Ethos/Spiritual Life
As a Catholic school, we recognise that God is at the heart of all that we do and that He is present in every person we meet. This is, therefore, the underlying reason why we have high aims and expectations in all that we do and why we treat everyone we meet with the respect they deserve. We encourage our pupils to be compassionate and think of others as well as themselves. With this in mind, we are actively involved with many charities and fund-raising projects throughout the year.
Our children are always keen to help the school’s New Hall Voluntary Service (NHVS). At Christmas, they help to entertain the elderly at the annual Christmas lunch by singing carols and playing their instruments; in the summer, they help with the annual Strawberry Tea.
We believe that children are innately spiritual and we want to nurture this natural gift. A small chapel lies a the heart of the Preparatory School and children are encouraged to visit to spend some time talking to God or simply to have some quiet, reflective time.
Prayer is an important part of school life. There are two prayer groups which run before school; one for our infants and one for our juniors. Each day begins with an assembly of some kind, be it a whole school, Key Stage or class gathering. There are prayers at certain key moments during the day, such as meal times or at the end of the day.
Collective worship is an important part of life here at New Hall. As well as assemblies, there are liturgies throughout the year such as our Harvest Festival, May Procession in honour of Our Lady and Advent services.
Foundation Stage and Key Stage 1 classes have special class liturgies and Key Stage 2 have Year Group Masses. On Holydays of Obligation and special feast days, Mass is celebrated in the School Hall. Parents are always welcome to attend any of these services.
