Promoting British Values 

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, and these values have been reiterated by the Prime Minister.  At Eastchurch CEP School these values are reinforced regularly and in the following ways: 

Democracy: 

Democracy is widespread across our school. Pupils have the opportunity to have their voices heard through our School Council who meet regularly. Every child on the School Council is voted in by their class and have the opportunity to put forward their views and opinions at the meetings. We promote our own school Christian values on a daily basis in all that we do. The children articulate their use of Christian values in everyday life and they are hi lighted termly through our Collective Worship and ‘Values Tree’. 

The Rule of Law: 

The importance of laws, whether they be those that govern the class, the school, or the country, are consistently reinforced at Eastchurch CEP school. This happens throughout the school day when dealing with behaviour issues and through our daily acts of worship Pupils are taught the value and reasons behind laws, that they govern and protect us, the responsibilities that this involves and the consequences when laws are broken.  

Individual Liberty: 

At Eastchurch CEP School pupils are actively encouraged to make the right decisions, following our school Christian values. As a school we educate and provide boundaries for young pupils to make wise choices, through a provision of a safe environment and empowering education.  Pupils are encouraged to know, understand and exercise their rights and personal freedoms and are advised how to exercise these safely, for example, through our E-Safety and PSHE lessons. Whether it be through choice of challenge or choice of curriculum or involvement in enrichment and extra-curricular activities, pupils are given the freedom to make choices. 

Mutual Respect: 

One of our Core School Christian Values is ‘friendship’. Pupils have discussions both in class and Acts of Worship relating to what this means, how it is shown and how Jesus displayed it to others. Displays around the school promote our school Christian Values and this is reiterated through our classroom rules, as well as our behaviour policy. We have strong sporting values that are demonstrated through our team games against local schools and competitive sporting events that we attended. All children are taught to show good sportsmanship whether they win, lose or draw. Good manners are taught, recognised, encouraged, praised and rewarded. 

Tolerance of those of Different Faiths and Beliefs: 

Eastchurch CEP school is diverse. We actively promote diversity through our teaching and celebration of different faiths and cultures. As a Christian school we believe that we are all ‘equally different’.  Working collaboratively, we stand in strength and complement one another. We believe in ‘growth mind set’ and that every child from any faith, culture or background should be nurtured and educated with aspirational, ‘no boundaries’ targets and goals.