Ethos and Values 2024-25
Our Christian Vision and values are at the core of everything we do. They underpin our school vision which is;
Our Christian Vision
Learning Together, In God's Love
At Bishop Martin, we INSPIRE and empower all members of our school community, providing the knowledge to enable everyone to thrive and flourish. Guided by our Christian Values, we are all determined to serve and lead the diverse world we live in treating everyone with compassion, dignity and respect. With hope and aspiration we will encourage all to grow and believe that
“…with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26
ETHOS STATEMENT
Recognising its historic foundation, our school will preserve and develop its religious character in accordance with the principles of the Church of England and in partnership with the Church at both a parish and diocesan level.
Our school aims to serve its community by providing an education of the highest quality within the context of Christian belief and practice. We encourage an understanding of the meaning and significance of faith and promote Christian values through the experience we offer to all our pupils.
Our Christian Values
These values are clear in everything we do and how we operate. They reflect the core ideology of our school and do not change over time. The person you are is an expression of these values. They determine how you think and what you do. They shape your purpose and determine your vision. They establish your character and are hugely important to who you are. Values are what we live, breathe and these are reflected in our day-to-day activities.
These are our values for 2024 to 2025
Thankfulness
Luke 22.19: Jesus broke bread and gave thanks.
1 Chronicles 29.12: All things come from you and of your own do we give you.
Spiritual: The Gospels record that Jesus gave thanks as he broke bread with his disciples in the upper room at the Last Supper. Throughout his whole life Jesus’ attitude was one of trust in God and thanksgiving for His provision: Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin. (Matthew 6.28)
Moral: Following Jesus example, we believe that an attitude of thankfulness comes from an active appreciation of what we have. We take time to reflect upon the many blessings that we enjoy acknowledging that some people in our own country as well as in the wider world do not have access to basic necessities such as clean air and space and time to play, education, adequate health care, communication technology or even a healthy diet. We regard as a moral imperative the need to work for a more just world out of an attitude of thankfulness for all we have.
Social: As a community, we recognise the Christian belief that each person is made in God's image and reflects his glory. We are thankful for the uniqueness of every individual member of our school and the gifts that we all bring and share to enrich our corporate life.
Cultural: As a Church of England school, acknowledging the Christian belief that creation is a gift from God, we foster an attitude of thankfulness and respect for nature, aware of its fragility and the impact of human activity on the environment. In all that we do, we try to create a culture of making informed, ethical choices in order to minimise any negative impact on the environment. We also work with other organisations to improve the environment for the future generations.
Trust
John 14.1: Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in me.
1 Corinthians 13. 6-7: Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices in the truth, it always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Spiritual: Jesus demonstrated his trust in God throughout his life. He also entrusted his ongoing work in the world to his special friends - the disciples, and ultimately to us. We explore together the Christian understanding of being the Body of Christ on earth.
Moral: We try to follow the example of Jesus and trust each person in our school will live by our core Christian values including truthfulness, respect and justice. We encourage children to reflect on why trust is so crucial in our relationships and what the consequences might be when it is broken.
Our experience in school has been that this trust is rarely betrayed but we know that when it breaks down, forgiveness is needed and the capacity to offer a new start.
Social: As a community, trust is the glue that holds our relationships together. To develop character we give each individual important responsibilities (with appropriate support) and, in so doing, seek to encourage trustworthiness from the youngest age.
Cultural: We recognise that in the wider culture of our nation, citizens are trusted to live by the laws of our country. We trust that our leaders (children and grown-ups), in school and in the wider nation, will have the highest moral and ethical standards and will lead with integrity. We teach the skills required to respectfully hold to account those in authority.
Perseverance
Hebrews 12.1: Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us that is before us. Deuteronomy 13.6: The Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you of forsake you.
Spiritual: Despite opposition and adversity, Jesus did not compromise or lose heart in his determination to accomplish his mission. We recognise that sometimes we will face difficulties and personal challenges in life but we know that we can pray for God's help because he has promised never to leave us.
Moral: As the life of Jesus exemplifies, standing for justice and doing what we believe to be right, may not always result in change immediately. Sometimes we may feel discouraged. At our school, we teach that perseverance and endurance are important qualities in developing character.
Social: As a community, we value and celebrate perseverance, encouraging one another consistently to take one step at a time to achieve our goals. We offer a wide range of opportunities for children to volunteer in social enterprises and to work with others from a range of ages and backgrounds to foster co-operation and collaboration in problem solving.
Cultural: We aim to foster a culture that recognises that ‘quick wins’ are not always possible and are often not sustainable. We believe that the principle of ‘training well’ is usually more fruitful in building character than ‘trying harder’. We actively seek out contemporary as well as historical role models who have achieved their goals through persevering, even in the toughest of circumstances.
Justice
Micah 6. 9: What does the Lord require of you? To do justice, love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
Matthew 5. 13-14: ‘You are the salt of the earth............ You are the light of the world.’
Spiritual: Jesus was passionate and uncompromising in standing against the injustices that he saw in his society. The heart of his message was the proclamation of the ‘The Kingdom of God’ i.e. God’s rule on earth as it is in heaven. The Kingdom is glimpsed when justice and mercy are being lived out. We try our best to model these Kingdom values in our school.
Moral: Following Jesus' example, we believe that we are called to speak up for the truth and out against injustice. We therefore equip children with the skills required to be reflective, become informed and be able to make just judgements for themselves based on facts and evidence.
Social: As a community, we are constantly seeking ways to make our school an even more inclusive, democratic community in which everyone has a voice. We also foster an engagement with out national system of democracy, learning how it operates and how decisions that affect all our lives are made.
Cultural: As a Church of England school, we believe that justice must be seen to be transparent and unbiased. Children as well as adults therefore contribute to policy making on Behaviour and Anti-bullying.
We learn about the values that have informed our nation's justice system and the way this system functions to maintain law and order and keep us safe.
Service
Matthew 20.26: The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many.
John 13.12-15: After Jesus had washed his disciples' feet ... he said: “Do you understand what I have done? ..... And if your Lord and teacher has washed your feet, you should do the same for each other.”
Spiritual: Jesus' gave us an example of servant leadership at the Last Supper when he took a towel and washed his disciples’ feet, a job usually carried out by a servant; he then told his disciples to go and do likewise. As those values are rooted in the example and teaching of Jesus, we are inspired by this act of love for his friends.
Moral: Following Jesus' example, we value a model of servant leadership in our school. We encourage children to seek the common good in all that they do, striving to put the needs of others before our own.
Social: As a community, we believe that our gifts and talents are to be used in ways that will improve the lives of others. We provide opportunities in school for serving as monitors, peer mediators and to stand as elected members of the school council. We help children to develop skills that will allow them to participate fully and contribute positively to the social and cultural life of modern Britain.
Cultural: As a Church of England school we create a culture in which serving one another and the wider community is celebrated and seen as an important mark of character development. We regularly invite to our school others who are making a difference to society through their service and charitable works, to inform and inspire us and to present positive role models for us to follow.
Truthfulness
James 3. 17: The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.
Ephesians 4. 15: Speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the Head that is, Christ.
Spiritual: The apostle Paul urges the followers of Christ to speak the truth in love in order that they might become a more authentic expression of Christ’s body on earth. We always try to combine truthfulness with kindness so that we encourage each other and build one another up.
Moral: As members of a community seeking to live out our Christian values, we believe that knowing the difference between right and wrong will be of only partial use if we do not have the courage to speak the truth and do what is right.
Social: Fundamental to the relationships is an expectation of truthfulness. We explore with the children the consequences of lying or lack of integrity, not only in our school community, but in the wider world as well as in the political arena.
Cultural: As a Church of England school we understand that a person’s understanding of the truth and truthfulness will sometimes be influenced by their religious and cultural experiences. We promote curiosity and respect as we learn about the diversity of beliefs and social backgrounds that make up modern Britain’s society.
Please find a link here LDST vision and values
https://www.ldst.org.uk/our-visions-and-values/