Worship & Values

Worship is at the heart of life at Kirkland & Catterall, St. Helen's...

Why?

Because...
It openly places God at the centre of daily life in our Church of England School and therefore acknowledges God as the heartbeat.

Worship is a time when the whole school comes together as a family to focus on God and collectively feel, listen to, experience, celebrate and share the heartbeat.

God's presence pulses throughout every aspect of school life and beyond, into the community.

It provides an opportunity for the school community to develop their own personal relationship with God and discover God within their own heartbeat.

Worship makes an enormous contribution to the ethos of our school, but more importantly, it is the stimulus which flows throughout the whole life of the school.

In the same way that we are encouraged to look after our hearts and keep them healthy, we must strive to ensure that the heartbeat of our school is kept strong and healthy by making our worship meaningful and relevant, for it is that heartbeat that makes Kirkland & Catterall St. Helen's Church of England Primary School so very special.

We focus on a different Christian Value every half term. Our adopted Values are: Generosity, Perseverance, Respect, Service, Compassion, Forgiveness, Friendship, Courage, Trust, Truthfulness, Justice and Thankfulness.

Our Christian Value for the Spring half term is Friendship.

Have you had a look at our Christian Values tree in the entrance to school?

Our weekly Worship Timetable:

We are lucky to work very closely with the Parish Church of St. Helen, Churchtown. Worship is shared with our Clergy on Thursday mornings, led by either our Vicar, Reverend Andrew Wilkinson or our Lay reader Audrey Ashbridge. Clergy Worship is interactive, with all children enjoying taking part in the acting out of stories shared from the Bible. Our children respond well and learn a great deal from this experience.

Worship themes are not restricted to our collective times in the hall. The themes are integrated into the classroom teaching and children are encourage to think reflectively about the topics covered. Each class also has a Worship Table where children can engage in prayer and make observations relating to our half-termly Value.

The children take part in Worship every day. On Friday afternoon, everyone takes part in our "Songs of Prasie" celebration Worship, where we share our successes from the week, rejoice in achievements and enjoy singing a variety of hymns. We celebrate the Headteacher's Awards; the Going the Extra Mile Award; Writers of the Week; and House Point Achievements. Children can bring in any personal achievements from home to celebrate and share. We also sing along to some feel-good music which the children always look forward to.

Once a half-term, we invite parents and the community to share in Holy Communion in the school hall or the church. Reverend Wilkinson leads the service and delivers communion whilst the children provide the readings and prayers. Our family Communion has an informal, friendly atmosphere and provides our children, staff, families and community with an opportunity for a shared, inclusive spiritual nourishment. We would be delighted if you would join us at our next service. There is no need to inform us of your attendance. Please just turn up on the day - all are welcome.