At the Spiritual Development in Schools, we are committed to forging dynamic collaborations with diverse organisations and institutions that champion education and spiritual growth. Our partnerships extend across governmental bodies, religious entities within the Church in Malta, and NGOs nationally and internationally. Through these collaborations, we aim to enrich the spiritual journeys of students, educators, and communities, fostering a holistic development that integrates both academic and spiritual dimensions. Together, we can cultivate environments where education and spirituality thrive hand in hand, contributing to a more compassionate and connected world.
ACTS
ACTS (Announcing Christ to Schools) has conducted various activities for Form 4 students for the past 22 years. Our aim was always to invite students to reconsider the relevance of the Christian faith in their lives. During the last few years, ACTS has developed a new seminar called TAKE ONE. If you want to give this opportunity to the Year 9 students, contact ACTS at [email protected]. Read more about this seminar here
Ekoskola
In recent years, EkoSkola has invited SDS to participate in the FEEfest by animating prayer spaces for students and educators from State, Church and Independent Schools. This is always an opportunity to help students integrate spiritual life and sustainable development in the spirit of Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si.
Foundation for Educational Services
Every year since 2015, the Prayer Spaces team within the Spiritual Development in Schools has organised prayer space sessions for the students attending Skolasajf in Malta and Gozo. The first prayer space session for Skolasajf was organised in the chapel of Għajn Riħana, which is close to San Pawl Milqi in Burmarrad.
ĠUPAZZI
Founded as a source of spiritual enrichment and education for young children, ĠUPAZZI is a committed religious voluntary group serving primary schools across Malta. With a mission to teach Christian values in a fun and engaging way, ĠUPAZZI has brought joy, learning, and spiritual growth to numerous schools through its unique events. Their dynamic animation team and lively puppets have been widely praised for their energy and enthusiasm. During the last years, SDS developed with ĠUPAZZI various sessions that were recorded and then shared in the schools. In 2023, ĠUPAZZI did a live show called ‘Il-Każ tal-Kejk Midgum‘, and hundreds of students participated.
 Lent sessions – Instruments of PeaceThese Lenten sessions, which are age-appropriate, will enable the students to discover how to become an instrument of Peace in their lives |
 ‘Il-Każ tal-Kejk Migdum’ – Event by ĠuPazzi |
 3 Sessions about Masters of Love and MercyThe themes of the 3 sessions inspired by the Good Samaritan parable are:
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Lifelong Catechesis
The Lifelong Catechesis is responsible for catechesis in the Archdiocese of Malta, and we worked with this team by training catechists about prayer spaces and contributing weekly to the Bekids.mt project.
Malta Catholic Youth Network
Malta Catholic Youth Network (MCYN) is the office dedicated to youth within the Archdiocese of Malta, which seeks to engage with young individuals and share its vision. Grounded in three core principles, the organisation focuses on connecting peers passionate about spreading the message of Jesus, fostering a community dedicated to positive peer influence, and being relevant witnesses to society. We collaborate with MCYN mainly by supporting together the chaplains in the post-secondary schools and sharing each other’s resources with students and educators who are also youth.
Ministry of Education
Our responsibility is the pastoral and spiritual care for State Schools. Over the years, we collaborated with the Ministry of Education by discussing new challenges and opportunities to provide better pastoral service to the schools. During the scholastic year 2023-24, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the Catholic Religious Education office, we started to animate the Living Love Joyfully Programme for year 6 students. In 2024-2025, SDS is offering the session also to year 8 students.
Missio
We promote the Missio Malta initiatives in state and independent schools, including animating prayer spaces in schools. In May 2024, SDS was invited to give a training session to the European delegates who came together in the Ceme in Bucharest, Romania.
Missio Malta is the official mission aid agency of the Catholic Church in the Maltese Islands, continuing the mission of Jesus Christ in the world. Missio works with missionaries and communities to support and give life and dignity and calls all people to faith, justice and love. Missio works with communities overseas to bring hope of the Gospel and spiritual and material needs to some of the world’s most inhospitable, poor and uncertain areas. Through other Pontifical Mission Societies, Missio Malta reaches out to over 160 countries and supports projects in 1100 dioceses on five continents.
National Literacy Agency
Since some years ago, we have been collaborating with the National Literacy Agency through the publication of the book Spazju għal Qalbi and various programmes like Soul Speak and Bil-Qari u l-Kitba insib Spazju għal Qalbi. Through an MOU, the National Literacy Agency also supports us when we animate various prayer spaces held in different schools and other places.
Pastoral Formation Institute
We are collaborating with the Pastoral Formation Institute through the Pastoral Care & Chaplaincy in Schools course and the Award in Creating and Animating Prayer Spaces. PFI provides other short and long courses that continue to upskill the SDS team members and the educators who participate. Read more about PFI here.
Relationships are Forever Foundation
Relationships are Forever Foundation is a non-profit organization in Malta founded by Julian and Joanna Sant Fournier, who have been active in the voluntary sector since 2002. The foundation promotes strong relationships as the key to a stable and resilient society. SDS, Julian, and Joanna developed the Journeying Together programme for students in years 7 and 8. In this programme, we used the Friendship Cards created by this foundation.
Secretariat for Catholic Education
The Secretariat for Catholic Education supports the Catholic Church Schools in Malta and Gozo. Church schools cater to about one-third of the student population and provide education at kindergarten, primary, secondary and sixth-form levels. SDS liaises with the Secretariat in various aspects, including training of chaplains and religious counsellors and special events for students. One of the most important events was the preparatory meeting for Pope Francis’s Apostolic visit to Malta in 2022 ‘Ilkoll Aħwa‘.
