Being a Church of England School

What is a Church of England School?

Church of England Schools are, in the main, community schools guided by Christian principles and serving the needs of the local area. As with all maintained schools in England they:

• Teach Religious Education in line with the locally agreed syllabus

• Hold acts of collective worship every day

The RE Syllabus
In Hampshire, RE is taught using Living Difference IV. This outlines the way in which children should learn about religions and world views. In all years, children are taught about celebrations and aspects of the Christian religion. Teaching of Christianity is deepened by using the resource 'Understanding Christianity'.

In KS1, children will also learn about celebrations and aspects of Judaism. In Lower KS2, children are taught about celebrations and aspects of Hinduism and in Upper KS2 the children will learn about celebrations and aspects of Islam and the Humanist world view.

If you wish to learn more about how RE is taught in school, you can access the Living Difference IV document below.

The Living Difference IV

Collective Worship
It is a statutory requirement for all schools that an act of collective worship, broadly Christian in nature, is held each day. Worship is integral to the life and ethos of our church aided school and is led by staff with contributions from pupils and visitors to the school, including both Rev Mark Anderson (St James Church), Open the Book and clergy/youth workers from other local Christian congregations.

Our Collective Worship is carefully planned, with input from a variety of stakeholders, in order to ensure compliance with our trust deed and the SIAMS Evaluation Schedule. We also make explicit our links to St Mary's Church – our vicar visits regularly to lead worship as well as leading Eucharist services, end of term church visits, Pilgrimage day and the Leavers’ Service.

All parents have the right to withdraw their child from collective worship. The Headteacher will wish to discuss with parents, implications of accommodating the parent’s views on withdrawal. Our worship is inclusive, rooted in the Christian faith, but accessible to all members of the school community, whatever their religious background or stage of development.

Parents are welcome to attend termly year group Acts of Worship, end of term church visits and the Eucharist services.

The History of Bramley Church of England Primary School

Collective Worship
In 1811 the National Society of the Church of England set out to establish schools for children of every parish in the country. The schools were to educate the poor of the parish, and not specifically for Christian children. From the outset schools were to be both ‘distinctively Christian’ and inclusive of all members of the community.

Bramley Church of England Primary School was founded in 1849, and its Terms of Union with the National Society (displayed in full in the school entrance hall) state:

"The school aims to serve its community by providing education of the highest quality within the context of Christian belief and practice."

What is distinctive about Bramley Church of England Primary School?
Our school has Christian beliefs and values at its heart. This means that every child and adult associated with the school is considered important not only because they are members of the school but also because they are seen as unique individuals within God's creation.

Bramley Church of England Primary School welcomes everyone – Christian families, as well as families of all faiths and none. We seek to give all our pupils an opportunity to reflect on Christianity and other world faiths and to know what it is like to live in a faith community. We have strong links with St James’ Church, Bramley, and with Winchester Cathedral. We observe the major Christian festivals such as Christmas and Easter by holding a school service led by our local clergy in the church itself, and we make sure that those of other faiths are able and encouraged to mark their major festivals too.

We recognise the spiritual aspects of life, and nurture these alongside children’s academic and emotional needs. Children are encouraged to discuss their views and to respect the views of others. We encourage challenge through questioning as through this we can make sense of the world, the gift of life and the purpose of our own personal lives.

As a pupil, parent, visitor or member of staff you should find that the way the school works is different and distinctive. That distinctive difference is rooted in our Christian values: love, respect and courage.

Please see the links below to visit our local Church and more information on being part of a Church of England school.