
Subject Leader: Emily Lee
It is our aim that children at Sydenham Primary School are able to enter into a rich discourse about the religious and non-religious traditions that have shaped our community, country and the world. We aim to provide children with opportunities to explore and discover religions from around the world and then provide them with a safe space to make sense of and prepare them for life in that world.
In Religious Education, the children are exploring the big questions in life; finding out what people believe; and how this impacts how they live their lives. R.E. lessons are an opportunity for our children to explore their own ideas and share their beliefs with others. We ensure that our curriculum is relevant to the rich diversity of our school community, and use this to enrich our curriculum. We have strong links to our local Church, Gurdwara, Mandir and Buddhist Temple, and work in partnership with NATRE to develop connections with other local places of worship. As a Unicef Rights Respecting School, we encourage children to recognise their right to their own faith and encourage them to share their own beliefs and practices with their peers.
At Sydenham Primary School we follow the Coventry and Warwickshire R.E. Agreed Syllabus. Coventry and Warwickshire SACREs, in conjunction with Coventry Diocesan Board of Education, launched their new RE syllabus in April 2024 with the intention set for local schools to implement this from September 2024. This syllabus makes a shift towards a religion and worldviews approach to the teaching of RE and, as such, is in keeping with national thinking on RE and is both innovative and pioneering. This approach assumes that everyone, including pupils themselves, has a worldview and for some people that worldview might align with an organised worldview such as a religious tradition or a non-religious tradition such as Humanism. For many people, their worldview is individual and non-religious and the new syllabus recognises this also. A religion and worldviews approach is based on these three key principles:
- Starting with the particular (e.g. individual & communal worldviews) and moving towards the general (e.g. knowledge of the recognisable familial traits of organised worldviews such as religious traditions).
- Making use of the immediate context and available resources in Coventry and Warwickshire and schools’ own immediate localities and contexts.
- Focusing more on the ways in which people live, the diversity of worldviews and the hermeneutical nature of beliefs as interpreted and ‘embodied’ by those with different worldviews both here and in the wider global picture.
The new syllabus is based on seven core concepts relevant to all worldviews: 1. Belonging and Believing (from EYFS onwards); 2. Wisdom and Guidance (from EYFS onwards); 3. Personal Responsibility (from EYFS onwards); 4. Living Well (from KS1 onwards); 5. Authority and Power (from KS1 onwards); 6. Changes (from KS1 onwards); and 7. Grand Narratives (from KS2 onwards). These concepts are re-visited in a spiral curriculum and explored through three main ways of knowing (disciplinary knowledge): Theology; Philosophy; and Human and Social Sciences. In addition, history is also used as a discipline in some units of work.
Where concepts and disciplines intersect, enquiry questions have been posed to form the basis of units of work. These make use of case studies drawn from religion and worldviews as examples of how such questions might be answered by those with differing worldviews. Over time, pupils build up a growing knowledge of the familial traits of organised worldviews such as religious traditions. The RE syllabus is conceived of as a journey and pupils are regarded as ‘Worldview Explorers’. Their personal knowledge and personal worldviews are considered throughout and intentionally nurtured.
Religious Education Quality Mark

As part of our cycle of continuous school improvement, we were assessed for the R.E. Quality Mark in May 2022, and were awarded Silver. We were re-assessed in June 2023, and were thrilled to receive the Gold award, and to get such positive feedback about our Religious Education teaching and learning:
'This is a school where religious diversity is taken very seriously, and pupils are encouraged to share their one beliefs and practices with their classmates. Tolerance and respect are key values. The curriculum is structures around Big Questions and places an emphasis on what it is like to live as a religious, or a non-religious person in the world of today. The subject is kept relevant and engaging and pupils are encouraged to question and debate. Relationships with local faith communities and places of worship are being established post-covid with a view towards a vibrant programme of visiting and welcoming visitors to the school. The teachers and pupils share an enthusiasm for the subject which is immediately evident.
This is a community school which is a gold award holder for UNICEF. This makes it very different to the faith schools, which are often the ones to seek accreditation with REQM and it was a real pleasure to see how the UNICEF principles are applied in the teaching of religion. The school has used the award as a way of assessing current practice and planning for future developments.
As a UNICEF Rights Respecting Gold school, the whole school ethos of this richly diverse school creates a safe environment of respect for all. RE leads the way, with big questions taking pupils on a journey, supporting the needs of all. The passionate RE subject leader is very well supported with a strong senior leadership team, committed to serving and learning from others. RE is brought to life through first hand memorable experiences underpinned by a vibrant programme of visits and visitors. Here, RE has a high profile and is celebrated with parents, affirming to the whole community. Pupils are proud of their achievements and are integral to continually and consistently improving the quality of RE. Well established Year 5 and 6 Learning Detectives help observe lessons, providing feedback to their peers on engagement in learning, an important aspect of pupil voice.'
Children learn 6 major religions in R.E.: Christianity, Buddhism, Judaism, Sikhism and Hindusim. Our emphasis is always on giving the children a moral understanding and knowledge of religious beliefs and practices to enable them to become tolerant, caring members of society.
Our children say:
"RE is Amazing! I like learning about languages and R.E. so I can tell my family and we can learn about them more."
"RE helps me learn about what people believe in and why so I can understand them better."
"My mum and I told my class about my religion, and I learn to be empathetic of other religions."
"We ask, 'Why do you think they believe that?', 'What do you feel about that?' "
"RE helps people to understand others and be able to respect their beliefs."

Please click on the link below to see our R.E. syllabus:
Warwickshire-Agreed-Syllabus-for-Religious-Education-SACRE.pdf
Parents have a right to withdraw their child from all, or part of, R.E. lessons. If pupils are withdrawn from RE, schools have a duty to supervise them, though not to provide additional teaching or to incur extra cost. Pupils will usually remain on school premises where it is feasible and appropriate. A pupil may be required to work in another area of the school, such as library or ‘shared’ area. Where a request for withdrawal is made, school must comply and will excuse the pupil until the request is rescinded. Parents should contact the school office directly to arrange a discussion with the Associate or Executive Head Teacher should they wish to withdraw their child from the Religious Education curriculum.