At St Elizabeth’s, Catholic Social Teaching is central to how we put our faith into action. Rooted in the Gospels, Catholic Social Teaching is a set of principles that guides us in building a more just, peaceful, and loving world. It teaches us that every person has inherent dignity, that we are called to look out for the vulnerable, and that we have a shared responsibility to care for one another and our common home. By putting these values into practice we teach our pupils to think about the needs of others, challenge injustice and take action to build a better world for the future.

How Catholic Social Teaching is taught

Children are introduced to the principles of Catholic Social Teaching in all classes using both CAFOD resources and ‘Rooted in Love’ resources. We use the following Catholic Social Teaching principles:

Catholic Social Teaching forms an integral part of the Religious Education curriculum.  In addition, we have a whole school Catholic Social Teaching focus each half-term where every class explores the same Catholic Social Teaching Principle at an age appropriate level. 

Catholic Social Teaching is used in many subjects, History, Geography and English - it is not taught just in RE.  Many of our assemblies feature Catholic Social Teaching where we discuss world events, the lives of inspirational people and how our faith challenges us to respond in a particular way.

Our charity work and action for justice

We were delighted to achieve the Oscar Romero Participator Award in March 2026 for our work in promoting Catholic Social Teaching in school. Below, you will see a selection of our charitable and Catholic Social Teaching activities.  

Each year we support the following charities: 

CAFOD

We raised funds for CAFOD in 2025/26 through our non-uniform days and collections after our Advent Service and KS1 Nativity.

Small Steps

We have a close relationship with Small Steps, a local Richmond charity that provides specialist developmental support for young children with physical disabilities.  Our Mini-Vinnies have organised ‘Wear Orange’ days and sponsored events to raise money for Small Steps.  A group of our Mini-Vinnies were excited to visit Small Steps to see their work in action.

Greville House Care Home

Our KS1 choir sings carols at Greville House each year bringing joy to the elderly residents with their singing.  Our children make Christmas cards for the care home residents each year.  

Macmillan Cake Sale

The Mini-Vinnies and the Pupil Chaplains organise a Macmillan Cake Sale each year, using their baking skills to raise money to support those living with cancer.

Other charities we support are:

Richmond Foodbank

St Vincent de Paul Society

Catholic Children's Society 

British Legion Poppy Appeal

Mary’s Meals

Challenging Social Injustice

At times throughout the year our children learn about issues of social injustice and they are prompted to take action by writing letters to raise awareness.

The Y5 children were delighted to receive a response from the Prime Minister to the letters that they sent regarding the plight of refugees.

Our Y6 pupils were invited to watch a debate in the House of Lords by Lord Hunt of King’s Heath.  This was in response to their letters asking for more action for climate change.