The Blake C of E Primary School as part of their annual RE week invited me to come in and work with the local church to set up a prayer space for the school to use. The week was themed around Pentecost and therefore we themed some of the zones in the prayer space around the symbols of Pentecost, fire, water and wind. My favourite area was fire where we could talk about how The Holy Spirit brings fire, energy and passion to places and people all over our world. Young people could pray for people and places around them, by writing a prayer on the flame and putting it on the place or places they would like God’s spirit to help. By the end of the week the world map was ablaze with flames of fire representing where the children wanted God’s spirit to act in our world!

The prayer space was not only used by teachers and children but it was also open one day after school when many children returned with parents eager to show their mum and dad their prayers. During the week I saw adults moved to tears in this space. It was so humbling to see the impact of prayer on people.

Nick Jackson – a schools worker from Headington Baptist Church in Oxford, who led the prayer space for two days in the week, shares some of his thoughts:

‘Having taught for 15 years I stood in the prayer space surrounded by kids chatting to God and expressing their questions and worries in a wide range of creative ways.  It puzzled me why more of this didn’t happen in schools and why schools don’t more openly embrace the spiritual alongside emotional, personal and social elements of learning.

The small chapel was filled with colour and hands-on activities that supported the children to places of encounter.  From the kinaesthetic year ones with their big questions and the year 6 ‘cool’ and their raw and sometimes depthy challenges.  The prayer space for me was one of discovery, peace and journeys.

When the kids came in their was chatting and pointing.  Engaged from the start they set out to discover how the Holy Spirit is fire for their city and their world, of water, a place to get right and forgiveness and wind a place of prayers for change and breakthroughs.  The kids of Blake school brought their hopes and dreams to God and now wait for his response. Exciting times.

These kids opened my eyes to how a school environment can be filled with God’s presence, accepting and valuing all, yet allowing God’s involvement in all area of the kids’ lives.  When they came to the prayer space, they just opened up, chatted to God and stopped to take his presence in.  In church settings I’ve seen this, but class after class of children who know a place of God when they arrive is quite special.  So open, so secure and yet holding those challenges to God’.

A final word from the RE Coordinator ‘Having the Prayer Space with wonderful helpers from a number of different churches was incredible. Our Head teacher was amazed at the depth of the children's prayers, and as one teacher said 'It's helped the children to know that we can pray anytime, anywhere, and about anything'. Another teacher and her class were so keen they are going to create their own Prayer Space in their room. I certainly would like to encourage all our classes to do this. The Prayer Space helped us to feel so much more connected with God our Father, and permanent Prayer Spaces will help to remind us all of His constant presence.’

Posted by Catherine

Catherine Clayton lives and works in Oxford. She has spent six years working as a primary school teacher. During this time she was the RE Coordinator and the curriculum leader for the school. She enjoys skiing and playing tennis. Since September 2010 Catherine has been developing prayer spaces in primary and secondary schools around Oxfordshire