Headteacher Commissioning Service
We are delighted to share the photograph above which was taken when Bishop Stephen commissioned seven Headteachers during a special Evensong in the Cathedral last week. The service took place after a warm, personal welcome and tea at Bishop Stephen’s home where he talked of the depth and importance of the work of Headteachers in the schools in which they serve.
The afternoon and service was attended by Joy Tubbs and Steve Cowdery (School adviser with strategic responsibility for senior leader recruitment). Steve said,
“It was a privilege to join the new Headteachers at South Canonry and then the Cathedral for evensong. We know deeply that flourishing staff teams enable flourishing pupils. But what about the Headteacher? This event enabled time for the spiritual topping up of a group of new Heads, a conversation with tea and cake, a gift and a blessing and time with family and friends - flourishing in action! It was a special occasion, and I am looking forward to joining more.”
The Salisbury Diocesan Board of Education is delighted to have been able to put this event on ‘in person’ again and look forward to running another service in June for invited new school leaders who have yet to be commissioned to attend.
From left to right: Joanne Fernie - St Andrew's Laverstock Primary School; Rachael Rogers - Amesbury Primary School; Heather Luft - Broad Chalke Primary School; Louise Henderson - Wyvern St Edmunds Secondary School; Katie Scaplehorn - St Thomas a Becket Tilshead; Abigail Carlyle-Clarke - Semley Primary School; Daniel Lawford - St James’ First School Gaunts Common
The Bishop’s final prayer is here for us all to enjoy:
The love of the Lord Jesus draw you to himself,
The power of the Lord Jesus strengthen you in his service,
The joy of the Lord Jesus fill your hearts;
And the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
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Local and National Church of England News
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A new Diocesan Director of Education
This week the Chair of the Diocesan Board of Education, Ven. Antony MacRow-Wood, wrote to colleagues across the diocese to share that Katie Fitzsimmons has been appointed to join the Board of Education as our new CEO and Diocesan Director of Education, taking up post in September.
Katie will come to us from the Diocese of Truro where she is currently the Director of Education. In his email, Antony said “She will bring strong strategic and spiritual leadership to our diocese, a deep love of children and a commitment to work with you to support the full flourishing of church schools, and academy trusts.” And he asks us all to pray for Katie and her family as they plan this change in their lives.
Click here for the press release.
Joy will remain our DDE until Katie takes up post and plans will be shared in due course about how we may celebrate her work and forthcoming retirement.
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Strategic Vision work - both the Diocese of Salisbury and the Board of Education are working together to write our Strategy documents which will be aligned under an over-arching theological underpinning. What’s next for the diocesan strategy? Over the last year, Bishop Stephen, Bishop Karen and Bishop Andrew have been listening, hearing directly from people of all ages of their hopes for their own communities. This has included many children and young people from your schools. Thank you!
Working groups have also been set up to draw in wider stakeholders from across the diocese, and an online focus group is seeking to listen and learn from voices of those on the fringes of church. All these conversations have informed the emerging plan for the future of the diocese, which will also align to the national church’s vision to be simpler, humbler and bolder.
There are five emerging priorities that include justice and climate action and reimagining worshipping communities in bold and creative ways. We will share more information as the work develops.
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Resources from the Church of England relating to the Coronation of King Charles III - A Book of Daily Prayers and information on the coronation is now available. Running from Easter Day on 9/4/2023 for 28 days, the book provides daily themes, reflections and prayers for use by individuals, churches or groups. It aims to help people pray for the King and Royal Family, the nation and the world and helps explain the spiritual significance of the Coronation Service. You can see a contents page and sample of the book here. Copies are £1.50 each. The prayers and reflections will be available free by email and audio via the CofE Website and social media. Click here for these and to find an Information Pack – and coming soon, materials for schools and assemblies/collective worship.
Information from the CofE website that may help with your collaborative and community planning: The Coronation ceremony, which will take place at Westminster Abbey on Saturday 6 May and conducted by The Archbishop of Canterbury, will be the centrepiece of the Coronation weekend (6-8 May). It will be a service rooted in Christian symbolism, reflecting the King's role today whilst looking to the future.
The ceremony will be followed by a day of community celebration (The Coronation Big Lunch, 7 May) and a day of volunteering and service (The Big Help Out, 8 May).
Building on themes of community, faith and service, the Coronation weekend will be a celebratory moment, a chance for people to come together and for churches to share an invitational message about the Christian faith.
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Have you considered building your recruitment practices on biblical principles? Have you wondered how to embed your recruitment in the Four Ecologies of Fullness? If so, read on…
Do you want your interviewing practice to reflect dignity and respect? Do you aim for a CPD strategy that offers hope and aspiration and tops up knowledge, wisdom and skills? Do you have an ambition for a staff team that thrives and flourishes in a community that lives well together?
If you are still answering yes, consider joining this CPD offer…
A half-day of reflection and challenge that will enable you to consider biblical principles and explore ways to apply these to staff flourishing through recruiting, induction and succession. The session will reflect on how staff can be enabled to flourish. A range of deeply Christian themes of leadership will be shared and considered. There will time to collaborate, plan and link to SIAMS SEF writing.
Held at the DEC on Thursday 20th April from 1.30-4.30
Book your place here!
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CEFEL Networks - The CofE Foundation for Educational Leadership held an inspiring Leadership Conference in January. They are excited to announce that in September 2023, they will be launching several new networks. You can try them out for free in one of their taster sessions, which will be held on 6th, 7th and 8th of March. These sessions are an opportunity for schools to learn more about CEFEL networks and how they can benefit their students. If you're interested in participating, you can register here.
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Tuesday 21st March 2023
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Every school in the PSA has a free place on this ‘national standard’ RE Conference. Who will attend on behalf of your school? Do make sure that you have booked someone on to the course, because by booking on your school will have access to six workshop recordings and all associated materials until February 2024. Great for an RE staff meeting!
Have you booked your place yet? If not, don’t miss it!
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Diversity in RE - How do you approach diversity of belief/practices/views in your classroom? Do your students understand that a ‘religion’ doesn’t mean one way and that it is rich and varied? Is the language that you/students use appropriate for the reality? How do you know? This blog is a valuable read for anyone teaching RE. It shares how one RE teacher (Miss D Cox) explores with her students that the religious beliefs and teachings they will study as part of the A Level and GCSE courses stand alongside the reality of how people live. “Religion isn’t just what the sources of authority say but is a much bigger thing that I want them to know about. I think that we can partly manage controversy and diversity by including what religious people do when we know what their sources of authority actually say.”
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Wiltshire SACRE has vacancies for two representatives in the Church of England Group. Are you, or do you know of anyone who is interested in RE and SMSC who could join SACRE? There are four meetings per year which are usually virtual from 4pm for up to 2hrs. The person doesn’t have to work/have worked as a teacher or in education. Please contact Nicola Coupe to discuss: Nicola.coupe@salisbury.anglican.org. Or contact the SACRE clerk Simone by email on: Simone.Kermode@wiltshire.gov.uk You can see reports and resources on Wiltshire Right Choice here.
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The Cranmer Awards competition for 2024 is underway – This competition provides an opportunity for pupils aged 11 – 18 (open to years 6 – 13) to take part in a recitation of scripture competition. There are local heats and a national final. For more information look their website: Cranmer Awards - The Prayer Book Society (pbs.org.uk) Or to find out more about the heats contact the local organiser Roey Paige roeypaige@btinternet.com
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Don’t forget the RE Network Hub Meetings this term. They are free and open to all. If you can’t attend your local one, go to any of the others. There’s always cake! Contact your HLP on the pdf here.
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Dust and Glory – reflections by email and on an app. These are from the Church of England, and they offer a simple daily activity designed to explore the weekly theme. They encourage readers to take a fresh look this Lent at the frustrations and failings that every day can bring; to seek to learn from them and grow closer to God through them. Sign up to the emails or Download the app. Could you use them in school? Or a church group? An accompanying children’s version of the app is also available to help young people and their families explore how we can live well together.
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Look IN, Look OUT – With 6 weeks of content, this Archbishops’ Young Leaders Award team have created a Lent resource that explores how we can Look IN and Look OUT at the world around us. The 6 sessions focus on different aspect of community: family, friends, school, the local community, our country and the world. Look IN, Look OUT challenges pupils to ‘Look In’ at themselves and then to ‘Look OUT’ at their communities, identifying how they can make a difference and improve the lives of others.
Each week includes:
- Introductions
- Bible links
- A video
- Questions and Challenges
- A prayer
This resource can be used in the classroom or in collective worship. Challenges can be done individually or as a group or class. Sign up here to download the resources: www.abyyt.com/lent.
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Arco Iris Learning - nurturing wellbeing through creative explorations - Explore the website for CPD that puts spirituality at the heart. There is Training for primary colleagues: ‘Seeing with the eyes of your heart’ – nurturing children’s spirituality through imaginative prayer experiences. (90 minutes after-school twilight training / Full or half day INSET) and Children’s sessions: ‘Encounters with God’ - nurturing children’s spirituality through imaginative prayer experiences. Sessions include Starry Promise (Abraham receiving God’s promise) which is suitable for KS2 with EYFS and KS1 version available in January 2024; God’s Love (Psalms and New Testament) for KS2 and Catching Fish (Commissioning of the disciples) supporting transition from Y6 to Y7.
You can also book the example that Maria* shared with us at last year’s Spirituality Across the Curriculum day (The Parable of The Lost Sheep). She will be joining us again in person this year – so you have a treat in store if you are booked on.
*Maria has over 20 years’ experience working within Primary Education. Her previous roles include: classroom teacher, RE subject leader and consultant. She has supported primary schools with spirituality nationwide and has delivered her sessions to Church primary schools and organisations. She provides all the creative resources for an in person visit and has a lending library for schools who prefer online sessions.
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Lifesavers materials linked to Lent - LifeSavers have created a series of values-based assemblies for you to use in the lead up to Easter.
Divided into four themes, the Assembly resources cover each of our values: Generosity, Justice, Wisdom and Thankfulness.
The children will then be challenged by a task, to be completed at home alongside parents/carers, which will deepen understanding within that value. The resources are all free and available from Free Spring Assemblies for Primary Schools — Just Finance Foundation
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Spinnaker’s ‘It’s Jesus!’ series continues to Easter - Starting with the story of feeding the 5,000, the resource shows how Jesus includes EVERYONE as children are inspired to care and share. The series continues with Jesus walking on the water and the impact that had on His disciples, and still has on us today. The theme of mercy is picked up the following week as the kindness and wisdom of Jesus leaves the religious rulers speechless. The remaining 3 episodes in this season explore the events of Holy Week and Easter. The finale, in episode 6, teaches children about the day that is, for Christians, the greatest day in history: Easter Day. The resources explore strong emotions and give thanks for hope and life. Click here to download a free PDF of Worship Plans and PPTs available for you to adapt to suit your school’s Christian vision and values.
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Easter is coming - Are you planning for Lent & Easter? Check out the prayer activities specifically on this theme here. If you have run a prayer space around Lent or Easter before they would love to hear from you, drop naomi@prayerspacesinschools.com a message.
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Church, School and Community
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Earth Day is fast approaching on 22nd April - with that in mind Tearfund’s Bin Twinning initiative has been launched for schools. There is a new kit to help schools learn about how we can tackle the growing problem of single-use plastic. The project also aims to raise funds to create a global network of social enterprises. You can download your school’s kit here.
Do let us know what you are doing for Earth Day.
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Habitats for wildlife - Lent gives us the opportunity to reflect on the way we live. This might include our relationship with nature. If you have a wildlife area in school, or you are aware that your church or community is developing a ‘wild’ area in the churchyard, here are some websites that might help church and school and household/family to do something together as a community.
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Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
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Global Neighbours and Anti-Racism - Christian Aid and the Church of England's Education Office are working in partnership to encourage a deeper understanding of global injustice and equip school pupils across England to tackle this and become courageous advocates for change. Registration is free and entails no commitment from your school to apply for accreditation. From January this year schools applying for the award are expected to show their commitment to anti-racism. Currently the scheme is only open to primary schools however in September 2023 a secondary scheme will be launched. Find out more about Global Neighbours here. They also have a Lent reflection and worship resources. Sign up here.
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Share your news!
We look forward to hearing about your school news stories and sharing them through social media and on the diocese’s news page. 150-250 words and a royalty-free image with all necessary permissions is all that we need. See examples from some of our schools here and here and here. Please email your stories to elspeth.mcnicol@salisbury.anglican.org.
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Thank you for everything you are doing in your Schools and Communities, please enjoy this poem.
May we raise children who love the unloved things
May we raise children
who love the unloved
things – the dandelion, the
worms and spiderlings.
Children who sense
the rose needs the thorn
& run into rainswept days
the same way they
turn towards sun…
And when they’re grown &
someone has to speak for those
who have no voice
may they draw upon that
wilder bond, those days of
tending tender things
and be the ones.
Nicolette Sowder
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