School celebrating after gold marks for religious education

St Albans C of E Academy in Wednesfield has been awarded a gold quality mark for the RE Quality Mark, becoming the first school in Wolverhampton and only the third in the West Midlands to achieve the gold quality mark.

Teacher Tanya Thorne said the school has found out on June 28 that it had achieved the mark and said it had come after a long application process.

She said: "We have to complete paperwork which had to be analysed, then they interviewed the children, myself and the headteacher, as well as scrutinising the books and looking at the children's work, so there was a lot to it.

"It's outstanding to win this award and to be the first in Wolverhampton to do so and it's a huge accolade for a Church of England school as it shows our curriculum is robust and the leadership is exemplary.

"The children are learning not just about RE, but are also learning other world views and our curriculum is up to date and current with issues locally, nationally and globally."

The feedback given by the assessors said: "St Alban's C of E Academy has a strong and highly committed RE lead that brings energy and excellent subject knowledge to her subject.

"Strategic plans ensure RE evolves in a carefully considered way.

"That staff are confident to teach and pupils thrive."

Ms Thorne said religious education was a core priority for the school, not just for Christianity, but for all religions, and spoke about the benefits for the school going forward.

She said: "Going forward, it will help our school to help other schools in the area and within our own group, as we're part of an academy trust.

"We can now help the local Lichfield Diocese and share good practice with other schools in local areas and the community in general."