What is Spiritual Development?

At Bollington Cross, we nurture the spirituality of everyone in the school community. Everyone has an inborn spirituality. It is the awareness of a relationship focused on understanding beliefs; finding meaning; connecting with a sense of the transcendent; relationships with the intangible part of ourselves, others, the world and with God (Hay and Nye, 2006). However, if spirituality is not nurtured, it can wither and like an unused muscle, ceases feel useful and we find 'another way' of doing things. We might even begin to feel as though we don't need it without truly knowing the riches and power of strong spirituality. It is like a bird – if held it too tightly it will choke, but if held too loosely it will fly away. Spirituality is not the same as religious faith but it is the bedrock on which faith is founded. Belief in God is not essential to spiritual development as instead, we would look towards contemplating the transcendent/ that beyond which reason and cognition allows us understanding. We like this video which explains spiritual development. For more information, please read or Spiritual Development Policy.

Provision for the spiritual development of pupils includes developing their:

• Ability to be reflective about their own beliefs (religious or otherwise) and perspective on life

• Knowledge of, and respect for, different people’s faiths, feelings and values

• Sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning about themselves, others and the world around them

• Use of imagination and creativity in their learning

• Willingness to reflect on their experiences

This is just one example of how children used windows, mirrors, and doors to reflect on Advent. However, this sort of reflection is sometimes done verbally (individually or collectively) or simply in moments of silents across the day.