British Values

Promoting British Values at Carre’s Grammar School

At Carre’s Grammar School, we provide opportunities for students to explore their own culture and have a clear understanding and appreciation of a wide range of cultural influences that have shaped modern Britain. We encourage all students to be tolerant and respectful to those of different faiths and beliefs and life choices. This is done by providing students with an understanding of main festivals and key dates of significance to British culture such as Remembrance Day, the Jubilee and major political events such as elections. It is also done by providing opportunities for diverse groups of students to meet and discuss their own particular values and beliefs via groups such as The Queer Alliance group, The Forces support group or Carers groups.

We promote the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs. We also recognise that these values are not solely exclusive to Britain and that these values have developed in Britain through a process over a substantial period of time and can only be maintained and developed by active engagement of citizens in democratic, lawful and respectful institutions and processes, of which our secondary school is one element. We promote these values as part of our wider personal development curriculum which is built around three key strands:

Health & Wellbeing
Relationships
Living in the Wider World (including impartial CEIAG aligned to the Gatsby Benchmarks).

Democracy

Students, parents and staff have many opportunities for their voices to be heard at Carre’s Grammar School.

An obvious example of democracy in action is our main School Council. The election process takes place each year and reflects our British electoral system as students reflect on what personal characteristics are important for their class representatives to have before voting on which of their peers they would like to be their student council representative. In the past, the school council has influenced uniform changes, school dining room protocols, the development of the school site, the rewards and sanctions systems, and has given feedback to curriculum leaders on the curriculum. The committees are chaired by members of the senior student team who are themselves appointed annually in a democratic process.

Other examples of how we promote the values of democracy, including ‘student voice’ are:

Students take part in staff recruitment
Students are asked for their views during subject reviews and ‘deep dives’
Students are surveyed about curriculum and extra-curricular opportunities

Rule of Law

The importance of laws, whether they be those that govern the class, the school, or the country, are consistently reinforced throughout regular personal development days, as well as when dealing with behaviour and through school assemblies and our tutor time programme. Students are taught the values and reasons behind laws, that they govern and protect us, the responsibilities that this involves and the consequences when laws are broken.

This is reinforced in different ways:

The whole school behaviour policy is clearly structured and publicised and followed by all.
Students have regular opportunities to reflect, for example, during tutor time, in assemblies and in personal development lessons
Assemblies and the tutor programme cover national and international events
In EP lessons, Pupils have the opportunities to explore the rules of particular faiths
During other subjects, students are taught to respect and appreciate different rules e.g., in sports lessons, competitions etc.
We have links with the local PSCOs and with the local MP
External speakers visit the school and contribute to the personal development curriculum e.g., via assemblies, workshops and careers activities

Individual Liberty

Within School, students are actively encouraged to make choices; including the right to respectfully express views and beliefs, knowing they are in a safe and supportive environment.

We promote individual Liberty through:

Choices about learning activities and challenges
A full range of opportunities for participation in extra-curricular clubs and activities including opportunities of freedom of speech and expression of diversity through the performing arts, writing, public speaking, artistic endeavours and debates
Opportunities to reflect in personal development lessons, tutor time, assembly, drop-down days, careers events as well as in a whole range of lessons
Empowering students to make safe and healthy choices through the personal development curriculum
Vision statement and values for our school communicate and share our vision.

Mutual Respect

Mutual respect is at the heart of what we believe and one of our Trust core values. Students learn that their actions and words have an effect on their own rights and those of others. All members of the school community should treat each other with respect.

We promote this through our personal development curriculum which includes:

Assemblies on core themes such as respect, patience, tolerance, understanding etc.
Personal development lessons and tutor time sessions planned and mapped as part of our wider personal development curriculum
Anti-bullying policies, learning and sanctions
EP curriculum along with other subjects’ input which is mapped in their schemes of learning
Positive relationships are encouraged and modelled by staff and senior students
Well Being Ambassadors, Student Councillors, Sports Captains, Student Librarians, the Sixth Form Subject Prefect System and the House System provide opportunities for students to care for others

Tolerance of those of Different Faiths and Beliefs

Carre’s has a less diverse community compared to many other schools and for this reason, we ensure that we share and promote opportunities to understand the wider world and its diversity through:

In EP, personal development and other subjects’ pupils have the opportunity to develop their awareness and appreciation for other cultures
The weekly quiz in tutor time ensures students have developed awareness of current affairs
Members of different faiths or religions are encouraged to share their knowledge to enhance learning within their class
Educational visits which are age appropriate are planned and mapped to give students opportunities to see more and more of the world as they get older

As well as promoting British Values, we actively challenge any students, staff, or parents expressing opinions contrary to fundamental British values including ‘extremist views'.