Equality and Diversity

Equality and Diversity 

Introduction  

The vast majority of our young people at Greenvale are from our local community in Lewisham, our students are growing up in a wider multicultural and multiracial society where they are subject to various attitudes towards minority groups, certain images of these groups portrayed by the media and their own unconscious bias. The school’s Equality objectives should be read in conjunction with the Accessibility Policy and the Equality and Diversity Policy. 

Ethos 

The school stands against all forms of discrimination on the grounds of age, disability, religion, ethnicity, sex, gender, gender expression, gender reassignment or sexual orientation.  

This is achieved through the following objectives: 

1.Promotion of cultural understanding and awareness of different religious beliefs between different ethnic groups within our school community 

2. Monitoring engagement with and access to, enrichment opportunities for all groups of students in the life of the school. 

3. Monitoring all progress for our young people, ensuring all students are achieving paying particular attention to students in differing pathways, students eligible for free-school meals, looked after children and students from minority ethnic groups 

4. Endeavour to ensure diversity within the staff body, leadership roles and governing body.   

5. Reduce the incidence of the use of racist, homophobic, biphobic, transphobic and sexist language by students in the school 
6. Review relevant school policies to ensure they clearly reflect the aim of inclusivity 

In addition to the shared Equality Objectives above, the school stands united in an unflinching ambition to tackle racism in our communities and seek to develop a culture of active anti-racism. 

To achieve this aim, the objectives are: 

• Addressing unconscious bias through training and wider reading for staff and students 

• Formally gathering the views of our student and staff community and acting on recommendations where possible 

• Ensuring that incidents involving racist language are dealt with swiftly and that we work with families in accordance with the school's behaviour policy 

• Decolonising and diversifying aspects of the curriculum and increasing the promotion of black history and culture 

• We are committed to supporting our young people and their families seeking sanctuary in the UK and to raising awareness of the experiences of people seeking safety playing a key role in building a culture of kindness and compassion in our school and community.  

Greenvale Equality Objectives 2025-2028 

We aim to provide the highest possible education for all at Greenvale School. The ethos of our school clearly reflects our commitment to fully including, respecting and supporting all members of our school community whatever their cultural background, belief, gender, race or disability. 

Having referred to and analysed our equality information we have set ourselves the following objectives: 

• To promote understanding and appreciation of diversity, including celebrating what we all have in common, and promoting respect for all the different protected characteristics as defined in the Equality Act 2010. 

• To ensure equal access to high-quality education for all learners 

• To ensure all students achieve and make progress regardless of their learning difficulty and medical needs and any barriers to learning are removed  

• Addressing unconscious bias through training and wider reading for staff and students 

• To formally gather the views of our student and staff community and act on recommendations where possible 

• Decolonising and diversifying aspects of the curriculum and increasing the promotion of black history and culture 

• To adopt a trauma informed approach and we are working towards the Attachment Research Community Bronze Award 

• To actively promote equality and eliminate discrimination throughout our curriculum, policy and practice, staff training and through additional varied events that include Refugee Week, Diversity Day and International Women’s Day as examples.  

• To celebrate and value the diverse members of our school and local community and aim to pro-actively take steps to educate our community on inclusion and respect. Our school fosters a culture where everyone feels valued and heard and one that promotes understanding and empathy.  

• We are a Silver Award Rights Respecting School and the UNICEF principles are woven into all aspects of school life. We are working towards our Gold Award as a Rights respecting School. We are also currently a Bronze Diversity Award holder and are now working towards our Silver Award. 

• Lewisham is a ‘Borough of Sanctuary’. At Greenvale, we uphold the principles of the Equality Act 2010 by embedding sanctuary values in our policies, ethos and daily practices. We promote and provide opportunities for all, including those who are refugees, asylum seekers or from sanctuary seeking backgrounds through our equal opportunities policies and personalised curriculum.  

• Greenvale school has pledged to become a designated School of Sanctuary and we are committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for all students and families no matter their backgrounds, immigration status or life experiences. We aim to be a place of safety for all to thrive and learn.