CES News (156)
Catholic Church releases free resources for Catholic schools on the Living Wage
Press Release – 15 October 2013
The Catholic Education Service and Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales have produced a series of theological and practical resources for schools that are interested in discovering more about the Living Wage campaign.
The focus on the Living Wage stems from last November's Catholic Bishops' Conference Plenary meeting in Leeds during which the Bishops passed a resolution endorsing the principles of the Living Wage and encouraging Catholic organisations and charities in England and Wales to work towards its implementation.
Bishop Malcolm McMahon, Chairman of the Catholic Education Service, said "A Living Wage is essential in the promotion of family life in our society. It ensures that the worker has enough money to cover the basic living costs for both themselves and their family. Catholic organisations have the responsibility to promote human flourishing through the dignity of work and the Living Wage plays an important part in this. I congratulate those Catholic schools, charities and universities who are already Living Wage employers and thank them for the great example they set us in their work for the Common Good."
The collection of online resources includes a series of videos of guest speakers looking at the view of Catholic Social Teaching and the Living Wage, downloadable copies of the Papal encyclicals which focus on the Living Wage, a downloadable HR and implementation guide for schools and colleges who are considering becoming a Living Wage employer, and a short film produced by the students of St Charles Catholic Sixth Form College, London on the Living Wage. The resources are available on the Catholic Education Service and Catholic Bishops' Conference websites.
Notes for Editors
1. The Catholic Education Service (CES) is an agency of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW).
2. The Living Wage is an independently calculated hourly wage rate designed to pay employees enough to cover their basic living needs (eg. cost of food, housing and basic needs). For more information please see The Living Wage Foundation website (www.livingwage.org.uk/)
3. Resolution from the Catholic Bishops' Conference Plenary Meeting in November 2012 in Leeds:
The Bishops' Conference recognises that fair wages are essential to the common good of our society. In accordance with Catholic social teaching, and as part of its mission to support the poor and vulnerable, the Bishops' Conference fully endorses the principle of the Living Wage and encourages Catholic organisations and charities in England and Wales to work towards its implementation.
4. The resources can be found online www.cbcew.org.uk/living-wage & www.catholiceducation.org.uk/campaigns/living-wage
Catholic Church welcome Prime Minister’s announcement on Online Safety for Children
Press Statement – 23 July 2013
“As the agencies of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales concerned with the education and welfare of children, we welcome yesterday’s announcements on increased online protection for children.
“We welcome the proposals to filters potentially harmful content unless an adult ‘opts-in’ following age verification and the steps further taken to make public Wi-Fi’s safer for children; namely the participation of the six companies which provide 90% of public Wi-Fi’s to introduce family friendly filters and adopt a ‘Family Friendly Wi-Fi’ symbol.
“We feel these are important steps in assisting parents to keep their children safe online, which should be complimented with education on online safety.
“At this point it is important to recognise that inappropriate online content is not solely limited to pornography. Websites containing extreme violence or promoting self-harm, suicide and eating disorders also present great risk to children. Governmental figures show that 13,231 childhood admissions to hospital last year with the primary diagnoses of deliberate self- harm and 1,141 childhood admission to hospital with the primary diagnosis of an eating disorder.
“We hope these safeguards will work to ensure that children are protected from the dangers posed to their development, mental health, relationships and self-esteem from harmful and explicit online material.
“The Catholic Education Service and CSAN (Caritas Social Action Network) have been campaigning for greater online safety for children and we welcome these steps from the Government to increase protections for children.”
Ends
The Catholic Education Service (CES) is an agency of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW).
CSAN (Caritas Social Action Network) is the social action arm of the Church in England and Wales. CSAN comprises 41 member charities who work with prisoners, homeless people, refugees, travellers, victims of trafficking and domestic abuse as well as with children living in poverty.
Providing protection for our children online
The internet can provide us with a vast world of knowledge, education and entertainment but, like most things, it comes with its risks. Children can often be exposed online to harmful content, such as sexually explicit or violent images. While it is the responsibility of the parents to protect their children online, it can be a complex task, which is why the government are putting measures in place to support parents in the protection of their children.
In recent months Catholic organisations such as the Catholic Education Service and CSAN have been supporting the government’s focus on online safety. There has been a conscious effort made to improve the online safeguarding of children and young people through putting in place measures such as a block on pornography through public Wi-Fi as well as the appointment of Claire Perry MP as the Online Safety Advisor. Whilst the Catholic Church greatly welcomes these changes we feel that there is more to be done to protect the wellbeing of our children and young people.
Exposing children to harmful or explicit content can potentially damage their ability to build relationships and can create mental health issues, as well as having an impact upon the child’s emotional state and wellbeing. Recent research by the Children’s Commissioner has shown that a significant number of children and young people are exposed to unwanted sexual content online despite the efforts taken to increase internet safety.
In light of this, many Catholic organisations and agencies are showing their support for the Online Safety Bill sponsored by Baroness Howe of Idlicote. The bill proposes an ‘Opt-in’ system which will require internet providers to provide a service which automatically excludes adult content, but will provide access to such content to adults who want it and can provide notification and proof of age.
We sincerely hope that the government will offer its support to this bill and the actions it proposes.
Catholic agencies call for greater online protection for children
Press Statement – 18 June 2013
The Catholic Education Service and CSAN (Caritas Social Action Network) welcome the government’s focus on protecting children from harmful and explicit online content.
Today’s meeting at Downing Street chaired by Culture Sectary, Maria Miller provides an opportunity for the government to consider the impact that pornographic, violent or other harmful online content has on children’s’ development, mental health, relationships and self-esteem.
As the Catholic agencies with responsibility for education and welfare we hope that both the Government and internet service providers will take steps to allow children to explore the online world without fear of accessing adult or inappropriate content.
Detailed research by the Children’s Commissioner shows that significant numbers of children are still exposed to pornography, despite efforts to increase online safety, through the removal of adult content on public Wi-Fi and the appointment of Claire Perry MP as the Online Safety Advisor.
Parents have a duty to educate their children about online safety. However, it is important to provide them with necessary support to help them in this role. We support Baroness Howe of Idlicote’s Online Safety Bill as a means of providing this protection. The Bill proposes that Internet Service Providers and Mobile Phone Operators provide an opt-in service for adult content and we hope the government will offer support to the Bill and its proposals.
Ends
The Catholic Education Service (CES) is an agency of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW).
CSAN (Caritas Social Action Network) is the social action arm of the Church in England and Wales. CSAN comprises 41 member charities who work with prisoners, homeless people, refugees, travellers, victims of trafficking and domestic abuse as well as with children living in poverty.
Note to editors
Online Safety Bill, sponsored by Baroness Howe of Idlicote, makes provision for the promotion of online safety; to require internet service providers and mobile phone operators to provide a service that excludes pornographic images; and to require electronic device manufacturers to provide a means of filtering content. The Bill has completed second reading and it Committee stage.
The Children’s Commissioner for England - “Basically... porn is everywhere” A Rapid Evidence Assessment on the Effects that Access and Exposure to Pornography has on Children and Young People – highlights children’s exposure and access to pornography and makes a series of recommendations to the government.
New study of Primary RE initial teacher education
The Cathedrals Group
20 May 2013
A new study of the implications for RE of the ongoing changes to Initial Teacher Education and follow up concerns about the state of Primary provision in RE is underway by Janet Orchard and Lesley Prior. This follows Janet's previous work on secondary RE teacher education. Find out more about the study and how you can be involved in it by downloading background information here.
Major study of Secondary RE ITT published
News from The Cathedrals Group
At the Group's 2012 AGM, Janet Orchard gave a presentation on work she and Hugo Whately were conducting, funded by the Culhan St Gabriel's Trust, into initial teacher training for secondary RE teachers. This study has now been completed. It criticises reductions in the numbers of specialist RE teachers trained each year and calls for a richer professional formation that equips teachers to handle moral and ethical judgements in the classroom and enables pupils to understand the significance of religion in the modern world together with the beliefs and values that shape it.
Kolbe's Gift
In 1941, Polish priest Maximilian Kolbe entered the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz.
A gifted man, Kolbe was the founder of monasteries in Poland and Japan, produced a monthly magazine with a circulation of over one million, and formed an international movement to help bring people to the Catholic faith. Then, a chance encounter with an ordinary soldier, Franek Gajowniczec, led Kolbe to an extraordinary act – walking away from all that he had and could have achieved.
David Gooderson’s powerful play tells the true story of these two men. One became feted across the globe. The other faded into obscurity. This is their story.
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“Kolbe’s Gift” will be a fully-staged by Ten Ten Theatre, including a cast of seven professional actors and a full professional creative team.
The Leicester Square Theatre is a 400-seat theatre in the heart of Central London staging an eclectic range of music, comedy and theatre.
Notre Dame de France Church which sits directly above the theatre, will host a range of related events including a photographic exhibition, a post-show talk and education workshops.
Ten Ten will run Education Workshops free of charge for secondary school students. These workshops will enrich the experience of watching the play for your students.
See the flyer below for more information.
Future Leaders - further extension of applications and now also in the North West
Future Leaders is a fully funded leadership development programme for senior leaders working in challenging schools. Participants are committed to closing the achievement gap through the belief that every child can achieve. In 2006, we launched our flagship leadership development programme in challenging secondary schools in London. Since then we have expanded the programme to include six regions and we now have more than 300 Future Leaders working in over 200 schools across England.
We realise that the attainment gap starts early and that this issue needs to be addressed at the beginning of a child’s education. With this in mind we have extended our flagship programme to include 25 primary participants from challenging schools in London and the North West to join Future Leaders Cohort ’13.
The Future Leaders programme is for current, qualified teachers, who have the talent and commitment to become headteachers of challenging primary schools within two years. Successful applicants to the programme, which is delivered at no cost to the school or the participant, receive 17 days of residential facilitated training, bespoke career support as they progress to headship, on-going coaching from an experienced headteacher, regular training opportunities, an online social network providing tailored support and best practice and visits to exemplary schools across England. This programme gives participants the skills and resources to lead schools that improve the life chances of children from disadvantaged backgrounds.
We are looking for schools to nominate staff and to pass on this information to your senior leadership teams for the opportunity to take part in this fully funded programme, where the participant will remain in your school. For more information, please see the attached brochures and our website – www.future-leaders.org.uk. The application window is open until Monday 22nd April. To apply, or if you have any questions about the programme, please contact us on 0800 009 4142 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Future Leaders are holding two information sessions as follows:
North West Thursday 18th April 5.30-7pm
Blessed Thomas Holford Catholic College, Urban Road, Altrincham, Cheshire WA15 8HT
London Tuesday 16th April 6-7.30pm
Surrey Square Primary School, London, SE17 2JY
For anyone interested in hearing more, please RSVP by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by calling 0800 009 4142
Newman University hosts 25th anniversary Cathedrals Group Choirs Festival
19 March 2013
The Cathedrals Group* 2013 Conference and Choirs Festival was hosted in Birmingham by Newman University.
The highlight of the 2013 Choirs Festival was a performance of the ‘German Requiem’ by Brahms, sung by a massed choir of 350 singers drawn from eleven Cathedrals Group universities. Conducted by Derek Wroughton, Choir Director at Newman University, and accompanied by the Birmingham Chamber Orchestra, the professional soloists were Mark Saberton (Baritone) and Caroline Lester (soprano).
The Choirs Festival, held in Birmingham Symphony Hall on Saturday 9 March, also featured a variety of choral pieces performed by the individual choirs. Distinguished guests included James Macmillan CBE, the celebrated composer and conductor who is an honorary graduate of Newman University, and The Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Catholic Archbishop of Birmingham, who studied at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. Photos of the Choirs Festival will be available shortly in the Feature Gallery of The Cathedrals Group website*.
This year’s residential conference for the Vice Chancellors and Principals of the 15 member institutions of The Cathedrals Group, focused on plans for collaborative projects and activities and how recent changes to the system of higher education created challenges and opportunities for member institutions, their staff and students. External speakers included Steve Egan, Deputy Chief Executive of the Higher Education Funding Council for England;
Dr Graeme Atherton, Head of AccessHE and Director of the National Education Opportunities Network; Revd Janina Ainsworth, Chief Education Officer for The Church of England; and Revd Stan Brown, Chaplaincy Officer – Education for The Methodist Church.
Professor Joy Carter, Chair of The Cathedrals Group and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Winchester said: ‘The Choirs Festival has a long history. Professor Grenville Hancox MBE founded this event 25 years ago. In 1988 he came up with the inspirational idea to bring together the choirs from the different institutions to meet each other and share their love of choral music. Since that time the festival has been held in venues around the country and we are delighted to be in Birmingham this year for a very entertaining and inspiring evening.
‘The Cathedrals Group is a group of 15 universities who all share a strong commitment to values. The values of social justice, respect for the individual and promoting the public good. These values are embedded in our histories as Church Foundation institutions. But they are also part of our futures, as we equip new generations of public servants and responsible global citizens. At our conference today we agreed our strategic plan and we look forward to further developing and promoting higher education rooted in our values.’
Catholic teacher interested in becoming a voice of the Church?
Catholic Voices 2013 Speakers' Training Programme
Applications are now open for North West England Speakers' Training programme which will run from September to December 2013.
Interviews will be on 26th and 27th April in Manchester, and 29th April in London.
The three residential weekends, each lasting from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon, will be: 20-22 September, 18-20 October, and 15-17 November.
For more information about Catholic Voices, their mission and the Speakers' Training Programme please see the Catholic Voices website.
Invitation to the North West England Speakers' Training Programme
Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for an application form and further information
The deadline for applications is 28th March 2013