Collective Worship

At St Michael’s Church of England High School, we see the importance and value in providing an act of daily collective worship for all our students and staff. Collective worship is a spiritual activity, with a Christian focus, intended to reflect on religious themes, prayer and worship, allowing our community to flourish by exploring their own beliefs and spirituality.

We, as a Church of England school, are committed to offering collective worship that encourages the spiritual growth and development of every student and staff member. We recognise and value collective worship as central to allowing children and adults to explore how they pay attention to the four areas of spirituality: self, others, nature, and transcendence. Collective worship provides a moment of reflection where students and staff can consider ways of expressing the school’s Christian vision. It is the unique heartbeat of the school and is offered as part of a wider opportunity for students and adults to encounter faith by engaging in conversations about God, both as individuals and together. We are committed to offering them an encounter with Jesus Christ and Christian faith and practice in a way that leads to our students and staff truly flourishing.

Our goal is that collective worship at St Michael’s should be inclusive, invitational, and inspiring. Spiritual growth is a personal journey, and we are aware that many students and staff in our school will come from homes of different faith backgrounds, as well as from no faith background. Children and adults will naturally be at different stages of their spiritual journey during their time in school. With this in mind, students should be given the opportunity to think and ask life’s big questions. There should be space to consent and dissent, to participate and to stand back, and to consider. It is an expectation that care will be taken to ensure that the language used by those facilitating worship is invitational and inclusive in its delivery, enabling all children and staff to reflect and participate in their own way to provide a conduit to their own spiritual growth.

Collective worship should not be ‘done to’ but will involve meaningful contributions from the whole school community.  There should be no compulsion to ‘do anything’.  Rather, worship should provide the opportunity to engage whilst allowing the freedom of those of different faiths, and those who profess no religious faith to be present and to engage with integrity.

As a result of inspirational collective worship, students and adults alike should be inspired to consider social justice and responsibility. It should encourage them to think searchingly about their faith, beliefs, and/or philosophical convictions.

Recognising the historic foundation of St Michael’s Church of England High School, we will preserve and develop our religious character in the principles of the Church of England and in partnership with St Giles Church, as our local parish church and Birmingham Diocese. At St Michael’s, collective worship is central to our life and community; it reflects a specific act of reflection that is special or separate from ordinary school activities. It is a time when individuals come together with reverence and respect to collaboratively promote the Christian values that are fundamental to the school’s Christian vision. Our Christian vision statement informs the policy and practice of collective worship at St Michael’s Church of England High School.

Therefore, in light of this and our school’s distinctively Christian vision, at St Michael’s Church of England High School, we define collective worship as: 

A spiritual activity, with a Christian focus, intended to reflect on religious themes, prayer, and worship, allowing our community to flourish by exploring their own beliefs and spirituality.

Collective worship should not be ‘done to’ but will involve meaningful contributions from the whole school community. There should be no compulsion to ‘do anything’. Rather, worship should provide the opportunity to engage whilst allowing the freedom of those of different faiths, and those who profess no religious faith to be present and to engage with integrity.

Collective worship at St Michael’s Church of England High School aims to provide an opportunity for members of the school community to: 

• teach and promote strong Christian values and British values through a daily act of collective worship
• reflect upon the Christian traditions and foundations of the school
• provide a solid understanding of the Christian concept of God as a Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Trinitarian nature of the Christian faith)
• provide the opportunity for students to learn about and worship God in an invitational, inclusive and inspiring way
• enable students to consider their own spirituality, exploring their relationship with self, others, nature, as well as faith (transcendence)  
• provide staff and students an opportunity to reflect on ‘life’s big questions’ and explore this within the Christian faith and the life of Jesus Christ, through the mediums of dance, music, drama and quiet times of prayer or reflection  
• develop a spirit of community and an understanding and respect for individuals with other beliefs, valuing what we have and learning to share with others

• acknowledge diversity and affirm each individual’s life stance, whether religious or not
• provide a reflective and worshipful atmosphere in which staff and students can experience a time of personal reflection through exploring the ways in which people express awe, wonder, reverence, joy, and sorrow
• promote common ethos through our Christian vision, core values and a shared understanding of spirituality
• provide students with the opportunity to plan, lead, or contribute to collective worship, enabling them to flourish
• help students to develop an awareness of social justice and responsibility in their wider community, and encourage them to show love, care, and kindness to all in the community
• celebrate the achievements of the whole school, groups and individuals across all areas of the curriculum and school life, enabling everyone to achieve their full potential

Through collective worship, students are made aware of what it means to be a child of God, made in the image of God, and we are committed to our Christian vision of showing love, care, and kindness to all in our community, regardless of belief, gender, age, ethnicity, culture, sexuality, disability, and faith. 

The school delivers a collective worship programme, which incorporates termly whole school services, weekly year group and form time collective worship. 

Additional collective worship times will take place at our local parish church throughout the school year. 

• The St Michael’s Day Service for Year 7 will take place annually within the first half term. This will incorporate bible readings, vocal performances, prayers, and a message from our school chaplain. Within the service, students are invited to participate in our school hymn, ‘Here I am Lord’.
• The Shine Your Light Service (Candlemas) for Year 7 will take place at the commencement of the Spring term. This will include prayer, bible reading, and times of reflection. Each form creates a unique presentation on their form value and reflections on how it shines a light in their community. Within the service, students are invited to participate in our school hymn, ‘Here I am Lord’.
• The Year 11 Leavers’ Service takes place at the end of the GCSE examination period. This is a time for students and staff to celebrate and rejoice at the end of their school journey. Students will be invited to participate in readings and moments of reflection and prayer within the service. The School Chaplain and Headteacher will deliver a message of hope and blessing over them for their future.

Each act of collective worship will begin with a recitation of our school prayer ‘What does the Lord ask of you? To act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.’ Micah 6 v 8. Students will be invited to participate in the prayer, using call and response.

Collective worship is themed across each of the school terms to reflect our theologically-rooted Christian Vision:

• the autumn term will follow the theme of ‘To show love, care, and kindness to all in our community’ 
• the spring term will follow the theme of ‘To value what we have and to share with others’ 
• the summer term will follow the theme of ‘To enable everyone to achieve their full potential’

Form time collective worship

The times of collective worship are facilitated by Form Tutors. Students will be invited to participate in moments of reflection, prayer, and discussion based on biblical stories from the life of Jesus. Throughout the week, students will have our School Chaplain, Ethos Lead, or Student Faith Leaders relay a short Christian message to them, which incorporates a Bible reading, discussion questions, and a prayer.

Specific form time collective worship will be planned and delivered in conjunction with special days and events within the Christian Liturgical Church Calendar, i.e., Christian Saint Days, Christmas, Lent, and Easter.

Year group collective worship 

These take place within hub spaces across the school. They will be delivered by the Ethos Lead, Heads of Year, and members of the Senior Leadership Team. These times will include recitation of the school prayer, moments of reflection, and reading of passages from the Christian Bible.

Each week, a moment of reflection will be provided in form-time, to help students evaluate the invitational, inclusive, and inspirational delivery of collective worship. Students will consider their own spiritual growth and development using WINDOWS, MIRRORS, and DOORS (as referenced in our Spirituality and Spiritual Development Policy).

Student-led collective worship will be delivered to the year group once a year by students within each of the form groups. This reflects upon their specific form value and includes bible references, individual testimonies of historical and influential figures, alongside moments of reflection and prayer.

Additional Collective worship opportunities

Opportunities for individual prayer and reflection are facilitated within our school chapel, which is available each day as an invitational, inclusive, and inspiring space for staff and students alike to use for personal and group times of worship.

The school’s values card system allows students to actively demonstrate their understanding of the messages and teachings of Jesus, delivered within collective worship times, by being recognised and celebrated for how they have lived out the school’s Christian vision and values.

Extra-curricular provision will be delivered weekly in our school chapel, which will be invitational and inclusive in approach and enable students to explore their own personal faith journey and spirituality.