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Part of theAssisi Catholic Trust

British Values

As part of the Equalities Act, our definition of British values are:

  • Democracy
  • The rule of law
  • Individual liberty
  • Mutual respect
  • Tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs

We focus on these through our curriculum and day-to-day interactions, embedding and promoting fundamental British values, particularly through our Come and See curriculum; collective worship (assemblies); and PSHE lessons. 

The Department for Education state 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.

How do we embed British values at olol?

At OLOL, we provide an education that focuses on the formation of the whole person and on our vocation and purpose in life. We are guided by our mission statement of ‘Love like Mary, Serve like Mary, Learn like Mary, Believe like Mary’ and by the Christian values of understanding, respect, kindness, faith, responsibility as well as always striving for excellence as we reflect on our place and purpose in the world. At our school, we actively promote the Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural development (SMSC) of our pupils. We 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. These fundamental British values underpin our school’s culture and support our ethos of developing a well-rounded individual. British values are promoted in so much of what we do especially through the curriculum, the learning environment, assemblies, playtimes and interactions between people as part of the daily life of the school. Below are some of the ways that we promote British values at Our Lady of Lourdes.

Democracy

Children have many opportunities for their voices to be heard throughout the school day, as well as through our School Council and through questionnaires which seek their views. The School Council meets regularly to focus on whole school projects and to discuss concerns or issues raised in class. The children who represent classes on our School Council were nominated and voted for by the children in their class. We have a house system which is led by the Year 6 House Captains.

Children are also provided with opportunities to learn about the democratic process of voting at relevant times such as during a General Election. Children learn about the background to our democracy through assemblies, for example, the Magna Carta, its importance in shaping our democracy and democracies around the world, and the founding values of Britain. Assemblies have also shown children the historical background to the right of the individual to vote. We welcome our local MP, Anna Firth to come and speak to the children about her role in Parliament. 

 

Rule of Law

The children learn about the importance of rules in school and the laws of the land during assemblies and Personal, Social, Health and Emotional (PSHE) learning whether they are those that govern the class, the school or the country. The rules of school are consistently reinforced throughout the school day, when dealing with behaviour and through school assemblies. At the beginning of the school year all classes in school agree on a set of class expectations and responsibilities. These are displayed in classrooms and are regularly referred to throughout the school year. We follow a positive behaviour policy and clearly understand the rewards and sanctions that are used. We teach the reasons behind rules and laws that govern and protect us, the responsibility they have to keep these rules and laws and the consequences when these are broken.

Individual Liberty

In our community, children are actively encouraged to make choices knowing they are in a safe and supportive environment. We encourage pupils to see themselves as unique individuals able to make a contribution to building our community. We feel that developing a child’s self-esteem and self-confidence is important. Children are encouraged to know, understand and exercise their rights, responsibilities and personal freedoms and receive advice about how to exercise these safely, for example through discussions of online-safety, assemblies, circle time, the PSHE curriculum and whole school responsibilities. We have a strong anti-bullying culture and we use role play, discussions, circle time and our home, school partnership to manage conflict should it occur. All children are keen to support charities, whether local, national or global. They are taught consideration for others through our Religious Education curriculum and PSHE lessons, in particular.

Mutual Respect

At Our Lady of Lourdes, all members of our community are expected to treat each other with respect and to be good role models at all times. Our children learn that their behaviours have consequences and these can have an effect on their own rights and the rights of others. At our school, we encourage children to accept a person for who they are, and to recognise that it is possible for people to have different views but still be able to get along. We fundamentally believe that children learn how to behave during their primary career, and that it is our responsibility to teach the children to learn how to behave. 

Tolerance of other beliefs and faiths

Through our PSHE learning and our the Religious Education curriculum 'Come and See', we learn about other faiths, cultures and beliefs. We visit other faith places of worship and we respect and value other faiths, cultures and beliefs. Assemblies and our Religious Education curriculum include facts and stories from a variety of faiths and cultures. In this way we seize every opportunity to embrace and celebrate the diversity within our wider community. Children learn about places of worship that are important to different faiths and we welcome visitors to school to help children’s understanding. Children are expected to work and play positively with each other. At Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Primary school we will actively challenge children, parents or staff expressing opinions contrary to fundamental British values, including extremist views.