British Values

At Willow Primary School we are fortunate that our children, their families, our staff and other partners represent a diverse range of home backgrounds.

We teach a knowledge enhanced topic based curriculum which links with the national curriculum. It also incorporates the interests of children, our community and supports them in becoming good local, national and global citizens of the future.

The Department for Education states that there is a 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”.

Our school reflects British values in all that we do, we also refer to them as our ASPIRE Values. 

 We nurture our children on their journey through life so they grow in to caring, responsible and tolerant adults who celebrate diversity and difference, make a positive difference to British society and to the wider world. We encourage them to be creative, unique, open-minded and independent individuals, respectful of themselves and others in our school, our local community and beyond.

At Willow Primary School, we actively promote British values in the following ways:

Democracy

Children are encouraged to debate topics of interest, express their views and make a meaningful contribution to the running of the school. They are able to do this in a number of ways e.g. curriculum planning; Pupil Leadership Team election; questionnaires and surveys; assemblies.

Rule of Law

We have a clear positive behaviour policy which helps children to make good choices about their behaviour. Children are helped to distinguish right from wrong, in the classroom, during assemblies and in the playground. This is supported by a Restorative Practice approach. Children are encouraged to respect the law and we enjoy visits from services such as the Police and Fire services to help reinforce the message.

Individual Liberty

At school, children are encouraged, and given the freedom to make choices, knowing that they are in a safe and supportive environment, e.g. Challenging themselves in their learning. They are supported to develop self-knowledge, self-confidence and a growth mind set in all areas of school life through our Learning Superpowers and ASPIRE Values.  Children are taught to understand and exercise their rights and personal freedoms in a safe way, e.g. PSHCE lessons and our Safeguarding Curriculum. 

They have key responsibilities in school like being a Playground Reading Leader, a Pupil Leader who form part of the school council, an Anti Bullying Ambassador or an Active Playground Leader.

Mutual Respect and Tolerance of Those with Different Faiths and Beliefs

Respect is one of our four rules and a central part of our ASPIRE Values (the 'R' in ASPIRE  stands for Respect).  Children understand that respect is shown to everyone, both adults and children and we help them to develop an understanding of, and respect for, their own and other cultures in many ways. We work with parents and members of our community to celebrate our Heritage and the local community. Staff and children are encouraged to challenge prejudicial or discriminatory behaviour. Links with local faith communities and visits to places of worship is promoted and people from different faiths are invited to school to share their experiences in assemblies and in class. Through the PSHCE, Nurture groups and RE curriculum children are encouraged to discuss and respect differences and similarities between people. We offer a culturally rich and diverse curriculum in which all major religions are studied as well as learning about the world through our topics.