The King’s School promotes the Christian gospel and expects all members of the School community to support the Christian ethos of the School. Religious instruction is integral to the education offering of the School.
These are the values we consider worthy of such a community:
We take responsibility for others and ourselves. Responsibility means recognising that we share our lives with others in a shared world.
Living and learning in community means taking responsibility for contributing positively and actively to our community and our world. Responsibility for our world means living sustainably. Responsibility is strongly aligned with compassion and integrity, for we reach out with compassion and demonstrate our integrity when we choose to take responsibility for ourselves and others.
We respect one another and ourselves. Respect involves valuing people and property so that neither is dishonoured. We respect other’s beliefs and points of view. We do not bully or impose our will on others, whether in thought, word or deed. We respect ourselves by adopting a lifestyle that is balanced and promotes wellbeing. Respect is strongly aligned with humility and honesty, for it is when we are committed to the truth and able to recognise we may be wrong, that we are able to show respect.
We are honest. Honesty means being trustworthy, sincere and authentic. We are true to ourselves and one another. We do not mislead or misrepresent each other. As members of our community, our trust for one another depends on our honesty. Honesty is strongly aligned with integrity and respect for it is our commitment to being honest with each other that enables us to be trustworthy and live with integrity and to show respect for one another.
We do not think more highly of ourselves than we ought. We are human and we share in the humanity of others. Being humble arises from our Christian belief that we are equal in the sight of God because we are all created in His image. Humility is strongly aligned with respect and compassion, for it is when we are humble that we are able to respect one another and are motivated to reach out to others with compassion. Being humble recognises that we are not always right, we get things wrong.
We live our lives with integrity. To demonstrate integrity means to live a life that is integrated and balanced, cohesive and coherent. As a community of integrity, we are unified and work together for the common good. We are trustworthy and reliable, we follow through with conviction and courage. Integrity is strongly aligned with responsibility and honesty, for when we are true to ourselves and one another and exercise responsibility, we demonstrate our integrity.
We live to serve one another. Having compassion means caring for others, being kind and gentle. Compassion is stronger than sympathy or empathy, it is much more active and intentional. In a Christian sense, it is going out of one’s way to help others, to be generous towards others, to care for others and stand up for others. Compassion is strongly aligned with humility and responsibility, for it is from an attitude of humility that we choose to take responsibility for others and reach out to them with compassion.
We strive to be excellent for others and ourselves. We do this in order to make an outstanding impact for the good of society. Striving for excellence means seeking to improve and better ourselves, to be always growing. Our striving for excellence is that we may be excellent for the sake of others. Excellence is strongly aligned with a life of compassion, humility, respect, honesty, integrity and responsibility, for it is when we commit ourselves to serve others that we strive to be excellent for others.
STRIVE FOR EXCELLENCE.
We celebrate with gratitude to God and each other. Gratitude is important in celebrating excellence in others, for keeping us humble and protects us from a spirit of complaint.
CELEBRATE WITH GRATITUDE.