Our Lady and St Oswald's Catholic Primary School
Catholic Life, Mission and Vision
Our Catholic Mission
At Our Lady & St Oswald’s, Christ is at the centre of everything we do.
Our vision is rooted in the words of Jesus:
“I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”
John 10:10
We want every child entrusted to our care to experience that fullness of life: to know that they are loved by God, to recognise their own dignity and the dignity of others, to discover their gifts, to grow in virtue and knowledge, and to use what they have been given in the service of others.
Our Catholic faith is not simply one part of school life. It shapes how we teach, how we lead, how we treat one another, how we respond when things go wrong and the aspirations we hold for every child.
Our Vision
Our vision sits above every policy and decision in our school. It is the standard we hold ourselves to as adults and the hope we hold for every child.
In practice, this means that we:
- place Christ at the centre, helping children, families and staff to grow in relationship with Jesus through prayer, worship, the Sacraments and the ordinary moments of school life;
- pursue excellence in learning, expecting every child to work hard, think deeply and achieve highly;
- strive for professional excellence, modelling the highest standards of conduct, preparation and care;
- build positive relationships in which people are treated with dignity, encouragement and respect; and
- speak positively about our children, families and colleagues, reflecting both our Catholic calling and our professional responsibilities.
Our ambition is for children to leave Our Lady & St Oswald’s with strong knowledge and skills, but also with the character, faith and confidence to use them for the good of others.
Our Promises
Our shared promises help turn our vision into something children experience every day.
Our Adult Promises
Connection
Every child should feel known, valued and safe. Strong relationships provide the foundation from which children can learn, grow and accept guidance.
Confidence
We communicate our belief that every child can grow. We encourage children to face challenges, develop resilience and recognise that difficulties are opportunities to learn.
Consistency
Children thrive when expectations are calm, clear and predictable. Our adults work together to provide consistent routines, boundaries and support throughout the school.
Together, connection, confidence and consistency help create a calm, caring and ambitious culture in which children can flourish.
Our Children’s Promises
Every child is called to grow in virtue, knowledge and skill.
Our three simple promises shape how we live, learn and treat one another:
- We Are Kind
- We Make Safe Choices
- We Try Our Best
These promises are deliberately simple enough for even our youngest children to understand, while expressing expectations that remain important throughout life.
Our Gospel Values
Our Gospel values are rooted in the Beatitudes and help us understand what it means to follow Christ in our everyday lives.
We seek to grow together in:
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Humility seeing life as a gift |
Compassion showing empathy and care |
Kindness showing gentleness in word and action |
Justice standing up for what is right and fair |
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Forgiveness showing mercy and seeking reconciliation |
Integrity doing what is right and true |
Peace choosing peacemaking and non-violence |
Courage standing up for truth and goodness |
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These are not simply words displayed around our school. We want children to recognise them, talk about them and, most importantly, practise them through the choices they make and the way they treat others.
Religious Education
Religious Education is at the heart of our curriculum and plays a central role in the faith and intellectual formation of our children.
Through RE, children deepen their knowledge and understanding of the Catholic faith, encounter Scripture and the teaching of the Church, ask important questions and learn to reflect thoughtfully on their own lives and the world around them.
We follow the Religious Education Directory, To Know You More Clearly, and ensure that Religious Education receives the curriculum time and importance expected within a Catholic school.
Our aim is not simply for children to know about their faith, but for their learning to help them understand more deeply God's love for them and the call to live as disciples of Christ.
Prayer and Liturgy
Prayer and liturgy are central to the daily life of Our Lady & St Oswald’s.
Children have opportunities to pray individually and together through classroom prayer, the Celebration of the Word, whole-school gatherings, Mass, and the liturgical seasons of the Church.
We want children to gradually become active participants rather than simply observers: reading Scripture, preparing prayer, reflecting, responding, and developing the confidence to lead others.
The celebration of Mass and the Sacraments, our relationship with the parish and the rhythms of the Church’s year all help our children understand that they belong to a much wider Catholic family.
Prayer also gives our school opportunities to stop amid the busyness of everyday life: to give thanks, seek forgiveness, pray for others and place our joys and difficulties before God.
Living Our Vision Every Day
Our Catholic mission should be visible not only during RE lessons or times of prayer, but in the ordinary life of the school.
It can be seen in the way a child welcomes somebody who is alone; in the way difficulties are resolved with dignity and forgiveness; in striving to produce excellent work; in caring for our environment; in standing up for what is right; and in recognising opportunities to serve others.
This is what we mean by helping every member of our community to have “life in all its fullness”.