All Maintained schools must meet the requirements set out in section 78 of the Education Act 2002 and promote the spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development of their pupils. Through ensuring pupils' SMSC development, schools can also demonstrate they are actively promoting British Values.
It is now outlined by the DFE that, 'Schools should promote the fundamental British Values of Democracy, the Rule of Law, Individual Liberty, and Mutual Respect and Tolerance of those with different faiths and Beliefs.'
British Values at Westroyd
Democracy
At Westroyd it is important that we hear all stakeholders voices and we actively encourage feedback from children, staff and parents.
In order to promote democracy we;
- Have a School Council which KS1 and KS2 members are voted onto by their class members. The School Council meet regularly and agree a School Council Code of Conduct. The children share ideas of how to improve the School and are also given a budget to improve playtimes with.
- Children in School Council have to feedback ideas from the wider School Community. Changes they have made in recent years include the introduction of pre-ordering meal choices and separate Year 1 and Year 2 playtimes.
- Seek the opinions of all stakeholders by sending out staff, parents and children's questionnaires.
Rule of Law
It is important that children are able to distinguish between right and wrong and are taught to respect the civil and criminal law. At Westroyd we believe it is important for children to accept responsibility for their behaviour and we give children many opportunities to reflect on their behaviour choices. We aim for children to develop a good understanding of how they can contribute positively to the wider community with which they live in.
We reinforce this at Westroyd by ensuring;
- Children are involved in reviewing the School Behaviour Rules.
- Every class sets their own class rules at the beginning of an academic year.
- Children are encouraged to follow rules in other subjects (for example PSHCE), competitions and visits to other settings.
- Weekly reflection themes every Monday give children the opportunity to reflect personally, amongst small groups and in classes. Themes can focus on National news events or children reviewing our own behaviour in school and how it effects others.
- We plan visits from other authorities such as Police and Fire Service.
Mutual Respect
Mutual Respect is fundamental to our ethos at Westroyd. Children are encouraged and supported from a very young age to respect and care for each other. At Westroyd we expect all members of the school community to treat each other with respect.
To promote a greater understanding of mutual respect at Westroyd we ensure;
- PSHCE is taught across all year groups and this teaches children to think about their own behaviour and how it effects themselves and others.
- The Religious Education curriculum teaches the children about Christianity and compares this to another faith (as followed by the agreed Leeds Syllabus).
- The children learn about key festivals from other countries and cultures during assemblies and classroom activities.
- Year 5 and Year 6 helpers support younger children at lunchtimes.
- Our Pastoral Lead plays a key role in supporting children to get along with others and manage conflict situations. She carries out reflection sessions with all children who may find themselves receiving a 'red warning' on our trackit behaviour system and supports them to reflect and identify next steps.
- Anti-bullying themes are focussed on during assemblies. Although there are very few incidents of bullying, any cases are treated seriously and all parties access restorative support from our Pastoral Lead.
- Adults model mutual respect around school and nursery.
Tolerance of Culture, Faith and Others
Many children at Westroyd have a very limited personal experience of different cultures and faiths, therefore we feel that it is essential that we promote diversity and broaden the children's experiences.
In order to enhance the children's understanding of other faiths and cultures at Westroyd we;
- Teach awareness of other faiths and cultures through our RE and PHSCE curriculum.
- Provide resources which broaden the children's experiences, for example through texts, role-play and toys.
- Hold an 'Inter-Faith Week' that focusses on a different religions. These weeks are a great opportunity for all of the school community to get involved and learn something new. Visitors are invited into school to enhance learning and trips are organised to local places of worship. At the end of the week, learning is shared with parents and carers either on line of as an open session.
- Each year, plan and deliver a Black History Week, with each year group learning about a significant Black role model or key events throughout history. Learning is displayed around school and children share their learning in a special assembly at the end of the week.
Personal Responsibility and Liberty
It is important for children to be able to make individual choices, with the knowledge that they are in a safe, secure environment. At Westroyd we want to encourage children to make their own decisions whilst providing them with safe boundaries which will enable and empower them to make informed choices. At Westroyd we promote personal responsibility and liberty through;
- Children are asked to share personal ideas and thoughts with partners and the wider school during assemblies. Different thoughts, ideas and experiences are both encouraged and celebrated.
- Children have the opportunity to make personal choices such as daily lunches that are pre-ordered and a selection of half termly after-school club choices in KS1 and KS2.
- The Westroyd Learning Poster promotes children to choose positive attitudes towards learning rather than outcome. The learning behaviours are reflected on within class on a daily basis and celebrated in a weekly assembly.
- The ongoing learning on 'Growth Mindset' is empowering learners to develop a positive learning attitude, especially when finding something difficult. It is encouraging children to talk about how they are feeling about their learning and suggest their own solutions to problems.
- Providing curriculum opportunities both in specific subjects as well as our annual 'Be Healthy Week' for children to learn about keeping healthy and safe, thus being able to make personal informed personal choices about their own lifestyles.
- Children are educated to make positive choices through e-safety, PSHCE, road safety, water and fire safety lessons.