Unicef Rights Respecting Schools Award

Christ Church is on a journey to becoming a Gold Rights Respecting School. This means we place the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) at the heart of everything we do, and it is evident within the school community.

Unicef is the world’s leading organisation working for children and their rights. In 1989, governments worldwide promised all children the same rights by adopting the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). These rights are based on what a child needs to survive, grow, participate and fulfil their potential.

There are 54 articles in the convention. As a school we promote children’s rights and empower them to become global citizens. The UNCRC recognises that all children around the world are entitled to these rights.

What is the Rights Respecting Schools Award?

The Rights Respecting Schools Award (RRSA) will help our pupils to grow into confident, caring and responsible young citizens both in school and within the wider community. By learning about their rights, our pupils and your children also learn about the importance of respecting the rights of others ie. their responsibilities.

At Christ Church, children will be informed of all their rights and where appropriate, studies of these rights will take place either at a school-wide, or class level.

What does the Award involve?

Schools involved in the Rights Respecting Schools Award work towards recognition that they have embedded children’s rights in their school’s practice and ethos. Schools are required to implement four evidence-based standards that cover the leadership of the school, knowledge and understanding of children’s rights, ethos and relationships and the empowerment of children.

There are three levels to the Award:

  • Bronze: Rights Committed
  • Silver: Rights Aware
  • Gold: Rights Respecting

As at October 2022, are working towards the Silver Award at Christ Church.

How can parents/carers support what children are learning about rights at school?

  • Take the time to ask your child what he/she has learned recently regarding children’s rights.
  • Discuss the ideas learned in class and try to think of examples from your own experiences, or from the media, of rights being respected or denied.
  • Discuss how your child or your family can promote respect for rights or help those whose rights have been violated.
  • Ask your child’s opinion on children’s rights.

Some typical ways of using Rights Respecting language at home

  • You have the right to play but you must respect the family’s right to a tidy house and must tidy up your toys afterwards.
  • You have the right to watch the TV but your right to be fed is more important right now and you need to turn the TV off.
  • You have the right to an opinion, and I will listen, but you need to respect my right to express an opinion as well.
  • You have the right to be healthy and my job is to make you healthy by giving you healthy foods.
  • You have the right to a clean world to live in and so does everyone else. Therefore, you need to respect that right and put your rubbish in the bin.

RRSA School Steering Group

We have a Rights Respecting School Steering Group that work to ensure every member of our school community is aware of children’s rights. As a Rights Respecting School we can place the rights of each child at the heart of our school ethos.

Our Steering Group is represented by Miss Begum, Miss Parvaz and Mrs Khan and two children each from Years 3, 4, 5 and 6.

The purpose of the Steering Group is to provide a voice for the children of Christ Church. They meet regularly and are proactive in improving life for children in the school by raising concerns that have arisen from discussions within their class.

We respect the views and contributions made by our school Steering Group and aim to use these to make improvements to the school whenever possible. The School Steering Group are excellent at identifying local, national and global issues that are important to them and tackling them.

Class Charters

Each class in our school has a Class Charter. This is an agreement which shows the actions adults and children will take to ensure that all children can enjoy their rights.

The children in each class decided which articles they wanted to focus on and then everyone signed it.