Catholic Social Teaching

Catholic Social Teaching (CST) is rooted in scripture, formed by the wisdom of Church leaders. It is our moral compass, guiding us on how to live out our faith in the world.  Our faith calls us to love God and to love our neighbours in every situation. Following in the footsteps of Christ, we ensure love, peace and dignity for all persons. 

Love and Dignity of the Human Person:

The Barlow is a diverse and inclusive community that has a clear and articulated moral purpose, which is strongly linked to our mission statement: ‘Everyone should know that we are followers of God by what we do, not just by what we say’.

Call to Family, Community and Participation: 

We come together as Year Groups and as Family Groups on a weekly and daily basis.  in these groups we participate in a variety of forms of collective worship, prayer and liturgy.  Our staff and pupils regularly and actively participate in all forms of worship and devotion. 

Rights and Responsibilities:

Pupil leadership is something that we believe is very important at The Barlow.  We believe that our young people can have a profound impact on our school, parish and local community and provide opportunities that that will lead them to be successful both inside and outside the classroom. Pupils have a variety of groups that they can join to demonstrate their leadership such as the School Council, Digital Leaders, Eco-Warriors, Collective Worship Leaders, Caritas Ambassadors, Antibullying Ambassadors and our Diversity Council.

Option for the Poor and Vulnerable: 

There are multiple opportunities for pupils in all year groups to demonstrate their faith through charity work.  Pupils take a leading role in responding to the demands of Catholic Social Teaching and are proactive in finding ways of responding, locally, nationally and globally to support the poor and vulnerable. 

The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers:

Through our vocation, we are able to demonstrate our God given gifts and talents, building a better world for all. For this reason, all staff take pride in their work, and it is done to the best of their ability. At The Barlow, all staff are equally valued, and their contribution to our school is celebrated. 

Solidarity: 

Our Mission unites us all as a community. We recognise that parents are the primary educators of their children and we create a positive relationship with all our families to ensure the best possible education for all our pupils. We have a number of strong working partnerships with our feeder primary schools, local organisations, St Catherine’s, Didsbury parish, and the Salford Diocese. We also form part of the MANCEP alliance. 

Care for God’s Creation: 

We are committed to living out and demonstrating Pope Francis’ call to ‘Care for our Common Home’. As a school, we are committed to ensuring that we are sustainable and responsible, with the hope of reducing our carbon footprint.  Our School Council leads an environmental project, each with an aim to actively reduce the negative impact we are having on our God-given world. Their inspiration being Pope Francis’ Encyclical letters, Laudato Si part 1 and 2.