St Matthias feels very proud and blessed to have an active and supportive partnership with the local parish church, St Matthias, in Stoke Newington. Children attend a weekly service, led by Father David. These are also recorded and shared with the rest of the school so that everyone has the opportunity to take part in collective worship. Father David also makes time to visit and speak to the children, where possible. He has recently given us daily access to the church grounds – significantly increasing our outside play space.

Please visit the St Matthias Church website here, where you can learn about their mission to:

• Share the Gospel, worship and fellowship
• Involve people of all ages and backgrounds in the life of the church
• Provide a variety of opportunities for fellowship, prayer, spiritual development and growth within the Anglican Christian faith
• Support the needs of the wider community, nationally and internationally
• Strive to make ourselves aware of the needs within our parish boundaries and the needs of the external community

Information on the church’s safeguarding can also be found here.

In addition to this, prayers are shared daily within school, which gives children important time to reflect on values that are important to them. All key Christian celebrations and festivals, like Christmas, Easter and Harvest, have been held in the church, with parents and carers invited to attend. We hope to be able to do this again soon.

As a Church of England school, Christian teachings are also embedded throughout our curriculum and day-to-day activities are rooted in our Christian and Moral values. We know that our community shares our St Matthias values, particular the fundamental principle of our school, which is love. We want to teach our children to love others and to love themselves, as well as building an understanding of the beliefs and customs of other faiths. We believe it is important to foster sensitivity and understanding towards those whose religion and cultures are different from our own

Collective Worship

Collective Worship takes place every day at school. It is an opportunity for us to:

• Reflect on key aspects of our school vision.
• Learn and inspire one another in an inclusive and inviting space.
• Consider how we can make a positive contribution to our school community.
• Learn, celebrate and partake in some of the traditions of our church.
• Grow spiritually through experience of prayer, stillness, worship and reflection. 

Collective Worship Timetable

• Monday – Leadership
• Tuesday – In-class Worship
• Wednesday – Led by Father David in St Matthias CofE Church
• Thursday – Singing Assembly
• Friday – Celebration Assembly

We base our Collective Worship on the LDBS Cycle of Collective Worship .

Here is an example of an In-Class Collective Worship: Collective worship slides example.

We come together in St Matthias Church to worship as a school.

Collective Worship always ends in a prayer. This may be: our school prayer, the Lord’s Prayer or prayers that the children have written themselves.

St Matthias School Prayer