The spiritual, social, moral and cultural values we wish to develop in our children permeate the life of Our Lady & St. Francis Primary School and are not confined to religious lessons.

We aim to encourage the children to put their R.E. lessons into practice within the community of the school. The ethos of the school and curriculum aim to help our children in their search for answers to some of life’s deepest questions and to respect the beliefs, practices and values of religious traditions within their own community and also those of people from other faith communities.

We are currently implementing “This is our Faith” which is a programme that has been developed in Primary Schools and ratified by the Bishops of Scotland and the Holy See. The essence of this programme is its strong emphasis on parental involvement and responsibility in relation to the child’s growth as a Christian leading a Christian way of life. It provides opportunities for home, school, parish and the wider community to work together. This is especially evident when we all work together to prepare the children for the sacraments they receive when in primary school.

Religious and moral education includes learning about Christianity and other world religions, and supports the development of beliefs and values.
It also includes aspects of philosophical enquiry.

Scotland is now a nation which reflects a wide range of beliefs, values and traditions.
Religious and moral education enables children and young people to explore the world’s major religions and approaches to living which are independent of religious belief, and be challenged by these different beliefs and values.
It supports children and young people in developing responsible attitudes to other people, their values and their capacity for moral judgement.
The study of Christianity, which has shaped the history and traditions of Scotland and continues to exert an influence on national life, is an essential feature of religious and moral education for all children and young people.

Learning through religious and moral education enables children and young people to:

• develop a knowledge and understanding of Christianity and other world religions and recognise religion as an important expression of human experience
• explore moral values such as wisdom, justice, compassion and integrity
  investigate and understand the responses which religions can offer to questions about the nature and meaning of life
• develop the skills of reflection, discernment, critical thinking, and deciding how to act when making moral decisions
• develop their beliefs, attitudes, moral values and practices through personal search, discovery and critical evaluation, and make a positive difference to the world by putting their beliefs and values into action.