Educating for ‘life in all its fullness.’

Providing opportunities for growth in mind, body and spirit through inspirational and innovative education underpinned by a deeply Christian ethos. Those who learn and work here will develop confidence, embrace creativity and enhance their knowledge and skills so that they can experience ‘life in all its fullness.’ (John 10:10)

Public Sector Equality Duty

The Equality Act 2010 requires us to publish information that demonstrates that we have due regard for the need to:

  • Eliminate unlawful  discrimination, harassment, victimisation  and any other conduct prohibited by the Equality Act 2010
  • Advance equality of opportunity among people with protected characteristic and thise without
  • Foster good relations between people with protected characteristics and those without..

Legislation and Guidance

This document meets the requirements under the following legislation:

Ackworth Howard is an inclusive school where we focus on the well-being and progress of every child and where all members of our community are of equal worth.

We believe that the Equality Act provides a framework to support our commitment to valuing diversity, tackling discrimination, promoting equality and fostering good relationships between people. It also ensures that we continue to tackle issues of disadvantage and underachievement of different groups.

Our approach to equality is based on the following key principles:

1. All learners are of equal value and dignity (we are all made in God’s own image)

2. We recognise and respect difference, including but not limited to race, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion, and belief.

3. We foster positive attitudes, respect, and relationships, promoting a shared sense of cohesion and belonging for everyone.

4. We observe good equalities practice in staff recruitment, retention, and development, ensuring fairness and diversity.

5. We aim to reduce and remove inequalities and barriers that already exist, actively working to create a more inclusive environment.

6. We have the highest expectations of all our children and staff, supporting everyone to reach their full potential.

Information on pupils by protected characteristics

The Equality Act 2010 protects people from discrimination on the basis of protected characteristics. Every person has several of the protected characteristics, so the Act protects everyone against unfair treatment.

In order to ensure that all pupils are protected from discrimination, the school collects information on protected characteristics.

Information on other groups of pupils

In addition to pupils with protected characteristics, we gather further information on the following groups of pupils:

  • Pupils eligible for Free School Meals (FSM)
  • Pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN)
  • Disadvantaged group
  • Pupils with English as an Additional Language (EAL)
  • Young carers
  • Looked after children
  • Other vulnerable groups

Eliminating discrimination and prohibited conduct

The information provided here aims to demonstrate that we give careful consideration to equality issues in everything that we do. ‘Due regard’ ensures that we work towards eliminating discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other conduct that is prohibited by the Equality Act.

We are committed to working for equality for all our staff, parents/carers and children to meet our duties under the Equality Act 2010.

We eliminate discrimination and prohibited conduct by:

  • Ensuring that all children feel safe at school and that prejudicial bullying is addressed swiftly and effectively.
  • Reporting, responding to, and monitoring all incidents of discrimination, harassment, or victimization, including racist incidents.
  • Regularly reviewing and adapting the curriculum to ensure that it meets the needs of our pupils, promotes respect for diversity, and challenges negative stereotypes.
  • Ensuring that teaching is of the highest quality, providing equal entitlement to success for all pupils.
  • Tracking pupil progress to ensure that all children make rapid progress, intervening when necessary to address disparities.
  • Providing equal access to extra-curricular provision.
  • Listening to and monitoring the views and experiences of pupils and adults to evaluate the effectiveness of our policies and procedures.

Advancing equality of opportunity

We advance equality of opportunity by:

  • Using the information, we gather to identify underachieving groups or individuals and plan targeted intervention.
  • Ensuring participation of parents/carers and pupils in school development.
  • Listening to parents/carers and pupils at all times.

Foster good relations

We foster good relations by:

  • Ensuring that Ackworth Howard is seen as a community school within our local community, promoting diversity, inclusion, and our Christian values.
  • Embedding equality and diversity in the curriculum and collective worship, encouraging respect for all.

Roles and Responsibilities

The governing board will:

  • Ensure that the equality information and objectives as set out in this statement are published and communicated throughout the school, including to staff, pupils and parents, and that they are reviewed and updated at least once every four years.
  • Delegate responsibility for monitoring the achievement of the objectives on a daily basis to the headteacher.
  • Ensure staff are familiar with all relevant legislation and the contents of this document.
  • Attend appropriate equality and diversity training.
  • Report back to the full governing board regarding any issues.

The headteacher will:

  • Promote knowledge and understanding of the equality objectives amongst staff and pupils.
  • Monitor success in achieving the objectives and report back to governors.

All school staff are expected to have regard to this document and to work to achieve the objectives.

Equality Objectives

We are committed to ensuring equality of education and opportunity for all pupils, staff, parents, and carers, irrespective of race, gender, disability, belief, religion, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, or socio-economic background.

In order to further support pupils, raise standards, and ensure inclusive teaching, we have set the following objectives:

Objective 1: To monitor and analyse pupil achievement by race, gender, disability, age, belief, religion, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, and socio-economic background, and act on any trends or patterns in the data that require additional support for pupils.

Objective 2: To provide a curriculum that offers regular experiences and opportunities that raise awareness and understanding of diversity within the national and global community, encompassing all protected characteristics.

Objective 3: To further develop pupils' understanding of respect, tolerance, and inclusion through the promotion of Christian and British Values, embracing diversity and fostering positive relationships.

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