Our vision
We aim for all members of our Christian community to flourish spiritually, academically and personally so that they can live life in all its fullness.
‘I have come in order that you might have life – life in all its fullness.’
(John 10:10)
How we realise our vision
At Ripley, we realise our vision through our Christian values of faith, hope, love and service. Our commitment to the Christian faith and these values helps create our harmonious, kind and considerate school.
‘And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.’
(1 Corinthians 13:13)
The Chaplaincy at Ripley offers distinctive support within our C of E Academy, aiming to uphold and develop our Christian ethos for loving God and loving one another. The Chaplain role seeks to support, encourage and provide opportunities for all to explore and understand more about faith in Jesus and what it means to “have life in all its fullness” with God. *
Our Chaplain, Michael, is there for students and staff and aims to:
- take a lead in the worshipping life of the school and support others who partner in this work,
- collaborate with others to develop the school’s Christian distinctiveness, and
- offer pastoral support as a friendly face available for all.
The Chaplaincy space, along with a more private chat room if necessary, provides a unique space in Ripley for taking a moment out and a safe place to talk, be listened to and supported. It is a place of friendship and refuge, where anyone can freely come and know they will be welcomed, valued and cared for.
Collective Worship
Through Collective Worship, we aim to invite, include and inspire all at Ripley to engage with the Christian faith and develop their understanding of God and the Bible. Michael aims to ensure worship content is relevant and applicable to life, giving opportunity for reflection and sometimes gentle invitational challenge too.
- Chapel Worship gathers a year group each morning throughout the week into the beautiful school Chapel. Themes covered recently have included: Identity, Trusting God, Hopes and Fears, Making a Difference, You are Chosen, the Greatest Life, encounters with Jesus, God’s grace, plus marking key events in the Christian calendar such as Advent, Christmas and Easter.
- Form Worship resources are provided weekly for use in form times to be led by tutors/pupils/students. Themes covered recently included: a “Fruits of the Spirit” series (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control), Lent, Pentecost and a “Love is…” series based on 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.
We are confident that these patterns of Chapel and Form Worship, along with daily prayers and sharing of the Grace at the end of the day, are establishing healthy rhythms of Collective Worship in the life of our school for the benefit of all our community and beyond.
Pastoral
Michael works closely with Progress Leaders/Tutors to support many pupils across school and is there to listen, chat, advise, support, signpost and informally mentor/counsel. He is another layer to our schools pastoral care and regularly has pupils seek him out for support.
Other Activities
Ripley’s Christian distinctiveness runs through our school’s culture and values, with a number of other areas we see this in action through the Chaplaincy, for example:
- Christian Unions (both main school and Sixth Form),
- Youth Alpha, an introductory course about the Christian faith (Year 8),
- Charity fundraising initiatives to work out values of love and service to others,
- PSHE Day inputs,
- Staff prayer times,
- Pupil prayer times,
- End of term services at different churches.