British Values at St Patrick’s Catholic Primary School

St. Patrick’s Catholic Primary School is committed to ensure that the pupils who are taught in our school are provided with a broad and balanced curriculum. One which prepares them for their future adult life and becoming a valued citizen of our ever changing society. We recognise the multi-cultural, multi faith and ever changing society of the United Kingdom and wish to prepare our pupils for the future. Since September 2014 the Department for Education has introduced a statutory duty for schools to promote British Values more actively and ensure that British Values are taught across the school. The five key British Values are:

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

At St. Patrick’s R.C. Primary School we aim to support our children to have full life in every sense of the word. Full as a person, as a learner, full spiritually, morally, socially and culturally. The values of the Gospel walk hand in hand with British values. Bringing with it:-solidarity, joy, truth, faith, hope, love, justice, peace and community with compassion, prayer and dignity.

These values are taught across the curriculum. We aim to encourage pupils to:

Reflect on their own and others beliefs gaining an appreciation for other’s viewpoints.
Gain a sense of enjoyment in learning about themselves, others and the world around them.
Recognise the difference between right and wrong, consider the consequences of their behaviour, hence gaining an understanding of civil and criminal law in the United Kingdom.
Gain a knowledge of Britain’s democratic parliamentary system past to present, including how citizens can influence decision-making through a democratic process (Voting and Election)
Understand, accept, reflect and celebrate diversity, showing a tolerance towards others in local, national and global communities.
The examples below show some of the many ways St. Patrick’s seeks to instil British Values.

Democracy:

Class rules are negotiated and our school council is democratically elected and regularly seeks the views of pupils on issues such as school improvement, fund raising ideas, charity events, fairness and equal opportunities. A member of the Governing Body attends school council meetings and supports the work of the school council.

The Rule of Law:

The importance of Laws, whether they be those that govern the class, school, or the country, are consistently reinforced across the school on a daily basis. We present a strong message in terms of code of conduct and the importance and reasons behind these rules. The school has a comprehensive behaviour policy which is reviewed regularly. All staff, pupils and parents sign a home /school agreement on admission to the school. All stakeholders are aware of their responsibilities and consequences of their actions.

The school has close links with the local community, we frequently invite our local parishioners to attend events in school and our priest Fr. Cooper visits frequently to interact with the school.

Individual Liberty:

Our reward system promotes positive behaviour and a sense of achievement in aiming to be the very best each individual can be. All pupils are encouraged to become independent learners, developing the 4 “R”s a thirst for knowledge and making informed choices from about their learning to the afterschool club they wish to commit to. 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 eSafety, RE and PSHE lessons.

Mutual Respect:

There is a strong ethos of respect at St. Patrick’s. We expect and hold the highest expectations for everyone in our school community, this is evident in our motto ‘May Christ be seen in Us’. Adults actively model respect to one another and with the pupils. We teach the pupils to take pride in themselves, their work, their school and local community. We are also striving to encourage the pupils to become good digital citizens, through the e safety curriculum and participation in Safer Internet Day. The message of mutual respect is demonstrated every day and reinforced through assemblies. In particular our assemblies celebrate the successes of individuals each week. We also raise funds for a range of charities, both locally and abroad.

Tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs:

We are proud of the cultural diversity of our school. We strive to provide lots of opportunities for our pupils to learn, understand and tolerate those of different faiths and beliefs. St Patrick’s has children who are baptised Catholic, Church of England and children who are not baptised. We celebrate all religions and actively promote diversity through our learning about different faiths and cultures. Religious Education lessons and PSHE lessons reinforce messages of tolerance and respect for others. We actively try to arrange opportunities for the children to visit places of worship that are important to different faiths.

We hope the pupils who attend St. Patrick’s R.C. Primary School will leave at the end of Key Stage 2 with the skills that will allow them to participate fully in and contribute positively to life in modern Britain.