Our Catholic Ethos

St Bede’s school is a loving faith community guided by our Mission Statement:

‘We aim to reflect true Christian values proclaimed in the Gospel, and seek to provide a caring community in which young people can grow as balanced individuals, spiritually, morally and intellectually and so participate fully in the real world’.

 

The spirit of the Gospel is at the heart of our faith, community and relationships. Our ethos reflects the values taught by Christ in the Gospels: love, dignity, peace, service, faith, truth, justice and stewardship. Our mission in education is a work of love, in which all our pupils can receive a broad and balanced Christian formation, so they can live a full and abundant life. (John 10:10)

Saint Paul, writing to Timothy, said, ‘Do not let anyone put you down because you are young. But be an example to others in your words, your actions, your love, your faith and your purity.’ (1 Timothy 4:12).

 

 

We recognise our duty and privilege in upholding the doctrines, traditions and practices of our faith and unite as a community in celebration of our distinct Catholic identity.  We provide a supportive and joyful education of the whole person, helping each of our pupils discern their own unique vocation. We foster a spirit of compassion and service, preparing our pupils to play an active role in the Church, becoming the living body of Christ through support of the most vulnerable and marginalised in our local and global community.

We affirm the value and dignity of each of our pupils and welcome those of other faith and traditions. We recognise that each member of our community is unique in his or her spiritual needs, faith development, interests and motivations. We are committed to ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to know, love and serve God in his or her own way. 

We would be happy to provide opportunities for any pupil of a different faith to fulfil personal acts of prayer and worship in school. Please contact hnewsham@stbedeslytham.lancs.sch.uk for further details.

The Gospel values that underpin our community help our pupils to fulfil our ‘Actions’ and ‘Character’, set out in our Bede's Wheel below:

 

Love and dignity (Be More – Be Faithful – Be Prayerful) –

Jesus taught that the two greatest commandments were to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and to love your neighbour as yourself. (Matthew 22:36)

Through daily acts of prayer and worship, we help pupils to know God more clearly and love Him more dearly. Pupils are encouraged to recognise the dignity and value in one another; this is evident in the quality of their relationships and joy in their friendships.

Compassion and service (Be inspired – Be Ambitious – Be Compassionate) –

Pupils are committed to serving the needs of our local and global community, particularly the vulnerable and marginalised. They recognise that Christ is in every person and live out the teaching of Jesus who said, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

We are constantly overwhelmed by the generosity of our pupils and their families. This year they have collected for Afghan and Ukrainian refugees, the Turkey and Syrian disaster fund and our local charities – Fylde Foodbank, Vincent House and Harbour House. Our Faith in Action Group, Mini Vinnies (SVP) and Chaplaincy Representatives have distinct leadership roles, working in collaboration with our local primary and secondary schools, parishes and global community to provide the best possible support for our brothers and sisters in need.

Our pupils are called to complete small acts of service, with a great love, such as handing out exercise books, opening the doors, helping each other in class and looking after one another. 

Forgiveness and peace (Be an example – Be Courageous – Be Resilient)

We also encourage all our pupils to recognise that God’s love for us is so great; He is waiting to forgive us. ‘We are all sinners, but God heals us with an abundance of grace and mercy.’ (Pope Francis)

As Jesus taught in the Bible, we must forgive ‘seventy times seven’ (Matthew 18:22), therefore we support our pupils in reconciling with one another and rebuilding their relationships based on respect and tolerance.  Our pastoral team helps pupils and families during challenging periods, providing opportunities and support to repair relationships.

Faith and Holiness – (Be Faithful – Be Prayerful – Be Creative)

We establish opportunities of prayer and worship to help our pupils develop their personal relationship with God. We meet our pupils where they are, on their journey of faith, as we recognise they each have unique spiritual needs. Our morning prayer helps pupils to reflect on the weekly Gospel, to hear God’s message, pray for their own needs, and intercede for our local and global community.

All pupils have the opportunity to celebrate their House Mass, retreat day Mass and voluntary Mass, with our Priest Chaplain Father John Millar. During Advent and Lent, pupils can receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation and each participate in a daily reflection task and termly liturgy. Our pupils particularly enjoy their retreat opportunities throughout the year, both in school and at our Diocesan Youth Centre, Castlerigg Manor.

 

Truth and Justice – (Be Ambitious – Be Faithful - Be Inspired)

In the Bible Jesus said, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’ (John 14:6) As a distinctly Catholic school, we provide a full and detailed education of our faith and traditions. We help pupils recognise the spiritual truths shared in the teachings of Christ to create a just and equal society. The Gospel values are proclaimed in every subject area; every teacher is committed to sharing the stories of the poor and marginalised to inspire our pupils to create a better world. 

 

Stewardship (Be Green – Be Creative – Be Enthusiastic) –

At St. Bede’s we recognise that everything in creation is a gift from God and we must be responsible guardians for all the earth. We respond to the call from Pope Francis in his Encyclical, Laudato Si, where he asks each of us to be protectors of creation and one another. In school, we continue to uphold our Reduce, Reuse and Recycle project, created by two of our Year 8 pupils to take greater responsibility for the waste in our school. Whilst our Green Group cares for our site, working with members of our local Parish to plant trees and upkeep the greenery around school.