Events – Calendar

This forum is for SBMs, SBLs and Bursars.

There will be an opportunity to discuss topical issues affecting school business management, as well as support by sharing best practice in school.

Each Forum will be followed by lunch.

Facilitator:  Bill McEntee

This training session is the minimum requirement for all newly appointed Foundation Governors to enable them to undertake their roles and responsibilities of governing a Catholic school effectively and appropriately.  It will explore what it means to be a Governor of a Catholic school and its distinctive nature.

Non-foundation governors are also encouraged to attend to support them in their role as a member of a Catholic school’s governing body.

Aims of the Training are to:

• provide Governors with a clear understanding of their role and responsibility
• develop Governors’ understanding of how to govern a Catholic school’
• support Governors’ knowledge and understanding of the legal differences of governing a Catholic school and a non-denominational school.

Guest Speakers:  

• Dr Carmody TS Grey
• Dr Karen Skinazi
• Dr Yafa Shanneik

This conference will focus on the role of women in religion and the approach of three different faith groups.  The conference is being organised with the help of Gavin D’Costa who is the Professor of Catholic Theology at the University of Bristol.  Gavin studied under the theologian, John Hick.  He was also Joseph McCarthy Professor at the Gregorian University, Rome.  He acts as an advisor to the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales and the Anglican Church on matters of interreligious dialogue and theology.  He also advised the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Vatican City.

The three faiths represented at our conference will be Catholicism, Judaism and Islam.  Our confirmed speaker for Catholicism will be Dr Carmody TS Grey, many of you will have read her work in the Tablet and she is Assistant Professor in Catholic Theology at Durham University.  Dr Yafa Shanneik is a lecturer of Islamic studies at Birmingham University and Dr Karen Skinazi is a senior lecturer at the University of Bristol.

Charge is £50 per school (for up to 8 students.  Subsequent pupils will be charged at £5 per head).

The Catholic Certificate in Religious Studies (CCRS) is managed and awarded by the Board of Religious Studies on behalf of the Bishops’ Conference.

It was introduced in 1991 to replace its predecessors, The Catholic Teachers’ Certificate and the Certificate in Religious Education. Any teacher who is, or who wishes to be involved in Catholic Education may apply for the course.

The certificate is normally acquired over two years with a maximum of five years’ study. The diocese will offer four modules a year on a two-year cycle. Each year will consist of three core modules and a specialist module. You may choose to do four modules per year to complete the course over two years or you may space it out over a longer period if you wish. Once you begin the first module you must complete within five years. This academic year will consist of eight days in total, four days in school time and four on a Saturday.

You must attend each module and successfully complete an assignment. In this year we will consider:

• The Old Testament
• New Testament
• The Person of Jesus
• Theology of Inclusion

The Catholic Certificate in Religious Studies (CCRS) is managed and awarded by the Board of Religious Studies on behalf of the Bishops’ Conference.

It was introduced in 1991 to replace its predecessors, The Catholic Teachers’ Certificate and the Certificate in Religious Education. Any teacher who is, or who wishes to be involved in Catholic Education may apply for the course.

The certificate is normally acquired over two years with a maximum of five years’ study. The diocese will offer four modules a year on a two-year cycle. Each year will consist of three core modules and a specialist module. You may choose to do four modules per year to complete the course over two years or you may space it out over a longer period if you wish. Once you begin the first module you must complete within five years. This academic year will consist of eight days in total, four days in school time and four on a Saturday.

You must attend each module and successfully complete an assignment. In this year we will consider:

• The Old Testament
• New Testament
• The Person of Jesus
• Theology of Inclusion

Day One of Three

This course is for those who have been teaching RE for 2 to 5 years, and primary RE Coordinators who have not yet completed this course.

Day One – Revelation – Teaching RE in a Catholic School 

Day Two – Celebration – Sacramental life and prayer in a Catholic School

Day Three – Life of Christ – The distinctive nature of the school

(the fourth theme of Church will span across all three days)

A programme designed to develop and support teachers in their theological and practical RE knowledge.  The course takes the four major documents of Vatican II, as outlined in the ‘Revised Curriculum Directory’ and considers their implication both for teaching and the life of the school.  It aims to be practical as well as enhance subject knowledge.  The course is suitable for primary staff and for secondary teachers, teaching in RE, who may not hold a formal qualification in RE or, who may wish to deepen their understanding of Catholic thought and theology.

For Clerks to Governors of Catholic Schools

This session is to support both new and experienced clerks in their role.

The training aims to:

• provide an understanding of the purpose of Catholic education;
• understand the role of the foundation governors;
• understand the legislation relating to managing a faith based school and support the clerking of a governing body of a Catholic school.

There is an expectation that all clerks will regularly undertake this training.

The focus of this day will be to discuss the implementation of both the new Curriculum Directory and the new Section 48 Framework.

We will also be considering an approach for those students for whom the GCSE is not appropriate as well as developments within general RE.

This is the only time this academic year that Secondary Heads of RE will be meeting as a separate group.

In the Autumn Term there will be a Day of Formation with primary colleagues led by Bishop Declan and in the Summer Term there will be the ‘CREDO’ day at Newman University.  The date for this will be confirmed in September, but is likely to be in the first week of July 2020.

Speaker:  Narayani Devi Dasi

This day will look to strengthen our work on other faiths and our focus on the day is Hinduism.  Narayani is a teacher and consultant for ISKCON Educational Services.

ISKCON Educational Services was set up to raise awareness about Hinduism and specialise in presentations that are highly interactive using a range of resources and artefacts.  This day will increase your knowledge about Hinduism and present you with a range of creative approaches to its delivery.

In the afternoon there will be time to look at work arising from the new outcomes in RE.

Lunch and refreshments will be provided.