St Alban's Catholic Primary School

The DfE wants every school to ‘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.’

At St Alban's Catholic Primary School..., we develop and promote British Values throughout our school and within our curriculum. 

A key part of our plan for education is to ensure that pupils leave our school with the knowledge, understanding and emotional intelligence that will allow them to flourish and play a positive and active role in our diverse society.

To do this we will:

• Develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem and self- confidence
• Develop their understanding of right from wrong and to respect the rules of the school and the laws of Britain
• Encourage pupils to accept responsibility for their behaviours, show initiative and to understand how they can contribute positively to the lives of others
• Promote tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling pupils to acquire an appreciation and respect for their own and other cultures
• Teach children about the protected characteristics in order that they learn to respect others, celebrate diversity and recognise prejudice and discrimination
• Teach pupils to respect other people, animals and the world around them
• Teach pupils to understand and respect democratic processes

As a school we promote British values in a number of ways:

Democracy
Pupil voice is very important at St Alban's. Pupils are routinely asked their opinions and to make suggestions, and these are taken seriously.

Within school, pupils have roles of responsibility. Head children and school counsellors  are selected through a democratic process and these pupils make a valuable contribution to the development of the school. The understanding of democracy as a concept is taught through our curriculum, particularly through the areas of Personal, Social, Health and Education (PSHE) and history.

The Rule of Law
Throughout their time at school, pupils develop their understanding of what is right and what is wrong. We have school rules and expectations that pupils know, understand, and follow. Pupils understand why these rules are important. Through daily school life, and explicitly in RE and PSHE lessons, pupils develop their understanding of actions, responsibilities and consequences. Visits from authorities such as the police, fire service are regular parts of our curriculum and help reinforce this message. Pupils also work with local community police officers. 

Individual Liberty
Within school, pupils are actively encouraged to make choices, knowing that they are in a safe and supportive environment. From the earliest age, pupils exercise individual freedoms through their child-initiated learning. As a school, we educate and provide boundaries for young pupils to make choices safely through the provision of a safe environment and empowering education.

Pupils are encouraged to know, understand and exercise their rights and personal freedoms and are advised how to exercise these safely.

Mutual Respect
At St Alban's , mutual respect is an intrinsic part of our diverse school community. Everyone is welocme at our school. Our Religious Education lessons, discussions, assemblies, team games in Physical Education and PSHE lessons across the school help to reinforce this message. Bullying is not tolerated, and pupils are taught about the different types of bullying, why they might occur and discuss possible strategies for dealing with incidents should they witness any.  

Tolerance of those of Different Faiths and Beliefs

St Alban's is a unique place to be. The divserity within the school community is amazing with 60% of our children having English as an additional language and 27 languages been spoken at home. The children come from range of faith backgrounds and different beliefs are celebrated. This is achieved through children learning about a wide range of different religions in Religious Education, special assemblies, different faith visitors and by using older children to demonstarte their faith practices.

Collective Worship
Through collective worship, children learn the importance of our Gospel Values; kindness, care, love, forgiveness, service, truth, justice, compassion, hope, faith. These are aligned to and interweaved with British values and promote respect and tolerance. Our weekly whole school assemblies explore Gospel  and current affairs themes.

Safeguarding

Safeguarding assemblies support pupils in understanding rules for keeping themselves and others safe. The PCSO visits school regularly to deliver assemblies on themes such as halloween/bonfire safety, online safety, anti-bullying, personal safety and road safety to name a few. We also use NSPCC resources to delivery safety messages to our children. Their 'speak out, stay safe' work is completed annually with our children.