Spirituality, Vision and Values

What does spirituality look like at the Downland Village Schools Federation?

Spirituality begins from a Christian understanding that everyone is a valued creation, individually and uniquely created by God (Isiah 64:8).

Through prayer, we are able to create a personal relationship with God and Jesus, thereby living life in all its fullness.

From this, we invite all stakeholders to develop a personal relationship with God and Jesus, through prayer.

Prayer is the beating heart of Christian Spirituality in our Federation.

Therefore,

We use traditional prayers, such as the Lord’s Prayer, in acts of worship.
We use ‘inspirational’ prayers (popcorn prayers) for children to pray about what they want to or feel moved to.
We use other prayers throughout the day to, for example, celebrate and give thanks.

We also share a broader understading of spirituality for the curriculum.

The wows!

Our children are given the opportunity to reflect on the beauty and joy of creation. This is our awe and wonder!

The ows! Time is given for our children to reflect and empathise on moments of disappointment or pain.

The nows!

Time is given for our children to reflect in the stillness and ordinariness of the everyday.

However, the wows, ows and nows also crucially link to our understanding of Christian spirituality of prayer and a close relationship with God and Jesus.

It is from the reflection time we can create our own prayers or use other prayers:

that express awe and wonder and a love of the created world (the wows).
that call for perseverance and hope in the face of disappointment or pain (the ows).
that celebrate the everyday, such as our friends, our school (the nows).

Vision

School Vision

In our federation of schools, our Christian vision shapes all we do.

Jesus said: “I have come that you may have life in all its fullness” (John 10:10).

We make our vision come to life through our school ethos of Excite, Engage, Include.

Our federation provides a happy, stimulating, and nurturing environment, with an embedded Christian ethos, where we:

work together to maintain thriving and sustainable schools in our communities;
offer fun, engagement and challenge for everyone in our federation;
equip our children for a changing world by providing broad and balanced experiences;
give everyone the self-belief to face their future with confidence;
share and celebrate our uniqueness across the federation.

Values
Love of learning, of others, and of ourselves	‘My command is this: Love one another as I have loved you’ John 15:12
Hope and ambition for the future	‘But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint’ Isaiah 40:31
Forgiveness of others and empathy for others	‘Be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgive one another, as God in Christ forgave you’ Ephesians 40:32
Perseverance to be inquisitive and creative	‘I press on toward the goal to win the prize that God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus’ Philippians 3:14
Respectfulness in all we do	‘Treat others as you would them to treat you’ Matthew 7:12

Our school prayer

Dear Lord,

Bless our school,

In that working together and

playing together

We learn to love one another

and serve you.

Amen