Across around 150 schools and nearly 900 acts of collective worship, one small bronze boat from Rome has quietly become the centrepiece of Project Touchline.

As a result, these themes now help shape the experience of Christian Collective Worship in Schools. They create spaces for reflection, prayer, stillness, and spiritual growth.

Furthermore, the boat has become a powerful visual reminder that faith is not simply taught as an idea. Instead, faith is experienced through community, relationships, worship, and shared journeys together.

The Meaning Behind the Boat

Within Project Touchline, the Christian boat symbol has become a powerful part of collective worship and prayer spaces in schools across England and Wales, and particularly in Christian Collective Worship in Schools.

In Scripture, boats are often places where ordinary people encounter the extraordinary presence of God:

• Noah and the ark
• Jesus calming the storm
• The disciples called from their nets
• Peter stepping out onto the water

Again and again, boats become places of trust, courage, calling, and transformation. Ordinary people discovering extraordinary faith.

The Three Candle Symbol

The three candles remind us of:

• Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• Faith, hope and love
• Listening, loving and learning

One school beautifully described it like this:

“The boat embodies the entire journey of faith — facing challenges, relying on Jesus for guidance, finding purpose, and collectively moving toward spiritual growth and communion with God.”

A Symbol Shared by Schools

What has been especially moving is seeing schools create their own boats for prayer clubs and worship spaces.

These simple symbols represent communities travelling together with Christ at the centre.

Furthermore, Christian Collective Worship in Schools has often been strengthened through sharing these symbols together.

As a result, many schools now use the boat during collective worship and lunchtime prayer clubs.

Schools also place the boat within classroom reflection spaces and quiet areas for stillness and prayer.

In addition, teachers often describe how the symbol creates calm and encourages deeper listening together.

Many staff also say it helps children feel part of something bigger than themselves.

In a noisy and fragmented world, children often respond deeply to symbols that quietly communicate:

You are safe
You belong
You are not alone
God is with us in the boat

Consequently, this simple image continues to speak powerfully in schools across England and Wales.

It helps children experience Christian faith as something lived, embodied, shared, and remembered together.

This is especially true through Christian Collective Worship in Schools.