Our Equalities Statement

The Equality Act 2010 is a new law which protects people from discrimination. It replaces all previous, separate equality laws including the Disability Discrimination Act, Race Relations Act and many others.

What does this mean for school governing bodies?

The Act covers all aspects of school life which are to do with how a school treats its pupils and prospective pupils, and their parents and carers; how it treats its employees; and how it treats members of the local community.

The Act makes it unlawful to discriminate against an individual accessing education provision. A school must not discriminate against a pupil with regards to:

Admissions
Provision of education
Access to any benefit, facility or service
Exclusions

It is also unlawful for a school to harass or victimise a pupil.

What do schools have to do?

Schools and other public sector organisations have two sets of specific duties which they must achieve to show that they are meeting their duty, they must:

Publish information which demonstrates their compliance with the duty to have due regard for the three aims of the general duty (as detailed earlier on page 1 above)
Prepare and publish specific and measurable objectives which they will pursue over the coming years to achieve the three aims

School governing bodies should work closely with the whole school community to:

Evaluate how well the school is already achieving the three aims of the general duty across all of the protected characteristics listed earlier;
Identify where there are gaps and prioritise these for actions identifying at least 3 measurable ‘equality objectives’ to focus on over the next 3 years;
Develop a ‘Single Equality’ Policy, detailing all protected characteristics, and making clear the school’s responsibilities under the Act, its commitment and what it will do to achieve ‘equality of opportunity’ for the whole school community.

The Equality Act 2010 requires us to publish information that demonstrates that we have due regard for the need to:

Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct prohibited by the Equality Act 2010
Advance equality of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not share it
Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not share it.

We understand the principal of the act and the work needed to ensure that those with protected characteristics are not discriminated against and are given equality of opportunity.

We welcome our general duty under the Equality Act 2010 to eliminate discrimination, to advance equality of opportunity and to foster good relations, and our specific duties to publish information every year about our school population; to explain how we have due regard for equality; and to publish equality objectives which show how we plan to tackle particular inequalities, and reduce or remove them.

We also welcome our duty under the Education and Inspections Act 2006 to promote community cohesion.

We welcome the emphasis in the Ofsted inspection framework on the importance of narrowing gaps in achievement.

Our school is committed to equality both as an employer and a service-provider:

We try to ensure that everyone is treated fairly and with respect.
We want to make sure that our school is a safe, secure and stimulating place for everyone.
We recognise that people have different needs, and we understand that treating people equally does not always involve treating them all exactly the same.
We recognise that for some pupils, extra support is needed to help them to achieve and be successful.
We try to make sure that people from different groups are consulted and involved in our decisions, for example through talking to pupils and parents/carers, and through our School Council.
We aim to make sure that no-one experiences harassment, less favourable treatment or discrimination because of their age; any disability they may have; their ethnicity, colour or national origin; their gender; their gender identity or reassignment; their marital or civil partnership status; being pregnant or having recently had a baby; their religion or beliefs; their sexual identity and orientation.

Our Equalities Objectives 2020-2024

The Equality Act 2010 requires us to publish specific and measurable equality objectives. Our equality objectives are based on our analysis of data and other information. Our equality objectives focus on those areas where we have agreed to take action to improve equality and tackle disadvantages.

We will regularly review the progress we are making to meet our equality objectives.

Equality objective 1:

There will be increased holistic working to meet the needs of children with the most complex emotional regulation needs because MDT Networks will be secured for these pupils.

Equality objective 2:

The emotional well-being of pupils who have experienced an emotional crisis will be better supported because effective Crisis Debriefs will be introduced for them

The emotional well-being of pupils who have experienced being on the receiving end of other pupils experiencing an emotional crisis will be better supported because effective Crisis Debriefs will be introduced for them

Equality objective 3:

Pupils facing additional challenges (emotional well-being, emotional health, challenging behaviours) will move to their secondary placement with properly resourced packages to meet their needs because Y4 PROACT-SCIPrUK EHCP Reports will be provided for all pupils identified as having an under-resourced placement likely to be at risk in secondary school

Our Vision

Through enriching learning experiences, opportunities to explore the world beyond the classroom, a nurturing community and an experiential, rich, and finely tuned education, we are catalysts for change: trail-blazing learning and empowering our pupils.

At Perseid School, we offer a pupil-centric experience. Combined with cutting-edge staff development programmes, an innovative approach to learning and developmental experiences, we provide pupils with an outstanding education that builds confidence, encourages independence, and inspires learning.

We believe in working in partnership with our families, local and wider community; enabling every learner to experience world-class opportunities, a strong healthcare provision and stability in education. We are ambitious for and celebrate every pupil.

Our full Equality Information and Objectives Policy can be accessed here.