British Values

At Burlington Junior School, we have three shared values:

Belong
Joy
Succeed

These values encourage our school community to consider how they can develop a personal sense of belonging, joy and success whilst at school, but also their responsibility to enable others to achieve this too.

What are British Values?

At Burlington Junior School, we promote the following fundamental British values as part of our pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) education:

democracy;
the rule of law;
individual liberty;
mutual respect for and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs and for those without faith.

This learning takes place in cross-curricular lessons and is not limited to specific SMSC lessons. We teach British values through a range of curriculum lessons (e.g. history), school assemblies, talks from guests who visit school and through day-to-day discussions with children. Our SMSC policy provides more information about how British values are addressed throughout daily school life.

Please follow the link below to go to the government website, for more information:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/promoting-fundamental-british-values-through-smsc

British Value: Democracy

Understanding democracy involves learning how decisions are made together, sharing that everyone has a voice, and understanding that everyone’s opinions and ideas matter. At school, children are encouraged to express their views, listen to others and understand that decisions are often made through discussion and voting. We help pupils understand the importance of fairness, participation and respecting the choices of others.

Children are encouraged to use their voices and make a positive contribution to the life of the school and the wider community through our School Council. Each class votes for their school councillors and these class representatives are able to take ideas from their class to School Council meetings where they are shared and discussed.

Other leadership opportunities for children include House Captains, Eco-Councillors, Sports Leaders and Junior Librarians. Children also have the opportunity to take on additional responsibilities within their classrooms, by becoming monitors, for example.

Democracy is one of our Burlington Buzz words and the concept is explored within and across year groups and subject areas.

Click here to read more about the work of our School Council.

British Value: The Rule of Law

The rule of law means understanding that rules and laws help to keep everyone safe and ensure that people are treated fairly. Children learn why rules are important, how they protect our rights and what can happen when rules are not followed. We encourage pupils to make responsible choices and understand the difference between right and wrong.

Our relational behaviour policy promotes the concepts of being ready, being respectful and being safe. Developing pupils' understanding of these principles within our school context ensures pupils feel safe and respected at school. They are then able to apply this understanding to knowledge of legislation within the wider world through assemblies and PSHE lessons.

British Value: Individual Liberty

Individual liberty means having the freedom to make choices and express yourself while understanding that our choices should not harm or unfairly affect others. We encourage children to develop confidence, independence and the ability to make informed decisions. Pupils learn that with freedom comes responsibility for their own actions and behaviour.

Through PSHE lessons, pupils learn about rights and responsibilities. These concepts are also explored through our assemblies.

British Value: Mutual Respect for and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs, and for those without faith.

In order for our pupils to feel a sense of belonging in school, we ensure pupils follow the behaviour principles of ready, respectful and safe. Everyone within our school community is unique and deserves to be treated with kindness, dignity and consideration. We teach children to listen to others, value different opinions and celebrate the qualities that make each person special. Pupils learn that respectful relationships help everyone feel safe, valued and included.

Tolerance means understanding and respecting people whose faiths, beliefs, cultures or backgrounds may be different from our own. We provide opportunities for children to learn about a range of beliefs and traditions, encouraging curiosity and open-mindedness. Pupils are taught that we can have different beliefs while living and learning together respectfully.

Our PSHE and R.E. curriculums enable these values to be explored as part of the curriculum; however, ensuring that all stakeholders feel a sense of belonging and respect is part of our core ethos here at Burlington. These values are therefore addressed and revisited on a regular basis.