British Values
At Milton St John's we are committed to actively promoting British Values and this forms part of our wider work in school with children in relation to their Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural education (SMSC). At the heart of these values, lie good relationships in which all staff and pupils work together towards common goals.
The British Values are defined as:
Democracy
The rule of law
Individual liberty
Mutual respect
Tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.
At Milton St John's we aim to:
Actively promote the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty, and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs and encourage pupils to develop and demonstrate skills and attributes that will allow them to participate fully in and contribute positively to life in modern Britain.
We will ensure that principles are actively promoted which:
- Enable pupils to develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem and self-confidence
- Enable pupils to distinguish between right and wrong and to respect the civil and criminal law of England
- Encourage pupils to accept responsibility for their behaviour, show initiative and understand how they can contribute positively to the lives of those living and working in the locality in which the school is situated and to society more widely
- Enable pupils to acquire a broad general knowledge of and respect for public institutions and services in England
- Promote further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling pupils to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own and other cultures
- Encourage respect for other people, paying particular regard to the protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010
- Encourage respect for democracy and support for participation in the democratic process, including respect for the basis on which the law is made and applied in England
- Prevent the promotion of political views in the teaching of any subject in the school and take such steps as are reasonably practicable to ensure that where political issues are brought to the attention of pupils they are offered a balanced presentation of opposing views.
- Protect pupils against the messages of all violent extremism and radicalisation
The Governors and Staff at Milton St John's will:
- Ensure that the fundamental British values are embedded as an integral part of the ethos and culture of Milton St John's Primary School
- Challenge opinions or behaviours in school by pupils, staff, visitors, volunteers or parents that are contrary to fundamental British Values, including extremism or radicalisation
- Ensure that all visitors to Milton St John's are screened to ensure that they do not attempt to promote systems that undermine fundamental British values including extremism or radicalisation
- Ensure that our pupils understand that living under the rule of law protects individual citizens and is essential for their well-being and safety and that while different people may hold different views about what is 'right' and 'wrong', all people in England are subject to its law
- Teach our pupils about the democracy and the rule of English civil and criminal law and will not teach anything that undermines it
- Ensure all students within the school, regardless of age, have a voice that is listened to
- Demonstrate how democracy works and by developing an understanding of how citizens can influence decision-making by actively promoting democratic processes such as electing a school council whose members are voted for by students
- Ensure that our pupils understand that the freedom to choose and hold other faiths and beliefs is protected in law
- Ensure that we develop a tolerance and understanding of different faiths, cultures and beliefs by visiting places of worship, inviting visiting speakers to the school and using teaching resources from a wide variety of sources to help pupils understand a range of faiths
- Enable our students to develop and demonstrate skills and attitudes that will allow them to participate fully in the community of the school.
- Deliver a balanced programme of assemblies which promote student's Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development, providing a clear guidance on what is right and what is wrong
- Ensure an understanding of the importance of identifying and combatting discrimination, extremism and radicalisation
- Ensure that there are affective risk assessments, policies and procedures in place to safeguard and promote students' welfare against the threat of extremism and radicalisation