Our mission Statement
 

Loved by Jesus, we love, we learn, we live and grow together for Him

The Catholic life of the school is rich in opportunities for children to encounter God and to deepen their relationship with Him as a loving, compassionate Father. Through prayer, both traditional and informal, through liturgies and Religious Education lessons, where children receive direct teaching of the faith, through the relationships and support for each other that children, staff and parents enjoy within the school community, we enable children to come to know and love God.

Religious icons can be found throughout the school. Displays of work in RE are of very high quality and can be seen in classrooms and all around the school, including the school's main reception area. Each class has a prayer focus area, with a liturgical cloth in the appropriate colour and a class saint.

The Christian values at the heart of our Catholic faith incorporate the British values and we aim in everything we do to further each child's sense of commitment and responsibility to themselves, to others and in the wider world.
 

Prayer and worship

Prayer and worship are central to the daily life of our school. We aim to provide opportunities for children's spiritual growth and development through participation in a variety of forms of worship and through experiencing all forms of prayer: formal, informal, spontaneous, private, shared, petitionary and meditative.

Pupils are actively involved in planning and leading worship, both in class groups and whole school settings. Shared acts of worship take place in an atmosphere of reflection and stillness, where we encourage each other to listen to God speaking to us and to respond. Children are encouraged to write prayers and this is a skill which we explicitly teach, just as we teach other genres in literacy.
 

The school as a Catholic Community

All staff, led by the Headteacher, Deputy Headteacher, R.E Leader and Governors are aware that the school's foundations are built on the Catholic faith and beliefs and that it is our shared responsibility to transmit the Catholic faith to the children in our care. All staff receive regular in-service training as part of their continuous professional development. Staff pray and work together to support each other in providing the very best Religious Education possible for the pupils.

Learning in RE is at the core of the curriculum and we ensure that the Bishop's directive is followed in allocating 10% of curriculum time to RE lessons. The Governing Body, led by the Chair and the Governor responsible for RE, provide outstanding support and commitment to the central place of RE in the school.

We hold the belief that we share the role of educators of the faith with the parents of our pupils and we strive to keep them fully informed of what their child is learning at school and to support them in what they can do at home to further their child's understanding of the faith. Parents are welcomed to assemblies, Masses and other liturgies throughout the year.

RE at St Peter’s

RE is taught through the “Come and See” programme where we are invited to explore through the themes of the Church, Sacraments and Christian living. RE is an integral part of every experience during the school day from praying together as a school or class community, to how we should follow and promote Jesus’ example of loving and caring for everyone around us. We expect and encourage all members of our community to show respect for everyone as members of God’s Family.

We encourage our children to help their friends, members of the local community and those further afield. This is achieved through our sponsored events to raise money for such agencies as CAFOD. This enables the children to support other children and families which are not as fortunate as themselves, as well as supporting local charities through such school celebrations as our Harvest Festival.
 

We learn about the teachings of the Catholic Church and also about other World faiths such as Judaism and Hinduism. We attend school Mass both in school and at St Peter’s Church in Dagenham as well as reconciliation services in order for the children to take time to reflect and to say they are sorry. We also use our prayer area for class liturgies.

Sex and Relationship Education (SRE) is taught through the “A Journey in Love” programme. An aspect of the mystery of love is explored in each year group to enable the children to develop and progress their understanding of how we show love as Christians.
 

Our children are encouraged to live out their faith in everything they do. We believe that we are a family who share the values needed to make us well rounded people who show kindness and compassion. We draw on God's strength to guide us through our school days and we celebrate our successes. We regularly enhance our Christian lives by working together on a common goal, sometimes in groups, sometimes in classes and sometimes as a whole school. Many of these events follow the liturgical year, but others are motivated by special occasions organised within our diocese or catholic schools. We also encourage our children to think about people less fortunate than ourselves and we respond to world events.