The biggest impact this process has had on our school so far has been the discussions within governing body meetings and the consultation and adoption of the new Catholic Strategic Plan for our school. This plan was drafted with input from teachers, teaching assistants and governors and it raised awareness across all adults who work within our school of the Catholic Social Teaching we already do, as well as leading to considerations of areas where we could do more.

I have been involved in this project to develop the Oscar Romero Award from the outset and it has been very exciting to see it grow and spread through a number of dioceses.

As a validator it is my role to look at each application and assess it against the descriptors. For the Participator Award this is all done on line however for the Developer and Innovator Level the role involves, not only doing the on line assessment, but following this up with a visit to the school to meet Governors, Staff and Pupils. The role is not one of inspection rather it is a validation of what the school/college is doing in their efforts to promote Catholic Social Teaching.

It is truly inspiring and humbling to read about the diverse ways in which CST is promoted, encouraged and developed across the three strands of the Award. In particular the most enjoyable task for me has been to visit schools/colleges who have reached the Developer Level. The passion with which Governors, Staff and Pupils speak and demonstrate their determination to promote CST and the range of initiatives in which schools are engaged is a joy to see and something to be celebrated through the achievement of the Oscar Romero Award.

Participating in the Oscar Romero Award helped to raise the profile of CST so that it is now an explicit part of our identity at Bishop Challoner. Receiving the participator level helped to energise the passions of our students, who are eager to continue making our world a fairer place for all. Our challenge for the future is to ensure that the good work happening in the school is being extended extensively to the wider community, alleviating poverty, promoting justice and fairness for all. The aim would be for students to lead these initiatives so they can take ownership over these good causes. Applying for this level has helped us to remain focused on the ‘Big picture’, that we need to be following Jesus’ example of mercy, love and respect for others. It has helped us identify where CST is prevalent and strive to further develop the areas where it is lacking, by assessing ourselves against the three strands of the Oscar Romero Award, curriculum, practical and strategic. Our ultimate goal is for Oscar Romero’s message of hope to resonate throughout each school day, ‘Let us not tire of preaching love, it is the force that will overcome the world’