Promotion of British Values

The Department for Education outlines a five-part definition of British values:

• Democracy
• the rule of law
• individual liberty
• mutual respect
• tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs

At Holly Lodge students will encounter these principles throughout everyday school life in the schools’ promotion of spiritual, moral, social and cultural understanding both across the curriculum and as part of its ethos.
Listed below are some examples of how we promote these values in our school community:

Democracy

At Holly Lodge the strengths and advantages of the democratic system are highlighted both within the curriculum and as part of our whole school ethos and approaches.  To highlight the importance of gender equality and electoral responsibility, especially in a girls’ school, our new building has been named, in consultation with pupils, after the founder of the women’s suffrage movement, Emmeline Pankhurst.  Pupils are currently investigating the development of links with charities founded by descendants of the Pankhurst family to promote the ongoing concern for the welfare of others which underlines social responsibility. Pupil voice is significant at Holly Lodge. Pupils have been consulted on the design of the new school uniform and on aspects of our new build particularly on the design of the pupil toilets. The pupil elected school council plays a strong role in our school and pupils’ active participation is encouraged. School council members are elected by their peers and are involved in decision- making at the school.  Formal elections are held for each year council using voting papers, voting booths and returning officers. Pupil questionnaires and interviews are also conducted throughout the year. Pupils are part of the interview process for all new staff at Holly Lodge.  At Head teacher’s Question time Assemblies, regularly held with each year group during the year, opportunities are provided for pupils to understand how they as pupils, and in the future as citizens, can influence decision making through the democratic process. The school takes part in the Liverpool Schools’ Parliament and has links with the Town Hall where pupils have experienced the role of Young Lord Mayor. Local MPs, including Stephen Twigg and Luciana Berger, have visited the school to take part in lessons, hold debates with pupils and to speak to Year groups at Assemblies to demonstrate how democracy works.

The Rule of Law

At Holly Lodge   the importance of rules and the importance of distinguishing right from wrong is consistently reinforced through assemblies and the curriculum. Form tutors and all teaching and pastoral staff highlight and reinforce the school’s code of conduct and classroom expectations in line with the school’s behavior support policy which encourages all in within our community to realize their potential, providing a safe, caring, happy and purposeful environment. The Iris monitoring system is used to monitor pupils’ conduct and to support good learning and behaviour from all students. Pupils have opportunities to work with others to resolve conflicts in line with restorative justice approaches via the work of Progress Managers and Form teachers, access to mentors and in the work of the school council.
The school’s links with the school’s Safer Schools’ officer further supports pupils’ understanding of and respect for the rule of law. All members of the school community are responsible for the implementation of the school code of conduct, promoting pupils’ understanding of the consequences of their actions.

Individual Liberty

Through Assemblies, PSHE, the work of pastoral staff and throughout the curriculum at Holly Lodge, pupils are encouraged to take responsibility for their own behaviour, to understand their rights and personal freedoms and to recognise how they can exercise these freedoms safely. Ethical debates across the curriculum and in subjects such as English Literature, RE, Sociology and PSHE also highlight the themes of liberty and personal freedom.  Freedom of speech is modelled across the curriculum through active pupil participation in lessons which also encourage critical analysis of evidence and the opportunity to learn how to argue and defend points of view. Pupils’ ability to think through reasons for their actions is fostered in the schools’ promotion of teaching styles which value pupils’ questions and give them space for their own thoughts, ideas and concerns.  A range of extra- curricular clubs is offered to pupils at Holly Lodge which they can choose from based on their individual interests.

Mutual respect

Mutual respect is at the core of the inclusive ethos at Holly Lodge.
‘At Holly Lodge, students’ spiritual, moral and social development is excellent and clearly evidenced in the strong spirit of tolerance and respect for others which permeates the school.’ Ofsted

Tolerance of those of different faiths and beliefs

The curriculum and ethos at Holly Lodge prepares pupils for life in a multi-racial and multi-cultural society where respect and tolerance are important. All pupils at KS3 follow a multi faith RE course which employs a wide variety of teaching resources to enable pupils to develop their understanding of a range of faiths, encouraging them to treat people of all faiths races and cultures with respect and tolerance. All pupils follow GCSE RE courses at KS4 which further enable them to consider and evaluate a range of ethical issues, human rights moral responsibility and democratic processes.  The lack of incidents revealed in the school’s racist incident log indicates the tolerance and harmony evident within the school community.