CATHOLIC LIFE
DIOCESAN INSPECTION REPORT 2019
St Columba’s Catholic Primary School is an outstanding Catholic school because:
Catholic Life at St Columba’s is outstanding. The headteacher, senior leadership team, all staff and governors have high expectations and share a vision with regard to the Catholic mission of the school.
Collective Worship is outstanding. High quality Collective Worship is central to the life of the school; it binds the whole school community together. Parents describe the impact of Collective Worship on their children as ‘profound’.
Religious Education is good. Teachers have a clear understanding of the value of Religious Education which they communicate effectively. Leaders have clear plans for further improvements.
MISSION STATEMENT
At St. Columba’s Catholic Primary School we will endeavour to follow the example of Jesus Christ by loving, respecting and forgiving all.
Children, parents and staff are valued and supported by the school community. It is our belief that the best education is achieved by delivering a challenging and balanced curriculum, allowing for the intellectual, spiritual, moral and social development of each child.
Each individual in school is special and we all work together to promote self-worth and self-esteem.
CATHOLIC LIFE & MISSION
At St. Columba’s, our Catholic faith is an integral part of school life. We are also very grateful to have close parish links with Our Lady and St Columba as part of the Wallsend family of parishes of Our Lady of Lourdes.
Our school prayer states that “by working together and playing together, we may learn to love you and serve one another” and it is clear that Christ is at the centre of our school. Over recent years we have supported a range of charities, causes and community events. We are very grateful for the generosity that our pupils, staff and families always show.
Charities that we have supported in the past include:
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Walking With
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Daft as a Brush
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CAFOD
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Mission Together
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Cuthbert’s Care
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Youth Ministry Team
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Rwandan Appeal
We are an inclusive school that is always looking to build on our existing links with other faiths and denominations as we work with parents to develop caring, compassionate, faithful children ready and prepared for the wider world.
We are also proud to have been recognised as a ‘School of Sanctuary’ within our school community.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
At St Columba’s Catholic Primary School we believe that Religious Education is not one subject among many but the foundation of the entire educational process; it provides the contents for and substantially shapes the school curriculum. Religious Education presents pupils with the same academic demands and challenges as any other curriculum area.
The immediate aim of Religious Education is to promote knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith, its relevance to the ultimate questions of life and the skills required to engage in religious thinking.
Under Diocesan advice we have adopted the Come and See scheme of work in order to deliver the R.E. curriculum. The aim of the Come and See programme is to explore the religious dimension of questions about life, dignity and purpose within the Catholic tradition. Links are made with the teaching of the Church, pupils’ own experiences and universal experience. The children will explore the beliefs, values and way of life of the Catholic tradition and, where appropriate other faith traditions.
Religious Education should introduce children to the background and beliefs of people of other faiths so that prejudice and misunderstanding can be overcome from an early age.
A small proportion of our school community is from other faiths. Parents are expected to be supportive of the Catholic nature of our school life in our community. We celebrate the diversity of our faiths, traditions and cultures.
Children of other faiths are actively encouraged to share their faith. We have relevant books, artefact packs and images which are used throughout the school in our study of other faiths in accordance with the Come and See scheme. Our children from other faiths take part in assemblies every year which outline the celebrations of their own faiths including Eid and Diwali.
We do not look at other faiths in comparison to Catholicism, but rather in terms of what practising the other World Faiths looks like for believers. Understanding, respect and tolerance are key elements to our programme of study. Cultural background and faith differences within the school provide a rich source of learning material at many levels.
SERVING OUR PARISH & SCHOOL COMMUNITY
We serve our parish and local community in many ways, sharing God’s message of love with others whenever we can. Some ways in which we do this are:
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Holding special, reflective services and liturgies in our church for our school and parish communities, especially during Advent and Holy Week.
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We organise a school Mass once a term where children from our school lead the worship for the school and parishioners are welcomed.
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Class assemblies are held on Fridays and all members of our community are invited and encouraged to attend.
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Shared preparation in school and in the parish for the Sacraments of Reconciliation and First Holy Communion. We also hold regular parent meetings to ensure that families are fully involved in preparations.
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Carol singing during Christmas time in Wallsend town centre and at Eotheon Homes.
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Working with parents as partners in our Nursery and Reception classes.
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Setting up our ‘Rainbow Parcel’ food bank and working alongside ‘Feeding Families’ to offer support for families within our school community.
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Delivering ‘Christmas Parcels’ for those in the community and parish who may feel lonely.
PRAYER & LITURGY
A daily act of worship is central to the Christ-centred ethos of our school and to our mission of ‘working together and playing together, we may learn to love you and serve one another’. Worship in our school is concerned with giving glory, honour, praise and thanks to God.
Each act of worship follows the four fold action of:
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Gathering together
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Hearing God’s Word
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Responding to the Word
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Being sent forward with a Mission based on the worship we have participated in
Children at St Columba’s experience a wide variety of prayer, using a range of resources and expereince a range of styles. Our teachers support the development of differing styles of worship throughout the school. Pupils are encouraged to participate in the planning and delivery of prayer and liturgy throughout their time at St Columba’s.
Our worship takes many different forms and we gather in a variety of groupings:
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We gather together as a school community for whole school celebration of the Word on a Monday. On a Monday, worship is led by Miss Quinn and our focus is on this week’s Gospel, instilling our ‘mission’ for that week
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On Tuesdays (KS2) and Thursdays (KS1/EYFS) each Key Stage gathers for prayer led by a member of the teaching staff based the theme of the week.
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On the day when they are not participating in a Key Stage act, each class worship together as a class community, being led in rotation by pupil groups. Worship planning is supported by the class teacher.
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On Wednesdays, the focus is responding to the Word in song and looking outwards at the wider world and at what we can do to make it better.
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On Fridays, we come together to celebrate our achievements and successes every other week. On the alternative week each class prepares and delivers a class assembly based around their learning in in Religious Education.
In addition to these opportunities to worship, Mass is celebrated each term in the school hall. We invite our wider community to worship with us, including our families and members of the Parish. All classes attend and we enjoy being together to celebrate with our Parish Priest, Fr David.
SACRAMENTAL PREPARATION
The parish of Our Lady and St. Columba and St. Columba’s Primary School work in partnership to deliver a parish based Sacramental Preparation programme for First Confession and First Holy Communion to pupils in Year Four.
Please keep the children and their families in your prayers as they prepare for these important Sacraments.
MINI VINNIES
Mini Vinnies at St. Columba’s
‘Mini Vinnies’ is a St Vincent de Paul Group in a Primary School. It is a group of young people aged 7-11 who get together, organise and talk about helping others in need within their school community and beyond. What makes Mini Vinnies such a valuable experience for the children who are part of it, is the change it makes in school communities. Mini Vinnies groups usually meet once a week or fortnight during lunchtime or after school and are either run by school staff members, an SVP Conference Member or a combination of both.
What happens at a Mini Vinnies meeting?
A President is elected by the Mini Vinnies to lead the meeting and organise the group. An adult will co-ordinate the group and give help and practical advice. Meetings should be as brief as possible.
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The President opens the meeting with a prayer.
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A short spiritual reading/reflection/piece of music/meditation follows. The Group members could take turns to do this.
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Group members then talk about the Mini Vinnies activities they have done since the previous meeting.
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Any future plans are then discussed.
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The President concludes the meeting with a prayer.
For more information on Mini Vinnies, please feel free to visit their website here
FAITH IN ACTION
At St Columba’s, we are proud to offer our Year 6 children an opportunity to take part in the Catholic Youth Mission Federation award ‘Faith in Action’.
The Faith in Action Award encourages young people to take that service into their wider community and accept greater responsibility for their faith in action.
There are four levels of award: Pin, Bronze, Silver and Gold. Participants accrue credits of service in their parish and / or school and the wider community. The Faith in Action Award builds on what young people already experience in serving others, asking them to reflect upon it so that they may find new ways of living out and exploring their faith. There is an opportunity for both guided reflections, through group reflection points and personal reflection, through journaling.
In Year 6, pupils are able to achieve their ‘Pin’ award which allows them to continue on their journey to Bronze, Silver and Gold, if they wish to, at high school.
For more information on the Faith in Action Award, please visit the CYMFed website.
