Collective worship

Collective worship is a highly valued and set apart time in the school day and week, where the whole school community can gather together in a time that is honoring and worthy to God.

Collective worship in our schools is clearly based on the traditions of the Christian Church, however, it is also a shared activity that allows for a variety of responses, providing an opportunity for those of any religious faith or none to focus and reflect on stimuli which allow the human spirit to respond with integrity.  Our schools are committed to respect the religious communities, or non-religious backgrounds, from which pupils and staff come. We want our times of worship to be an oasis, a place of spiritual refreshment for all.

School acts of worship aim to:

• explore the Christian faith with children and staff, especially to celebrate the C of E’s educational vision: Dignity, Community, Hope and Wisdom
• give an opportunity, for those who wish, to worship God, and, for those who don’t, a clear opportunity to demonstrate respect for others
• discover and celebrate key moments of the Christian calendar, and to enjoy and celebrate special moments of the lives of our school communities
• help children to develop a sense of awe and wonder at the world around them, developing a spiritual dimension to their lives and personal relationships
• strengthen and support the school community and celebrate the Christian belief that each unique individual member is made in the image of God
• provide regular time and opportunity for reflection, enabling children to move from what is of immediate but passing concern to the broader and more lasting concerns of life
• provide time and opportunity for thanksgiving and to enjoy the unity which derives from sharing friendship, acceptance, joys, hopes and fears, etc.
• develop an awareness of and concern for the needs of others as well as personal needs
• provide time to share with others the things they have been doing, their thoughts and ideas
• help children to think about Christian values and how these might be shared and put into practice by all in school
• give children experience of being active members of a caring community, who respond in a compassionate and civilised way to experiences of injustice, cruelty, exploitation, greed etc.

For the CofE's new Statement of Entitlement and Expectation for Collective Worship, May 2021:

Statement of Entitlement and Entitlement for CW | Weblink 

For the Diocesan Collective Worship policy, approved by the Diocesan Board of Education, February 2020:

Collective Worship policy | Weblink 

Collective Worship planning

Gemma has put together some ideas for CW planning for the autumn term 2021 based on values, please see below (PDF except where stated):

There are also ideas for Harvest Festival, a liturgical calendar for the autumn term and 8 Collective Worships featuring diverse representations of Christ (PPT).

Previous planning for 2020-2021

Collective Worship Planning Summer 2 2021: ‘Accept one another as Christ accepted you.’ | PDF

Collective Worship Planning Summer 1 2021: Encountering the risen Jesus | PDF

Collective Worship Planning Spring 2 2021: Jesus in the Wilderness | PDF

Collective Worship Planning Spring 1 2021: Hope, Courage and Endurance | PDF

As part of the collective worship plans for the first part of the Spring term, The Rt Revd Dr Mike Harrison, Suffragan Bishop of Dunwich kindly contributed a video on what endurance means to a Christian.

Collective Worship training

We run a termly Basics of Collective Worship course which includes details of the statutory requirements.  

We also run half-day courses on aspects of worship which are frequently addressed in SIAMS reports, e.g. use of prayer and reflection.

We offer a collective worship conference every two-three years which deals with current recommendations on good practice and examples from local schools.

For details of all our courses, please see our:

Training and events page | Weblink 

Collective Worship resources

For details of our CW resources including Flippin' Praise, please see our:

CW Resources page | Weblink

For further information

Please contact Gemma Kingston regarding training and collective worship.