Learning together to be safe

1. Learning together to be safe A workbook to help implement the Prevent toolkit 1

2. Living in a complex changing world where everything inter-relates and interconnects “Our generation's greatest challenge... is learning to live in a crowded and interconnected world that is creating unprecedented pressures on human society” Prof. Jeffery Sachs Director of the Earth Institute Columbia University 2

3. About the workbook – the purpose • To provide a process and tools for schools to implement Prevent and Learning together to be safe into all aspects of existing work; • To provide a link into the school improvement process by embedding Prevent through the OFSTED Framework and SEF; • To provide guidance and suggestions of links to other strategies and resources; • To provide examples and ideas of Prevent related activities in practice. 3

4. About the workbook – the content • An overview of the process to be applied by schools to move from ticking the box to completing the picture; • A summary chart of the OFSTED Framework and the universal, targeted and specialist practice and actions and priorities; • Exercises to help schools prioritise and complete the picture; • Signposts to other strategies, programmes and initiatives; • A resource catalogue of materials and organisations that can support implementation of different aspects; • Case studies to provide examples and ideas from others. 4

5. The five strands of Prevent in a school and college context • Challenge an extremist narrative and model how diverse views can be heard, analysed and challenged • Prevent harm from those who promote violent extremism • Support individuals who are vulnerable through strategies to support, challenge and protect • Increase the resilience of pupils and of school communities • Allow grievances to be aired, explored and demonstrate the role of conflict resolution and active citizenship 5

6. Implementing Prevent – completing the picture OFSTED3 steps Understand the context of the school Plan and take actions Evaluate impact Who are the key stakeholders? Working with partners – involving the school community Who has contributed to your shared understanding of the context? (Exercise 1) Identify the key partners and other agencies who can contribute to each of the 4 aspects of the toolkit Identify with your stakeholders how their attitudes and responses have changed and contributed to their school and its work Consider the 4 aspects from Learning together to be safe to identify main actions (Exercises 3 to 6) Process - How will you engage stakeholders in the dialogue Identify from your context the key factors for improving achievement, safety and well-being (Exercise 2) Use the TDA impact evaluation tool to analyse and finalise outcomes for each main area of action Embedding – Have you identified resources and linked your actions into other strategies and resources? What do you do now that you can build on? Are there other strategies to be added? What resources, tools, and strategies provide support for effective implementation? (Exercise 7, Case studies, Resource catalogue, and signposts) Who will be responsible for analysing the impact, how often, and with whom? What are the intended outcomes and what will be the impact? - Keep the end in mind Common understanding by all of school community of the main (2 or 3) areas for making a difference Identify key actions (no more than 3) for each aspect of the toolkit to be included in the school improvement plan Review and revise your contextual narrative to reflect changed circumstances and the impact of your actions 6

7. The main challenges of Prevent • To support individuals and prevent harm • Safeguarding • Multi-agency and specialist interventions To promote highly critical and informed idealism Student voice and open debating forums Emotional intelligence and thinking skills Curriculum and pedagogy To build resilience in communities and individuals Safer Schools Partnerships Learning communities Community cohesion Tutors and mentors Parents and carers 7

8. Exercise 1 – Write a narrative of the context of the school Have you taken account of all these factors? Performance Culture and ethnicity Socio-economic context A shared narrative of the school and its context Faith and religion Basic characteristics Information, data, intelligence Links to local, national and global communities 8

9. Exercise 1 – Write a narrative of the context of the school Who have you talked to build the shared understanding of the context of the school? 9

10. Exercise 1 – Write a narrative of the context of the school Examples of a contextual narrative School A: serves an area of low deprivation. Pupils from village and wide rural area. Estate of families in village with social problems, young single parent families and high crime (drug related) which inhibit opportunities. Almost all families are White British, with very few from other cultural backgrounds. Some families have very narrow experience beyond the village so some have a limited understanding of wider communities. It is also a school with a particular faith based intake policy. School B: serves a very diverse urban community, with pupils from a very wide range of cultural, ethnic and linguistic backgrounds. Broadly: White British 22%, Black African 22%, Black Caribbean 9%, Asian 24%, Eastern European 8%. It is an area of high social mobility and significant deprivation. Families who remain in the area usually have low aspirations and high dependency. There is diversity of faiths and high levels of active worship but most travel out of the area to different faith centres. 10

11. Exercise 2 – Identify from your context the key factors for improving achievement, safety, and well-being Using your contextual statement identify with your partners 3 to 5 priorities main aspects to be the priorities and focus for your further school improvement planning. These priorities will inform and direct your consideration of the 4 aspects of Learning together to be safe. (Exercises 3 to 6.) 11

12. Leadership and Values Curriculum, Teaching and Learning Pupil support processes Managing risks, responding to events Exercises 3 to 6 – Plan and take actionsThe four aspects of learning together to be safe Use the key areas of focus (starting points) from the revised understanding of the context to review each of the four aspects of the toolkit. Plan actions (maximum of 2 or 3) for each aspect. You should start by with Leadership and Values and a review of culture and ethos. The others can be taken in any order. Pupil support processes and Managing risks and responding to events are likely to require multi-agency approaches and partnership working. 12

13. Exercise 3 – Leadership and values Have teachers the skills and confidence to raise and address controversial issues? Do induction programmes include school community cohesion policy and practice? Does the school have explicit values statements? Does the school promote human rights and are inclusive for all pupils? Does the school use restorative approaches to resolve conflict? Do teachers promote democratic and participative approaches with teachers? Do partners contribute to the school’s community cohesion programmes? How good is the school at hearing and responding to tensions in the community? How effective is the school at helping the pupils to be active in local, national and global communities? 13

14. Exercise 3 – Leadership and valuesReview your culture and ethos • What are the implications of the outcomes from your contextual narrative for your culture and ethos? • What will be your main focus for planning actions? • How will the main objectives of Prevent be reflected in your culture and ethos? (The Model for Critical Idealism can be used to stimulate discussion and lines of enquiry.) 14

15. Exercise 4 – Curriculum, Teaching and Learning • How are assemblies used to consider controversial issues? • What opportunities are there for pupils to engage in debates with others? • Does the school work with community organisations to extend ---- ? • In which subjects is the Prevent agenda considered? • How are cross-curricular themes used and managed? • How does the school use small group work to explore tensions with pupils causing concern? • Are pupils encouraged and supported to ask questions and express their views and beliefs? • How well do pupils problem solve and resolve conflict? • How are you developing critical thinking skills? 15

16. Exercise 4 – Curriculum, Teaching and Learning • What are the implications of the outcomes from your contextual narrative for the curriculum, teaching and learning? • What should be your main areas of focus? • What will have the biggest impact on your culture and ethos and the attitudes and responses from pupils, parents, staff and the local community? • How do you consider the impact of extremism and explore alternatives? 16

17. Exercise 5 – Pupil support and challenge 17

18. Exercise 5 – Pupil support and challenge • What are the main areas for you to focus on to support pupils vulnerable and at risk from your contextual narrative? • How effective is the personal support to individual pupils in responding to and identifying risks of engaging in extremism? • Do your safeguarding procedures incorporate the risk of extremism and provide referral processes for specialist advice and support? • Have you agreed with partners multi-agency responses to extremism? 18

19. Exercise 6 – Managing risks, responding to events - Promoting resilience, Challenging extremism 19

20. Exercise 6 – Managing risks, responding to events - Promoting resilience, Challenging extremism • What does your contextual narrative tell you are the main risks for you plan and prepare for? • How far do your universal policies help to build resilience and resistance to extremist views and influences? • How well do you understand the factors that cause grievances and disaffection in pupils and what do you do to address them? • Do you have multi-agency procedures in place and how effective will they be in all circumstances? 20

21. Prevent – Case study (Page 1) 21

22. Prevent – Case study (Page 2) 22

23. For further information • Visit the DCSF website at www.dcsf.gov.uk/violentextremism/toolkitforschools for a copy of the PowerPoint • Contact one of the following: andrew.hobbs@goyh.gsi.gov.uk graham.robb@yjb.gov.uk Community.Cohesion@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk. 29