. God is always the initiator in the history of our creation and redemption; it is his revealing of himself that makes classroom religious education possible. To begin with revelation ensures that we respect the revealed nature of Christian faith.

From revelation we move onto Church; in other words, we consider how revelation gives life to the Church. The Church is the bearer of God’s revelation and the means by which human beings live out their response to revelation, enlivened by the Holy Spirit.

From here we focus on two aspects of the Church’s response to God’s revelation; Celebration – the liturgical and sacramental life of the Church and Life in Christ – the moral life and the pursuit of holiness.

However, attempts to make clear connections between the truths of faith and the pupils’ experience of life are essential.

Teaching in Religious Education should help people be attentive to the meaning of their experiences, illumined by the light of the Gospel, so that they may respond to God more fully. Experience can also make the Christian message more intelligible. It serves in the examination and acceptance of the truths which are contained in the deposit of Revelation.

Our school exists to enable all children and adults to grow towards Christian maturity based on the life and teachings of Jesus as revealed in the Gospels and in the Traditions and Doctrines of the Catholic Church. “Go ye therefore teach all Nations.” Matthew 28-29

Religious Education Curriculum Overview

Reception and Key Stage 1

	Autumn 1	Autumn 2	Spring 1	Spring 2	Summer 1	Summer 2
Reception	R1 God's World	R2 God's Family	R3 Getting to Know Jesus	R4 Joy and Sorrow	R5 New Life	R6 The Church
Year 1	KS 1.1 God's Great Plan	KS 1.2 Mary, Our Mother	KS 1.3 Families & Celebrations	KS 1.4 Following Jesus	KS 1.5 Resurrection	KS 1.6 Miracles
Year 2	KS 2.1 Chosen People	KS 2.2 The Mystery Of God	KS 2.3 The Good News	KS 2.4 The Mass	KS 2.5 Eastertide	KS 2.6 The First Christians

Key Stage 2

	Autumn 1	Autumn 2	Spring 1	Spring 2	Summer 1	Summer 2
Year 3	3.1 The Christian Family	3.2 Mary, Mother Of God	3.3 Jesus the Teacher	3.4 Called to Change	3.5 Celebrating Easter & Pentecost	3.6 Being a Christian
Year 4	4.1 The Bible	4.2 Trust in God	4.3 Celebrating the Mass	4.4 Jesus the Saviour	4.5 The Early Christians	4.6 The Church
Year 5	5.1 Creation	5.2 God's Covenants	5.3 Inspirational people	5.4 Reconciliation	5.5 Life in the Risen Jesus	5.6 The Transforming Spirit
Year 6	6.1 Called To Serve	6.2 Justice	6.3 Exploring the Mass	6.4 Jesus, the Messiah	6.5 The Kingdom of God	6.6 Faith In Action

More information about each topic can be found below:

https://www.dioceseofleeds.org.uk/education/re-catholic-life/religious-education/primary-re/re-programme-autumn/

https://www.dioceseofleeds.org.uk/education/re-catholic-life/religious-education/primary-re/re-programme-primary/

https://www.dioceseofleeds.org.uk/education/re-catholic-life/religious-education/primary-re/re-programme-summer/

Appropriate religious language will be developed where children will understand the meaning of symbols and ritual in the practices of the Catholic Faith.

We will support and complement the catechetical programme of the parish and so contribute to the development of community and partnership between home, school and Parish.

Inclusion:

The Religious and educational needs of all children will be addressed whether they are all from homes where the Faith is strong, or alternatively where there is little or no Faith.
Teaching will help all children grow spiritually and help them develop in self-esteem.
Children will be taught in class groups.
Teachers will be responsible for planning and delivery of the Religious Education programme taking into account additional educational needs in accordance with the school SEN policy.
Wherever possible, those children who are working at a greater depth in RE will be encouraged to develop their skills further.

The Catholic Education Service (www.catholiceducationservice.org.uk) states the following:

“Whatever their status... Catholic Schools and Colleges are established to support Catholic parents in their responsibility for the academic, physical, spiritual, moral and religious education of their children in accordance with the teachings of the Church. Catholic Education endeavours to make the person of Jesus Christ known and loved, and to place Him and the teachings of the Catholic Church at the centre of the educational enterprise. In ‘placing Christ at the Centre’,1 Catholic education seeks to invite all into a life of discipleship within the Body of the Church.”

1 Christ at the Centre, Catholic Truth Society, 2nd Edition, 2012

At St Clare's, we give our children the opportunity to grow in God's love and use Jesus' teachings to build positive, respectful relationships with others, both in school and in the wider community.

We follow 'The Way, The Truth and The Life' programme, as recommended by the Diocese of Leeds, alongside a range of other high-quality materials, to encourage our pupils to be actively involved in their learning, developing curiosity, creativity and independence.

We encourage every child to use our school Virtues to live out our Mission "I have come that they may have life and have it to the full" (John 10:10).

Children are to have a central role in school's Liturgical celebrations, right from the time they first begin to know what it means to pray and respond to God and His creation.

Please read our Religious Education and Catholic Intent document, as well as our RE and Catholic Life Policy for more information.

More Information

Religious Education and Catholic life

RE Newsletters

Catholic schools Inspectorate report 2023