At St. Dunstan’s, educating our children to be good people, is our highest priority so they have a strong sense of moral purpose and a commitment to use their gifts and talents to create peace in our world and to act compassionately to those in need.

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Simply, we aim to educate our children to be good people and to prepare them to help make the world a better place.

Catholic Social Teaching is rooted in scripture, letters written by popes and the examples set by Christians throughout history.  It is founded on the belief that God has a plan for creation: a plan to build His kingdom of peace, love and justice here on earth. 

The Catholic Church teaches seven principles of social teaching, which we share with our children through everything we do. These principles are woven throughout our curriculum, our activities and our decision making. 

Our St Dunstan’s Curriculum has been designed around our six key drivers, bringing our mission and our Catholic faith into action.  Ultimately, across the curriculum, we teach the children that they are called by the Gospel to be good people and to do good deeds.

Catholic Social Teaching underpins the very essence of our daily school life and informs how we learn, act and live together as a Christian community.

Serving our Community

Pupils at St Dunstan’s understand the importance of serving others. Whether through children supporting younger children or by taking on responsibilities within the classroom, all children recognise that, as members of a Christian community, we are called to give generously to others.

We talk with children about what it means to be of service and explore the many ways they can serve those around them.  Our school culture encourages children to give generously of their time and effort, whether through supporting charity, serving others within school or contributing to the wider community.

(See our Pupil Leadership and Service page)

Environmental Responsibility

In his encyclical Laudato Si’, Pope Francis asked every person to protect our common home- God’s world, His beautiful gift to us.  He reminds us that climate change is one of the greatest challenges we face today and he calls us to put love for the world and for our neighbours into action by living in harmony and caring for creation.

In recognition of our whole-school response to the call of Laudato Si’, we were awarded the Live Simply Award in 2021.

Our Eco-Committee is passionate about caring for God’s world. They devise initiatives to raise awareness and encourage the whole school community to take action and make a positive difference. (See our Eco-committee page)

Charity and Fundraising

We recognise the importance of responding to Jesus’ call to live our lives with a commitment to the common good. Through acts of charity, children develop an understanding of the responsibility we all share to show solidarity with every member of God’s family.

Our commitment to supporting those less fortunate than ourselves leads us to work with and support local, national and international charities throughout the academic year, helping those in need in practical and meaningful ways. (See our Charity page)

Equality and Diversity.

We aim to create equal opportunities for all our pupils and encourage them to show the same respect and consideration within the wider community.

In his encyclical ‘Fratelli Tutti’ (“All brothers and sisters”), Pope Francis calls us all to play our part in building peace, becoming a neighbours to one another, welcoming migrants and resisting racism, prejudice and discrimination.

We believe that every human person is made in the image and likeness of God. This is a gift shared by all people. God is present in every individual, regardless of religion, culture, nationality, orientation or economic standing. Each person is unique and beautiful, and we are called to treat every person, and all of creation, with loving respect.

We are called to treat every person and every creature with loving respect.

Catholic Social Teaching at St Dunstan’s

At St Dunstan’s we use CAFOD resources to support the children’s understanding of Catholic Social Teaching.  We focus our on the following key principles:

• Preserving the dignity of all human beings (Human Dignity)
• Caring for creation (Stewardship)
• Reaching out to our sisters and brothers in need (The Common Good and Solidarity)

These principles are explored across the year:

• Autumn Term: Everyone is special (Human Dignity)
• Spring Term: We think of everyone (The Common Good)
• Summer Term: We care for God’s gifts (Stewardship) and show we care (Solidarity)

By caring for others and for the world around us, speaking out for justice and putting Catholic Social Teaching into action we help to make the world a better place.