KEY IMPLICATIONS* In order to live out its distinctiveness, the Catholic school will: 1. review its Mission Statement on a regular basis ensuring governors, staff, pupils and parents contribute to its development and its implementation in the daily life of the school; 2. develop ways to ensure parents and carers are valued and engaged as partners in the education of their children; 3. actively engage with the Diocesan Education Service to deepen the school’s understanding and experience of its ecclesial character; 4. regularly review the extent to which the Catholic philosophy of education influences all aspects of the school’s mission and ministry; 5. work together with parishes and clergy to provide liturgical experiences for pupils as well as enabling them to identify with, and contribute to, parish life; 6. through its policies and procedures, demonstrate its commitment to charitable outreach, social justice and its contribution to community cohesion; 7. ensure that its policies comply with Diocesan directives, policy and the spirit of its guidance.
End Notes 3
Pastoral Letter on Catholic Schools. (Bishops’ Conference 2007) ecclesial: of the congregation/body/community of believers of the Church; pertaining to or of the Church. 5 common good: the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either in groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfilment more fully and more easily. 6 The Catholic School on the Threshold of the Third Millennium. (Congregation for Catholic Education 1997) 7 The Common Good in Education. (Catholic Education Service [CES]1997) 8 Christ at the Centre. (M. Stock, Archdiocese of Birmingham 2005) 9 The Catholic School on the Threshold of the Third Millennium. 10 In communion: An expression of our identity as Catholics in relationship with the Bishop, the local and universal Church. 11 Canon Law. 12 Christ at the Centre. 13 Education Officers ,Advisers and Inspectors: Diocesan officers with responsibility for informing and supporting the Bishop’s vision for Catholic education. 14,15 The Common Good in Education. (CES 1997) 4
*Throughout the document Key Implications identity only some of the significant issues and questions arising from the text.
Their identity and their purpose
11