Equality and Diversity
Equality is very important to us. The primary aim of our school is to enable all pupils to take part as fully as possible in every part of school life by developing each child’s self-confidence, recognising their strengths and encouraging them to achieve their full potential. At Forest Glade we will take steps to advance equality of opportunity, foster good relations and eliminate discrimination or harassment across all the protected characteristics (age, race, gender reassignment, disability, marriage and civil partnership, religion and belief, pregnancy and maternity, gender, sexual orientation) within the school community.
1. We aim to ensure that everyone is treated fairly and with respect.
2. We aim to make sure our school is a safe, secure, warm and stimulating place for everyone.
3. We recognise that people have different needs, and we understand that treating people equally and fairly does not mean that you have to treat everyone the same.
4. We recognise that for some pupils extra/different support is needed to help them achieve and become successful.
5. We strive to make others understand points 3 and 4 and recognise that all learners are of equal value.
6. We aim to make sure that people from different groups are consulted and involved in our school decisions, for example, talking to all members of staff, pupils, parents, the school council and governors. We foster positive attitudes and relationships and a shared sense of cohesion and belonging.
7. We observe good equalities practice in staff recruitment, retention and development and promotion; the numbers of part time and full time staff; pay and remuneration and training. Appraisal, grievances, disciplinary action, dismissals and other reasons for leaving.
8. We aim to make sure that no-one experiences harassment, less favourable treatment or discrimination due to protected characteristics (see below).
Our Legal Duty:
The Equality Act protects people from discrimination on the basis of ‘protected characteristics’. Every person has several of the protected characteristics, so the Act protects everyone against unfair treatment.
The protected characteristics are:
- Age
- Disability
- Gender reassignment
- Marriage and civil partnership
- Pregnancy and maternity
- Race
- Religion and belief
- Sex
- Sexual orientation
STATUTORY DUTIES
We welcome our responsibility to fulfil the number of statutory duties that must be met by every school in line with legislation form the Race Relations Amendment Act 2000, Disability Equality Duty 2005 and the Equality Act of 2010. Namely:
1. To eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and any other conduct prohibited by the Equality Act 2010.
2. To advance/promote equality of access and opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not share it.
3. To promote and foster good relations and positive attitudes between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not share it. For example, promoting differences and forming good relationships between people with different backgrounds, genders, cultures, faiths, abilities and ethnic origins.
We also take seriously our specific duties to publish information every year about our school population, to explain how we have due regard for equality and to publish the equality objectives we as a school are working on that are pertinent to us. We will show how we plan to tackle particular inequalities in our school and reduce or remove them. We also welcome our duty under the Education and /inspections Act 2006 to promote Community Cohesion. We welcome the emphasis in the Ofsted Inspection /framework on the importance of narrowing the gaps in achievement which affect, amongst others….
- Pupils from certain cultural and ethnic backgrounds
- Disadvantaged pupils – who belong to low-income households and pupils known to be eligible for Free School Meals/Pupil Premium.
- Pupils who have a disability or are in the process of being diagnosed.
- Pupils with Special Educational Needs
- Boys in certain subjects and girls in others.
- Our vulnerable pupils, where we know or believe home circumstances are unsettled in some way.