Our Vision
Miss Ledger – Year 3a Teacher, RE Lead
At Harlow Green Primary School, we believe children should have the opportunity to develop an understanding and acceptance of the diverse beliefs and religious practices within our faith communities. Our teaching of RE will help to prepare and equip all children for life in contemporary Britain. Children will be given the chance to explore the main teachings, beliefs and practices of the following principal religions: Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism and Islam. RE will enable children to engage with the big questions about their life in the world and will develop their sense of personal identity and belonging. We endeavour to build in our children a sense of respect for the rights of all people to make these personal choices; encouraging them to challenge prejudice and discrimination. We seek to encourage empathy, generosity and compassion, prompting our children to make informed judgements and responsible choices as well as considering how they might contribute to their communities and the wider world.
During their time at Harlow Green Primary School, it is also our aim to provide opportunities for children to visit places of worship, including a church, temple, synagogue and mosque to further develop their knowledge and understanding of their importance and role within our local community. Harlow Green is not a faith school and does not have an affiliation with any particular religious denomination. We therefore follow the Gateshead Authority Agreed Syllabus.
Who decides upon the RE curriculum?
The RE syllabus is delegated by Government to every Local Authority which is given the power to write the syllabus they believe is in the best interest of the children of their community, taking into account local factors. This syllabus is then aimed at Community Maintained Schools and not faith schools (e.g. Catholic schools) which have their own curriculum.
Harlow Green, like all other schools in our cluster, is a maintained Gateshead school. We are not a faith school and do not have any religious affiliation. As a result, we adopt Gateshead’s RE curriculum.
What is in the RE curriculum?
The Gateshead RE curriculum focuses on four main religions: Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism. There is a greater focus on Christianity because of Britain being a Christian country but the programme of study still introduces the culture and religious beliefs of the other main religions that are practised in our local, national and international community. The Gateshead Agreed Religious Syllabus can be seen below:
Gateshead Religious Education Syllabus 2018
It is our intention, and the intention of Gateshead as a Local Authority, to ensure that the children of our community are taught facts about the religions that we study. We aim that our pupils will develop an understanding of how people who come from the different religions share common principles and values whilst also explaining the meaning behind the diverse practices from these religions. To support our intentions, we have organised the content to ensure that children learn about the different religions across the different year groups in order that they can revisit as they mature and develop their knowledge and understanding of the world around them. Our long term plan can be seen below:
