Christian Values / SMSC
Values are the basis of our personal development. They make us who we are. Christian values are at the heart of church schools: they shape every aspect of school life. Christian beliefs should permeate these values, providing the rationale for what we do and why we do it. In a church school the school’s values will be earthed in the wisdom and understanding of Christian faith, for it is the Christian tradition that gives these values content and the life of Jesus which gives them moral authority. A church school’s ethos should therefore grow naturally out of core Christian beliefs that are recognised by all members of the school community.
At a SIAMS inspection the school will be judged on the extent to which the school’s values are distinctively Christian values and the impact of these values on the lives of all members of the school community.
The Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils and adults in the school community forms part of the daily life of all schools. In church schools there should be a specific understanding of and focus on spiritual development. The SIAMS evaluation schedule asks schools to consider how it supports spiritual development and how this enables the school community to flourish. It requires schools to have a clear and secure understanding of spiritual development that is distinguishable from social, moral and cultural development and which is shared by all staff. To support schools with their thinking the Church of England has produced a booklet called ‘Spiritual Development: Interpretations of spiritual development in the classroom’. This can be downloaded from the Key Documents section of this page.
For further information and support about spiritual development and SMSC please speak to your Diocesan Link Adviser.