Welcome to our Networks, Events and Training Courses programme for the academic year 2024 – 2025. As you will see there is a wide range of support and training on offer, with a variety of courses, conferences and network meetings to support your work as Church of England schools in the Bristol Diocese. You are welcome to attend any sessions, though some will be particularly focused at particular groups, as stated in the session description. Click on the links below to book via Eventbrite.
As you know, being a CE school is something really special to hold on to. Your strong foundation influences all that happens in school and supports the growth of deep connections with your community. We love helping you to be the best school you can be, whether local authority, academy, or one of many partnered with us as a community school. Our courses and bespoke training are designed to have something for everyone wherever you are based and whether or not you are a ‘teacher’. I commend these opportunities to you for developing Christian character, RE, SIAMS, leadership, church-school-home partnership.
Whatever you need, we want you all to flourish so don’t hesitate to make contact.
Liz Townend Diocesan Director of Education
Read the latest newsletter from the Education team
Visit our Eventbrite page for all our training events
Find contact details for the Diocesan Education team here
Are you a new headteacher?
Meeting ID: 828 3285 7337 Passcode: 153998
- Thurs 18 September 2025 10.00 – 11.00am
- Thurs 4 December 2025 2.00 - 3.00pm
- Thurs 29 January 2026 10.00 -11.00am
- Thurs 19 March 2026 2.00 – 3.00pm
- Thurs 21 May 2026 10.00 – 11.00am
- Thurs 18 June 2026 2.00 – 3.00pm
6-8pm, free
Meeting ID: 828 3285 7337 Passcode: 153998
- Thurs 18 Sept 2025 1 – Intro to Church School Governance
- Thurs 13 Nov 2025 2 – Theologically rooted Christian Vision
- Thurs 15 Jan 2025 3 – Spirituality and Collective Worship
- Thurs 5 March 2025 – Intro to Church School Governance (repeat from 18 September)
- Thurs 19 March 2025 4 – Monitoring and Evaluating RE
- Thurs 14 May 2025 5 – Church School Partnership
Tues 23 September 2025 & Weds 20 May 2026, 9.30 - 3.30pm, Hillside House
£125 (£80 2nd delegate, 3rd free, with free lunch)
Thursday 16 October 2025, Kingfisher CE Academy, 4-6pm
£70 (£40 2nd delegate from the same school)
Book here for Understanding Christianity at Kingfisher Academy
Thursday 16 October 2025, Holy Trinity CE/Methodist Primary, 4-6pm
£70 (£40 2nd delegate from the same school)
Friday 21 Nov 2025
Holiday Inn, Filton
9.30 – 3.30pm
2 FREE places for all Church School in Diocese of Bristol
£70 for all other delegates
Mon 1 Dec 2025
Thurs 4 June 2026
Hillside House
• 9.30 – 12.30pm - Spirituality
• 1.15 – 3.45pm - Collective Worship
£125 per delegate FULL Day (£80 2nd delegate from the same school) with lunch
£95 per delegate HALF Day (£50 2nd delegate from the same school)
Weds 14 Jan 2026
9.30 – 3.30pm
Bristol Cathedral
FREE
Wednesday 9 July 2025, 2-4pm, online
£50 per delegate (2nd delegate £20)
For anyone who has been newly recruited to the role of RE Subject Leader or who would like to refresh their understanding of the role
To book a place click on the link below:
New to RE in Church Schools Tickets, Wed 9 Jul 2025 at 14:00 | Eventbrite
4.00 - 5.30pm FREE
• Thurs 15 Jan 2026 Hindu Dharmic Worldviews• Thurs 12 Feb 2026 Non-Religious Worldviews
• Thurs 26 Feb 2026 Jewish Worldviews
• Thurs 12 March 2026 Muslim Worldviews
Meeting ID: 828 3285 7337 Passcode: 153998
Fri 6 Feb 2026 Engineers House 9.30 - 3.30pm
SAVE THE DATE - MORE INFORMATION TO FOLLOW
Thurs 5 March 2026 9.30 – 3.30pm Kingfisher CE Academy £125 (£80 2nd delegate, 3rd free, with free lunch)
Tues 7 July 2026 1.00 – 4.00pm Hillside House £95 per delegate (£50 2nd delegate from the same school)
Tues 7 July 2026 1.00 – 4.00pm, Kingfisher CE Academy, £95 per delegate (£50 2nd delegate from the same school)
Prayer Spaces Christmas/Easter/Jesus in a box
New for 2024-25 - Training packages
Individual School Training - Diocesan Team
Our education adviser team are available for a wide variety of school based additional support and training. You may like to book a staff or governor training session, or an INSET session, on areas such as:
- RE
- Collective Worship
- Spiritual Development
- Church School Vision
- RSHE
- Understanding Christianity
Bespoke training on any area linked with Church School Christian Distinctiveness can be discussed. Please do contact Laura or Julia to arrange.
Training Charges
- Half day - £250
- Full day (up to 6 hours) - £360
- Twilight (up to 1.5 hours) - £150
Individual School Training & Experiences - Others
In addition to our Diocesan education team, we would like to recommend a selection of partnerships working across the area in various specialist areas.
Bristol Cathedral Education & Visits
The new education officer, Rebekah Guy, at Bristol Cathedral would love to hear from schools interested in visits to enhance their religious education curriculum, spiritual development and collective worship. The cathedral team offer a wide range of workshops and activities and can tailor sessions to link with the use of Understanding Christianity and the locally agreed syllabus for RE across the Bristol area.
In particular, KS1 teams may like to experience the new ‘Song Trail’ now being offered, where pupils can encounter the joy and spiritual experience of singing in different locations around the building, exploring different types of music and accompanied by the various amazing instruments the Cathedral has to offer.
Bristol Schools Connection
Bristol Schools Connection work across the Bristol region supporting local church and school to deepen their partnerships, so that together they can create space for spiritual development in schools. They would love to hear from any schools or parish partners who would like to deepen their partnership going forward. After an initial conversation, they can provide a twilight session for school and church partners to suit your context and aims.
Jane and Liz are also representatives of Prayer Spaces in Schools. They would be very happy to work alongside schools and their church partners to explore the spiritual development opportunities that can be offered through the use of the Prayer Spaces approach.
Kirsten Cunnigham and Claire Alsop (Horfield Primary School/Bristol Beacon)
Kirsten Cunningham is part-time Assistant Head Teacher and Music Co-ordinator at Horfield CEVC Primary School, leads training as a freelance music consultant for Bristol Beacon and works on other local and national music education projects. She conducts a school choir of 100 KS2 children and enjoys leading music as part of collective worship in school.
Claire Alsop is a Bristol based pianist, organist, composer and arranger. Claire is assistant organist at St Mary Redcliffe church, and as a freelance musician enjoys a range of music-making including teaching, accompanying and solo work. Claire is involved in a wide range of music education activities in Bristol and beyond, and currently supports Horfield CEVC Primary School as a pianist, performing arts lead and composer in residence.
Kirsten and Claire would love to offer support to any schools looking to improve their spiritual development through the use of music and song. Do contact them to discuss your needs.
Encounter Christianity
We provide free dynamic, interactive RE lessons and workshops based on Bristol’s Agreed Syllabus. We work with primary and secondary schools, providing high quality religious education in accordance with the ethos of the syllabus. We have 3 aims:
- to enrich local school pupils’ learning in RE and spirituality;
- to provide pupils with first-hand experiences of 21st century Christianity; and
- to build positive community relationships.
Visit Encounter Christianity here
Leadership Development
Note that ALL NPQs are currently offered with free course fees to ALL CE schools in the Diocese of Bristol.
This includes NPQs in Middle Leadership, Senior Leadership, Headship and Executive Leadership. The special CofE NPQ that gives a full NPQH and support for being a headteacher in a church school. As a leader of a Church of England school or somebody whose practice and leadership resonate with Christian values, we want you to experience life in all its fullness (John, 10:10) and enable your staff and children to do the same. See NPQs - Foundation For Educational Leadership (cefel.org.uk) for more details.
This is an outstanding offer and may not be repeated in future years so do contact your local provider as soon as possible.
Headship appointment
This is the most crucial appointment that any Governing Body will ever make so its important for governors to lead an excellent process and encourage a quality field to apply.
The Diocese supports with all headship appointments across the whole diocese in an advisory capacity, working closely with the school governors and local authority/ academy trust to help ensure the right process, provide sample templates and activities and ensure you appoint the best possible candidate.
A diocesan officer, usually the Director of Education, provides support at all stages and is a non voting advisory member of the appointment panel. Once the candidate is appointed, the diocese will continue to support through visits, induction activities and linking with the local church leadership if required.
Please contact the Diocese at liz.townend@bristoldiocese.org or 0117 906 0100 as soon as you know a change of headteacher is happening in order that the process can be rigorous, not rushed and dates for all parties are agreed well in advance.