Donnington

School of Sanctuary

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Donnington Wood Junior School is proud to have signed the School of Sanctuary pledge (below) and is working towards becoming a School of Sanctuary. Over the next few months, we will continue to work through the audit to become even more inclusive and supportive and hope to achieve the award in the near future.

As part of our organisational pledge, we will show that:

  • We support the City of Sanctuary vision that the UK will be a welcoming place of safety for all and proud to offer sanctuary to people fleeing violence and persecution.
  • We endorse the City of Sanctuary Charter and agree to act in accordance with City of Sanctuary values and apply the network principles within our work (as far as our specific context enables us to).
  • We recognise the contribution of people seeking sanctuary. Sanctuary seekers are welcomed, included, and supported within our context. We expect our branches or local groups (if any) to support their City of Sanctuary group if one exists and will facilitate contact between them and their local City of Sanctuary group.

School of Sanctuary

What is a School of Sanctuary?
A School of Sanctuary is a school that is committed to being a safe and welcoming place for all, especially those seeking sanctuary. It could be people whose lives were in danger in their own country, who have troubles at home or are just looking for a space of safety.
A School of Sanctuary is a school that helps its students, staff and wider community understand what it means to be seeking sanctuary and to extend a welcome to everyone as equal, valued members of the school community. It is a school that is proud to be a place of safety and inclusion for all.

At Donnington Wood Junior School, we strive to embrace the values of being a School of Sanctuary by extending a very warm welcome to all families from different diverse backgrounds, different cultures and creating a safe and inclusive environment for everyone.

​Key Principles of being a School of Sanctuary:

  1. LEARN – Schools help their students, staff and wider community learn about what it means to be seeking sanctuary and the issues surrounding forced migration.
  2. EMBED – Schools are committed to creating a safe and inclusive culture of welcome that benefits everybody, including anyone in their community seeking sanctuary.
  3. SHARE – Schools share their values and activities with their local communities.

Further information can be found here: Home – Schools of Sanctuary (cityofsanctuary.org)

RSE

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Please click here to complete the survey; it will be accessible until the 23rd May.

 

Dear Parents/ Carers,

As you may already be aware, relationships, sex and health education (RSE) is now largely compulsory and as a school, we like to gauge parent view in advance of delivering these lessons in the summer term.

Our PSHE/RSE policy can be accessed on the school website but below is a brief overview and points to consider:

 

· Teachers will deliver all RSE lessons in an age-appropriate, factual and honest manner.

 

· We believe that all children should be part of these teacher lead sessions to avoid miscommunication via playground chat or other unreliable sources.

 

· Year 3 will learn about puberty in a basic manner (considering how changes will take place – growing etc.) and how babies develop in the uterus.

 

· Year 4 will learn about puberty including menstruation.

This is decided in line with NHS guidance: ‘learning about puberty should be matched to the needs of the pupils and should start before pupils experience the changes themselves. It should therefore be taught from year 4 onwards, given NHS data about the age of onset of puberty’.

 

· Year 5 will be introduced to sexual intercourse as a reason for puberty and our bodies developing ready to produce a baby.

 

· Year 6 will build on the understanding of puberty preparing our bodies for producing babies and look at the process from conception to birth.

·  We believe that children should be taught about sexual intercourse prior to leaving primary school to allow them to understand the facts and to safeguard them from making uninformed decisions.

· Some elements of sex education at primary school is not compulsory; this includes ‘how a baby is conceived and born’. When we cover this in the summer term in Year 5 and 6, parents still have the option to withdraw their children by submitting a written request. However, we recommend that you contact us to discuss any concerns in advance of this.

We invite you to complete the survey before the 23rd May if you wish your views to be known.

Mrs F. Davies

RSE/PSHE lead.