Page 1 of 8 Document Title Collective Worship Policy Current Version V3-12/17 Authors Mr Ryan Williams Review frequency Annually Signature Signed Name Mrs Pat Goodhead Capacity Principal Chair of Chaplaincy Committee Date Approved 3 rd January 2018 Date Signed 3 rd January 2018 Collective Worship Policy V3-12/17
Page 2 of 8 Amendments Page Version Page/Section Comment V3-12/17 p6 Changes to the first paragraph under Planning for Collective Worship regarding the cycle of themes V3-12/17 p7 Form Worship V3-12/17 p8 House Worship additional sentence to include student representatives V3-12/17 p8 Minor changes under the heading Expectations during Worship
Page 3 of 8 Collective Worship Policy Christ the King College is a Voluntary Aided Secondary School which caters for students aged 11-18 on the Isle of Wight. The College is supported by both the Church of England Diocese of Portsmouth and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth. Christ the King College is committed to providing an outstanding education for all students that is firmly grounded on Christian principles. Our College policies are reflective of this commitment and aim to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all members of our College community. It is also expected that the implementation of our policies reflects those Christian principles on which Christ the King College is founded.
Page 4 of 8 Policy for Worship W. Tozer: "Without worship, we go about miserable." Michael Catt: "If we are going to worship in Spirit, we must develop a spirit of worship. Pope Benedict XVI: Christian worship is worship in harmony with the eternal Word and with our reason. Edward Hays: Our worship and devotion will have to stoke the kind of fire in our souls that can truly change our hearts William Temple: To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth of God, to purge the imagination by the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God and to devote the will to the purpose of God. The College understands, and fully acts upon the two legal requirements for Collective Worship: A daily Act of Worship for all students Collective worship in Church schools must be in accordance with the school s trust deed. Daily Collective Worship. The legal requirement for Church schools ensures that every child in the College is entitled to an opportunity for daily worship. The arrangements for the required collective worship may, in respect of each school day, provide for a single act of worship for all pupils or for separate acts of worship for pupils in different age groups or in different school groups. The School Standards and Framework Act 1998 The 1996 Education Act gave parents the legal right to withdraw their children from collective worship. This is upheld under the 1998 Act. However, it is a College desire that children will take part in worship as the worship will be an integral and vital part of the College day. Christ the King College is a Christian College and as such Collective Worship will be based upon the foundations and principles of both the Roman Catholic and the Church of England. There will be balance in these traditions, as set out in the Foundation Principles. This responsibility to uphold the Christian ethos and foundation of the College is made clear to staff on their appointment.
Page 5 of 8 Worship in our College should: be clearly outlined in the College prospectus and documentation; reflect the College s Foundation Principles; reflect the Mission Statement of the College; be appropriate to the ages, aptitudes and backgrounds of the students; offer opportunities to worship God; show appreciation for the God given gifts and talents of the College community; be inclusive and an occasion where each individual s integrity is respected; offer opportunities for students spiritual, moral, social and cultural development; reflect some of the practices and traditions of the worshipping communities across the Island; underpin the Christian values and ethos of the College; celebrate the values and worth of the College community; be an opportunity for students to reflect on human existence; help students consider and develop their own spirituality, offering a daily opportunity to pray; be attended by all staff including support staff where possible; offer opportunities to share worship with parents, governors and members of the local community for some of the special services; celebrate special occasions in the Churches [Liturgical] year and the life of the community; be regularly monitored through observation and feedback to staff leading the worship. Responsibility for Collective Worship The Governors hold overall responsibility for ensuring that the legal requirements for worship are met. The responsibility for organising and planning the rota for worship lies with the member of SLT with oversight of Ethos and Worship. However, the College Chaplain and members of the College Worship Committee are involved in the operation and smooth running of all Worships at the College. For special services, clergy might also be encouraged to be involved in the planning and preparation of worship, as will students in diverse ways. All staff and clergy who lead collective worship do so in a way that ensures that all present can take part with integrity. Students who lead worship should be so guided by their form tutor or responsible staff member.
Page 6 of 8 The Timing of Collective Worship Morning Worship takes place at the start of the College day, as it is a time when various groups within the College can meet together for prayer and reflection. There is general agreement that worship should be an educational activity offering opportunities for spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. As with any effective lesson, the teacher should employ a variety of teaching styles that engage and challenge. Collective worship may therefore include some of the following ingredients: the use of the Bible as a source book for inspiration and learning; observing the religious cycle of the Christian year; observing Saints days and other key Holy days; using traditional Christian prayers, responses and greetings, and an opportunity for prayer and or for quiet reflection; providing opportunities for students to discover the value of meditation and silence; a talk or a story; introductory music to create a worshipful atmosphere, using music from a variety of Christian traditions; the singing of hymns and or appropriate worship songs; the use of projected imagery and multi-media; using poetry, music, and art to provoke a thoughtful response using video, television clips or slide presentations; dance, drama and role play; topical issues of a College, local, national or international nature that relate to Christian values; reflecting upon Christian symbols and their use in worship. As a College, we hold a Whole College Mass and Eucharist during each term of the Academic year. This will involve all members of staff across the College with the expectation that all staff attend. The Planning of Collective Worship The College has developed themes for each week, which not only encompass key aspects of the Christian year, Saints Days and Christian themes but also Christian character, characteristics and personality which embodies our desire to teach, reach and develop our students to be more like the character of Jesus Christ, our Lord, King and under whose name our College is founded. The long term planning should also include the groupings for worship Whole College, Phase, Year Group or Form Group. The rota for each term is published, although the need for flexibility as the term unfolds, and to accommodate unforeseen events, should be accepted and catered for.
Page 7 of 8 Evaluation of Collective Worship Worship can be evaluated by those leading the worship, other staff, the students for whom the worship is intended, members of the governing body and the College Worship Committee. Feedback from any of these groups will help to improve the quality of worship offered to the students. Monitoring of Collective Worship The monitoring of the planning and provision of worship should be carried out on a regular basis. The Foundation Governors have a key role in this process to ensure that the legal requirements are met and that the worship offered to the students is of the highest quality. It is important that the following areas are monitored regularly: the centrality of worship in the life of the College; that there is a clear policy which is agreed by Governors; that the agreed policy is being implemented; that all staff are aware of the legal requirements for Christian Colleges; that worship takes place on a daily basis, with special services also planned for; that staff appointed are prepared to support the Christian ethos of the College in terms of Collective Worship; the planning of worship reflects the Foundation Principles of the College; the themes are well balanced throughout the year; links with the local parish and community; resources are available to develop the College worship. Worship rota The rota for the year groups is flexible depending on who is speaking or leading, or to accommodate particular events. Possible examples are given below, but interpretation of these is flexible. Traditional Worship This will take the form of a simple liturgy, such as an opening prayer, music, reading, reflection and closing prayer. Members of SLT will lead the worship, with, where necessary or appropriate, the Leader of Lower College, Upper College or Sixth Form giving out any notices at the start. Music will be used within the worship. The College Prayer or the Lord s Prayer are usually said congregationally. Form Worship This worship takes place in the form room, with the Form Tutor leading the Tutor Group in an act of worship, with at least once a week, students from the form leading the rest of the form in worship. Resources are provided by a member of the College Worship Committee with adaptions taking place to enable students to access the resources planned initially for Sixth Form usage. In addition to these resources, Form Worship may also include reading through and discussion of the Daily Bible Verse. Form Tutors are required to support the students in their preparation for Form Worship and a review form is to be submitted to the member of SLT with oversight of Ethos and Worship at the end of each term as part of our on-going monitoring of Worship across the College and in support of Section 48 monitoring. Form-led Worship
Page 8 of 8 Each form group, under the direction of their Form Tutor, will lead a Collective Worship. All members of the form are expected to take part. Drama, video, music, dance or a media clip are all possibilities, as are readings. Prayers must be included. The Form Tutor will have sufficient time in which to work with the form to craft the worship, this being done in the weeks leading up to the service, doing so within the form worship time. Phase Worship This will be, where possible, the gathering of more than one year group, led by the Head of Lower College, Upper College or Sixth Form, a member of SLT, various staff members or outside speakers. House Worship The House Leadership Team and Student representatives for the House system lead an act of worship as the different year groups come together. Year Worship One year group gathers, with a format that suits the leader. Prayer is part of this service, as is some form of reflection or teaching. Heads of Year lead. Each form group in a cohort will lead this sort of worship once a year. This may or may not involve singing, depending on the choice of the form group. Hymns The intention is to practise a hymn or worship song, or to learn a new one. However, this in itself is not an act of worship! Therefore, there is an opening prayer and an explanation from the worship leader, as well as a closing prayer. Reflections upon the words of the hymn/song are likely so that there is shared understanding. Expectations during worship Tutors should: move their forms as quickly as possible; accompany students to the hall for Collective Worship; sit alongside their forms for Collective Worship, the only exception is if the Form Tutor has a commitment on the opposite College site. In this circumstance, Tutors are still expected to accompany and manage their forms to worship; use both sides of the Hall to sit, so that each cohort has some staff near their students. Dismissal of the students will be by the Phase Leader (for Traditional, Hymns or Phase Worships), the Head of Year (for Year Worships) or House Leadership Team (for House Worships), with Form Tutors assisting as each row is dismissed. Students should wear the full College uniform to Worship so all form Tutors are expected to establish the routines and expectations with their forms. Every member of staff is expected to attend a daily Act of Worship, unless they have prior dispensation from a member of SLT or their work does not allow for this (i.e. members of Student Services, the Administration Team, etc.). This ensures that all staff uphold the centrality of College Worship, and are seen to be doing so by students who look to them as role models. All teaching staff should therefore be attending Worship each day on either Lower College, in the new College building on Upper College site or in the Sixth Form Centre.