SECTION 9
RACIAL EQUALITY POLICY
POLICY ON ANTI RACISM
The Diocesan Board of Education endorses the national policy of the Church of England, reflecting the Christian view that all people are created equal in the sight of God. It believes that the whole school must be committed to and involved in the effort to eliminate racism and racial violence and the promotion of Christian standards in personal relationships. Schools should involve everyone connected with the school in the formulation of a whole school policy for this purpose. It should be made clear that racial abuse and harassment will not be tolerated.
The Board will continue to issue guidelines and other advice to schools in support of their work in this area, drawing on nationally provided Christian resources and local good practice where appropriate.
Some suggested statements to assist school with developing their
Racial Equality Policies for Church of England Schools
Christ is the foundation of everything we do and the Gospels provide us with our influence and inspiration. We are therefore committed to promoting:
· The uniqueness of the individual
We believe that every person is a unique individual, created in God’s image and loved by Him. We are therefore committed to treat every person with equality of esteem and the respect and dignity due to a child of God.
· The search for excellence
We are called to seek perfection in all aspects of our lives. We celebrate the enrichment of the total community which flows from diversity of age, gender, racial and social origins, abilities, culture and religion. We are therefore committed to ensure that all our pupils are to be given every opportunity to develop their talents to the full.
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· The education of the whole person
We offer young people the experience of life in a community founded on Gospel values and working in harmony. Through this and a variety of educational experiences and interactions we aim to prepare young people for a life working with others in communities which maybe diverse socially, culturally and religiously. We recognise that it is also important to help pupils to understand their own ethnic identity and cultural heritage as well as helping them to understand that of others irrespective of whether the school serves or is located in an ethnically diverse community.
· The education of all
We have the duty to care for all, with preferential consideration for the poor, and to ensure that we provide for those who are socially, academically, physically or emotionally disadvantaged.
· Moral principles
Our belief in the Gospel message commits us to be in the forefront of the movement for social and racial justice and harmony. We believe this is fundamental to the common good. We aim to prepare our young people to serve as witnesses to these moral and spiritual values in the wider world.
Consequently, we will strive to ensure that:
· Any person recruited to the service of the school, whether as a member of staff or a volunteer, is made fully aware of our aims and objectives and required to support them;
· Children who are admitted to the school and their families are fully aware of our aims and objectives and undertake to support them;
· All of our structures and policies are evaluated and kept under constant review in order to see that no individual is subject in any way to unlawful discrimination, whether intentional or unintentional, and to ensure that all are enabled to reach their full potential.
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Finally, we acknowledge that minority groups have often suffered disadvantage due to prejudice or ignorance. We recognise that it is all too easy for the structures of institutions to result in “inequality by default”. We therefore commit ourselves to take positive steps to examine our policies and practice and to change them where necessary.
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Racist behaviour and attitudes cannot be accepted within church schools, which must exemplify a Christian ethos in the following ways:
· by honouring the equality in dignity of all in the school community (pupils, staff, parents) as children of God, whatever their race, language, or culture
· by celebrating the differences of heritage, belief, and practice to be found in school and society, recognising that true spiritual unity is founded on diversity
· by nurturing pupils in a reconciling community where they can grow in love and respect for others through relationships of care, forgiveness, and friendship
· by acknowledging the Gospel imperative that justice be evidently fulfilled in relations within the school and between the school and the community
· by witnessing to the mission of God’s people through seeking to establish a model community where children and adults of all races work and learn together in partnership.
In accordance with this Christian ethos, and in fulfilment of their responsibilities under the Race Relations Act 1976 [Appendix 1],
Governors should ensure that:
· an anti-racist policy is drawn up for the school,
· this policy is integrated with the school’s mission statement and development plan
· in formulating other policies, this policy is treated as fundamental
· clearly identified personnel and procedures are in place to ensure that the policy is implemented
· the policy is effectively monitored and regularly reviewed.
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The following guidelines suggest areas which should be included in this process. They do not provide a model policy, as each school will have its own individual needs and circumstances. Governors will want to consult widely in establishing their own policy, to ensure it is supported by all.
The report of the Macdonald Inquiry (1989) into racism and racial violence in Manchester schools showed that anti-racist statements and policies, while essential, would be insufficient and inadequate if they were not owned by the whole school community. This includes pupils, parents, guardians, teaching and support staff, governors and the headteacher, as well as those who are in partnership with the school such as personnel from the Diocesan Board of Education and LEA officers and advisers.
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T E N P O L I C Y P O I N T S
Abbreviations [See Appendix 2 for further details]
CS = ‘Colour and Spice: Guidance on Combating Racism in Church Schools’
RA = ‘Respect for All: Developing Anti-Racist Policies in a Church School’
1. Governing bodies, subcommittees, and interviewing panels should, wherever possible, reflect racial diversity.
The Board of Education, in conjunction with the Race and Community Relations Committee, has been seeking to increase the number of Governors from minority ethnic backgrounds. These should be encouraged to play a key role in policy making and personnel appointment.
2. Procedures for staff appointment and appraisal should encourage the professional development of staff from all ethnic groups.
Equal opportunities must ensure that person specifications, interview questions, and appraisal criteria do not disadvantage any staff on the grounds of their colour, culture, or ethnic background. Staff from minority ethnic groups should not be appointed on tokenistic grounds, e.g. to exclusively pastoral roles or solely for their cultural expertise. See further CS, pp26-35.
3. Teaching and other staff should be provided with training to raise awareness of potential unintended racist attitudes and behaviour.
“Race simply isn’t an issue in primary schools. Before secondary age, pupils don’t notice colour. They don’t see themselves like that. You’d be putting it into their heads if you brought it up.”
[Teacher in multi-racial city school - CS9]
“A well-intentioned and appropriately sympathetic person may, as a result of his or her education, experiences, or environment have negative, patronising or stereotyped views about minority ethnic groups.”
[Rampton Report, 1991 - CS10]
“I can see that teachers in cities might have to cope with things to do with race, but it really doesn’t affect us here. The children never really see anyone different ... I don’t see how teaching them things like that could be relevant.”
[Teacher in all-white village
School - CS10].
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It is easy for staff subconsciously to stereotype pupils of particular ethnic groups in expectations of academic achievements or behaviour patterns. Stereotyping can be addressed by training staff to deal with their own feelings about race. When training is offered, ancillary staff such as dining supervisors should be included.
4. There must be a clear and effective pattern of response to racist incidents and of pastoral care for those involved.
Racist incidents can arise from abusive behaviour by pupils, by staff, or by parents or others in school. Pupils can be drawn into the establishment of codes of conduct, to determine what is acceptable behaviour in the school community. Governors must then ensure that clear, effective, and visibly just procedures of enquiry and sanction are in place to deal with breaches of the code. Emphasis will generally be on arbitration rather than discipline, providing immediate continuous support for pupils suffering from racial abuse [and parents where necessary], and resulting in counselling and support for those exhibiting racist behaviour.
5. Achievement and disciplinary records of all pupils should be carefully monitored.
Information gained from monitoring must be sensitively handled, to improve quality of learning and achievement, and to ensure that all pupils are being fairly treated by the school’s behaviour policy.
6. Curriculum content and delivery should be inclusive, and should challenge stereotypes.
Questions about the curriculum
· Does this syllabus represent a global view? Does it open up opportunities for the development of a global analysis of local and national events?
· Does it relate to the pupils’ experiences in any way?
· Does it open up opportunities for pupils’ critical engagement with the subject matter?
· Will it help to stimulate pupils’ critical powers further?
· Does it provide the opportunity for pupils to extrapolate ways of challenging bias, racism, sexism, class domination and other forms of oppression?
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· Does it celebrate the achievements of black and Asian civilisations and cultures?
· Does it acknowledge positively the history of the struggle of black and other oppressed people against their oppression?
· Does it contribute towards the overall aims of equality, justice and emancipation?
· Does it give validity to the knowledge, experience and language of the pupils?
· Does it acknowledge the contribution made by black people to the country’s history, culture and
· development?
[Geoffrey Brandt, ‘The Realisation of Anti-Racist Teaching’, 1986 - CS 12]
Curriculum content and delivery depend heavily on appropriate resources, and Governors should ensure that books, videos, and other learning aids reflect the above aims as far as possible.
7. Religious Education and other curriculum areas should help prepare pupils for a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-faith society.
Pupils should be helped to celebrate diversity both within the school and more widely; involvement of members of city and county faith communities in Religious Education programmes, and visits to places of worship, should be encouraged.
8. Family, community, and overseas experiences (including languages) of pupils of all backgrounds should be valued within school.
Respect and support for isolated families and pupils from different backgrounds is vital in largely mono-cultural schools. In some rural communities, special thought should be given to pupils from travelling backgrounds. Use of several languages should be positively encouraged - bilingualism is an asset, and respect for pupils’ languages and dialects increases their self-esteem and educational achievement. See further RA, p18.
9. Pupils should be helped to develop a positive attitude to people of ethnic groups not represented within the school.
Pupils in small rural communities can be educationally impoverished through lack of contact with people from a variety of ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Governors should actively consider ways of countering this, e.g. seeking contacts with city schools, participating in overseas links.
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10. Pupils’ work and other resources should be used to promote an image of the school which is inclusive and welcoming to all.
Use of pupils’ work in public places both gives them confidence and sends a clear message about the school’s ethos. It is important that any displays reflect the reality of what is happening in the school.
WHAT NEXT?
Interpretation. Once the policy is agreed, each of its statements need to be related to the everyday life of the school. Extensive discussion among all staff is crucial to this - below is an example of how their views can be recorded:
a) Agreed statement
b) List what this statement means in practical terms
· For each child’s experience in class
· For what the teacher does to enable the child to learn
· For how the learning environment is organised
· For the implications on relationships between
i) teachers
ii) teachers and children
iii) children
· For the implications on the management of the school.
c) Dates need to be agreed for:
· completion of the policy
· review.
d) Success criteria need to be agreed:
· How will you know that the policy is being implemented?
· How will you judge its quality / success?
· How useful is it to staff?
· What adjustments need to be made?
[RA, p19]
Implementation.
Governors have both a direct and an indirect role to play in implementing the policy. They are directly responsible for
· establishing clear procedures for dealing with racist incidents,
· ensuring that their own meetings and committees follow the policy, and
· resourcing any training needs indicated by the policy.
They will also indirectly support staff as they put the policy into practice.
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Monitoring.
Regular and consistent monitoring of the policy is essential.
· It is advisable to designate a named governor and a named member of staff to have responsibility for monitoring.
· Experience suggests that it is generally best to separate the monitoring of the curricular and the disciplinary aspects of the policy.
· The policy should be followed in the application of all other school policies.
· The anti-racist policy should be used for monitoring all school policies.
Review.
Review of the policy should be written as a priority into the school’s Development
Plan.
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[1] Section 9, p1
[2] Section 9, p2
[3] Section 9, p3
[4] Section 9, p4
[5] Section 9, p5
[6] Section 9, p6
[7] Section 9, p7
[8] Section 9. p8
[9] Section 9, p9
[10] Section 9, p10