Learning to respect one another is a significant aspect of children’s education, and the government has recently acknowledged, in the hate crime action plan 2016, that schools have a vital role to play in reducing hate crime in society.

But there is a problem.  Although schools have statutory obligations under the Equality Act 2010, information from the Department for Education and from the Equality and Human Rights Commission is not readily accessible and may appear conflicting.

As a result it is fair to say that many schools are unclear about the Protected Characteristics covered by the Equality Act and about the requirements of the Public Sector Equality Duty.

With this in mind, CSIE is offering a series of FREE equality workshops throughout the country in autumn 2016, supported by Barclays Bank and The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation.

Over and above helping schools fulfil their legal duties, these are practical, “hands on” workshops designed to be engaging and constructive.

The workshops are framed around CSIE’s award-winning guide “Equality: Making It Happen“, a succinct and user-friendly set of reference cards to help schools reduce bullying, address prejudice and promote equality holistically.

The guide offers simple and practical advice, as well as links to sources of further information and support. We know of no other initiative addressing all aspects of equality in schools in such an effective and user-friendly way. It will take a long time for our new guide to make an impact on the lives of all pupils in all schools, but for those that it reaches the effect can be decisive.

Each workshop will address what more schools can do to ensure that: a) all pupils are safe, included and learning; and b) the school is fully compliant with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010.

The free workshops will address equality in the context of current challenges in education and provide an overview of the Equality Act 2010 in order to help schools ensure they are fully compliant with the Public Sector Equality Duty.

Within the free workshop we will discuss ways of welcoming pupils, staff and visitors in all their diversity, present a range of strategies for addressing prejudice and promoting equality, and help participants develop confidence and language for addressing sensitive equality issues.

This event will provide simple and practical advice for reducing all forms of prejudice-based bullying; it will consider real-life examples (participants are encouraged to bring their own examples of equality challenges in school) and assist in developing a context-specific framework for change.

Who should attend:

The workshops have been designed for primary and secondary school teachers, inclusion managers, pastoral support leaders, senior leaders and governors who care about equality and want to reduce all forms of prejudice-based bulling and discrimination in school. Workshops will also be of interest to equality champions outside schools, for example academy chain or local authority officers and voluntary sector organisations working to promote equality in education.

Cost:

All workshops are free to attend but places are limited and must be booked in advance. These events have been subsidised by Barclays Bank and The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation, to both of whom CSIE remains grateful.

Feedback from previous CSIE equality workshops:

“Great!”

“Inspiring.”

“Eloquent and informative.”

“A lot of very practical and very useful information.”

“Excellent content and awareness of legal framework.”

Free workshops have been scheduled to take place in Bristol, Norfolk, Leicester and Reading.  More workshops will be announced in other locations soon.  For more information, or to book your place, please visit www.csie.org.uk/about/training.shtml.

If you want to find out more about these free workshops or about Equality: Making It Happen, or if you have any questions or queries at all, please call 0117 353 3150 or email admin@csie.org.uk.  We look forward to hearing from you and meeting you at one of our workshops.

Artemi Sakellariadis
Director, CSIE