British Values
Promoting Fundamental British Values
As part of a broad and balanced curriculum, schools are required to promote the spiritual, moral, cultural, mental and physical development of pupils. This includes actively promoting fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.
At Dronfield Junior School, we value the diverse backgrounds of all pupils and undertake a variety of events and lessons to celebrate these. They are planned into our curriculum and topics, our collective workshop and within PSHE and RE lessons. They also run like a thread through all the conversations and discussions we have with pupils.
We are recognised as an accredited Attachment, Relationship Aware School, and as such, we treat everyone with respect and without judgement. Underpinning our work in school are the eight values which we wish to live by:
- We treat everybody equally
- We understand right from wrong
- We understand the consequences of our actions
- We listen to and respect other people’s opinions and values
- We try to help other people
- We know that we are all special
- We understand and respect the roles of people who may help us
- We respect the culture and beliefs of others
DfE guidance from ‘Promoting fundamental British values as part of SMSC in schools’ states that: ‘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 fundamental British values.
Meeting requirements for collective worship, establishing a strong school ethos supported by effective relationships throughout the school, and providing relevant activities beyond the classroom are all ways of ensuring pupils’ SMSC development.
Pupils must be encouraged to regard people of all faiths, races and cultures with respect and tolerance.
It is expected that pupils should understand that while different people may hold different views about what is ‘right’ and ‘wrong’, all people living in England are subject to its law. The school’s ethos and teaching should support the rule of English civil and criminal law and schools should not teach anything that undermines it.’
Promoting fundamental British values as part of SMSC in schools (November 2014, page 4)
Education in Cultural Competence
Education in Cultural Competence is about learning to live positively in our diverse world. It is about deepening our knowledge and understanding of others and developing an increasing ability to empathise with those who are different from us; to recognise our common humanity. It is about celebrating diversity for the ways in which it enriches our lives. We aim to help children develop a positive self-identity that incorporates understanding and respect for people with different characteristics. We also teach children about lines of inequality and discrimination in our society, help pupils learn about the mechanisms through which inequality and discrimination work and engage them in thinking about how to build a fairer, better world. There is a requirement on us as a school to, “prepare learners for life in modern Britain by equipping them to be responsible, respectful, active citizens who contribute positively to society; developing their understanding of fundamental British values; developing their understanding and appreciation of diversity; celebrating what we have in common and promoting respect for the different protected characteristics as defined in law.” These protected characteristics are defined in the Equalities Act, 2010.