Our learners’ rights are at the centre of all we do at Heritage House School. We are a school community that creates a safe, nurturing, empowering and inspiring environment, enabling our learners to feel respected, valued and their voice to be heard and listened to.

Heritage House School is a Rights Respecting School – Gold Award!

The Unicef Rights Respecting Schools Award recognises that our school, through the teaching of the UNCRC (UN Convention on the Rights of the Child), supports our learners to lead happy, healthy lives, and to be responsible active citizens.       

At Heritage House School our Rights Respecting journey began in 2020.

• BRONZE – Rights Aware – achieved in 2020.
• SILVER – Rights Committed – achieved in 2021.
• GOLD – Rights Respecting – achieved in 2024.

Being a Gold Rights Respecting School means that we teach our learners about their own rights as children as well as of those around them, how to be active citizens, and how their actions and choices can have an impact on their peers, school and the world around them.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is an international legal treaty or agreement.

It sets out the Rights that children are entitled to, and each right is referred to as an Article.

• There are 54 rights articles in total.
• Articles 1 – 42 are directly linked to the child.
• Articles 43 – 54 are about how adults and governments must work together to make sure all children can enjoy all their rights.

The following six articles relate to safeguarding, learner voice, health, wellbeing, safety, play, learning and education.

• Article 12: respect for the views of the child.
• Article 19: protection from violence, abuse and neglect.
• Article 24: health and health services.
• Article 28: access to education.
• Article 29: aims of education.
• Article 31: leisure, play and culture.

Every aspect of school life can be underpinned by children’s rights.

• Safety, safeguarding and protection
• Health, wellbeing and welfare
• Learning and longer-term aspirations
• Inclusion, equality and non-discrimination
• Learner voice and participation
• Attendance
• Relationships with others
• Global citizenship
• Sustainability

To support learners’ understanding and knowledge of their rights, we follow and use the ABCDE of Children’s rights. This is a way that can help our learners understand about the nature of rights. Its purpose is to show how the concepts of rights being Universal, Inherent, Inalienable, Unconditional and Indivisible.

Furthermore, we use dedicated sessions on rights and topics linking to rights, raise awareness through participating in events, complete class charters, have class discussions, and participate in whole school projects and campaigns.

Some of the events, linking to Rights Respecting, that we celebrate and raise awareness of throughout the academic year include; Hello yellow (Mental Health awareness for Young Minds), Unicef OutRight campaign (Campaigning for change), World Children’s Day, Anti-Bullying week, World religion / multi-culture awareness day, Children's Mental Health week, Safer Internet day; and our Learner Voice morning / Happiness Audit.

There are three strands to the Rights Respecting School Award.

• Strand A: Teaching and Learning about rights.
• Strand B: Teaching and Learning through rights – ethos and relationships.
• Strand C: Teaching and Learning for rights – participation, empowerment and action.

Within these 3 STRANDS, there are 9 OUTCOMES.

Throughout school, we use the Rights Respecting Strands and Outcomes to support our ethos and values. 

 

STRAND A: Teaching and learning about rights

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is made known to learners and adults, who use this shared understanding to work for improved child wellbeing, school improvement, global justice and sustainable living.

 

STRAND B: Teaching and learning through rights – Ethos and relationship

Actions and decisions affecting children are rooted in, reviewed and resolved through rights. Learners and adults collaborate to develop and maintain our school community based on equality, dignity, respect, non-discrimination and participation; this includes learning and teaching in a way that respects the rights of both educators and learners and promotes wellbeing.

 

STRAND C: Teaching and learning for rights – Participation, empowerment and action

Learners are empowered to enjoy and exercise their rights and to promote the rights of others locally and globally. Duty bearers are accountable for ensuring that children experience their rights.

Rights Respecting School Co-Ordinator / Lead – Sky Gregory

 

Useful links:

• Unicef Rights Respecting Schools website- https://www.unicef.org.uk/rights-respecting-schools/
• UNCRC Rights Articles – Symbols with explanations (Children and Young Peoples Commissioner) - UNCRC Articles Archive - The Children and Young People's Commissioner Scotland (cypcs.org.uk)
• Video about Human Rights / UNCRC (Equality and Human Rights Commissioner) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KQGz-toMnk