British Values at St. Joseph’s
At St. Joseph’s, we want our children to understand that they belong to a wider world, and that as children of God, they have a responsibility to be respectful, tolerant, and compassionate members of society.
To support this, we actively promote Fundamental British Values, Protected Characteristics, and Character Virtues throughout our curriculum and wider school life. Our collective worship reflects the diverse religious backgrounds within our community, and we encourage pupils to regard people of all faiths, races, and cultures with respect and understanding.
Through this inclusive and values-driven approach, we aim to nurture thoughtful, empathetic individuals who contribute positively to their communities and the world around them.
The DfE have reinforced the need “to create and enforce a clear and rigorous expectation on all schools to 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.” The Government set out its definition of British Values in the 2011 Prevent Strategy.
Our framework for understanding British values draws on the example of Jesus and his welcome and inclusion of all, which is developed in Catholic Social Teaching. At St. Joseph’s we provide an education which focuses on the formation of the whole person and on our vocation and purpose in life. We place a significant emphasis on the celebration of individuality and difference within our communities and our calling to work for the Common Good, in the service of others.
At St. Joseph’s, these values are reinforced regularly and in the following ways:
Democracy
Democracy is embedded throughout our school curriculum. Pupils are always listened to by adults and are taught to listen carefully and with concern to each other, respecting the right of every individual to have their opinions and voices heard. Pupils also have the opportunity to air their opinions and ideas through our School Council and regular pupil questionnaires. The rule of democracy is introduced in the Early Years where children are exposed to voting through daily Book Votes. The elections of the School Council members are based solely on pupil votes, reflecting our British electoral system and demonstrating democracy in action.
The Rule of Law
The importance of laws, whether they are those that govern the class, the school or the country, are consistently reinforced. Our school has high expectations for behaviour, which are deeply embedded in our work every day. Each class also discusses right from wrong and sets their own class rules that are clearly understood by all and seen to be necessary to ensure that every class member is able to learn in a safe and ordered environment. Our pupils are taught our school values and what they look like in practice, which is progressive across phases. They are taught the reasons behind laws, that they govern and protect us, the responsibilities that this involves and the consequences when laws are broken. We want our children to have a positive view of law and have relationships with the police and our local MP, who regularly visits school.
Individual Liberty
Within school, pupils are actively encouraged to make choices, knowing that they are in a safe and supportive environment. As a school, we educate and provide boundaries for our pupils to make choices safely, through the provision of a safe environment and an empowering education. Our pupils are encouraged to know, understand and exercise their rights and personal freedoms and are advised how to exercise these safely; examples of this can be clearly seen in our e-safety and PSHE lessons. Whether it is through choice of challenge; of how they record; of participation in our numerous extra- curricular activities; our pupils are given the freedom to make choices and are encouraged to act responsibly and show initiative.
Mutual Respect
As a school that holds values at the core of its ethos, our school values and behaviour policies have evolved around Character Virtues, such as ‘Respect’. The pupils have been part of discussions and collective worship related to what this means and how it is shown. Respect is one of the values that is taught explicitly within lessons, collective worship, enabling pupils to contribute positively to the lives of those living and working in the locality of our school. It is shared with home through newsletters and website information. Adults throughout the school model, demonstrate and promote respect for others as do older children who have suitable, age related, tasks and responsibilities and this is reiterated throughout classroom and learning rules, as well as our behaviour.
Tolerance of Those with Different Faiths and Beliefs
Our Character Virtues and school rule of Respect ensures an inclusive environment for all and an appreciation for all faiths and beliefs. St. Joseph’s enhances pupils’ understanding of different faiths and beliefs through Religious Education studies; PSHE work; assemblies; participation in celebrations such as Diwali and Holi; welcoming visitors from other schools and religions in order to celebrate differences. Beliefs, traditions and customs from around the world are studied, with visitors being invited into our school to enrich and extend understanding. Through these activities, our pupils gain an enhanced understanding of their place in a culturally diverse society and an understanding of the importance of identifying and combatting discrimination.
Children are explicitly taught about British Values and they are regularly discussed during lessons, PSHE lessons and weekly Picture News assemblies