Public Sector Equality Duty

At Blackburn Primary School we welcome our duties under the Equality Act 2010. The school’s general duties with regard to equality are:

• Eliminating discrimination.
• Fostering good relationships.
• Advancing equality of opportunity.

We will not discriminate against, harass or victimise any staff member, pupil, prospective pupil, or other member of the school community because of their:

• Sex.
• Age.
• Race.
• Disability.
• Religion or belief.
• Sexual orientation.
• Gender reassignment.
• Pregnancy or maternity.
• Marriage and civil partnership.

We aim to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development, with special emphasis on promoting equality and diversity, and eradicating prejudicial incidents for pupils and staff. Our school is committed to not only eliminating discrimination, but also increasing understanding and appreciation for diversity.

Aims to Eradicate Discrimination 

We believe that a greater level of success from pupils and staff can be achieved by realising the uniqueness of individuals. Creating an inclusive environment where individuals feel confident and at ease is a commitment of the school. This environment will be achieved by:

• Our School values – Kind and Respectful, resilient, responsible, Aspire to excellence.
• Always treating all members of the school community fairly.
• Developing an understanding of diversity and inclusion and the benefits it can have through assemblies and the curriculum.
• Adopting an inclusive attitude and ensuring that the whole school community understands what inclusive behaviour looks like in the school and how this aligns with the school’s values

• Adopting an inclusive curriculum that is accessible to all.
• Encouraging compassion and open-mindedness.
• Challenging bias and calling it out in order to move the conversation forward.
• Being clear where protected characteristics are taught across school and how this is developed year on year (this document can be made available on request).
• Focus weeks to develop pupils knowledge further.

We are committed to having a balanced, diverse and fair curriculum. We believe that our pupils should be exposed to ideas and concepts that may challenge their understanding, to help ensure that pupils learn to become more accepting and inclusive of others. Challenging and controversial concepts will be delivered in a way that prevents discrimination and promotes inclusive attitudes.

Dealing with prejudice and celebrating diversity

We do not tolerate any form of prejudice-related incident. Whether direct or indirect, we treat discrimination against all members of our school with the utmost severity. When an incident is reported, our school is devoted to ensuring appropriate action is taken and a resolution is put into place which is both fair and firm.

Our pupils are taught to be:

• Understanding of others.
• Celebratory of diversity.
• Eager to reach their full potential.
• Inclusive – children are taught to be kind and respectful of others and responsible for there own actions. Children are taught this be growing their knowledge of other beliefs, religions, cultures and ways of life
• Aware of what constitutes discriminatory behaviour.

The school’s employees will not:

• Discriminate against any member of the school community.
• Treat other members of the school community unfairly.

The school’s employees will:

• Promote diversity and equality.
• Encourage and adopt an inclusive attitude.
• Lead by example.
• Seek training if they need to improve their knowledge in a particular area.

Throughout the year, the school provides a variety of opportunities to celebrate diversity, including:

• Planning activities for key diversity awareness days e.g. Black History month, LGBTQ+ history month, mental health week.
• Inviting guest speakers to talk to pupils about diversity.
• Incorporating lessons about diversity into the curriculum.

Equality and dignity in the workplace

We do not discriminate against staff with regard to their:

• Age.
• Disability.
• Gender reassignment.
• Marital or civil partner status.
• Pregnancy or maternity.
• Race. 
• Religion or belief.
• Sex.
• Sexual orientation.

Equality of opportunity and non-discrimination extends to the treatment of all members of the school community. All staff members are obliged to act in accordance will the school’s various policies relating to equality.

We will guarantee that no redundancy is the result of direct or indirect prejudice. All disciplinary procedures are non-prejudicial, whether they result in warnings, dismissal, or any other disciplinary action.

Diversity and representation

We recognise that diversity should be celebrated. We are aware of diversity within our community and therefore look to ensure there is representation in our school community through:

• Our reading spine
• The people we learn about in history
• Religious Education
• PSHE curriculum
• Assemblies and special events
• Visitors, trips and opportunities given to the children
• Exposure to different cultures, beliefs, religions and ways of life

Objectives

As part of the Public Sector Equality Duty, we have published our equality objectives below. These will be reviewed annually and updated where appropriate. They have been selected based on pupil data, stakeholder engagement and knowledge of our community:

Aims to eradicate discrimination/ Dealing with prejudice and celebrating diversity/ Advancing Equality of opportunity   

• Revisit content about different people in modern Britain frequently so that children develop a deeper understanding of the protected characteristics of race a religion (monitored through – curriculum plans and pupil voice).

Aims to eradicate discrimination/ Dealing with prejudice and celebrating diversity/ Advancing Equality of opportunity  

• To further engage with parents from a range of ethnic backgrounds and increase support for families where English is not the first language (monitored through conversations with parents, parent survey feedback, logs of support offered through CPOMS).

Equality and dignity in the workplace/ Advancing Equality of opportunity  

• As a school that is 64% boys, ensure that the curriculum and quality of teaching develops the learning of all children (Monitored through internal and statutory assessment data).

Aims to eradicate discrimination/ Dealing with prejudice and celebrating diversity/ Advancing Equality of opportunity  

• Develop the use of special events around protected characteristics to ensure that no member of our school community is alienated (monitored through social media, special event logs and pupil voice).