St Bartholomew’s Primary Castlemilk Jane L Saunders HT Mary O’Duffin PT

1. Scottish Catholic Education Service Showcase of Good Practice in Religious Education in Catholic Primary schools St Bartholomew’s Primary Castlemilk Jane L Saunders HT Mary O’Duffin PT

2. The context • School is based an area of deprivation. FME is 38% and clothing grant is 56%. • Many parents/families have addiction needs.6 pupils are LACC. • 34% of roll are placing requests. • Children are always complimented on their behaviour, positive attitudes and confidence by visitors. • Leadership is pivotal to maintaining a successful Catholic ethos.

3. Our Shared Values • All staff are committed to educating our pupils for life. • We have a shared vision for our pupils to leave St Bartholomew’s educated, knowledgeable, but also as good, kind, honest citizens ready to walk the journey of life hand in hand with God. • We aim to provide a happy, hard working atmosphere and to help our young people to lead a good and prayerful life. • We value the dignity of each person and promote the development of all talents and gifts. • RE is at the core of everything we do, say and how we act.

4. How Good is our Catholic school? 5.8 Care and pastoral support Themes • Arrangements for ensuring care, welfare and child protection • Approaches to and provision for meeting the emotional, physical and social needs of children and young people • Curricular and vocational guidance Key features:This indicator relates to the school’s arrangements for meeting learners’ emotional, physical, health and social needs. It is important that such arrangements apply at times of transition. It focuses on the school’s procedures for ensuring that learners feel safe and well cared for and on planned approaches to promote their personal and social development. It highlights the need for advice which will enable learners to make informed choices within school and about their direction after leaving school.

5. 5.8 Key Strengths • Our policies for pastoral care and welfare are clear, appropriate and implemented. Our whole school community takes an active role in promoting the care and welfare of others. We understand our roles and responsibilities in ensuring health and safety. We have been trained and are confident in child protection issues. We deal sensitively and effectively with children’s needs and concerns, and our learners have access to effective complaints procedures. We build healthy living and health promotion into our school’s culture. Our school has clear procedures for vetting adults who will work with children. • We are alert to children’s emotional, physical and social needs and recognise and actively promote their personal and social development through all our work. We pay close attention to these at times of transition. Meetings are planned with other colleagues from other establishments (Pre5 / Secondary) prior to the time of transition. Extra focused support is then planned where necessary. • Learners are actively encouraged to extend their wider achievements, care for others and develop citizenship skills. We have Junior Road Safety Officers, litter monitors, Playground buddies and toilet monitors. Our school has a climate of trust, respect and confidence. Staff and partner services including resources in the community, support children and their families. We make sensitive use of information concerning individuals.

6. 5.8 Key Strengths • Staff track every pupil’s personal history as well as attainment at transition from one stage to another. Future needs are identified at this meeting as well which involves the SMT responsible for the stage, present and future teacher of the class. Memos are sent to all involved agencies when a child is requiring a new form of support. • We are an accredited Health promoting School. We hold an annual Health week which targets all aspects of health and well being • We have an effective PSHE programme which is complemented through our weekly assemblies. We have policies on Anti Bullying and Anti Racism. • All staff receive Child Protection training annually Next Steps • Set up Pastoral care group • Develop internet safety training sessions for parents.

7. How Good is our Catholic school? 5.1 The Curriculum Themes • The rationale and design of the curriculum • The development of the curriculum • Programmes and courses • Transitions Key features: This indicator relates to the ways that curriculum areas and subjects, interdisciplinary studies, the life of the school as a community, and opportunities for personal achievement develop pupils’ capacities as successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors. It focuses on the quality of the curriculum across stages and transition points. It highlights the need for the curriculum to be dynamic to take account of innovation, and flexible to meet the needs of all learners.

8. 5.1 Key Strengths Our curriculum has a clear rationale based on shared values. The staff use Alive O as a focus for progression in learning but staff are encouraged to introduce well-considered innovations to meet the needs of learners. The policy has a Liturgical Calendar which plans different events for each month. These are covered in a variety of ways: school assemblies/stage or class work. Prayer is an important part of our curriculum to help sustain our relationship with God. We have prayer services linked to the liturgical year. We have a school hymn which is sung at all assemblies and when the whole school is together for an event. Sex Education Lessons are incorporated into the P7 curriculum in Term 3. All classes also have Relationships and Moral education taught as part of their RE programme. The RE curriculum is also linked to other areas of the curriculum, particularly PSE and citizenship. Staff and management meetings regularly discuss our Religious Education work. We reflect in staff teams on the range and quality of experiences for learners, the impact of these experiences on learners and the outcomes they achieve.

9. 5.1 Key Strengths • We have a shared area where good practice in the teaching of RE is placed for others to access. • RE is an integral part of our Improvement Plan. We develop and refresh our curriculum on a regular basis, involving all staff in the process and taking account of the views of our learners and parents. • Our programmes and courses are stimulating, challenging, relevant and enjoyable. We respond to, and meet the needs of, learners. Our RE curriculum promotes wider achievements very well and learners grow as citizens. Next Steps • Evaluate the targets in this year’s Improvement Plan. • Build on existing good practice of linking the learning. • Use Gospel texts as a focus for the development of literacy skills.

10. Strengths of our practice RE Calendar Pastoral tracking Commitment to prayer SOS project with local non denominational school Partnership with home and Church Commitment to staff development Trialling draft outcomes Teaching RE using a variety of teaching and learning strategies Shared folder on Our Establishment for examples of good practice Putting our values into practice Epitomising the Gospel values Personal and social development Opportunities to achieve