The Abbey School

British Values are what bind us together as a national community, no matter what our ethnic, cultural or religious background.

Every teacher has a duty to ensure that:

fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs are not undermined in what we teach, or in what the students experience.

(School teachers’ pay and conditions document 2015 and guidance on school teachers’ pay and conditions) 

Every school, therefore, has a duty to promote these core British Values through the work they do in SMSC (Promoting fundamental British values as part of SMSC in schools, Department of Education, October 2014). We make no exception to this here at The Abbey School, and indeed, take pride in making clear that we:

• Promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development;
• Promote fundamental British values;
• Align British values with our school’s duty to promote SMSC.

Through our SMSC work, as mentioned above, we:

1. Enable students to develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem and self-confidence;
2. Enable students to distinguish right from wrong and to respect the civil and criminal law of England;
3. Encourage students to accept responsibility for their behaviour, show initiative, and to understand how they can contribute positively to the lives of those who are living and working in the locality of the school and to society more widely;
4. Enable students to acquire a broad general knowledge of and respect for public institutions and services in England;
5. Further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling students to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own and other cultures;
6. Respect for other people is part of our STAR behaviour and we encourage students to reflect on their own vision and values to prepare them for the future.
7. Encourage respect for democracy and support for participation in the democratic processes, including respect for the basis on which the law is made and applied in England.

 As a result of this, The Abbey School actively promotes to every student, across the whole curriculum, the British values of:

1. An understanding of how citizens can influence decision-making through the democratic process, through things such as voting for house council representatives;
2. An appreciation that living under the rule of law protects individual citizens and is essential for their wellbeing and safety, which is experienced in lessons such as PSHE, History and RE;
3. An understanding that there is a separation of power between the executive and the judiciary, and that while some public bodies such as the police and the army can be held to account through Parliament, others such as the courts maintain independence; ideas explored in Business Studies, Sports Science, Social Science, and RE amongst others;
4. An understanding that the freedom to choose and hold other faiths and beliefs is protected by law, which is explored and reflected on by all students in core RE;
5. An acceptance that other people having different faiths or beliefs to oneself (or having none) should be accepted and tolerated, and should not be the cause of prejudicial or discriminatory behaviour, which is reflected in our behaviour policy, anti-discrimination policy, and SMSC policy, amongst others, as well as subjects such as RE, History, and Social Science;
6. An understanding of the importance of identifying and combatting discrimination, which is studied specifically, but not exclusively, in RE, History, and Business Studies, and encourages students to reflect on their own behaviours and attitudes.

All of the above strategies fall in line with the students’ right to an education which prepares them for their future in modern British society, and keeps them safe from all forms of radicalisation and extremism, as mentioned in the government’s Prevent Strategy 2011.

The spiritual development of pupils is shown by their:

1. Ability to be reflective about their own beliefs, religious or otherwise, that inform their perspective on life and their interest in and respect for different people’s faiths, feelings and values.
2. Sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning about themselves, others and the world around them.
3. Use of imagination and creativity in their learning.
4. Willingness to reflect on their experiences.

The moral development of pupils is shown by their:

1. Ability to recognise the difference between right and wrong and to readily apply this understanding in their own lives, recognise legal boundaries and, in so doing, respect the civil and criminal law of England.
2. Understanding of the consequences of their behaviour and actions.
3. Interest in investigating and offering reasoned views about contemporary, moral and ethical debates.
4. Ability to understand and appreciate the viewpoints of others and reflect on and challenge moral issues where needed.

The social development of pupils is shown by their:

1. Use of a range of social skills in different contexts, for example working and socialising with other pupils, including those from different religious, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds.
2. Willingness to participate in a variety of communities and social settings, including by volunteering, cooperating well with others and being able to resolve conflicts effectively.
3. Acceptance and engagement with the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs; they develop and demonstrate skills and attitudes that will allow them to participate fully in and contribute positively to life in modern Britain.

The cultural development of pupils is shown by their:

1. Understanding and appreciation of the wide range of cultural influences that have shaped their own heritage and those of others
2. Understanding and appreciation of the range of different cultures within school and further afield as an essential element of their preparation for life in modern Britain
3. Knowledge of Britain’s democratic parliamentary system and its central role in shaping our history and values, and in continuing to develop Britain
4. Willingness to participate in and respond positively to artistic, musical, sporting and cultural opportunities
5. Interest in exploring, improving understanding of and showing respect for different faiths and cultural diversity and the extent to which they understand, accept, respect and celebrate diversity, as shown by their tolerance and attitudes towards different religious, ethnic and socioeconomic groups in the local, national and global communities.

According to Ofsted, 'fundamental British values' are:

• Democracy
• The rule of law
• Individual liberty
• Mutual respect for and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs and for those without faith.

What must be taught?

• Enable students to develop their self-knowledge, self-esteem and self-confidence
• Enable students to distinguish right from wrong and to respect the civil and criminal law of England
• Encourage students to accept responsibility for their behaviour, show initiative, and to understand how they can contribute positively to the lives of those living and working in the locality of the school and to society more widely
• Enable students to acquire a broad general knowledge of and respect for public institutions and services in England
• Further tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions by enabling students to acquire an appreciation for and respect for their own and other cultures
• Encourage respect for other people, paying particular regard to the protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010, and
• Encourage respect for democracy and support for participation in the democratic processes, including respect for the basis on which the law is made and applied in England.

While teaching 'British values' may seem a tall order, never fear: we have the tools to cover much of it already. The citizenship curriculum was purpose-built for exactly this sort of exploration and learning.

Citizenship education underpins much of SMSC. For example, exploring human rights and our political and legal systems through the taught citizenship curriculum goes a long way to learning 'the difference between right and wrong' and 'the consequences of behaviour'. 

Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural Development (SMSC)

What is SMSC?

Ofsted Guidance Defining spiritual, moral, social and cultural development (sections 143-146)

British Values

What are British Values?

Ofsted Guidance Defining spiritual, moral, social and cultural development (sections 143 and 148)

The SMSC & British Values Abbey School Logo and Active Promotion

SMSC and British Values is not just what we do at The Abbey School, they are a fundamental core of who we are. They are not a “bolt on” to a lesson, nor are they a box to tick, but a key foundation for learning which makes the whole child’s experience at The Abbey School rich, meaningful, varied, and safe.

Therefore, we do not hide them but actively promote both SMSC and British Values in every lesson, as well as whenever they happen around the school.

Our two main strategies are:

• Placing our exclusive SMSC and British Values logo into lessons, where appropriate, in order to bring to the students’ attention a specific part of SMSC or a particular British value which we are promoting;
• Promoting SMSC and British Values news in the school's magazine to actively demonstrate how the whole school community, both inside and outside the classroom, upholds and takes pride in what we do.

Future Strategies

1. SMSC and British Values are a living thing, and, as such, the opportunities for students and the way that staff innovate and promote are consistently evolving. At The Abbey School we are:
2. Continuously updating our Schemes of Work to not only make sure we are delivering the most relevant subject content, but also actively seeking out SMSC and British Values opportunities;
3. Developing whole school SMSC and British Values days and/or weeks to give all students a chance to specifically explore these concepts on their own, as well as through their curriculum studies;
4. Seeking out new Global Partners to bring opportunities to the students to ensure all have the chance to explore the wonderful variety of cultures and beliefs across the globe;
5. Linking in new ways of making SMSC and British Values a living reality for all students through innovations such as International Schools, Erasmus, and partnership schools within our local community.