Promoting Equality and Diversity

Equality Statement

The Equality Act 2010 put in place a number of duties for public bodies, including schools, to ensure that they have due regard to certain ‘protected’ groups. All public bodies and schools must have due regard to:

1. Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation.

2. Advance equlaity of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

3. Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not.

Equality Objectives:

To develop a culturally inclusive curriculum that celebrates equality and diversity.
To ensure that the academy environment reflects pupil’s cultural and linguistic diversity.
To ensure that our resources and parctice effectively support EAL pupils in their learning.
To review levels of parental and pupil engagement in learning and academy life, across all activities to ensure equity and fairness in access and engagement.
To ensure that groups of pupils, including those with special educational needs are making progress in line with similar groups nationally.
To encourage all pupils to consider non-stereotyped career options.
To narrow the pupil premium gap in reading, writing and maths ensuring that they achieve in line or better that their peers across all year groups.
To improve provision for pupils for whom English is an additional language, particularly new arrivals at the early stage of English acquisition.
To provide training for all staff and governors on equlaity and diversity.

HPA EQUAL OPPS POLICY SEP 25

Equality And Diversity In Employment

The Protected Characteristics

The Equality Act became law in 2010. It covers everyone in Britain and protects people from discrimination, harassment and victimisation. Everyone in Britain is protected. This is because the Equality Act protects people against discrimination because of the protected characteristics that we all have. Under the Equality Act, there are nine Protected Characteristics:

Age
Disability
Gender reassignment
Race
Religion or belief
Marriage or civil partnership
Sex
Sexual orientation
Pregnancy and maternity

The 9 Protected Characteristics are:

Under the Equality Act you are protected from discrimination:

When you are in the workplace
When you use public services like healthcare (for example, visiting your doctor or local hospital) or education (for example, at your school or college)
When you use businesses and other organisations that provide services and goods (like shops, restaurants, and cinemas)
When you use transport
When you join a club or association (for example, your local tennis club)
When you have contact with public bodies like your local council or government departments.

How We Embed and Promote the Protected Characteristics At Holbeach Primary Academy.

The 9 Protected Characteristics are actively promoted in our academy through:

Our academy ethos, AIP, and Self Evaluation.
Our academy core values
Our academy behaviour policy
Conscious role modelling by all adults in the academy community
Active engagement and communication with parents and carers
Assemblies
British Values themes for the week and term.
Personal, Social, Health and Economic education (PSHE) sessions through our Jigsaw programme.
Religious Education (RE) lessons, RSHE lessons and Stay Safe Partnership workshops exploring healthy relationships and staying safe.
Sporting, Art and Cultural Events
Pupil Voice
Educational visits
Real-life learning outside the classroom
Visitors
Extra-curricular activities, after-school clubs, charity work and work within the local community

Embedding Protected Characteristics into the whole ethos of Holbeach Primary Academy promotes:

Self-esteem, self-knowledge and self-confidence
Respect for democracy and support for participation in the democratic process
Acceptance of responsibility for their own behaviour
Respect for their own and other cultures
Understanding of how they can contribute positively to academy and home life and to the lives of those living and working in the locality and further afield
An understanding of Equality, Human Rights and Protected Characteristics
An understanding of how citizens can influence decision-making through the democratic process
An appreciation that living under the rule of law protects individual citizens and is essential for their wellbeing and safety
An understanding that the freedom to choose and hold other faiths and beliefs is protected in law
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
An understanding of the importance of identifying and combating discrimination

PROTECTED CHARACTERISTICS HPA