How Inclusive Is Your School

St. James the Great Roman Catholic Primary and Nursery School

Equal Opportunities Policy

Date Created:Spring 2011

Date Reviewed: Spring 2017

Rationale

All people are endowed with a soul and are created in God’s image; they have the same nature and origin and, being redeemed by Christ, they enjoy the same divine calling and destiny; there is here a basic equality between all people and it must be given ever greater recognition.

Undoubtedly, not all people are alike as regards physical capacity and intellectual and moral powers. But forms of social or cultural discrimination in basic personal rights on the grounds of sex, race, colour, social conditions or language must be curbed and eradicated as incompatible with God’s design. Gaudium et Spes, N29

Our school benefits from having a cross-section of cultures represented. Our pupils bring a diversity of experience and understanding which adds to the richness of our environment. This policy explains how we aim to make the most of this diversity while also building respect and understanding across cultures.

We recognise the importance of encouraging all our families to participate in school life and enjoy the benefits that the school offers. We aim to ensure that our facilities and procedures are welcoming and accessible to all.

For our pupils, we aim to set high expectations for all regardless of intellectual or physical ability, gender or race. Each individual is unique and can succeed in different ways. We respect the differing aspirations and expectations that different cultures might endorse. However, it is our role to enable all our pupils to understand their strengths and put them in a position to make the most of them.

Our pupils and families may have unequal starting points and need special attention and provision in order to work with others on a more equal basis. We seek to provide these opportunities and raise awareness within the community of the needs they have. We consider that ensuring equal opportunities for all is a key factor in developing community cohesion.

We encourage the active involvement of our pupils and help them to understand their rights as well as respecting the rights of others. We actively challenge prejudice, discrimination, racism and stereotyping and aim to ensure that our curriculum provides opportunities to discuss historical and current issues. We aim for our school to be a harmonious working environment in which everyone feels valued.

Legal Background

There are laws relating to equal opportunities which support institutions in challenging discrimination in the areas of race, gender and special educational needs.

Race

The Race Relations Act 1976, amended by Race Relations (Amendments) Act 2000, makes it unlawful to discriminate against a person, directly or indirectly, in the field of education. Institutions must actively try to eliminate discrimination and promote equality of opportunity and good relations between persons of different racial groups. In addition there are acts which cover issues ranging from use of institution premises to threatening, abusive or insulting language.

Gender

The Sex Discrimination Act renders it unlawful for an educational establishment to discriminate against an individual directly or indirectly on grounds of sex in the way access is afforded to any benefits, facilities or services.

Special Educational Needs

The 1988 Act reaffirms the belief that all individuals share the right to a broad and balanced curriculum. This is regardless of whether or not the individual has a statement of special educational needs which calls for provision to be made which is additional or different from that which is generally available.

Disability Equality

The Disability Discrimination Act 2005 places a general duty on schools to have due regard to promoting equality of opportunity between disabled people and other people.

Equality Act 2010

The Equality Act 2010 replaces the above anti-discriminatory laws with a single Act.

Public Sector Equality Duty 2011

The Public sector equality duty came in to force in April 2011 (s.149 of the Equality Act 2010) and public authorities like the Ministry of Justice are now required, in carrying out their functions, to have due regard to the need to achieve the objectives set out under s149 of the Equality Act 2010 to:

(a) eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct that is prohibited by or under the Equality Act 2010;

(b) advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it;

To ensure transparency, and to assist in the performance of this duty, the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011 require public authorities, named on , to publish:

equality objectives, at least every four years (from 6th April 2012)
information to demonstrate their compliance with the public sector equality duty (from 31st January 2012)

Aims and Objectives

For every member of the school community experiences equal chances irrespective of ethnic origin, race, colour, nationality, political beliefs, disability, age, sex, sexual orientation. In order to achieve this everyone must have equal access to all facilities and provision.
For every member of the school community is valued as an individual and that everyone understands that stereotyping, discrimination, prejudice and racism will not be tolerated.

For all children to achieve their highest potential irrespective of ethnicity, age, gender, ability and disability or social background.
To make the most of the diversity present in our school, sharing experiences and examples in an ethos of mutual respect.
To encourage all our families to participate fully in school life and to be able to take advantage of the facilities and resources here.
To work closely with our community in order to develop community cohesion and raise awareness of needs and ambitions.
To involve, as far as possible, representatives from the different groups within the Catholic parishes of St. Andrew in Thornton Heath and St. Bartholomew in Norbury.

To network with other schools in order to share strengths and seek ideas for improvement.
To enable our children to develop as independent individuals who respect the rights of others and can work together cooperatively.
To promote the welfare in school of individuals who have specific physical, emotional, learning needs.
To challenge all examples of prejudice, discrimination, racism and stereotyping.
Ensure that our curriculum provides the opportunity for pupils to discuss and understand the context in which views and patterns of behaviour emerge.

Definitions

We define ‘equal opportunities’ as the right of everyone to equal chances, and respecting each individual for who they are.

Responsibilities

The whole school community is responsible for being considerate and respectful to one another. It is expected that all members of the community will pay regard to the feelings of others and their needs and will implement this policy to the best of their ability.

Governing Body

The Governing Body of a school must not discriminate in relation to any prospective or existing pupil or member of staff, in the provision of goods, facilities and services to the public or in relation to employment and vocational training.

Responsibilities include:

•Ensuring that there is an equal opportunities policy in place which is monitored and reviewed.

•Monitoring the impact of the policy on the standards attained by different groups within the school.

•Making reasonable adjustments if the premises or employment arrangements limit access to particular community groups or individuals.

•Planning to increase over time the accessibility of the school to disabled pupils.

•Receiving feedback as part of the Headteacher’s report and questioning school practice

•Giving due regard to its own membership and the recruitment of new Governors.

•Participating in the preparation, publication and monitoring of the disability equality scheme, and the gender equality scheme.

•Publishing the results of its annual monitoring to parents.

•Overseeing the application of the admissions policy.

Head teacher

The Headteacher is responsible for:

•Drawing up an equal opportunities policy, in consultation with the school community.

•Ensuring that Governors are given accurate feedback on the implementation and effectiveness of the school’s equal opportunities policy.

•Monitoring the effectiveness of the equal opportunities policy, access plans, disability and gender equality schemes and race equality statement.

•Receiving analysis of the performance of different groups within the school and reporting on this performance.

•Identifying any trends in relation to different groups that will require actions.

•Monitoring the overall ethos of the school including the number of racist incidents and incidents of bullying and harassment.

•Regularly reviewing the equal opportunities policy in consultation with the school community.

•Overseeing the recruitment practice of the school and ensuring that equal opportunities legislation is met.

•Ensuring that the record of racist incidents is maintained and acted upon.

•Ensuring that the record of bullying and harassment is maintained and acted upon.

•Leading the development of a supportive ethos in relation to different groups within the school.

•Ensuring the place of equal opportunities within the school improvement plan.

•Coordinating the curriculum in conjunction with the Senior Leadership Team to ensure equality of opportunity is represented in the core and foundation subjects.

Teachers and Support Staff

Teachers and support staff are responsible for:

•Ensuring this policy is implemented within the classroom and in their own dealings with staff, pupils and the school community.

•Monitoring their own procedures and routines to ensure that pupils are treated equally.

•Referring incidents and concerns, where appropriate, to the Headteacher.

•Setting an example in terms of conduct towards staff, pupils and parents.

•Encouraging pupils to try new activities, challenging stereotypical roles and prejudice.

•Setting high expectations for pupils and supporting them in achieving them.

•Monitoring the progress of groups to identify any trends or difficulties and identifying and monitoring possible solutions.

•Encouraging pupils to share their experiences and discuss issues in a supportive environment.

Procedures and Practice

Monitoring Attainment and Progress

All groups of pupils are carefully monitored to ensure that they make the progress expected of them and achieve their targets. Teachers, the Assessment Coordinator and the Inclusion Manager work together to identify any pupils who are falling behind and need additional support. In some cases this will be individual support; in others it will be through an intervention programme as part of a group. Where barriers to learning are identified, these will be addressed during multi-agency meetings.

Whole classes, individuals and groups are tracked in order to ensure that appropriate progress is being made towards targets. RAISEonline is used to help analyse the performance of different groups within the school. This information is discussed by the Senior Leadership Team and the results shared with staff and Governors.We aim for all pupils to make at least two sub-levels of progress (3 QCA points) across the year.

Individual assessment of English as an additional language(EAL) pupils is collated annually by the Inclusion Manager. The information from this assessment is compiled and used to demonstrate trends and individual progression. Discussion with teachers is an important feature, as are ‘focus’ opportunities where time is taken to assess the needs of individuals.

Record Keeping

An important part of ensuring equal opportunities are met is recording and analysing records. Record-keeping(see Appendix 1) identifies which records we keep, where they are kept and when they are monitored.

Special Considerations

Equalopportunities also means taking account of differences and sometimes making special arrangements for them. It is not always about giving everyone the same. Home circumstances can have an effect upon a pupil’s experiences in school. In order to help pupils,Appendix 2 identifies possible barriers and ways in which we aim to address them.

The Curriculum

Pupils are encouraged to build confidence through avoiding stereotyping curriculum areas, and mixing gender groups are part of the school’s normal working practice. Planning takes account of the need for differentiation to provide full access for pupils with a range of varying requirements. Curriculum Leaders and Subject Coordinators check planning to ensure that provision and resources are appropriate.

Where examples of bias or unfair representation of groups in resources exist, this is drawn to the attention of the teaching group. In some cases this is used as a teaching point, for example lack of reference to female scientists in older textbooks. Wherever possible, reference is made to the experience of, and examples from, different cultures. An international perspective is built into curriculum planning.

PSHCE, circle time and some of our cross-curricular topics offer opportunities for discussion on equal opportunities. For example, some of the textbooks chosen for study in literacy raise issues relating to equality and units such as ‘blue for a boy’ raise issues for discussion about stereotyping.

Resources

Each classroom is made equally welcoming to boys and girls, with flexible seating arrangements and a variety of resources made accessible to support pupils in their learning. Resources are prepared and selected which are free from gender or cultural bias where possible. Regular audits of resources help ensure appropriateness and relevance. Where bias is identified, attention will be drawn to this and may be used as a teaching point to provoke discussion. Where bias is considered to be offensive, materials are withdrawn and disposed of.

Involving Parents, the Parish and Local Community

We seek to involve as many parents, parishoners and members of the local community in our school through:

•Written communications such as newsletters, termly plans for parents and guides to the curriculum.

•Parents’ and open evenings.

•Drop-in sessions.

•Fundraising and social events (via Friends Association).

•Parents’ attendance at assemblies and prayer services.

•Attendance at and participation in concerts and other school events.

Where groups of parents seem less well-represented in school we try to set up activities and events that will encourage them to participate. Our class teachers are continually actively involved in building bridges between school and ‘hard-to-reach’ parents.

At key times such as parents’ evenings, every effort will be made to arrange for a bilingual member of the school community to be present to aid communication. The school also employs a sign-language interpreter for the hearing impaired.

Where parents are willing to help organise clubs and groups, the school aims to provide facilities and support. We encourage letting of our school buildings and playing fields.We are committed to the principles of the extended school and host an extensive range of after-school clubs. A record is kept of uptake of these clubs to ensure that all groups are represented and where they are not to investigate and identify possible solutions.

Race Equality

We are committed to tackling racial discrimination and promoting good race relations. We consult annually on the extent to which our school promotes the well-being of all our pupils and values the whole school community. We monitor the racist incident record carefully and are answerable to governors for the effectiveness of actions taken. We make it clear to students that racism will not be tolerated.

We understand that racist views may be generated within the home. Where pupils are using racist language in schools it is explained clearly that it is not acceptable and the reasons why. Some units in personal, social, health and citizenship education (PSHCE) provide specific opportunities to discuss racism and its origins. It is also discussed as part of units in history and through Literacy. Drama and role play are used to explore some of the issues within a controlled setting.

English as an Additional Language

We have provision in the school through EMA funding to target pupils with language needs. Specialist teachers enable us to provide focused support and to target new pupils whose first language is not English. In recent years the range of languages spoken has increased and every attempt is made to secure advice and support from an adult who speaks the first language.

Special Needs

The school places a very high priority on the provision for special educational needs (SEN) and disability. We aim to meet all pupils' learning needs, including the more able, by carefully assessed and administered programmes of work with high-quality differentiation. More detailed information is available in the SEN policy.

Admissions and Exclusions

As a Catholic school we utilise our own admission authority. Our Governing Body acts in accordance with the admission arrangements determined and published by the diocese and the LA. We recognise our role in admitting pupils from all sections of the community with a broad range of individual needs. Our access plans are aimed at enabling full participation of all groups of students in all activities.

We are committed to working actively with other services to avoid the need for permanent exclusion. We avoid the use of fixed-term exclusions wherever possible and where they are used, monitor them carefully.

Monitoring and Evaluation

An important way of monitoring the effectiveness of this policy is through consultation with the community. As an annual activity we surveypupils, parents and staff and ask them for their views on the extent to which the school lives up to its aims for equal opportunities. We also ask them to suggest ways we could make the school more accessible, improve communication and meet the needs of our local community more effectively.

We actively encourage all groups of pupils to share their views through the school council and with their class teacher. Pupils are consulted about all aspects of school policy, and individual learning meetings provide opportunities for pupils to discuss their own learning needs. Listening to what pupils have to say alerts us to issues relevant to particular groups within the school and helps us to address these as they arise.