Facing change in local authorities

Sarah RoseEducation Champions Coordinator

Sheffield LGBT Schools Charter Steve Slack

Director, Centre for HIV and Sexual HealthEmail: steve.slack@nhs.net

www.sexualhealthsheffield.nhs.uk

Context to the Development of a Charter

• Development of joint work between the Local Authority and Health Services

• Joint initiatives such as IDAHO

• Benefits of a multi-agency approach

Context continued …

• Leadership, support and trust between agencies

• The declining significance of homophobia – or not?

• Tackling homophobia in youth settings ...(Formby, Centre for HIV)

Sheffield LGBT Schools Charter

• Charter outlines criteria for schools to meet in order to demonstrate they are addressing homophobic/ transphobic bullying and are inclusive of the needs of LGBT people

• Guidance notes produced to support schools implement the Charter

• Charter and guidance presented as a set of recommendations for schools to aim for at 3 different levels: bronze, silver, and gold

Guidance on the Sheffield LGBT Schools Charter

Bronze standard indicates a basic level of provision/practice.

It would be expected that any school in Sheffield should easily be able to evidence attaining this standard through routine equality policies and procedures

Example under Bronze standardCriteria

Pupils know homophobic/transphobic bullying is not tolerated in school and there is evidence of zero-tolerance of words such as ‘gay’ being used as a term of abuse

Recommendation:

Comprehensive anti-bullying/behaviour policy disseminated and made clear to all students:

Example Policy:

“This school will not tolerate the bullying of any member of the school community. The school community consists of pupils, parents/guardians/carers, governors and all staff. We will actively support all victims of bullying and take appropriate action with the perpetrators. This work will be pursued through the pastoral and academic curriculum, as well as through the reporting and disciplinary procedures created to deal with all such incidents. All perpetrators will incur sanctions, up to and including exclusion, relative to the seriousness of their behaviour.”

 Source: www.schools-out.org.uk/policy/antibullying

 

Silver standard indicates more extensive provision.

Schools would be expected to evidence specific initiatives that support the needs of LGBT students

Example under Silver standard

Criteria

Regular updates or information sessions to staff on LGBT issues, including how to support students in school

Recommendation:

•Nominated lead on LGBT issues to update tutor groups and teams

•LGBT issues to be discussed on inset days

•Information on how to support LGBT students to be issued to all new staff, or as an annual update

Gold indicates exemplary good practice.

This could be through establishing working relationships with local LGBT support services, or projects which profile LGBT community events and key dates etc.

Example under Gold standard

Criteria

The school marks LGBT History Month and/or the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO) each year

Recommendation:

•Mark at least one of these events each year as a minimum

• Invite local support services into school

•Have displays around school promoting LGBT History Month and/or IDAHO

•Consider marking the International Trans Day of Remembrance each year

•Profile homophobic and transphobic bullying in any initiatives during Anti-Bullying week each November

Summary of Guidance

Contains:

• Recommendations for each of the Bronze, Silver and Gold standards

• List of useful resources to support work in schools

• List of useful local and national contacts

• Copy of the charter poster to display in schools

Taking Charter forward

• Schools to allocate a named lead to take responsibility for submitting evidence to demonstrate whether they meet the criteria

• Schools to ensure that nominated leads are provided with sufficient time, resources and support to accommodate this additional responsibility

• Steering group established to review and assess evidence to determine a school’s level of attainment

• Certificates issued to schools following assessment

Challenges

• Austerity and competing priorities

• Changing face of homophobia rather then declining significance

• That’s So Gay! – Challenging homophobia not outlawing the word ‘gay’

Identifying needs and supporting LGBTU young people in Brighton & Hove Schools

Brighton & Hove Approach

• Partnership working – Healthy Schools Advisory Service, Allsorts, schools and multi-agency partners

• Working Group and Action Plan• Links to other agendas and priorities • PSHE - Secondary Curriculum - All of Us • PSHE - Primary Curriculum – Family Diversity, Human

Rights, Gender stereotyping, name-calling• Safe Spaces Leaflet – Challenging homophobic language• Consultancy support, central and school-based training

for primary, secondary & special schools• Governors• Role models and Equality Calendar Events

Facing change – sustaining the work

• Partnership Working – Allsorts and charging schools

• Networks between schools• Embedding in PSHE and across the

curriculum• Ofsted• Equality Act• Safe and Well School Survey, data and

commissioning

Safe and Well School Survey

• Annual electronic surveys for Key Stages, 2, 3 & 4• Asks questions related to experience of bullying; including

bullying by type• In 2011 a sexual orientation monitoring question was asked

in the Key Stage 4 survey • The Safe and Well School Survey questions were cross-

tabulated against monitoring data• There is a range of good practice in Brighton & Hove

secondary schools with many young people feeling safe to come out in our schools, but LGBU students are shown to be a vulnerable group across the survey

• This data has supported us to commission extra support• This data has resulted in us reviewing the support we are

providing to LGBU students in school

The data was included at the workshop for discussion purposes, but has been removed from the public arena.

Safe and Well School Survey 2011

Key Stage 4 Survey – 2, 506 (29 skipped)

Heterosexual 91.4%

Gay 0.8%

Lesbian 1.2%

Bisexual 2.0%

Unsure 2.6%

Prefer not to say

2.0%

Should we ask for this in KS3?

What does the cross-tabulated data tell us?

• What does this data tell us about the needs of LGBU students?

• What does this data tell us about the support they might need in schools?

Blatchington Mill- good practice school- student equality group

Varndean School- good practice school- Allsorts satellite drop-in

Models of support

• Signpost to LGBTU youth provision via posters in the corridors, plasma screens, school intranet, school homework diaries / journals

• Ensure LGBT people are visible in posters, across the curriculum and through events such as LGBT History staff

• Provide a named member of staff which is advertised as a point of support for LGBT students who need it

• Provide training to all key pastoral staff and ensure that students understand that all members of pastoral staff can support LGBT students who may need it

• Gay / Straight Alliances• Other?

Next steps

• Which model(s) do you currently promote?

• Are there other models you may explore?

• Are there further opportunities to hear from LGBU young people about their needs in school (over and above information we have related to experience of bullying)?