There must be a daily act of Collective Worship in all maintained schools for all pupils, other than those in a nursery class or a nursery school. This can take place at any time in the school day and in any groupings. Collective Worship in a Church of England school must be in accordance with the tenets and practices of the Church of England. In other words, the law on Collective Worship that applies in a community school, “that it should be wholly or mainly of a broadly Christian character”, is not relevant. Worship in Cleeve Prior CE Primary School should be distinctly Christian and reflect Anglican traditions.

Our school vision, summed up by the following three words, ”Nurturing, Growing and Flourishing” plays a significant role in our collective attitude to worship. We wish to inspire pupils and promote excellence, honesty, enjoyment of and opportunities for reflection in our acts of worship. We offer all pupils equal access to every assembly time so that all can be daily transformed, flourish and grow into their full God-given potential. We are building a school community where everyone is committed to the ongoing pursuit of excellence – a place where, through the joy and hope of the resurrection there is transformation, growth and progress in children’s social, moral, spiritual, cultural and academic lives. Our values can be seen in action across our school life together. We desire for all of our children to develop their own sense of spirituality and the bigger picture so they are resilient, able to flourish and produce abundant fruit in their own lives and to serve the common good.

Building on the themes mentioned above, Collective Worship plays a very central and important role in the life of our school and the daily transformation that we desire. It is an opportunity to celebrate all aspects of school life, to support our curriculum and to provide a time for stillness and reflection in what is often a very busy, active day for our children. Collective Worship is well planned and of high quality so that the whole school community is engaged on a journey of discovery, exploring the teachings of Jesus and the Bible. Cleeve Prior School is a Church of England School and maintains strong links with both the Church and the village community with the School visiting the church to attend and lead services there.

Collective Worship is pivotal to the life of the school and as such it encompasses all that we do and supports the outworking of our school vision.

Therefore, at its heart, Collective Worship at Cleeve Prior School strives to follow the following principles:

Acts of Collective Worship will:

 -be ivitational 

 - nurture and maintain the dignity of the image of God in everyone through working for social justice

- encourage pupils to consider the needs of others through charitable service and courageous advocacy

 -nurture reflection, stillness, meditation and prayer

- provide pupils with (age appropriate) opportunities to explore the spiritual dimension of their lives through music, images and words

- provide a sense of occasion that is separate from the rest of the school day

- foster an appreciation of the natural world and our shared responsibilities for maintaining it - develop clear partnerships between worship in the school and the wider community

 - be inclusive

Our understanding of Christianity is that it is an inclusive faith which mirrors the attitude of Jesus Christ in the Gospels. Thus, we welcome children and staff of all faiths to our worship.

Through their Christian character our acts of Collective Worship will:

- recognise and celebrate the diversity of cultures, lifestyles and faiths which exist in our school and local community

- have an atmosphere in which everyone feels valued and safe - be appropriate for every student to attend

- focus on issues and experiences which are relevant to the pupils

- foster active roles of pupils, parents and members of the local community

– in preparation, participation and leadership - provide a variety of different opportunities for reflection, understanding of diverse liturgical traditions, participation, challenge and enjoyment where all present can be actively involved and develop their own spirituality whilst contributing to the communal journey.

 - be inspiring

Our acts of collective worship provide wider opportunities to:

 - promote wide ownership of our Christian vision

 - assist learners to have increased awareness and to reflect upon fundamental issues about life 

 - enhance, complement and extend curricular work

- develop learners’ understanding of the Christian faith and Church (Anglican) practice through appropriate Biblical and liturgical content, including sharing the Eucharist which takes place termly. The celebration of Eucharist is led by a member of the clergy and is open to our whole school community.

- encounter and explore Jesus’s teachings and the Trinitarian nature of Christian faith

- provide an experience of worship that will offer opportunities for those present to observe and or respond to the presence, power and peace of God as understood by Christians. This will always be invitational, offering an opportunity to take part whilst allowing the freedom for those of other faiths and none to be present with integrity

- identify opportunities for Christian celebration which can be associated with other school events

 - include appropriate references to and elements of other faiths and secular worldviews

 - include opportunities to celebrate the academic, social, personal and wider achievements of pupils

 - ensure that materials and themes for worship are carefully selected to ensure that children have a clear understanding of how the teachings of Jesus impact what we do locally, nationally and globally.

Therefore, we will ensure that:

- a range of people are involved in leading worship, including the pupils of our school

- opportunities are offered to all children and staff to develop their skills in planning, leading and evaluating the impact of school worship with the support and shared engagement of the local church community. Pupils will be at the centre of this process taking on increasingly independent roles in planning and leading worship

- the timetabling of acts of worship includes the use of the local church and various groupings of pupils

- worship is planned in relation to our distinctive Christian vision - worship is regularly evaluated - opportunities for worship / prayer are offered throughout the day.