LBTS: an anti-racist school
At LBTS we pledge to ensure equality for all students and staff at LBTS and we believe that one of the most important aspects of achieving equality is being anti-racist and fighting against racism. Our work in this encompasses many areas of the school, but is underpinned by our decolonised curriculum. Each curriculum subject has examined their curriculum to ensure that a range of voices and perspectives are represented. For example, in our history lessons we learn about Medieval Kingdoms and empires in Africa, The Middle East and India. We learn about Black Roman Emperors with African heritage. We also learn about UK Civil Rights. Similarly, in science and Maths we look at the contribution to these subjects from important scientists and Mathematicians such as Katherine Johnson, one of the first African-American women to work as a NASA scientist, Euphemia Lofton Haynes, the first African-American woman to earn a Ph.D. in mathematics in 1943 and Elbert Cox, the first Black Mathematician in the world to gain a PhD in Mathematics.
As part of our work on decolonising the curriculum, we currently work closely with Underexposed Arts (UA) within the Drama department. UA are a black led arts and cultural organisation dedicated to promoting positive representation. They celebrate culturally diverse talent by collaborating with artists to create exhibitions, films, talks, education programmes and workshops that inspire imagination, creativity and critical thinking. By working closely with Underexposed Arts, we hope to empower our young people to explore notions of self-identity, representation and creative self-expression.
https://www.underexposedarts.org.uk/education-1
Moreover, we consider the diversity of our student groups and carefully consider and explore intersectional aspects of identity, such as race combined with gender. We celebrate this aspect of our curriculum and further embed it during “Educate, Empower, Excel” Days. During these days we take a further opportunity to study some of the “hidden” stories of people like Olive Morris, the British Black Panthers and Ivor Gustavus Cummings, who have all had a significant impact upon our modern society and who we are.
LBTS also considers the areas of structural racism that our students and staff may face, and are actively involved in eradicating any areas of structural racism within our own schools. For example, we have adopted the Halo Code:
The Halo Code explicitly protects students and staff who come to school with natural hair and protective hairstyles associated with their racial, ethnic, and cultural identities.
Additionally, we have signed the BITC Race At Work Charter as part of our commitment to improving equality of opportunity in the workplace:
https://www.bitc.org.uk/race-at-work-charter-signatories/
Finally, all staff and students at LBTS must pledge and adhere to our Anti-Discrimination Charter, in order to make our school a fair, safe and positive place for all.
LBTS Anti-Discrimination Charter
COMMITMENT
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To ensure the voices of all members of the school are heard in order to develop a collective understanding of the lived experiences of our community
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To interrogate and modify the curriculum we offer, ensuring that we are representing in positive ways the rich cultural heritage of all members of our community
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To ensure that we teach challenging and culturally diverse content with honesty, confidence and integrity, and that through our curriculum we question existing ideas of canons and cultural capital
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To ensure education, dialogue and refection - as opposed to judgement - are at the heart of how we approach change
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To look at the systems and structures which underpin the work of the school to ensure that no staff are held back from developing, as and when opportunities arise
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To be clear in our message to the wider community the values which are at the heart of our school in relation to diversity
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To ensure all students are supported to develop themselves through not only the formal academic curriculum but the range and accessibility of the 'super curriculum’
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To provide ongoing CPD to staff to ensure we continue to develop our racial literacy
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To recognise the bias in our society and in ourselves, and seek to challenge and erase it wherever possible
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To look at the power of language and how we use it positively, sensitively and consistently when discussing issues of race and inequality and also when addressing students and each other
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To normalise a culture in which dialogue about race and cultural diversity is possible, good intention is assumed, feedback is welcomed, and fear of making mistakes does not hinder progress
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To equip our students with the tools needed to identify and tackle racism, in school and the wider community
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To ensure student leadership gives a voice to students in the running of the school and is encouraged to be active in the positive promotion of anti-racism
OUR PLEDGE
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We will continue to confront challenging issues.
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We commit to zero tolerance on racism and discrimination in our school community.
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We continue to listen to our students and staff regarding their lived experiences.
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We will continue to train our staff to develop their racial literacy.
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We will continue to monitor the impact of our work through capturing ethnicity data on student and staff progress.
