Catholic Social Teaching (CST) is based on the belief that God has a plan for creation, he wanted to build his kingdom of peace, love and justice.

Whoever we are, God has a special plan for every single one of us. This isn’t just limited to times when we do religious or spiritual things, but instead involves every aspect of our lives, from the things we pray about, to how we live as responsible global citizens.

Our part in this story is a kind of vocation for the common good, a call to treat everyone as our brothers and sisters.  It is something that we all share.

The Catholic Church has seven principles of social teaching that we in St Ethelbert's share with our children through all we do, through the curriculum, special events, but more importantly, through our ordinary actions in school.

There are 7 principles of Catholic Social Teaching, we are called to uphold them:

• Human Dignity - everyone is special and should be treated equally
• Solidarity - showing we care by our words and actions
• Common Good - thinking of everyone, not just ourselves
• Option for the Poor - putting people in most need first
• Peace - we are called to be peacemakers
• Creation and Environment - caring for God's gifts
• Dignity of work and participation - everyone has the right to participate in work

Solidarity

Well done to all our children in Nursery, Reception Class, Year 1 and Year 2 for decorating some bunting and colouring in pictures for the patients at QEQM Hospital to cheer them up before and after having their surgery. The pictures were all for the Coronation of the King on 6th May. Well done children, we are very proud of you for cheering up all the patients and helping them to celebrate the Coronation in hospital!

Creation and Environment

Year 5 thought about 'Creation and Environment' and how everyone needs to look after our common home. The children entered a competition to design a poster to encourage people to put their rubbish in the bin. All of the Year 5 children in Thanet schools were invited to take part in this competition and we were so proud of Lexi-Louise for coming first! You can see Lexi-Louise's poster displayed in all McDonald car parks across Thanet. Well done Lexi-Louise!

Option for the Poor

During Harvest, we collected lots of food to give to The Salvation Army for families that are struggling to buy food. Year 6 decided they would like to see what happens once their donated food reaches The Salvation Army. They got in touch with Jacqueline from Ramsgate Salvation Army who invited Year 6 to join them for the morning.  They thought about how this links with Catholic Social Teaching 'Option for the Poor' and happily helped the volunteers at The Salvation Army packing boxes of essential food supplies for those who need it most. Well done Year 6!

Solidarity

As a school, we sent a letter to parents asking for donations to help the people of Ukraine in their time of need. The school was overwhelmed by the generosity and kindness of the St Ethelbert’s community and we managed to collect an amazing number of items.  These included warm clothing, blankets, toiletries, first aid items, nappies, wipes, sanitary products and much more.  There were also cards and messages of support from the families and children.  Pets were not forgotten either and there was food for cats and dogs!  We also had a large donation from our local Tesco Express and would like to thank the manager for their generosity.  All the items were loaded by our Year 6 children into Mr Marshall’s car and were then delivered to Quex Barn for transporting to Poland and Romania for distribution. Well done St Ethelbert's community for showing solidarity and also our school value of thoughtfulness.