At Holway Park we teach the AMV curriculum set out by Somerset County Council. Our RE lessons are intended to offer a broad and rich RE curriculum to allow for coverage of the areas prescribed; to allow for a variety of ways to explore religions, their community and personal development and wellbeing. The lessons have an intention of providing a high quality, coherent and progressive experience of the subject. Through each unit, children will know about and understand a range of religions and world views. Personal growth and community cohesion are featured throughout each strand and are there to ensure opportunities for children to develop positive attitudes and values and to reflect on and relate their learning in RE to their own experiences. The intention is to make sure that children understand the relevance of RE in today’s modern world and how it affects our lives. Through RE, pupils encounter ancient and living traditions that have shaped the world. They explore foundational texts and the way that individuals and groups live in the world, as well as the values, beliefs and ideas that bind people together. Pupils consider deep questions that have inspired human thought throughout history, and that still challenge children and adults alike today. The knowledge that they gain stretches beyond oversimplifications: it enables pupils to derive meaning from complexity.

We take very seriously the philosophy that children are free to make their own choices and decisions concerning religion and belief. RE does not try to persuade but rather to inform and develop the skills with which evaluation can take place. 

Our teaching enables children to extend their own sense of values and promotes their spiritual growth and development. We encourage children to think about their own views and values in relation to the themes and topics studied in the RE curriculum.

RE can help pupils to listen well and respond respectfully and sensitively when encountering people from different faiths and beliefs. Attitudes such as respect, care, curiosity and concern should be promoted through all areas of school life. In this way, religious education contributes to our whole school ethos.

The Right of Withdrawal from RE

The parent / carer of a pupil at a community, foundation or voluntary school or academy has the right to request that their child be excused from all or part of the RE provided.

The purpose of the law on withdrawal has always been to allow parents and communities to make arrangements for their own preferred RE not so that children can take part in other studies or activities.

Parents/carers who want to withdraw their children from RE need to be aware that RE is taught in an objective way that is relevant to all pupils and respects their own personal beliefs. If you wish to discuss the RE syllabus learning objectives and what is covered in the RE curriculum then please get in touch with your child's class teacher. The school will review any requests to withdraw a child from RE on an annual basis, in discussion with parents. 

The right of withdrawal does not extend to other areas of the curriculum when, as may happen on occasion, spontaneous questions on religious matters are raised by pupils or there are issues related to religion that arise in other subjects such as history or citizenship.

If pupils are withdrawn from RE, schools have a duty to supervise them, though not to provide additional teaching or to incur extra cost.