British Values
At St Mary’s CE Primary we promote British values of democracy, rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs through our daily school life as well as our curriculum.
Democracy
Our children have a ‘voice’ and are consulted on school issues whenever possible. We have a School Council that is democratically elected by peers and staff collectively. They meet once a month with teaching staff to discuss concerns raised by their peers.
Rule of Law
Children are fully involved in establishing appropriate school rules and practices. They discuss and agree these each year and understand the need for them to be in place and kept. They sign an agreement whereby they are formally agreeing to work within these at all times. A system of rewards and sanctions is established based on these rules to which the children all adhere.
Individual Liberty
The school ethos is one that truly reflects the basic needs and liberties of all of God’s children. All children have the right to feel safe and secure at St Mary’s and everyone contributes to that. Independence is strongly encouraged as necessary for each child’s development. Children have a range of responsibilities and are strongly encouraged to be independently responsible for this undertaking. Children are encouraged to look at the liberties of others and are supported in their fundraising ideas, eg. to support Comic Relief and build links with children’s charities in other countries as well as locally.
Mutual Respect
Our aim is to be a fully inclusive school community at all times. The size of our school ensures that all children have many opportunities to get to know one another but there are additional ways in which this is managed:
We encourage friendships across the age groups; this develops friendships across the school. Our pupils take part in a range of inter-school activities and events within the county. These include singing and many sporting and multi-skill events, most of which are competitive. All experiences develop a strong sense of ‘team spirit’ and ‘fair play’.
Tolerance of different faiths and beliefs
Our children and families come from a diverse range of cultural, social and religious backgrounds which we thoroughly embrace. Opportunities are taken to work together and learn from one another by sharing knowledge and experiences. The teaching of Religious Education and collective worship provides a range of opportunities to extend knowledge and develop understanding and empathy. Children are encouraged to show their appreciation for all faiths and festivals through study within the curriculum as well as through music and art forms.
Our children have wide experiences of British culture through our curriculum. Local areas of historic interest are also visited for example the Black and White House in Hereford.