Being a Church School
Our Vision statement
Our vision has been created by the Ethos and Welfare Committee, Staff and pupils. It drives everything we do at Buckland St. Mary C of E School.
'That they may have life, life in all its fullness.' John 10:10
At Buckland St Mary C of E Primary School everyone matters. We strive to be an inclusive community providing an outstanding education for all. Our lives are enriched through the teaching of Christian Values to grow as global citizens in an ever-changing world.The Christian values that we promote are: Respect, Responsibility, Perseverance, Integrity, Tolerance and Courage.
We aim to:
Develop in our children an understanding of Christianity and the place of God in our world and in our lives
Provide each child with the ultimate learning experience to enable them to achieve the highest standards
Inspire a love of lifelong learning
Equip our children with the skills and tools to become global citizens
Equip our children to deal with change
Respect individuality and celebrate diversity
Motivate and enable all to achieve their personal best
Create a safe and trusting environment where children are encouraged to express opinion, be independent learners, take responsibility, and improve by learning from their experiences
Praise all types of achievement
Create in all a sense of belonging
Collective Worship
In order for children to have ‘Life in all its fullness’ it is important we meet daily as a family and join in a service of Collective Worship. We celebrate time together and reflect at the end of each day.
Our Collective Worships held in school always include a prayer, song, Question of the Day and the lighting of our Pilgrim Candles. This is the candle the Year 6 children bring back from Wells Cathedral after their ‘Pilgrim Day’ each year.
Our Collective Worship Routine
Monday - Values, collective worship and safeguarding
Tuesday - Collective Worship led by Reverend Jim Fallon
Wednesday - Choral worship
Thursday - Open the Book service at Buckland St Mary Church
Friday - Praise and Share celebration with families/World Views
Open the Book
Buckland St Mary School are lucky enough to be invited to ‘Open the Book’ held at the church each week. A group of dedicated volunteers lead the Collective Worship, bringing the Bible alive with artistic props and acting. We are very grateful for what they teach us about God and his love for us.
Our Worship Table
Our worship table holds a number of valuable items to our school. First, we have our cross which personifies God’s love. We also have our school Koinonia Bowl which holds our individual pebbles. Each member of the school community (staff and children) put a pebble into the bowl to symbolise our belonging and fellowship as a school. At the end of the year, Year 6 take their pebble with them on their journey to secondary school to symbolise that although they have left Buckland St Mary, the memories of the life we have shared together goes on.
Our School Prayer
We have our own school prayer which is unique to us and our school.
We share this at the end of the week in Collective Worship.
This is our school,
May there be peace in this place,
Let the rooms be full of contentment,
Let there be love here,
Love for one another,
Love for all people,
And love of life itself,
Let us remember that as many hands build a home,
So many hearts make a school.
