Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
At Thameside Primary School we embrace Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in everything that we do. We are committed to everyone in our school community experiencing equality of opportunity, respect and feeling included. We celebrate diversity and promote a positive culture where everyone can thrive and feel proud of who they are.
To support this vision, EDI is now regularly discussed at Governing Body and School Leadership level and our staff will access training on this. We will also monitor equality of representation and inclusivity across curriculum and enrichment activities at Thameside.
Our school aims are:
- to ensure the school community understands each of the terms – Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
- to ensure that there is fair treatment and opportunity for all our children, staff and the rest of our stakeholders
- to ensure that any prejudice or discrimination is eradicated
- to ensure that all children, staff and other stakeholders feel a sense of belonging
- to ensure that all children, staff and other stakeholders feel valued
- to ensure that we ask the following question when planning any learning, activities or events - ‘Is this inclusive?’
All children at our school are taught the following:
- we are all equal regardless of our backgrounds, socio-economic status, race, culture and beliefs, and are entitled to/ have equal access to opportunities
- we must treat our environment and everyone in it with respect regardless of any differences we may have
What are we currently doing in school?
- Discussing the importance of 'respect' as part of our school rules and 5Rs.
- Implementing a diverse Reading and Writing spine to increase representation across our reading culture, as well as a range of perspectives across our curriculum.
- Weekly assemblies focusing on a wide range of inspirational people and current social topics
- Celebrating cultural festivals and events such as Black History Month and International Women's Day
- Inviting visitors that add breadth to our curriculum, for example the Abingdon Food Bank and a paralympian.
- Introducing support posters throughout the school to support children with how to keep safe or if they hear words that make them feel uncomfortable in their lives.
What next?
We are currently undertaking an audit of EDI to establish what we do well and what we need to improve on. Following this, we will be consulting with our school community and reviewing our recently updated equality objectives and putting in place an action plan.
Our current objectives, updated in July 23, can be found here.
Current work running alongside this includes:
- All staff EDI training
- Monitoring of representation across our enrichment and pupil leadership activities
- Regular discussion of EDI as part of LGB and leadership meetings
- A curriculum review to improve representation and diversity