“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”​
— Matthew 5:16​

Our vision

At St Peter’s Brafferton, we are a nurturing community where every person can flourish. We aspire to be the best in all we do, promoting lifelong learners who are curious, compassionate, and courageous. We value every person and every opportunity to ‘let our light shine’. ​
Spirituality is a core thread that runs through our school and we attach great importance to it for both children’s development and for the growth and well-being of all within our school community.

Intent

We aim for children, and adults, to grow in their ability to:

• Foster curiosity about themselves, others, the world they know and beyond.
• Have knowledge of, compassion and respect for, different people’s faith, feelings, and values.
• Value connecting with others making a difference in the community.
• Build the courage to articulate their thoughts and ideas, take risks and learn from failure.

Our working definition of ‘spirituality’

Our school community has defined spirituality as:

Time to pause, reflect and think about ourselves and others beyond the current moment and find stillness.

At St Peters, we use a shared language of windows, mirrors and doors to help us identify examples of spiritual experiences.

Windows allow pupils to look out and wonder at the world—its beauty, complexity, and the experiences of others.

Mirrors offer moments for looking in and self-reflection, encouraging children to think about their own beliefs, emotions, and responses to the world around them.

Doors represent opportunities to live it out! Inviting pupils to step out and live out their values in the community with courage, compassion and curiosity. ​

Implementation

• We offer an ambitious curriculum which is shaped by its Christian vision and values with opportunities for spiritual growth in every subject.
  RE lessons provide a safe space for pupils to discuss religious, spiritual and/or philosophical ideas.
• Staff ensure that every learning session outside of the classroom is used as an opportunity for children to develop spiritually through thoughtful questioning and inviting children to reflect on and share their personal experiences.
• There are reflection areas available around school for children to use as a quiet space of thought.
• Staff identify and use unplanned opportunities for spiritual growth as and when they arrive during the school day.
• Staff model the value of spiritual growth by joining collective worships and contributing their own personal thoughts and emotional responses.
• All collective worship sessions offer time to reflect, be still and to ask questions. Collective worship is planned so that children are provided with discussion points or activities which help them to look in, out and live it out.
• Fortnightly, parents are invited to join our celebration assemblies to celebrate children’s progress and achievement both in and outside of school.
• Gold stars are rewarded to children throughout the curriculum to acknowledge when they have been showing our school values and letting their light shine.
• Children are invited to apply for the role as spiritual leaders and selected carefully. They are responsible for setting an exemplary example of our school values and contributing ideas and feedback to the way that spirituality is delivered within school.

Impact

Through our approach pupils:

• Are reflective about their own beliefs (religious or otherwise) and perspective on life
• Respect and are willing to consider other people’s worldviews.
• Gain a sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning about themselves, others, and the world around them.
• Approach learning with a sense of imagination and creativity.
• Make a difference in their community.
• Recognise that worship provides meaningful opportunities to contribute to their spiritual development.
• Are comfortable with stillness and silence and open to engage in reflection/meditation/prayer.
• Willing to take risks and to reflect, learn and grow following experiences of failure as well as success.