Religious Education

'Beliefs, Values and Worldviews'

Religious Education is an important element in the broad and balanced curriculum that we offer at Oak Tree Primary School. Through our RE curriculum, we provide opportunities to develop children’s knowledge and understanding of world religions and reflect on the challenging questions that it provokes. It is our aim that pupils develop their knowledge and understanding of religions and consider how the beliefs of others impact on their lives and the lives of others. We encourage children to ask and reflect on challenging questions, by providing opportunities for personal reflection where they can explore their own beliefs and world views (not necessarily religious). We aim to provide creative and stimulating lessons that encourage children to appreciate and respect the different cultures in today’s society. We discuss and share our goals with the children:

'EYFS/KS1 Beliefs, Values and Worldviews Principal Aim'

“At Oak Tree we ask big questions about life. We learn about what people believe. Kindly, we express our thoughts and ideas. We also think about how people are living their lives around us.”

'KS2 Beliefs, Values and Worldviews Principal Aim'

  “At Oak Tree we explore the big questions about life, to find out what people believe and what difference this makes to how they live. Respectfully and thoughtfully, we express our views and opinions about beliefs, values and worldviews while reflecting on our own ideas and different ways of living at the same time.”

Please click the links below to see the Intent, Implementation and Impact of our curriculum:

National Curriculum

The National Curriculum for RE aims to ensure that all pupils are offered a curriculum which is:

• balanced and broadly based
• promotes the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils at the school and of society
• prepares pupils at the school for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life

Legal Requirements of RE

RE must be provided for all registered pupils in state-funded schools in England, including state-funded academies, unless withdrawn by their parents. It is a necessary part of a ‘broad and balanced curriculum’. A locally agreed syllabus is a statutory syllabus for RE recommended by an Agreed Syllabus Conference for adoption by a local authority. The RE curriculum drawn up by a SACRE ‘shall reflect the fact that the religious traditions in Great Britain are in the main Christian, while taking account of the teaching and practices of the other principal religions represented in Great Britain’. As education policy changes, the legal requirement for RE for all registered pupils remains unchanged. RE is an entitlement for all pupils, unless they have been withdrawn by their parents from some or all of the RE curriculum.  

Right of withdrawal

In the UK, parents have the right to withdraw their children from RE on the grounds that they wish to provide their own religious education. (School Standards and Framework Act 1998 S71(3)). However, this was first granted when RE was taught very differently. Today at Oak Tree, we believe our religious curriculum offers a broad and balanced curriculum to our pupils, equipping them with the British Values that will enable them to live harmoniously in a rich, diverse and everchanging society. 

Upon a request to withdraw, we would engage with parents / carers  to ensure that they understand the aims and value of RE before honouring this right.