Not all pupils or families connected to St Bartholomew’s are Roman Catholic. St Bartholomew’s welcomes children of any faith, and of no faith at all, and the religious convictions and personal conscience of individual pupils and their families are acknowledged and respected at all times.

St Bartholomew’s has a duty to proclaim the Gospel and offer education based on the values and teachings of the Catholic Church and it is presumed that parents and carers who enrol their child in the school are consciously choosing this ethos and learning environment for their son or daughter. Parents who, for some reason, wish to withdraw their child from religious observance should make an appointment with the Head Teacher to discuss their specific concerns and find a suitable solution.

Parents from ethnic minority religious communities may request that their children be permitted to be absent from school in order to celebrate recognised religious festivals. Only written requests will be considered. Appropriate requests will be granted on not more than three occasions in any one school session and the pupil will be marked as an authorised absentee in the register.