BISHOP RAMSEY CHURCH OF ENGLAND SCHOOL

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1 BISHOP RAMSEY CHURCH OF ENGLAND SCHOOL WORSHIP POLICY Date of last review: June 2015 Review Date: June 2016 Next review date: June 2017 Review Body: SFCC Person Responsible: Mr M Britton (from 2014/15)

2 Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, O my soul. I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live (Psalm ) This Worship Statement should be read in conjunction with the school's Ethos Statement. Assumptions concerning School Worship at Bishop Ramsey School Because of the Admissions Policy of the School, the vast majority of students come from a Christian background. The majority of students are Anglican, although there is a significant representation from other Christian denominations. There are some students, especially in the Sixth Form, who come from other world faiths. Many (it is impossible to number) of the students are practising Christians in the sense that they attend Church or Chapel on Sundays, but also many are not. Many of the students experience some rejection of "parental faith" during this stage in their lives and many are asking questions. Finally it is recognised that although the majority of staff are Christian, there are a significant minority of staff who are committed members of other world faiths, and those who, though supportive of the school s Christian ethos have no formal faith of their own. What is the aim of Worship at Bishop Ramsey School? To provide students with the opportunity to experience a time set aside for worship (praise, Prayer, Reflection, and Thanksgiving) focused on the name of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. To allow the students to participate and experience specifically Christian worship. To allow the School Body to experience itself as a reflective and caring Christian Community within the wider Church. To provide an opportunity for the students to consider spiritual questions within a Christian context. To provide a pluralism of approach which will enable students from a range of theological and Church backgrounds to experience a meaningful and living faith. To enable the students to nurture and develop an awareness of their own relationship with God, and the ethical dimension of this relationship in their dealings with others. To make worship relevant and sensitive to the student body's needs. To help the school community to be conscious of living in a multi faith society and to engender a respectful and informed attitude to people of other faiths, within a developing pluralist society. To use opportunities within the wider curriculum of the teaching programme to touch upon the numinous, and to encourage students to inspire an attitude of awe and wonder towards the world around them. 1

3 Organisation of Worship at Bishop Ramsey School Responsibility for organising worship lies with the. Consultation about the format of worship takes place between the Chaplaincy team, the Head Teacher, members of the Leadership Team, Year Directors, the Head of Music and on Training Days, with all staff. Feedback from students takes place on an informal basis and via surveys. Worship Practice at Bishop Ramsey School Assemblies The main daily act of worship for students takes the form of either an Assembly or Form Prayers. Assemblies are held on three days a week in two locations, the main school Hall and the Drama Barn. Assemblies are taken by a combination of outside speakers and members of the school staff. The outside speakers are local church leaders (the majority Anglican with a significant contribution from the local Baptist Church), local church youth workers as well as some speakers who are invited because of their specialist knowledge. Internal speakers include, on a regular basis, the Head Teacher and members of the Leadership team, Chaplaincy team, and teaching and support staff members. Throughout the year there are some student led assemblies, and there is also input from the school drama groups. A visitor's guide has been drawn up to advise visiting speakers about the format and expectations. The format is a reading drawn from the Bible and read by a student, a responsorial prayer, a talk or presentation, and an ending prayer. The themes for assemblies are fixed at the beginning of the year; they link with Christian festivals, with spiritual themes, with school life, and with global and local concerns. The talks reflect a variety of styles in approach, depending on the speaker and the subject. In both buildings students are expected to enter the Hall in a disciplined manner and in silence. A candle may be lit to mark that we are in worship. The students participate by taking the reading and joining in a responsorial prayer during the assembly. Students also attend a separate Year Assembly once a week. These are normally organised by the Head of Year, and are often led by a group of students. These assemblies have no specifically religious theme. A pattern of extended Special Assemblies have been established to mark the end of each term linked with the Christian festivals of Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. There is also a leavers Eucharist and separately an Assembly for both Year 13 students and Year 11 students in May. Tuesday Form Prayers To supplement Assemblies, Form Prayers are provided for classes to use on Tuesdays. 2

4 The Eucharist The opening of the new School chapel has allowed us to introduce for each Form in Years 7-11 a Form Eucharist which takes place on a Friday during pastoral as often as can be arranged. In the two other terms students attend a celebration of the Eucharist as a Year group. These take place either in the School Hall or in St Lawrence s Church. Students are actively involved in planning the service and in leading the worship through making presentations, serving, reading, playing musical instruments and writing intercessory prayers. Themes for the Service are often chosen in consultation with the Year Director, and aim to either reflect the Church season of the year, or a theme of relevance to the students. The Chaplain presides at all Eucharists and normally gives the sermon. Governors frequently attend and help with administering the chalice. The music is prepared by the music department. The Liturgy used is taken directly from Common Prayer of the Church of England. Two Eucharistic prayers are used, chosen according to the age of the students. Sixth Form Worship The pattern of the last few years has been to organise a mix of Eucharists and Services of Reflection. Interested students will help with themes, finding appropriate readings and music, and writing prayers. A new programme of RE for the Sixth Form organised on a two year basis was introduced in Spring This is a mix of lessons held during LFL (Learning for Life) based on topical issues and debates in the Hall. Over the last three years a final assembly has been organised on Year 13 leavers day. This is fronted by the Head Teacher. Sixth Form Students are also responsible for reading the Bible Reading and leading responsorial prayers during all assemblies. They are also involved in organising charitable campaigns. Members of the Sixth Form Christian Union have taken assemblies and organised music for worship and are encouraged to do so. Faith Clubs Students have the opportunity to attend a voluntary Christian Union lunch time club, run by local church youth workers from Ruislip Baptist Church, and supported by staff Youth workers and local Clergy. These clubs offer games, discussion on "religious themes", Bible study and time for prayer. The Chapel The school has a new purpose-built Chapel, located at the centre of the school, which was consecrated by the Bishop of London in September Aside from the lunch time clubs and Form Eucharists we are developing the use of this space for alternative style worship and reflection and themed art exhibitions. We have recently had a prayer week, with an informal set up that was well used by students and continued through the exam period. The room is available for use by students for quiet prayer and reflection, and also has been used for impromptu memorial services. There is a prayer board and a memorial board on which students and staff may pin their prayers. The Christian Union meets on a weekly basis in the Chapel. The Chapel is available for use by all members of the school community, including staff, parents and governors. At present the chapel is used by these groups for a weekly staff prayer group as well as weekly staff Eucharists and by the monthly Parents Prayer Group. 3

5 Special Services Special Eucharists are held to mark significant events in the life of the school, such as the 25th anniversary of foundation, the Opening Ceremony as a single site school, the start of the school year etc. Where appropriate, aside from the weekly staff Eucharist, staff are offered the opportunity to attend a Eucharist on training days and at festivals. There is an annual Carol Service at which staff, students, parents and governors take part. Ramsey Lectures The Ramsey lectures have been developed into termly conference style workshops for 6 th form students. They have also included some guest speakers in the God and the Big Bang day conference and the God and Guns workshop. 4