At Cherry Orchard we are dedicated to ensuring that our pupils develop a strong sense of social and moral responsibility and are proud that these values are long established within our school. The British Values of democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty mutual respect and tolerance, which are part of this, are clearly promoted through our whole school ethos, core values and taught curriculum.

Pupil Voice is an extremely important part of school life and at the heart of our school. We have an active School Council that is elected by the children each year. They meet regularly to discuss aspects of learning and school life, as well as how they can be developed. Pupil Voice is also heard in other ways, such as pupil interviews and questionnaires. In addition, we also have other groups that are elected democratically, such as our Eco Council YPP and Peer Mediators. Being democratic is a process that is promoted in much of school life, for example when we developed our ‘core values’ all stakeholders were asked to share their ideas in order to contribute to the final decision. Democracy is also studied through the school curriculum.

At Cherry Orchard we strive to ensure that our children recognise their responsibility to be law abiding citizens. The importance of rules and laws, whether they are those that govern the class, the school, or the country, are consistently reinforced. Through assemblies, our curriculum and whole school ethos children gain a sound understanding of why we need rules and laws and the consequences of them being broken. All stakeholders contributed to the school’s Behaviour Policy, Learning Ladder and rewards system. In addition, pupils develop their understanding of the law, how it is there to protect us and the consequences of laws being broken.

Alongside rules and laws, we promote freedom of choice and the right to respectfully express views and beliefs. Through the provision of a safe, supportive environment and empowering education, we provide boundaries for our young pupils to make choices safely. These include:

• Learning choices- which challenge to complete, how to record work, how to present learning, which group to work with.
• Extra curricular -choices around which activity to participate in during competition week or interhouse competitions.
• Behaviour - how to recognise and deal with our own behaviour, the impact our choices make and how to deal with this effectively e.g. seek advice, initiate time out etc)

Safeguarding is embedded within all aspects of school life therefore, within the realms of individual liberty and exercising their rights and personal freedoms, children are also taught the importance of keeping themselves safe. This includes personal safety and e-safety.

Cherry Orchard is in an area which is culturally diverse and we are proud to promote and celebrate our different backgrounds and beliefs.

Mutual Respect is at the heart of our core values and through our curriculum we actively promote a sound understanding of different faiths and cultures. Our children demonstrate great spirituality and naturally show interest and curiosity about different cultures and religions. Through Collective Worship and our RE and PSHE curriculum we actively discuss issues that arise and promote the acceptance of difference as well raise awareness of issues around bullying and prejudice.

We actively challenge pupil’s parents and staff who express views contrary to those stated.