BRITISH VALUES

at The Winterton Federation

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”

The Infant and Junior schools have developed a shared vision for the way that British Values are promoted across our partnership:

Here at Winterton we promote British Values in a number of ways:

Elections take place amongst the pupils to decide upon their class representatives as School Councillors and Church School Ambassadors. Pupils have their voices heard through the council meetings, through pupil surveys and visits from governors.

The Rule of Law:

Pupils develop their understanding of why we need rules in life, e.g. to keep things fair; to maintain order; to keep us safe etc. They experience real-life examples of rules through a variety of school activities:

  • Class rules
  • School rules
  • Sporting rules (Football, Hockey, Netball Rounders etc)
  • Road Safety
  • Pedestrian Skills

The right to individual liberty is covered through our RE and SMSC curriculum and pupils are encouraged to make choices in a safe and secure environment. At times they are able to choose how they present work, what level of challenge they attempt and which clubs they might be a part of.

Our Christian values of ‘Friendship, and Respect’ all support pupils in developing mutual respect and tolerance of others. Through our RE and SMSC curriculum children develop awareness and understanding of people from other cultures, backgrounds and religions. These experiences are further reinforced both through the school behaviour policy and through acts of Collective Worship.

At Winterton we recognise that the personal development of children – spiritually, morally, socially and culturally (SMSC) – plays a vital role in not only their ability to learn and achieve but in their ability to relate fully to, and have the ability to, access the world they live in. We therefore aim to provide an education that provides children with opportunities to explore and develop in these areas. Our curriculum is designed to enable children to reach their full potential whilst exploring and developing their own values and recognising that those of others may differ. A wide-range of opportunities for SMSC development are facilitated within our curriculum. Many strategies are used to deliver these opportunities both in formal lessons as well as through whole-school events and activities. Beliefs, spiritual awareness, high standards of personal behaviour including a positive caring attitude towards other people, an understanding of their social and cultural traditions and an appreciation of the diversity and richness of other cultures are all critical skills and dispositions that we nurture, encourage and develop through our curriculum and wider opportunities.

Pupils’ spiritual development is shown by their:

  • Exploration of beliefs (religious or otherwise) which inform their perspective on life and their interest in and respect for different people’s feelings and values
  • Sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning about themselves, others and the world around them.
  • Use of imagination and creativity in their learning
  • Willingness to reflect on their experiences

Childrens’ moral development is shown by their:

  • Ability to recognise the difference between right and wrong and their readiness to apply this understanding in their own lives
  • Understanding of the consequences of their actions
  • Interest in investigating and offering reasoned views about moral and ethical issues

Childrens’ social development is shown by their:

  • Use of a range of social skills in different contexts, including working and socialising with children from different religious, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds
  • Willingness to participate in a variety of social settings, cooperating well with others and being able to resolve conflicts empathetically
  • Interest in, and understanding of, the way communities and societies function

Pupils’ cultural development is shown by their:

  • Understanding and appreciation of the wide range of cultural influences that have shaped their own heritage
  • Willingness to participate in, and respond to artistic, musical, sporting, mathematical, technological, scientific and cultural opportunities
  • Interest in exploring, understanding of, and respect for cultural diversity and the extent to which they understand, accept, respect and celebrate diversity, as shown by their attitudes towards different religious, ethnic and socio-economic groups in the local, national and global communities.

PREVENT DUTY

What is the Prevent strategy?

‘Prevent’ is a government strategy designed to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorist or extremist causes.

The Prevent strategy covers all types of terrorism and extremism, including the extreme right wing, violent Islamist groups and other causes.

How does the Prevent strategy apply to schools?

From July 2015, all schools (as well as other organisations) have a duty to safeguard children from radicalisation and extremism.

This means we have a responsibility to protect children from extremist and violent views, the same way we protect them from drugs or gang violence.

Importantly, we can provide a safe place for pupils to discuss these issues so they have a better understanding on how to protect themselves.

What does this mean in practice?

Many of the things we already do in school to help children become positive, happy members of society also contribute to the Prevent strategy.

These include:

  • Exploring other cultures and religions and promoting diversity
  • Challenging prejudices and racist comments
  • Developing thinking skills and a strong, positive self-identity
  • Promoting the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils, as well as British values such as democracy

We will also protect children from the risk of radicalisation, for example; by using filters on the internet to make sure they can’t access extremist and terrorist material and by vetting visitors who come into school to work with pupils.

Frequently asked questions…

  • Extremism – vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values such as democracy, the rule of law and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs
  • Ideology – a set of beliefs
  • Terrorism – a violent action against people or property, designed to create fear and advance a political, religious or ideological cause
  • Radicalisation – the process by which a person comes to support and be involved with extremist causes