Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural Development (SMSC) and British Values at Whitwell Primary School

SMSC stands for spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Ofsted’s definition of SMSC is as follows:

'Exploring beliefs and experiences; respecting faiths, feelings and values; enjoying learning about oneself, others and the surrounding world; using imagination and being creative; reflection.'

At Whitwell Primary School, SMSC underpins much of what we do. We recognise that the personal development of the children – spiritually, morally, socially and culturally – plays a significant role in their ability to learn, and to grow into well rounded members of society.

We aim to provide an education that provides children with opportunities to explore and develop:

• Their own values and beliefs
• Spiritual awareness
• High standards of personal behaviour
• A positive and caring attitude towards other people
• An understanding and respect for their and others social and cultural traditions
• An appreciation of the diversity and richness of cultures and the world around them.

Spiritual Development – the children’s beliefs, religious or otherwise, which inform their perspective on life and their interest in and respect for other people’s beliefs and values. We promote this through the following:

• Our Religious Education programme - The RE scheme of work contains units on celebrations, festivals and worship from Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Judaism.
• Assemblies which celebrate beliefs and cultures from around the world as well as significant people and events.
• Taking children out on school trips or inviting people into the school that inspire awe and wonder.
• A PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education) programme that allows children to reflect on their own feelings and develop an understanding of the feelings of others.
• Developing creativity and imagination through play, literacy, art, design technology music, dance and drama.

Moral Development – a child’s understanding, attitude and behaviour to what is right and what is wrong. This is developed through the following:

• Providing a clear moral code for behaviour which is promoted consistently through all aspects of the school – assemblies, school behaviour system, Wellian reward and sanction system, E-safety lessons, PSHE curriculum, Class Charters.
• Promoting equality in relation to religion, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or gender.
• Giving children opportunities to explore and develop moral concepts and values through the curriculum – PSHE, Fair Trade topics, R.E., History, Geography, Literacy, Drama.
• Encouraging children to take responsibility for their actions, through PSHE and the Behaviour Policy.
• Learning about and raising money for charities.
• Adults modelling fairness, integrity and respect for all children.
• Recognising and respecting different cultures represented by children and staff in the school.
• The PSHE scheme of work has units dealing with issues to do with rules, negotiating difficult situations, emotions, caring for one another, making and keeping friends, living in a community.

Social Development – a child’s progressive acquisition of the competencies and qualities needed to play a full part in society. We promote this through the following:

• Encouraging children to work co-operatively in the classroom and playground – including ‘Playground Pals’, supported by the work of our Play Leaders.
• Fostering a sense of community with common, inclusive values through assemblies, the PSHE curriculum, school summer fetes and Christmas fairs, cultural celebrations, sponsored events, and community visits and visitors.
• Encouraging children to recognise and respect social differences and similarities.
• Providing children with opportunities to exercise leadership and responsibility through School Council, class monitors and the Year 6 Prefect system.
• Through the PSHE curriculum, helping children develop qualities which are valued by society, such as, thoughtfulness, honesty, respect for others, moral principles, independence, co-operation, self-respect.

Cultural Development – a child’s understanding of the beliefs, values and customs in their own and others social, ethnic and national groups. We promote this through:

• Celebrating the attitudes, values and traditions of diverse cultures through the curriculum, assemblies, school social events, and visitors to the school.
• Participating in events such as the cluster Dance festivals, sports matches and competitions.
• Recognising and nurturing particular gifts and talents through after school clubs, talent shows, Enterprise projects, and the curriculum.
• Recognising and celebration of national events such as the Olympics and Remembrance Day.
• Themed days linked to topics being studied throughout the school e.g. Faith week

British Values

We promote ‘British Values’ through our spiritual, moral, social and cultural education which permeates through the school’s curriculum and supports the development of the ‘whole child’. We recognise that such development is most successful when those values and attitudes are promoted by all the staff and provide a model of behaviour for our children. The curriculum in all phases offers broad and balanced opportunities.

‘British Values’ have been identified as:

Democracy: The ability to understand and communicate are the most important areas of learning. We ensure that children are given a ‘voice’ to communicate. We empower our children by giving them opportunities to make choices about the things that they believe to be important. By valuing each ‘voice’ and by listening and responding to that voice we demonstrate that we support democracy and liberty. We have an active School Council.

Rule of Law: We involve children in setting codes of behaviour; helping children to make decisions and choices that are acceptable to the school community and society at large. Children are helped to learn to manage their behaviour and take responsibility for their actions. Staff are committed to providing a consistent and predictable environment within the school and beyond. We can help many children to understand the connection between actions and consequences. This type of environment enables children to feel safe and secure; this in turn, promotes the optimum conditions for learning to take place.

Individual Liberty: Children are encouraged to become good and valued citizens. We do this by supporting each child to become as independent as possible. We endeavour to demonstrate that everyone has rights. Many of our children will be able to take responsibility for particular roles and to understand that with certain rights comes certain responsibilities. Learning to do things independently is an important part of learning to understand yourself. We support others by participating in charitable events such as Red Nose Day, Comic Relief and Children in Need. We believe that promoting a caring and helpful environment and being independent can boost and nurture a healthy self-esteem.

Mutual Respect: Children learn that their behaviours have an effect on their own rights and those of others. All members of the school community treat each other with respect. Within school, children work with a range of people and interactions with others are always positively promoted. This may include working with external coaches, theatre groups etc. The curriculum is personalised and planned for children and may include transitioning within the range of resources and places on the site and going into the community to meet with a range of people in a variety of situations which include community events and shared participation with other schools. We believe it is important to facilitate opportunities to be part of the community as the children, families and staff have much to offer in the development of community cohesion.

Tolerance of Different Faiths and Beliefs: Whitwell is situated in an area which is not greatly culturally diverse, therefore we are keen on promoting diversity with the children. Assemblies are planned to address this issue either directly or through the inclusion of stories and celebrations from a variety of faiths and cultures. Our RE and PSHE teaching reinforce this.

We are part of a school and local community where each person is respected and valued equally without regard to ability, gender, faith, heritage or race. Cultural appreciation and development forms part of our curriculum. We place great emphasis on providing encounters and participation in events and celebrations to broaden all children’ experiences and awareness of others. For example, children have visited many local places. As a school, we take part in sporting activities which helps to instil ‘fair play’ and engender a ‘team spirit’.

The staff work closely with parents, carers and other professionals to ensure that the children at Whitwell Primary are happy, well cared for and enabled to learn the skills they need to live a fulfilling life as part of their community.