British Values
British Values at Woods Loke
Our promotion of British values is part of the wider work that the school does regarding the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of our pupils. British values play an important role in our school and are promoted in much of what we do at Woods Loke, not least during our school assemblies and Religious Education sessions. They are integral to our vision for the school, which complements British values, and are included within our school curriculum. In addition to this, our Character Curriculum seeks to further emphasise the important role that British values play.
As well as actively promoting British values, the opposite also applies: we would actively challenge pupils, staff or parents expressing opinions contrary to fundamental British values, including ‘extremist’ views.
‘British values’ encompass a collection of rights integral to so many countries throughout the world. They encompass:
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Democracy
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The rule of law
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Individual liberty
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Mutual respect
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Tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs
Our aims and ethos compliment the expectations set out by the Government and Ofsted.
The Prevent Strategy & British Values:
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, religious extremists 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.
At Woods Loke Primary School, we take our responsibility to protect children from extremist and violent views very seriously. Importantly, we can provide a safe place for pupils to discuss these issues so they better understand how to protect themselves.
What does this mean in practice?
Many of the things we already do at Woods Loke 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 racism
- Developing critical thinking skills and a strong, positive self-identity
- Promoting the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils, as well as British values
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, or by vetting visitors who come into school to work with pupils.
Different schools will carry out the Prevent duty in different ways, depending on the age of the children and the needs of the community.