Friars Primary School and Nursery
Race Equality Policy
General Aims
At Friars Primary School and Nursery, we maintain the ideal of ‘Learning for All’, appreciating
that in our pluralistic society members of all ethnic groups, whether minority or majority,
should be recognised and valued.
Children are prepared for life in a multi-ethnic society.
They are helped towards an
awareness that people in Britain today come from a variety of cultural backgrounds and ethnic
origins and as such may have their own distinct language, religion and culture; including such
aspects as music, food, literature and customs. We aim to help children to develop the
necessary knowledge, understanding, skills and attitudes with which to play a full and active
part in our multi-ethnic society.
Equality of opportunity at Friars Primary School and Nursery is about providing equality and
excellence for all in order to promote the highest possible standards of achievement.
Equality of opportunity applies to all members of the school community – pupils, staff,
governors, parents and community members.
Aims of the School
We believe that a school is made up of people, not buildings. We want everyone to enjoy
being a member of this community and to feel a personal commitment to it.
Our aims are:
 to establish and maintain an environment where happy and successful pupils develop
a love of learning.
 to establish a disciplined and safe community where children and staff feel valued and
learn to value others.
 to provide a rich, balanced and stimulating curriculum so that we encourage all children
to develop their skills and understanding to their full potential, as well as seeing
academic, sporting, musical or aesthetic excellence as a positive asset.
 to provide children with the self-discipline, powers of reasoning and care for others and
the wider environment, so that they are able to make a real contribution to the
changing world in which they live.
These aims are designed to ensure that the school meets the needs of all, taking account of
gender, ethnicity, culture, religion, language, sexual orientation, age, ability, disability and
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social circumstances. It is important that in Friars Primary School and Nursery we meet the
diverse needs of pupils to ensure inclusion for all and that all pupils are prepared for full
participation in a multi-ethnic society.
Our Commitment to Race Equality
At Friars Primary School and Nursery we are committed to race equality and meet the specific
duties of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. In particular we aim to:
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ensure that all pupils and staff are encouraged and able to achieve to their full potential
respect and value differences between people
prepare pupils for life in a diverse society
acknowledge the existence of racism and take steps to prevent it
make the school a place where everyone, irrespective of their race, religion, ethnic or
national origin, feels welcomed and valued
promote good relations between different racial groups within the school and within the
wider community
ensure that an inclusive ethos is established and maintained
oppose all forms of racism, racial prejudice and racial harassment
be proactive in tackling and eliminating unlawful discrimination
Leadership and Management
All the school policies will, as they are reviewed, reflect a commitment to race equality.
The governing body and school management set a clear ethos, which reflects the school’s
commitment to equality for all members of the school community. Friars Primary School and
Nursery promotes positive and proactive approaches to valuing and respecting diversity. The
school management will work in partnership with others to oppose all forms of oppressive
behaviour, prejudice and discrimination.
Friars Primary School and Nursery ensures the involvement of governors and takes
appropriate steps to enable the contribution of parents. The evaluation of policies is used to
identify specific actions to address racial issues.
Teaching and curriculum development are monitored to ensure high expectations of all pupils
and appropriate breadth of content.
Additional grants and resources are appropriately targeted and monitored.
Staffing: Recruitment and Continuing Professional Development
Friars Primary School and Nursery adheres to recruitment and selection procedures, which
are fair, equal and in line with statutory duties and LA guidelines.
Steps are taken to ensure that everyone associated with the school is informed of the
contents of this policy. New staff become familiar with it as part of their induction programme
and it is made available on our school website.
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The skills of all staff, including support and part-time staff are recognised and valued.
staff are given status and support and are encouraged to share their knowledge.
All
Regular professional development activities are available for all staff members to support their
practice in relation to this policy. Staff and visitors provide a wide range of role models and
reflect the diversity of the local and wider community.
Curriculum
Curriculum planning takes account of the ethnicity, backgrounds and needs of all pupils.
The curriculum builds on pupils’ starting points and is differentiated appropriately to ensure
inclusion. The school monitors and evaluates its effectiveness in providing an appropriate
curriculum for pupils with all backgrounds.
Each area of the curriculum is planned to promote positive contributions to the spiritual,
moral, social and cultural development of all pupils.
The content of the curriculum reflects and values diversity.
bias and to challenge prejudice and stereotypes.
It encourages pupils to explore
Learning and Teaching
Teachers ensure that the classroom is an inclusive environment in which pupils feel all their
contributions are valued. Positive steps are taken to include all groups or individuals. All
pupils have access to the mainstream curriculum.
Teaching is responsive to pupils’ different learning styles and takes account of pupils’ cultural
backgrounds and linguistic needs. Pupil grouping in the classroom is planned and varied.
Assessment, Pupil Achievement and Progress
All pupils have the opportunity to achieve their highest standards. The school ensures that
assessment is free of any bias and that assessment methods are valid.
The monitoring and analysing of pupil performance enables the identification of groups of
pupils where there are patterns of underachievement. Action is taken to counter this.
Staff have very high expectations of all pupils and they continually challenge them to extend
their learning and achieve higher standards.
The school recognises all forms of
achievement.
School Ethos
Friars Primary School and Nursery opposes all forms of racism, harassment, prejudice and
discrimination.
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Clear procedures are in place to ensure that staff deal with all forms of harassment and
bullying promptly, firmly and consistently. Actions taken are in line with relevant LA policies
and guidance. All racial incidents are recorded, monitored and dealt with in line with relevant
school policies.
Pupils, staff and parents are aware of the procedures for dealing with intolerant behaviour and
that such behaviour is always unacceptable.
Behaviour, Discipline, Exclusions
Friars Primary School and Nursery’s procedure for disciplining pupils and managing
behaviour is fair and applied equally to all. We expect high standards of behaviour from all
the pupils. Any exclusions will be monitored and action will be taken to reduce any disparities
between different groups of pupils.
Pupils, staff and parents are aware of procedures for dealing with harassment and that any
racist language or behaviour is always unacceptable.
Admissions and Attendance
The admissions process is monitored fairly and consistently by the local authority.
Attendance is monitored and action is taken in order to reduce any disparities between
different groups of pupils.
Partnership with Parents and the Community
All parents are encouraged to participate at all levels in the full life of the school.
Friars Primary School and Nursery works in partnership with parents and the community to
develop positive attitudes to diversity and to address specific incidents.
The school takes steps to encourage the involvement and participation of under represented
groups of parents and sections of the community.
Identifying Racist Behaviour
At Friars Primary School and Nursery, all children and adults are encouraged to respect each
other’s:
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cultural heritage
beliefs and practices
There are occasions when a child or adult might exhibit racist behaviour towards another
person. These need to be swiftly identified and dealt with.
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Racist behaviour can take a variety of forms. Some of these are more obviously offensive
than others. However, some apparently harmless incidents can be damaging in the long
term. Below are examples of the kinds of incidents that we may encounter.
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Derogatory name calling, insults, racist jokes and language
Racist comments during discussion in lessons
Ridicule of an individual for cultural differences, for example food, music, dress
Refusal to co-operate with others because of their ethnic origin
Verbal abuse and threats
Physical assault against a person or group because of colour and/or ethnicity
Racist graffiti
Procedures for dealing with and reporting racial incidents
Category
a) Derogatory name-calling,
insults, racist jokes and
language
b) Racist comments in the
course of discussion in
lessons
c) Ridicule of an individual
for cultural differences, for
example food, music, dress,
etc.
d) Refusal to co-operate with
other pupils because of their
race, colour, ethnicity or
language.
e) Verbal abuse and threats
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Suggested Actions
 Explain fully to the perpetrator that verbal racist abuse will not
be tolerated
 Individuals who are persistently abusive must be referred to the
headteacher
 Parents should be informed
 Offer support to the victim and counselling for the perpetrator
 Record in the Racial Incident Record Book
 Racist statements must not be allowed to go unchallenged
 Pupils who are persistently abusive must be referred to the
headteacher
 Parents/guardians should be informed
 Record in the Racial Incident Record Book
 Members of staff must not ignore any form of ridicule
 Explain fully to the perpetrator that racist behaviour will not be
tolerated
 Individuals who are persistently abusive must be referred to the
headteacher
 Parents should be informed
 Offer support to the victim and counselling to the perpetrator
 Record in the Racial incident Record Book
 Explain that pupils should work collaboratively. Every pupil
should have the right to be included in school activities and the
school should not exclude any pupil on racial, cultural or
linguistic grounds
 Pupils persistently refusing to co-operate must be referred to
the headteacher
 Parents/guardians should be informed
 Offer support to the victim and counselling for the perpetrator
 Record in the Racial Incident Record Book
 Members of staff must not ignore any form of verbal racist
abuse in the school
 Explain fully to the perpetrator that verbal racist abuse will not
be tolerated
 Individuals who are persistently abusive must be referred to the
headteacher
 Parents/guardians should be informed
 Offer support to the victim and counselling to the perpetrator
 Record in the Racial Incident Record Book
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f) Physical assault
g) Racist graffiti
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Report to the class teacher, or headteacher as appropriate
Full report to the headteacher
Full report to parents/guardians
Take necessary action to prevent recurrence
Offer support to the victim and counselling to the perpetrator
Record in the Racial Incident Record Book
All racist graffiti in the school must be reported to the
headteacher and should be removed immediately
Regular checks should be made and steps taken to discourage
reappearance of graffiti
Record in the Racial Incident Record Book
Incidents Involving Staff
An allegation of racist behaviour on the part of any member of the teaching or non-teaching
staff is a serious disciplinary matter and will be the responsibility of the governing body. In
addition there are specific procedures for dealing with racial harassment as part of staff
grievance procedures.
Where the victim of alleged racist behaviour is a pupil, the headteacher should, after careful
investigation, seek to resolve the matter informally. A report will be sent to the local authority.
If the matter cannot be resolved satisfactorily at this stage then the parents/guardian should
submit the complaint in writing to the headteacher who will investigate the case further and
take the appropriate action. This could involve the use of formal disciplinary procedures.
Where a member of staff is the victim of racist behaviour by pupils, it is important that full
support is given to the member of staff concerned. Parents / Guardians should be informed
and appropriate action taken.
Incidents Outside School
There may well be occasions when racial incidents outside school, or involving outside
perpetrators, are brought to the attention of the headteacher. These incidents should be
reported to the appropriate authorities. Opportunities should also be taken to condemn such
incidents publicly.
Racial Tension
It is important that teachers are sensitive to all signs of possible victimisation of individual
pupils or groups of pupils and that this should also be reported, even where there is no
identifiable incident. Similarly, all behaviour which can be seen as possibly reflecting racial
tension within the school as a whole should be reported, for example small groups of pupils
forming isolated groups within the playground or the classroom.
Supporting the Victims
It is important that the school creates a climate in which victims of racial incidents feel able to
report them. All staff and pupils should be encouraged to report incidents that they witness
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and all such reports should be followed up.
Staff will wish to consider the particular
vulnerability of pupils with special educational needs who may also be prey to racism within
the school but find communication on their position and feelings difficult.
Staff dealing with such incidents should be sensitive to the issue of retaliation on the part of
the victim, which may be a reaction to a long series of relatively minor incidents that have not
been reported or dealt with appropriately.
It may be appropriate to involve parents when offering support to victims and also, in some
cases, to involve the Education Welfare Service and other agencies.
Victims of racial
incidents may require pastoral support over a long period in order to regain personal
confidence. In addition the school needs to demonstrate its willingness and ability to address
the issue of racial harassment. Where the victim of a racial incident is a member of staff,
support is available through the Staff Welfare Section in addition to support from colleagues.
Wider Implications
In dealing with a racial incident, it is important to recognise the wider implications for the
school and the local community. All appropriate members of staff must be made aware of
any incident and senior management and the governing body will be involved as necessary.
Advice from the Southend-on-Sea Borough Council’s adviser for racial equality will be sought
before responding to approaches by the media over alleged racial incidents. Additional
support may be obtained through links with other local schools.
Monitoring and Reporting
Records are kept of racial incidents in the headteacher’s office. This will provide evidence
whereby individuals or groups can be shown to be regular victims or perpetrators of racial
harassment. The examination of these records on a regular basis by the headteacher will
also provide the school with a picture of the frequency and nature of racial incidents and give
some indication as to how effectively the school is combating such behaviour. Numbers of
incidents will be reported to the governing body on an annual basis.
(Mrs Woolf in her capacity as executive headteacher is responsible for dealing with reported
racial incidents).
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