Catholic Life of the School
At St. Joseph’s, we are a school of love and hope. We believe that a Catholic education develops the full potential of all young people, leading to their life-long activities being guided by the Spirit and presence of Christ, in the service of God and of others.
It is a unique journey through education as it puts all learning and teaching in a Catholic moral context ultimately both challenging and supporting young people to develop in mind, body and spirit. The role of a Catholic school is to help everyone in the school community to discover the true value and dignity of each and every human being.
The school focuses on the education of the whole child. It is centred on Gospel values and reflecting on the teaching of the Catholic Church. Hence, the formation of each person is regarded as being as important as the information which is transmitted through the teaching offered.
Parents are the first educators of their child in faith and a strong home-school link is fundamental in supporting the school in its mission . Together, we provide support for the faith community, helping to form a Christian conscience, and in addressing the increasingly secular influences of popular culture.
Please read our most recent Section 48 Inspection Report by clicking on the link below.
St_Josephs_RC_Primary Inspection Report February 2018
RE Ambassadors
We are the RE Ambassadors of St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School and we are incredibly proud to represent our school in this privileged role. We get to wear our special RE Ambassador badges which distinguish us as having a special role within the school, so people can recognise who we are and what we do.
In order to be selected for this role, we had to apply for the position and then be chosen by Mrs Jordan and the previous year’s RE Ambassadors. We meet regularly with Mr Craig, supporting the Catholic Life of the school in a range of ways and to discuss and share our ideas.
We focus on enhancing the religious knowledge of younger children within the school and spread the Word of the Lord through our ‘Open the Book’ club. We also take part in Collective Worship across the school marking specific days throughout the Liturgical Year. We also meet every half term with RE Ambassadors from the other schools in our parish, as well as Father Adrian and Father Saji, to discuss what we can do as a community of schools.
As Ambassadors for our school, we have accompanied prospective parents and visitors on tours around our beautiful school.
We have lots of ideas on how to live out our faith, and actively show this to the whole school community. Throughout the year we aim to support our community, focusing on local, national and international charities, through fundraising and campaigning activities. We aspire to follow in Jesus’ footsteps through our role as servant leaders.
CAFOD Club
In the Summer term 2023, we wanted to provide an opportunity for pupils to develop their understanding of Catholic Social Teaching (CST). Alongside whole school assemblies celebrating CST, we created a CAFOD club with the sole purpose of putting CST into action.
CAFOD club has been in place since September and includes pupils from Years 3-6. These pupils volunteered to be a part of the club and meet on a weekly basis with our RE lead, Mrs Jordan. At the start of each term, they plan their termly focus, based on both CAFOD recommendations and ideas from the RE ambassadors (who are also members of CAFOD club)
In Autumn, the CAFOD club organised:
- ‘Brighten up our World’ day which raised £162 For CAFOD
- Helped organise the ‘Multi Faith Day’
- Organised the Advent appeal for the South Tyneside Key Project
They also led one of the Liturgical dances at the Carols by Candlelight service
Faith in Action
In Year 6, our pupils participate in the Faith In Action award.
The Faith in Action Award rewards young people’s active service in helping to build the Kingdom of God on Earth. Many young people are doing so much to follow Jesus’ example in serving others in their schools and parishes. The Faith in Action Award encourages young people to take that service into their wider community and accept greater responsibility for their faith in action.
The programme facilitates an exploration of scripture and Church teaching, with an emphasis on translating this into action. It encourages young people to shine the light of faith upon their experience of service through guided and personal reflection.
Our pupils aim for the Pin (Discovery) award at the end of the year, and this can be followed up in Year 7 and onwards up to the Gold award. The final books are moderated by parish members, and the pupils take part in a Faith In Action liturgy, which offers families the opportunity to share in mission.
‘Laudato Si’ Club
Our ‘Laudato Si’ club (previously known as Eco Club) is a group of pupils and staff/governors who give up their time to care for our common home – planet Earth. Linked to Catholic Social Teaching, specifically stewardship, these pupils set an example to others. The group also realise they are acting out our school vision statement – ‘In God’s love, we learn and grow’
The ‘Laudato Si’ Club meets weekly and has a clear focus for each term, which is planned ahead by the group. This includes lots of projects, as well as the regular litter picking events.
The ‘Laudato Si’ Club reports to the Local Governing Body on an annual basis.
Responsibilities
We give opportunities for pupils to develop their contribution to school life, as well as their own sense of responsibility. ‘Buddies’, ‘Digital leaders’, ‘Wellbeing Warriors’, ‘Superstar readers’, House Captains and Head boy and girls give pupils an understanding of their roles and responsibilities, and how we can act in service to others.
Our School Council focus has been on social mission in Autumn and Spring terms, with their ‘Socks for a Stranger’ and ‘Santa’s Swap Shop’ events. Our School Council set an example to others in contributing to Catholic life in school, as well as developing their own virtue
Opportunities outside school
Pupils from Y5 and Y6 have the opportunity to spend 3 days in the Youth Ministry Retreat each year. They spend time alongside pupils from other schools to develop and understand their faith and importance, while recognising how they can support the faith journey of others.
Alongside this, Y6 children take part in a Faith day, led by the YMT, alongside hundreds of other pupils in the Diocese. Our choir take part in many parish events, including ‘The Big Sing’ with choirs from other schools, while 2 of our pupils formed part of the BCCET choir singing at the Headteacher Mass in November. Each class has the opportunity to lead a whole school liturgy or Mass, at least once a year, while also taking roles in the many collective worship events through the Liturgical year.
Learning Environment
Each class has a focal point that reflects the liturgical season. A working wall also echoes the current season and Come and See topic. The children plan and lead class ‘Celebration of the Word’ every week and have their own class prayer book. Our RE Ambassadors recently worked with the RE lead to look at the school environment and how it support pupils’ spiritual mission and understanding. This resulted in planned changes to the environment, including prayer areas, and the purchase of new resources. A prayer intentions postbox was set up for pupils to place their own intentions that are shared each Monday.
Engagement with parents
Parents are actively encouraged to attend all meetings as part of the First Holy Communion programme, and are also invited to attend a special Faith in Action ‘Celebration of the Word’, where they can celebrate the journey of their children. Parents are invited to year group Liturgies or Masses during the year, whilst all whole school Masses in Church are very well attended. The parish Wednesday Mass is attended by a different class every week.
Information about Advent and Lent, including calendars of worship, are shared with all parents. Advent and Lenten bags, which include resources to inform parents, are shared with each family. Reception parents receive a ‘prayer set’ in the first week of their child entering our school. The parish bulletin is electronically shared with parents on a weekly basis.
