Collective Worship is at the heart of our school day and is a time for everyone to stop and breathe during the busy day, a time for learning, sharing, praise, reflection and prayer. Whole school collective worship is led by different worship leaders on each day - this could be a member of staff, St. Wulfram’s Church, Lightspace or a visiting member from other local churches and denominations in Grantham. Once a week, children worship in their own class, led by the class teacher with the children. Children take an active part in worship by helping to act out stories, singing and sharing in prayer. Each class nominates a Worship Leader who helps to lead the welcoming, gathering and sending out aspects of whole school worship.

Every Friday we have a whole school celebration worship where we gather to celebrate children’s achievements in and out of school along with birthdays and attendance. Children are presented with certificates for demonstrating our school values and to celebrate excellence in their work or behaviour. The children talk about their achievements with great pride. We sing and all are invited to say our school prayer and blessing during this worship.

The children regularly visit St. Wulfram's Church where the rector or curate leads our services to celebrate major Christian festivals. These include: Harvest festival service, Advent service, Christmas Nativity, Easter service, Transition service for Year 2 children, and Leavers’ service. Parents, Grandparents, siblings, governors and church congregation are welcome to join us on these occasions. The children very much enjoy going into church and see it as an extension of their school.

Prayer

Children have opportunities to engage with prayer regularly during the school day. All children are invited to pray during Collective Worship, before lunch and at the end of the day. All children know our school blessing and the Lord’s prayer, which are often said during collective worship in school and at church.

Our Lunchtime Prayer:

For what we are about to receive,

may the Lord make us truly thankful.

Amen.

Our End of the day Prayer:

Now the busy day is done,

Jesus bless us everyone.

Keep us safely through the night,

until we see the morning light.

Amen.

Our School blessing:

May God bless us and keep us,

may he give us light to guide us and love to unite us,

from this day,

and forever more.

Amen.

Lord’s Prayer:

Our Father, in heaven.

Hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come,

Your will be done.

On earth as it is in heaven.

Give us today our daily bread.

And forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours,

now and forever.

Amen.

Worship-Intent, implemenation and impact

Intent

Worship at Little Gonerby is inclusive, invitational and inspiring and is an expression of the school’s Christian vision.
 
It provides the opportunity to experience what it is to live in a community that celebrates the Christian faith, offering a tangible, memorable, experience of an active and loved relationship with God.
 
For us, worship is the ‘heartbeat’ of the school day. It is a place where there is welcome and hospitality, encouragement and comfort, trust and understanding. 
 
We aim to develop spirituality and a sense of meaning and mystery in everyone.
 
School life is distinctly Christian within a broader spirituality, which encompasses all faiths represented in our community, and where respect and love for one another is a core aspect of our school family.
 
We also aim to ensure our worships:
 
Offer the opportunity, without compulsion, to all pupils and adults to grow spiritually through experiences of prayer, stillness, worship and reflection.
 
Enable all pupils and adults to appreciate that Christians worship in different ways, for example using music, silence, story, prayer, reflection, the varied liturgical and other traditions of Anglican worship, festivals and, where appropriate, the Eucharist.
 
Helps pupils and adults to appreciate the relevance of faith in today’s world, to encounter the teachings of Jesus and the Bible and to develop their understanding of the Christian belief in the trinitarian nature of God and its language.
 
Enable pupils as well as adults to engage in the planning, leading and evaluation of collective worship in ways that lead to improving practice. 
 
Encourage local church community partnerships to support the school effectively in developing its provision for collective worship.

Implementation.

Collective worship is planned by the Collective Worship lead and is implemented and overseen by our Head Teacher, Assistant Head Teacher, external worship leaders and the team at St. Wulfram’s Church.
Collective worship takes place every day - this will always be Christian in nature and follow a different theme each half term
Our school plans systematically and cohesively using Roots and Fruits which is adapted and changed to meet the needs of our community. This ensures there is a shared understanding of the long and short term planning of worship and enables continuity. 
We are mindful of the variation in personal spiritual styles and provide a range of creative opportunities including (e.g. music, silence, symbolism, drama, use of IT).
 Our worship consists of 4 stages:
Gather (We welcome the community with music, liturgy and the lighting of a candle)
Engage (We share a bible reading, followed by an activity to engage pupils with the Christian message)
Respond (Pupils discuss, share, reflect, pray or sing)
Send (We share the message of the worship again and ask pupils to think about how they will affect their day / learning/ behaviour. We close with liturgy, final prayer, music and the blowing out of our special candle (turn off).)
We also provide opportunities for invitational prayer in school, including in the classroom and in collective worship and Opportunities for invitational prayer and reflection in various prayer spaces around the school.
 

Impact

Children will  feel valued and special as a result of the excellent relationships within the school, which are based on the Christian values of respect, honesty and compassion.

Children’s confidence to express their thoughts and opinions are due to the secure and accepting ethos of worship being inclusive to all.

Children are respectful of one another and know that their views are listened to and acted upon appropriately. Pupils know that what they say will be valued by both peers and adults. 

The whole school community is involved in developing the Christian ethos.

The warm welcome given to visitors is a strong feature of the school’s distinctive character. 

Children have many opportunities to learn to become responsible citizens. They help with the day to day running of their classrooms and in many other ways, such as members of the worship team, school councillors and playground buddies in the playground. 

The school's values are evident to all visitors and children. Wall displays and interactive reflective areas are used regularly by the children, who are proud to describe their importance. 

Children's understanding and participation in collective worship ensures a firm foundation of teaching Christian values in their lives and so makes an excellent contribution to their personal development. 

It is clear that worship inspires and encourages pupils and adults alike and staff would benefit from opportunities for times of quiet reflection for themselves.