and also other important information about our school. Use the links at the side of the page to navigate through this information.

We start with a Summary of Canonbury’s Race Equality and Cultural Diversity Policy

Context of Canonbury Primary School

Canonbury Primary School has an increasing number of children from diverse racial, religious, linguistic, cultural and social backgrounds.The percentage of pupils speaking English as an additional language is 14.6%, with Turkish-speakers being the largest group.   The percentage of pupils from ethnic minority backgrounds including EAL pupils is 28.6%.
Ethos
We at Canonbury School believe that individuals from all racial, religious, cultural and linguistic groups are entitled to learn, teach or work in a supportive environment in which self-esteem is enhanced.

 We aim to celebrate the diversity of our school and local community, in order to ensure individuals leave our school fully prepared and equipped to take their place successfully in the multi-cultural society in which we live, knowing that everyone is entitled to respect and is expected to be respectful.

Canonbury School  intends to achieve the above  aims  by: 


·eliminating unlawful racial, religious and cultural discrimination at all levels within the school community;

·promoting equality of opportunity for all members of the school;

·promoting good relations between children and adults of different racial or cultural groups, including those with different languages or  religious beliefs.

Teaching and learning

·Teaching and learning opportunities should ensure that all pupils and staff  feel valued and contribute fully to the life of the school;

·Teaching should take account of pupils’ cultural backgrounds, language needs and different learning styles;

·Different cultural traditions should be valued to enable pupils to make connections with their own lives.

·Staff should have equally high expectations of all pupils and be committed to encouraging and helping them to achieve the highest standards;

·Staff should recognise and value different kinds of achievement ;

·Pupil attainment should be monitored and analysed by racial groups, in order to identify any trends or patterns of underachievement.

The curriculum

·The curriculum should be delivered in such a way as to include the principle of race equality and also recognise and value diversity;

·Children should have opportunities to explore questions of identity, race equality and racism;

·Children should be given opportunities to experience other cultures;

·Extra-curricular activities and events should reflect the interests, cultures and religions of all members of the school and local community;

Pupil’s personal development and pastoral care

.The school should support victims of discrimination and  harassment ;

·Teachers should give pupils the understanding they need to recognise prejudice and reject discrimination.

·Pastoral support should take into account religious and ethnic differences, and the experiences and needs of particular groups of pupils, including refugees and asylum seekers;

·Teachers should avoid reinforcing stereotypical views of society, by careful use of language, resources and activities which challenge assumptions about ability or interest, based on race, religion or culture.

Behaviour, discipline and exclusion

·Procedures for disciplining pupils and managing behaviour should be fair to pupils from all racial , religious and cultural groups;

·Rewards and sanctions should be consistent ;

·Exclusions should be monitored to identify any trends or patterns;

·Strategies should be put in place to meet the needs of any child , from whatever racial/cultural group, who is at risk of frequent discipline sanctions or exclusion.

Partnerships with parents and guardians, and the local community

·Steps should be taken to encourage parents and carers from all racial, religious or cultural groups to become involved in the school;

·Information for parents/carers should be written clearly and if necessary, available in other languages;

·Opportunities should be created to invite volunteers and members of the community from all different racial and religious groups to contribute to the life of the school.

Addressing racism and xenophobia

·Staff will teach children that racism and discrimination in any form is unacceptable;

·Children and parents/carers and staff will be informed about the procedures for dealing with racist incidents and harassment ;

·Staff will be trained to make sure they know how to deal firmly, effectively and consistently with racist incidents, harassment and bullying;

·Racist incidents and harassment will be recorded, investigated and reported to the LEA (via the Head);

·Staff will challenge any behaviour (verbal or written, eg. graffiti, literature/propaganda) that differentiates, degrades or isolates an individual or group due to race, religion, language or culture;

This includes:

·         racist comments or name calling

·         comments about appearance.

·         Rejection by colour;

·         mocking language or accent;

·         denigrating religious observances or cultural traditions.

·The Governors are responsible for making sure the school complies with the amended Race Relations Act 1976, and making sure the Race Equality Policy and its procedures are followed.

·The Headteacher is responsible for making sure the Race Equality Policy is readily available and understood and followed by the governors, staff, pupils and parents/carers;

·Visitors, volunteers and contractors are responsible for knowing and following the schools Race Equality policy. 

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE FULL VERSION OF THIS RACE EQUALITY POLICY, PLEASE ASK AT THE OFFICE.