Religious Education and Worldviews

The aim of Religious Education and Worldviews (RW) in a Church school is to enable every child to acquire a rich understanding of Christian belief and practice, and to fully engage with a range of religions and worldviews. As part of this, pupils will be provided with a safe space to explore their own religious, spiritual and/or philosophical ways of seeing, living and thinking, believing and belonging. High quality RW should be an expression of the school’s Christian vision, helping to educate for dignity and respect, encouraging all to live well together.

Principal Aim
“The principal aim of religious education is to explore what people believe and what difference this makes to how they live, so that pupils can gain the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to handle questions raised by religion and worldviews, reflecting on their own ideas and ways of living.”

– Devon and Torbay/Plymouth Agreed Syllabus 2024-2029

For Church schools in the Diocese of Exeter, expectations for how RW should be approached are set out in the Church of England Statement of Entitlement. In RW pupils learn about religious and non-religious worldviews: how do beliefs and values influence the way people live and what difference does our own personal worldview make to how we see others. RW is valued as an academic subject, whilst also making a significant contribution to the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of all pupils.

The central questions asked about RW in the SIAMS Framework are:

Inspection question 6: Is the religious education curriculum effective (with reference to the expectations set out in the Church of England’s Statement of Entitlement for Religious          Education)?

• How do school and trust leaders ensure that the provision, profile, and priority of religious education in all key stages reflect its place on the curriculum of a Church school?
• How do school and trust leaders ensure that the religious education curriculum is challenging, accurate, well-sequenced, well-balanced, relevant, and diverse?
• How do school and trust leaders ensure that religious education is well-resourced, and that continuing professional development for staff has an impact on the effectiveness of the curriculum?

Inspection question 7: What is the quality of religious education in voluntary aided and former voluntary aided schools, and in former voluntary controlled schools in which denominational religious education is taught?

• What is the quality of teaching?
• How well do pupils make progress in their learning as a result of a balanced and well-structured religious education curriculum?
• How does assessment inform teaching and learning?

As a Diocese we are committed to supporting high quality RW in all school across the Diocese. Diocesan Education Advisers offer courses for subject leaders and governors as well as bespoke advice and support in schools. A half-termly RW newsletter is sent into all schools and can be downloaded here. Another key element of our support for schools is provided by teacher networks, through the Learn Teach Lead RE Project  hubs and through the work of local SACREs.

The Diocese of Exeter recommends that all Church schools should teach RW in accordance with the Agreed Syllabus for Devon, Torbay and Plymouth. This is the legal expectation for foundation and voluntary controlled schools with a religious character. In voluntary aided schools, where RW must be taught in accordance with the trust deed, agreement to follow the Agreed Syllabus should be sought through school governors. In academies and free schools RW must be taught in accordance with the funding agreement, so academies are advised to adopt the Agreed Syllabus as their chosen method of delivery for RW.

The Agreed Syllabus has been chosen, in part, because it incorporates the highly regarded Understanding Christianity resources as an integral aspect of its delivery.

Church schools should display an up to date RW policy on their website. See example here: RW_Model_Policy_ Exeter_Diocese_2020

The school website should also contain a statement explaining the parental right of withdrawal from collective worship and/or religious education. See guidance from Exeter Diocese on withdrawal from RW and CW.

Please contact the Education team for further support:

Email the Education Team

Click here for information about core and bespoke training for Religious Education and Worldviews.