British Values

Promoting British Values at Winchelsea School

Winchelsea is a safe, welcoming and nurturing school where pupils, families and staff are included and valued equally. Together we provide opportunities for every child within school and in the wider community to grow in confidence and develop a love of learning. Every child is encouraged and challenged to become as independent as they can be to prepare for life beyond Winchelsea School.

The DfE have recently reinforced the need “to create and enforce a clear and rigorous expectation on all schools to promote the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.”

The Government set out its definition of British values in the 2011 Prevent Strategy: these values have been reiterated by the Government in recent times. At Winchelsea School these values are reinforced regularly and in the following ways:

Democracy

Democracy is embedded at our school. Pupils are always listened to by adults and are taught to listen carefully.

Pupils have the opportunity to have their voices heard through:

  • School and Sports Council – members are voted into office by their class peers.
  • We take part in the voting of Youth Parliament.
  • Pupil questionnaires on aspects of school life.
  • Pupil voice reports for Annual Reviews.
  • Active involvement in the selection processes of new staff.
  • Influence over the reward system that underpins the school behaviour management policy.
The Rule of Law
The importance of laws/rules, whether they be those that govern the class, the school, or the country, are consistently reinforced throughout the school day. They are promoted in all classes through our Helpful Choices, Rights Respecting Class Charters and through school assemblies. We use the Behaviour Policy when dealing with incidents that fall short of expectation. The school places a great deal of emphasis on restorative justice when incidents between two people occur. Pupils are taught the value and reasons behind laws/rules in the way they govern and protect us and the consequences when laws are broken. Visits from authorities such as the Police and the Fire Service help us to reinforce this message.
Individual Liberty
Within school pupils are actively encouraged to make choices as independently as they can, knowing that they are in a safe and supportive environment. As a school we educate and provide boundaries for pupils to make choices safely, through our provision of a safe environment and an empowering curriculum. Pupils are encouraged to know, understand and exercise their rights and personal freedoms, and are advised and guided how to exercise these safely within the curriculum through our E-Safety and PSHE lessons. These values are reinforced at Play times with staff supporting Play.
Mutual Respect
Much of our school ethos is focused around respect for each other. Many of our policies and practices promote core values such as respect. Where possible, pupils take part in class discussions and all pupils take part in assemblies related to what this means and how it is shown. An integral part of our curriculum learning is that pupils engage with their local community through a variety of visits and where possible we have visitors to the school to enhance curriculum learning. This provides further opportunities to respect those that they come into contact with and understand the different people in their local community.
Tolerance of Those of Different Faiths and Beliefs
This is achieved through enhancing pupils understanding of their place in a culturally diverse society and by giving them as many opportunities as we can to experience such diversity. In addition, the very nature of our school provides ongoing opportunities to celebrate diversity on many levels, resulting in a very tolerant and accepting community. Assemblies involving different faiths, prejudices and prejudice-based bullying are undertaken regularly and are supported by learning in RE and PSHE. Members of different faiths or religions, albeit a very small part of our school community, are encouraged to share their knowledge to enhance learning within classes and the whole school.

Related Policies / Documents

Winchelsea School Vision and Values

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Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural (SMSC) Policy

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Behaviour Policy

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Equality Policy

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PHSE & SRE Policy

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Anti-Bullying Policy

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