RE

Our school values: Love, Courage and Friendship

Our vision: With God’s love, we will live, learn, and grow together

Our school Bible verse: We love, because He first loved us. (1 John 4: 19)

Motivated by the Christian faith and our school values, we want our community to have excellent knowledge and understanding of Christianity and of other world faiths, learning to live peacefully together with love and respect. We want to ask big questions about life, understanding what faith is and how this is lived out, making us good citizens of the world who aspire and act, to make the world a better place. 

Through an enriched and enquiry-based curriculum from the LDBS (London Diocesan Board for Schools) the children are taught to become critical thinkers, asking deep and meaningful questions and able to express their religious convictions. This means that by the end of Year 6, they will be able to critically interrogate texts, ask philosophical questions, make connections within and across religions and world views and express their views on spirituality, religion and philosophically. Furthermore, building on prior learning, the children will develop the ability to make their own choices and decisions concerning religion, based securely on a deep understanding and knowledge of religion and world views, beliefs, and practices. 

All lessons have clear steps, objectives and are challenging. They are effectively planned to ensure progression and differentiated to meet the needs of all the children. The children are encouraged to enter discussions and debates to challenge and clarify their thoughts and opinions with the others in their class. 

The Subject Lead supports the other class teachers with their planning, finding quality enrichment opportunities and visitors that help bring the faiths and subject alive for the children. 

Early Years

RE makes up 5% of curriculum time and in EYFS, it is entwined and runs alongside the Early Learning Goals. The online platform, Tapestry, allows for a collaborative partnership with parents, to share and communicate a child’s learning, particularly in the early stages of their school life. 

KS1 and KS2

In Year 1 to Year 6, we have discrete lessons on a weekly basis to ensure that we meet the minimum requirements of 36 hours in KS1 and 45 hours in KS2.  

Enrichment through RE

At St. Andrew’s, we enhance our children’s learning in RE through enriching experiences, offering learning outside the classroom. This aids the children’s understanding of the world around them, the diversity within it and how they fit into their community and the wider world. 

Visits to places of worship and guest speakers include:

• A trip to the synagogue in Year 1
• A visit from Rabbi Jacobi in Year R & 3
• Guest speakers about the Muslim faith in Year 1 and Year 3
• A trip to the Dharma Mandir in Year 4
• A visit to St. Paul’s Cathedral service for the Year 5 Worship Committee
• All year groups visit St. Andrew’s Church on regular occasions to explore various aspects of the curriculum

In Year 4 and Year 5, the children explore the local area of Enfield Town, to see the diverse religious presence in the local community. This links with their local history unit.

We have a Worship Committee, comprising a mixed group of KS2 children, who take an active role in leading collective worship, including choosing music for entering and exiting the hall, leading the call to worship and prayers. 

St. Andrew’s Church is very much a part of the school. It is a familiar place to all children, regardless of faith, and is a place we visit many times to celebrate Harvest, Christmas, Easter and our Year 6 Leavers.  In addition, each class visits separately, to meet with Fr. Steve, to learn more about the building, the curriculum and the role of the church in Christianity. 

The clergy from St. Andrew’s supports children’s learning in school, through leading Collective Worship and taking part in RE lessons. 

National and Global Links

Our Early Years classes form links with a primary school in Lincolnshire, sending them photos and messages about their 100 days at school. 

Last year, we began forming links with a Christian school in Lusaka, Zambia. We sent photos, Christmas cards and letters from the children to the school, and they sent prayers and letters back to us. This links really well with our Geography curriculum, teaching our children about another town, in another country; geography on another continent.  We continue to pursue this link to provide benefits for our pupils and to those in Lusaka.

Music and Worship

Music takes centre stage at our school and we sing every day. Children learn to sing hymns, carols and other songs with accuracy, conviction and joy, and they sing with confidence and good intonation. Two-part songs are also taught in KS2, which links to the music curriculum objectives.

Reaching out into the community

Our children are given many opportunities to reach out into the local community. By the time they leave St. Andrew’s, many of our Year 6 children have sung carols at Tesco, entertained at Christmas at the Market Place and shared craft afternoons at Azalea Court, a local care home for the elderly.

We also take part in litter picks around the church grounds, support the Salvation Army with fundraising and make links with the local grammar school and our partnership church school, St. Paul’s. Children bring their ideas for advocacy based on what is meaningful to them, and we support the children in their pursuit of making a difference. 

Children of all abilities are engaged and challenged in RE lessons, becoming independent learners who improve their skills progressively, along with their knowledge, to the best of their ability. St. Andrew’s pupils have an excellent knowledge of the world religions and the beliefs and practices that matter to different people. They understand the importance of living well together with love and respect. They can also articulate the difference that living out their values and beliefs has for themselves, their community and the wider world. They are full of hope and ask deep questions. They are citizens participating in advocacy for change.

St. Andrew’s carries out assessment in accordance with the guidance given by the LDBS. Every lesson has linked formative assessment of the children’s understanding of the learning and vocabulary used. This allows for gaps and misunderstanding to be quickly assessed and review at this point and/or built into subsequent lessons to consolidate learning with additional support where necessary. End of unit assessments are recorded. Teachers are aware of the importance of feedback and children respond in a positive manner.

In addition, to assess the impact of the RE curriculum on children’s learning, the RE lead and SLT undertake learning walks, professional conversations with colleagues and short drop-ins to see the curriculum in action. The Christian ethos and values of the school are evident in all classrooms through displays, prayer books and the learning attitudes in all classes.