Back in October, we consulted all pupils during year group assemblies on the Rights that they thought were most important and what actions need to be carried out to ensure that these Rights are met. We had a very positive response and the following Rights were highlighted as integral to creating a Rights based school:
81% - Article 12 ‘You have the right to give your opinion, and for adults to listen and take it seriously.’
73% – Article 28 ‘You have the right to a good quality education. You should be encouraged to go to school to the highest level you can’
67% – Article 19 ‘You have the right to be protected from violence, from being hurt and mistreated, in body or mind.’
57% – Article 3 ‘All adults should do what is best for you. When adults make decisions, they should think about how their decisions will affect children.’
Following this consultation, members of the pupil council and RRSA steering group were invited to two afternoon sessions in the Church Halls where the content of our Charter would be decided. This involved looking at the results from the pupil consultation – pairing Rights with actions; considering our school aims and values, and how these could link to our Charter; as well as deciding on how our Charter would look. The pupils involved were all very enthusiastic and came up with some super ideas! These have then been translated into our final School Charter, which is shown below.
The Charter has since been approved by the Parent Council and school staff – as this is an agreement that must be formed between everyone in the school and the school community.
The Charter will now be launched at the assemblies in February and all pupils will be given a sticky copy to put into their homework diary. What we need now is for everyone to use the Charter on a daily basis. It should:
• Be displayed around the school and in all classrooms
• Inform how we act towards one another (pupils and staff) in all situations
• Indicate what must be done to ensure these Rights are upheld. Young people have all of these Rights highlighted – pupils and staff must follow these actions to ensure an individual’s Rights and those of others are met. This is everyone’s REPONSIBILITY.
We hope to work towards our assessment for the Rights Respecting Schools Award in the coming months. We will continue to survey pupil opinion to ensure that we are on track and promoting the Rights of everyone.