At Whickham Parochial Church of England Primary School we are committed to delivering high quality collective worship that is inclusive, invitational and inspiring. Collective Worship is the main platform for our school to gather and discuss our vision and values. It provides a unique opportunity for both pupils and adults to come together and contemplate faith and our relationship with God. As a church school, our Collective Worship is wholly Christian, reflecting the Church of England tradition of our church, St Mary the Virgin of Whickham. However, we deliver to an assembly of children and adults at different places in their own spiritual and religious journey, and therefore our worship is fully invitational. We provide an opportunity to engage on God and the teaching of the bible, which we hope will be accepted. Through Collective Worship, pupils will be offered a space and a place for the telling of the Christian story. They will be offered an understanding of worship through being invited to participate in or observe prayer, reading and reflection on the Bible, liturgy, sacrament and experience of the musical and other imaginative riches of Christianity. Opportunities to reflect on the beauty, joy and pain of the world will be given. Pupils will be given time to consider their responsibilities to others and to grow in love, kindness, friendship and service. Time will be given for celebration, both for the accomplishments of school members and to mark the seasonal festivals of the Christian calendar. Pupils will be offered time to be able to contemplate and develop spiritually.
Collective worship is a very important part of our day at Whickham Parochial. Collective worship happens in the main hall four days each week, with an additional worship and reflection shared weekly in each classroom. We also say prayers at the beginning and end of each day which enables us to join together to reflect on the way we approach and understand our school experience. At the end of the day, we also join in a class opportunity to reflect spiritually and to connect with ourselves, one another, the world and the beyond - we call this "Time to Connect".Each week we will share an aspect of our collective worship with you via the Homework tasks board and we will make a suggestion on something you may wish to reflect on at home with your child.
In addition to our school worship, the reverend from St Mary’s in Whickham would usually lead Eucharist once each term. This is a lovely opportunity for members of the church community to come together in our school for a service. Should you wish to join us, please check the calendar on this site as we will update it as soon as services are arranged.
You can view our Collective Worship Policy and the current worship themes below.