Our intent for RE is that children at Straits are given the opportunity to explore a wide range of religious and non-religious worldviews, which reflect the diverse nature of British culture. We believe that RE plays an integral role in providing our children with a broad and balanced curriculum, which not only enables them to develop a sense of appreciation, respect and tolerance for others, but also to develop their own views about the world around them.

Our curriculum is designed so that children will be introduced to new faiths when they are ready, whilst also revisiting those taught previously. This aims to enable our pupils to draw respectful comparisons and to build their understanding and cumulative knowledge over time, giving them the tools they need to develop their own set of beliefs and values by which to live their lives.

Our approach to RE gives pupils the chance to explore the main principles of the world’s biggest faiths whilst also formulating their own questions and debating the meaning and significance behind specific religious stories, symbols and messages. The important question should always be why, not what.

We aim to support our children to make links with faiths in the local community as well as that of wider Britain. Our RE lessons aim to provide a positive context in which the diversity of religious culture can be celebrated and in which children feel empowered to be reflective, developing their own moral compass which they openly accept may differ from that of others.

Religious Education (RE) in this country is distinctive in being locally agreed within each Local  Authority. In an increasingly diverse community such as Dudley, Religious Education needs to be relevant to the lives of young people of all faiths and none and this syllabus draws on the experience of the local faith communities within the Borough of Dudley.

Now, more so than ever, it is vital that young people are able to understand themselves within the context of a diverse society so that they are equipped to be active citizens with the confidence to participate with peers whose background can often be different to their own.

Spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development are important parts of the path to adulthood and young people should be encouraged to develop their:

• ability to be reflective about their own beliefs (religious or otherwise) and their perspective on life knowledge of, and respect for, different people’s faiths, feelings, and values
• ability to understand and appreciate the viewpoints of others acceptance of and engagement with the fundamental British values including mutual respect for those with different faiths and beliefs
• understanding and appreciation of the range of cultural influences in the school and further afield as an essential element of their preparation for life in modern Britain
• understanding and appreciation of the wide range of cultural influences that have that have shaped their own heritage, that of others and the locality we live in
• ability to recognise, and value, the things we share in common across cultural, religious, ethnic and socio-economic communities
•  understand, accept, respect, and celebrate diversity in local, national and global communities