Promoting British Values

The Department for Education have 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 and these values have been reiterated by the Prime Minister. At St Simon and St Jude C of E Primary School these values are taught and reinforced regularly in a number of ways.

Democracy: Democracy is promoted within school. Pupils have the opportunity to have their voices heard through our school council and pupil questionnaires. School councillors are voted for by their class. In classes the teachers regularly make sure pupils’ voices are heard. The way this is promoted will be relevant to the age of the children. 

The Rule of Law: The importance of laws, those that we have in school, the class or the country are regularly reinforced throughout the school day. Pupils are taught right from wrong. We teach the reasons behind laws and the fact that there are consequences when laws are broken. We have school and class rules displayed around school and these are reviewed regularly by our School Council. When a school rule is broken there are very clear consequences and these are set out in our Behaviour Policy. This is shared with all parents and the school rules form part of our prospectus.

Individual Liberty: At St Simon and St Jude, pupils are actively encouraged to make choices, knowing that they are in a safe and supportive environment. As a school we educate and provide boundaries for all pupils to make informed choices, in a safe environment. Pupils are encouraged to know, understand and exercise their rights and personal freedom and advised how to exercise these safely, as well as considering the impact on others, through our e-Safety and PSHE lessons for example. Our school values promote good role models and are regularly celebrated.

Mutual Respect: Respect is a core value of our school. We promote respect for others through our Behaviour Policy and our school rules which supports all staff in school to treat every child fairly. In our SEAL work we cover aspects of anti-bullying and have posters around school promoting this. In RE we provide opportunities for children to learn about different faiths. We support a number of charities that promote respect and tolerance.

Tolerance of those of Different Faiths and Beliefs: We want to enable our children to understand their place in our culturally diverse society. We celebrate festivals from different faiths and beliefs, and we teach children about different faiths and beliefs in RE. As part of our RE curriculum children visit places of worship. We encourage children to talk about their own beliefs and to respect others beliefs, even if they are different from their own.