St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Primary School
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At St Vincent de Paul Catholic Primary School, prayer and liturgy are at the heart of everything we do. They give us time to reflect, to celebrate our faith, and to encounter Jesus in a meaningful and personal way.

This year, as we continue to live out our mission to “Serve with Love and Strive for Excellence”, we have begun implementing the Prayer and Liturgy strand of the new Religious Education Directory (RED) — deepening our understanding of how we pray, why we worship, and how these experiences bring us closer to God and to one another.

✨ The New Prayer and Liturgy Launch ‘To Know You More Dearly’

The Prayer and Liturgy strand of RED builds on our strong tradition of collective worship and encourages everyone in our school family — children and adults — to take an active part in the Church’s prayer life.

This year, staff have received specialist training on the new curriculum, and we are already seeing how it inspires creativity, confidence, and a deeper awareness of the richness of Catholic worship. Children now understand more clearly the difference between prayer, which is a personal conversation with God, and liturgy, which is the public worship of the Church.

✨ How We Worship

Prayer and worship are woven into daily school life:

  • Every day begins and ends with prayer in classrooms.

  • Before lunch, each class pauses for lunchtime prayers, giving thanks for God’s blessings and for the food we are about to eat.

  • Monday’s Weekly Worship sets our focus and mission for the week.

  • Wednesday’s class based Collective Worship is led by staff and pupils, with focus prayer tables and candles reminding us that Christ is our guiding light.

  • Friday Celebration Worship honour children who have lived our mission through their actions.

  • Class and pupil-led liturgies enable our Year 5 & 6 children to plan and lead worship themselves.

  • Stillness, reflection and Eucharistic Adoration are offered regularly, helping children encounter Jesus in silence and prayer.

✨ Special Prayer and Worship Moments This Year

This year has been rich in prayer and liturgical life, with so many opportunities for our children to experience God’s presence:

  • Our year began with a reflective ‘Shine’ day, combining music and prayer to focus on our patron saint, St Vincent de Paul.

  • We celebrated the start of the liturgical year with Advent liturgies and a beautiful Nativity by KS1.

  • We have weaved into our year Eucharistic Adoration time both in church, school, and in our external visits, with Father Moses guiding children in prayer in the presence of Jesus.

  • Children received ashes on Ash Wednesday, marking the beginning of Lent with prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

  • Year 6 pupils explored prayer and liturgy in a special Pilgrimage Day, which included the Sacrament of Reconciliation, Eucharistic Adoration, and reflective creative activities.

  • The whole school gathered for a School Dedication Mass to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, renewing our commitment to live out Gospel values.

  • Collective worship and liturgies this year have reflected our Jubilee Year theme as Pilgrims of Hope, including creating our own ‘Doors of Hope’ on classroom doors — beautiful artistic expressions of faith and mission.

  • During Pentecost, worship reflected the gifts of the Holy Spirit and our mission to bring hope to others.

  • KS1 and KS2 choirs lifted their voices in prayerful singing during worship, supported by the Cathedral’s Singing Schools programme.

✨ Living Prayer Every Day

At St Vincent de Paul, prayer and liturgy are not just something we do, but who we are: a worshipping, prayerful community that strives to live the Gospel each day. Whether in stillness and silence, joyful song, reflective art, or planning and leading our own worship, we seek to glorify God and grow closer to Him.

We are extremely grateful to Father Moses, our parish, our staff and our families who support the children’s spiritual journey through prayer and worship — showing them that they are truly part of God’s family.

“Where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:20)