The Catholic school loses its purpose without constant reference to the Gospel and a frequent encounter with Christ.

(The Catholic School, Sacred Congregation for Catholic Education, 1977, n55).

The Catholic Church, in various documents published over many years, has articulated its expectation that the Catholic school should be guided in all it does by a vision of life and a philosophy of education which is “attentive to the needs of today’s youth and illuminated by the Gospel message”. (The Religious Dimension of Education in a Catholic School, Congregation for Catholic  Education, 1988, n22)  In summary, a Catholic school is expected by the Church to be a community of faith and learning which helps young people to come to know Jesus Christ as the Son of God, to become familiar with His teaching and to use their own talents in order to give personal witness to Him in their daily lives.

To reflect the specific context of Catholic schools in Scotland, the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland has given particular expression to these expectations in the Charter for Catholic Schools in Scotland. It is expected that all Catholic schools will use the Charter as the key point of reference which underpins their approach to school evaluation and planning for improvement. The Catholic School: Developing in Faith is intended to help schools to do this.