British Values

British Values at St. Catherine of Siena

Through our Curriculum we teach about democracy, responsibility, rules and laws, the monarchy, equality, values and virtues, environmental awareness and importantly, RESPECT of other world faiths.

St Catherine Of Siena British Values Statement

Mutual respect is at the core of our school life. Pupils learn to treat each other and staff with great respect. This is evident when walking around the school environment and in the classrooms. Our Mission Statement  is “We live, we learn and grow in God’s love ”  and it is seen throughout the various relationships between pupils, staff and all stakeholders throughout the school.

Tolerance and respect. At St. Catherine’s, we offer a culturally rich and diverse curriculum in which Catholicism is taught and other major religions are fully respected.

At St. Catherine’s, we strongly believe that tolerance is gained through knowledge and understanding. Through our curriculum and the routines of our daily school life, we strive to demonstrate tolerance and help children to become knowledgeable and understanding citizens who can build a better Britain for the future.

The Rule of Law. Our pupils will encounter rules and laws throughout their entire lives. We want our pupils to understand that whether these laws govern the class, the school, family life, the neighbourhood or the country, they are set for good reasons and need to be followed.

This understanding of the importance of rules will be consistently reinforced through weekly assemblies and our creative curriculum. The involvement of our pupils in the creation of the school rules helps them to understand the reasons behind the rules and the consequences if they are broken. Through discussion, debate and enquiry in our lessons, we allow opportunity to discuss the reasons for laws so that children can recognise the importance of these for their own protection. Throughout the year we welcome visits from members of the wider community including police, nurses, the fire brigade and many more. We believe that clear explanations and real life stories emphasise the importance of the rule of law for our pupils.

Individual Liberty. We invest a great deal of time in creating a positive culture in our school, so that children are in a safe environment where choices and freedoms are encouraged. In lessons, learning tasks can often be left for the child to decide upon – promoting independent learning. We often encourage children to choose the task that will challenge them, giving them more freedom to determine their own learning. We offer a range of clubs which pupils have the freedom to choose from, based on their interests. Through our E-Safety and safeguarding agenda we educate children on their rights and personal freedoms as well as supporting them in recognising how to exercise these freedoms safely. At St Catherine’s Catholic Primary School, we believe that valuing choice and freedom in daily school life will foster a value for individual liberty as the children grow and learn in the image of Christ.

Rule of law – what do we do?

• Ensure school rules and expectations are clear and fair (pupil designed class rules, clear/concise school policy documentation)
• Help pupils to distinguish right from wrong (behaviour assemblies, golden behaviour awards, play-leader responsibility, pupil responsibilities in class and around school)
• Help pupils to respect the law and the basis on which it is made (Gospel value assemblies, public services presentations –police, fire service), Safeside Visits/
• Help pupils to understand that living under the rule of law protects individuals
• Develop restorative justice approaches to resolve conflicts (play-leader project, school counselling, anti-bullying week, black history week /conflict/resolution sessions, )
• Key rules  and guidelines that protect pupils and keep them safe throughout the curriculum eg. E-safety, playground rules, Golden rules, Road Safety, Fire safety,  School trips
• Use of DotCom resources to  promote law and values
• Class rules-Sunny and Sad side/ accepting consequences

Individual liberty – what we do?

• Support pupils to develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem and self-confidence and other values (whole school assemblies, house points, school rewards, golden book assembly, Dot Com Resources in our PSHE curriculum), School Council; Elections, Talent Shows)
• Encourage pupils to take responsibility for their behaviour, as well as knowing their rights and responsibilities: (behaviour monitoring, report charts, certificates to success), good behaviour assemblies and rewards)
• Model freedom of speech through pupil participation –in groups/class assemblies/ Role play across subjects /hot-seating –allowing pupils to voice views/opinions/debates/presentations across all areas

Allow choice of activities from Early Years throughout school. Allowing pupils to learn in their preferred way and plan activities according to learning styles. In doing  so we ensure protection of vulnerable pupils and promoting critical analysis of evidence

• Challenge stereotypes (New Curriculum, Black History Week, Multi-Faith Week, Dot Com.

How do we actively promote British Values?

At St Catherine’s, we actively promote values and focus on, and show how the school’s work is effective in securing these values; we challenge pupils, staff or parents who express opinions contrary to British values

Democracy – what do we do?

• Provide pupils with a broad general knowledge of, and promote respect for, public institutions and services (visits by fire-service, police and health nurses).
• Teach pupils how they can influence decision-making through the democratic process (personal manifesto, school and class councils.
• Include in the curriculum information on the advantages and disadvantages of democracy and how it works in Britain (new curriculum, police community officer visit).
• Encourage pupils to become involved in decision-making processes and ensure they are listened to in class, school (school / faith and class councils).
• Organise visits to the local council (when appropriate).
• Hold ‘mock elections’ so pupils learn how to argue and defend points of view (voting booth – KS2, school and class council deliberations, debates in English curriculum).
• Across classes children make choices from Early Years and throughout the curriculum-roles ad responsibilities/ good behaviour reward system.
• Help pupils to express their views (manifesto, pupil questionnaires, pupil interviews).
• Teach pupils how public services operate and how they are held to account (police, fire service and public services presentations).
• Model how perceived injustice can be peacefully challenged (Black History, Multi-faith Week, class, school assemblies, prayer services).
• Democratic processes of the Faith Council and other processes of election: parent governors, teachers.
• Decision making with class rules, voting on choices of  topics/activities within school.
• Rewards, questionnaires that allow pupils to voice opinions and to share viewpoints.
• Pupil interviews and application forms for roles and responsibilities eg dinner monitors, Parents’ Evening Monitors.

Resources, PSHE Week

• Implement a strong anti-bullying culture (school policy documentation, school rewards, anti-bullying week, class rules, individual lessons, theatre visits)
• Develop understanding of roles of key individuals  through History/RE –eg Harriet Tubman, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King
• Follow the UNICEF rights ‘respecting schools agenda’ (‘rights of the child at the heart of the school’).  St. Catherine’s has recently registered with UNICEF to work towards the ‘respecting schools award’

Respect and tolerance – what do we do?

• Promote respect for individual differences (whole school ethos, prayer, school assemblies, themed assemblies/ days, curriculum projects, Faith Council,
• Help pupils to acquire an understanding of, and respect for, their own and other cultures and ways of life (‘show and tell’, multi-faith assemblies, school assemblies, places of worship visits, individual talks, cultural reading—stories from  other stories in English/History themed dinner days throughout the year
• Challenge prejudicial or discriminatory behaviour (behaviour monitoring file, gospel values taught, themed assemblies, theatre visits)
• Visits to places of worship across the whole school-see below
• Study and develop links with faith communities; Christianity  Buddhism, Sikhism, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism
• Develop critical personal thinking skills (independence in lessons, independent learning through the new curriculum)
• Discuss differences between people, such as differences of faith, ethnicity, disability, gender and differences of family situations, such as looked-after children or young carers (if and when necessary).

British Values

British Values at St. Catherine of Siena

Through our Curriculum we teach about democracy, responsibility, rules and laws, the monarchy, equality, values and virtues, environmental awareness and importantly, RESPECT of other world faiths.

St Catherine Of Siena British Values Statement

Mutual respect is at the core of our school life. Pupils learn to treat each other and staff with great respect. This is evident when walking around the school environment and in the classrooms. Our Mission Statement  is “We live, we learn and grow in God’s love ”  and it is seen throughout the various relationships between pupils, staff and all stakeholders throughout the school.

Tolerance and respect. At St. Catherine’s, we offer a culturally rich and diverse curriculum in which Catholicism is taught and other major religions are fully respected.

At St. Catherine’s, we strongly believe that tolerance is gained through knowledge and understanding. Through our curriculum and the routines of our daily school life, we strive to demonstrate tolerance and help children to become knowledgeable and understanding citizens who can build a better Britain for the future.

The Rule of Law. Our pupils will encounter rules and laws throughout their entire lives. We want our pupils to understand that whether these laws govern the class, the school, family life, the neighbourhood or the country, they are set for good reasons and need to be followed.

This understanding of the importance of rules will be consistently reinforced through weekly assemblies and our creative curriculum. The involvement of our pupils in the creation of the school rules helps them to understand the reasons behind the rules and the consequences if they are broken. Through discussion, debate and enquiry in our lessons, we allow opportunity to discuss the reasons for laws so that children can recognise the importance of these for their own protection. Throughout the year we welcome visits from members of the wider community including police, nurses, the fire brigade and many more. We believe that clear explanations and real life stories emphasise the importance of the rule of law for our pupils.

Individual Liberty. We invest a great deal of time in creating a positive culture in our school, so that children are in a safe environment where choices and freedoms are encouraged. In lessons, learning tasks can often be left for the child to decide upon – promoting independent learning. We often encourage children to choose the task that will challenge them, giving them more freedom to determine their own learning. We offer a range of clubs which pupils have the freedom to choose from, based on their interests. Through our E-Safety and safeguarding agenda we educate children on their rights and personal freedoms as well as supporting them in recognising how to exercise these freedoms safely. At St Catherine’s Catholic Primary School, we believe that valuing choice and freedom in daily school life will foster a value for individual liberty as the children grow and learn in the image of Christ.

Rule of law – what do we do?

• Ensure school rules and expectations are clear and fair (pupil designed class rules, clear/concise school policy documentation)
• Help pupils to distinguish right from wrong (behaviour assemblies, golden behaviour awards, play-leader responsibility, pupil responsibilities in class and around school)
• Help pupils to respect the law and the basis on which it is made (Gospel value assemblies, public services presentations –police, fire service), Safeside Visits/
• Help pupils to understand that living under the rule of law protects individuals
• Develop restorative justice approaches to resolve conflicts (play-leader project, school counselling, anti-bullying week, black history week /conflict/resolution sessions, )
• Key rules  and guidelines that protect pupils and keep them safe throughout the curriculum eg. E-safety, playground rules, Golden rules, Road Safety, Fire safety,  School trips
• Use of DotCom resources to  promote law and values
• Class rules-Sunny and Sad side/ accepting consequences

Individual liberty – what we do?

• Support pupils to develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem and self-confidence and other values (whole school assemblies, house points, school rewards, golden book assembly, Dot Com Resources in our PSHE curriculum), School Council; Elections, Talent Shows)
• Encourage pupils to take responsibility for their behaviour, as well as knowing their rights and responsibilities: (behaviour monitoring, report charts, certificates to success), good behaviour assemblies and rewards)
• Model freedom of speech through pupil participation –in groups/class assemblies/ Role play across subjects /hot-seating –allowing pupils to voice views/opinions/debates/presentations across all areas

Allow choice of activities from Early Years throughout school. Allowing pupils to learn in their preferred way and plan activities according to learning styles. In doing  so we ensure protection of vulnerable pupils and promoting critical analysis of evidence

• Challenge stereotypes (New Curriculum, Black History Week, Multi-Faith Week, Dot Com.

How do we actively promote British Values?

At St Catherine’s, we actively promote values and focus on, and show how the school’s work is effective in securing these values; we challenge pupils, staff or parents who express opinions contrary to British values

Democracy – what do we do?

• Provide pupils with a broad general knowledge of, and promote respect for, public institutions and services (visits by fire-service, police and health nurses).
• Teach pupils how they can influence decision-making through the democratic process (personal manifesto, school and class councils.
• Include in the curriculum information on the advantages and disadvantages of democracy and how it works in Britain (new curriculum, police community officer visit).
• Encourage pupils to become involved in decision-making processes and ensure they are listened to in class, school (school / faith and class councils).
• Organise visits to the local council (when appropriate).
• Hold ‘mock elections’ so pupils learn how to argue and defend points of view (voting booth – KS2, school and class council deliberations, debates in English curriculum).
• Across classes children make choices from Early Years and throughout the curriculum-roles ad responsibilities/ good behaviour reward system.
• Help pupils to express their views (manifesto, pupil questionnaires, pupil interviews).
• Teach pupils how public services operate and how they are held to account (police, fire service and public services presentations).
• Model how perceived injustice can be peacefully challenged (Black History, Multi-faith Week, class, school assemblies, prayer services).
• Democratic processes of the Faith Council and other processes of election: parent governors, teachers.
• Decision making with class rules, voting on choices of  topics/activities within school.
• Rewards, questionnaires that allow pupils to voice opinions and to share viewpoints.
• Pupil interviews and application forms for roles and responsibilities eg dinner monitors, Parents’ Evening Monitors.

Resources, PSHE Week

• Implement a strong anti-bullying culture (school policy documentation, school rewards, anti-bullying week, class rules, individual lessons, theatre visits)
• Develop understanding of roles of key individuals  through History/RE –eg Harriet Tubman, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King
• Follow the UNICEF rights ‘respecting schools agenda’ (‘rights of the child at the heart of the school’).  St. Catherine’s has recently registered with UNICEF to work towards the ‘respecting schools award’

Respect and tolerance – what do we do?

• Promote respect for individual differences (whole school ethos, prayer, school assemblies, themed assemblies/ days, curriculum projects, Faith Council,
• Help pupils to acquire an understanding of, and respect for, their own and other cultures and ways of life (‘show and tell’, multi-faith assemblies, school assemblies, places of worship visits, individual talks, cultural reading—stories from  other stories in English/History themed dinner days throughout the year
• Challenge prejudicial or discriminatory behaviour (behaviour monitoring file, gospel values taught, themed assemblies, theatre visits)
• Visits to places of worship across the whole school-see below
• Study and develop links with faith communities; Christianity  Buddhism, Sikhism, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism
• Develop critical personal thinking skills (independence in lessons, independent learning through the new curriculum)
• Discuss differences between people, such as differences of faith, ethnicity, disability, gender and differences of family situations, such as looked-after children or young carers (if and when necessary).