Intent 

As a School of Sanctuary, Bevois Town Primary is a welcoming and inclusive school that represents a diverse ethnic, cultural and religious community. We hold the following values at the HEART of all that we do: Honesty, Equality, Achievement, Respect and Responsibility, Teamwork. We are committed to building a learning community in which learners, of all ages, are actively encouraged to share their beliefs and religious (and non-religious) and cultural experiences so that we learn with, from and on behalf of one another to broaden our understanding of life in today’s multi-cultural and multi-faith Britain.

In accordance with the agreed syllabus ‘Living Difference IV’, our RE curriculum has been carefully crafted and intends for our children to have the knowledge, understanding, respect and tolerance to develop as young people as they come to speak, think and act in our culturally diverse world. Over the course of their primary journey, children will explore Christianity, together with at least three other principal religions and world views, so that they understand how different religious and non-religious viewpoints affect the fabric of one’s personal and social life and have the skills to discern what beliefs and practises have value and meaning for them, regardless of their own religious viewpoints.

Throughout the curriculum, we aim to enable pupils to build a sense of identity and belonging which will help them flourish within their local communities and supports them to view themselves as equal, valued and valid global citizens. By equipping our children with the skills of enquiry, we will provoke challenging questions about the meaning of life, beliefs, the self, issues of right and wrong and what it means to be human.

By the time children leave Bevois Town Primary School, we aim for children to be able to:

• have a clear understanding of different religious beliefs and practices but understand that not everyone is religious

• be able to express their own opinions and beliefs

• understand that people can have beliefs that are different to our own and be tolerant and respectful of this

• have an understanding of how different religious beliefs and practices relate to their own lives or the lives of others

Living Difference IV - Southampton's Agreed Syllabus

At Bevois Town Primary School, we follow Living Difference IV – the Agreed Syllabus for schools in Hampshire, Portsmouth, Southampton and the Isle of Wight – to teach religious education. This document is the statutory framework which defines the matters, skills and processes which need to be taught.

Living Difference IV is an approach to enquiry in religious education. It takes as its starting point an exploration, with children, of what it means to exist in and with the world.

Parents have the right to withdraw their children from all or any part of RE. However, the right to withdraw does not extend to other areas of the curriculum when, for example, 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.

For more information, please see the Living Difference IV Syllabus below.