CONFIDENTIALITY  IN  SCHOOLS

                            

KEY INFORMATION ON PROTECTING CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLES PERSONAL INFORMATION:

Finding the right balance when dealing with a child's privacy as well as promoting positive values with their parents and carers is a rather difficult task for most teachers and staff. It is a thin line between confidentiality and safety when a child is at risk. 
It’s always best to make sure that children, young people and families involved with your organisation know where they stand on issues around confidentiality and information sharing before any specific problem or situation arises that could test your relationship with them. You can do

 this by producing a simple statement of principles that underpins your approach, and by sharing this with those who need to know about it at the outset of your relationship with them, and at any key decision making points. Parents, carers, children and young people who have concerns about confidentiality should always be given the opportunity to talk through their concerns, and to be advised on what could happen to information they disclose.

INCLUSION AND ANTI-DISCRIMINATORY PRACTICES

Inclusive education means that all students attend and are welcomed by their neighbourhood schools in age-appropriate, regular classes and are supported to learn, contribute and participate in all aspects of the life of the school.

Inclusive education is about how we develop and design our schools, classrooms, programs and activities so that all students learn and participate together.

It’s important because we value our diverse communities. These communities start at school, where all students learn to live alongside peers. They learn together; they play together; they grow and are nurtured together.

I have included here a video on inclusion in a school in Hertfordshire. It's a shining example of how  effort and hard work can work wonders on children! 

                            EQUALITY ACT 2010

The Equality Act 2010 has been drawn up to tackle inequality and prevent discrimination against people on the basis of ‘protected characteristics’.  It brings together several existing laws and aims to make understanding the law simpler.  It also introduces a new single public sector equality duty, which requires public bodies to actively advance equality.These provisions protect pupils at the school and in the case of admissions, those applying or wishing to apply for admission.  Former pupils are also protected from discrimination or harassment.

‘Protected characteristics’

The Equality Act lists a number of characteristics which must not be used as a reason to treat some people worse than others.  These are:

• age;
• disability;
• race;
• sex;
• pregnancy, maternity and breastfeeding;
• gender reassignment;
• religion or belief;
• sexual orientation.

 A person can experience direct discrimination because of a protected characteristic, even if the person does not have the characteristic himself/herself:

• Discrimination because of perception takes place where someone is treated worse than others because they have been perceived to have a characteristic. 
• Discrimination because of association takes place when a person is treated worse than another person because they associate with a person with a protected characteristic.

 Exceptions:

There are some limited exceptions to the general requirement not to treat anyone worse than someone else because of a protected characteristic. 

Exceptions that apply to all protected characteristics:

• Positive action – encouraging people with a protected characteristic from groups with different needs or a past record of disadvantage or low participation to access education e.g. if a school council is made up mainly of girls, despite there being a fairly even balance of boys and girls in the school, the school can encourage boys to stand as class reps (but the pupils still vote to decide who is elected).
• Statutory provisions – this only applies where there is no other choice but to discriminate or break another law (but does not apply to race discrimination).
• National security. 
• There are also some exceptions that relate to particular protected characteristics:
  • Disability – it is not discrimination against a non-disabled person to treat a disabled person more favourably or make reasonable adjustments for the disabled person.
  • Age – not relevant to schools.

Duties for schools:

As a school, you must not: ·         discriminate against a pupil or prospective pupil because of their disability, race, sex, gender reassignment, religion or belief, or sexual orientation; ·         harass or victimise a pupil or prospective pupil. You must not discriminate against a person in relation to the following activities: ·         admission to your school; ·         the provision of education to pupils; ·         access to any benefit, facility or service; ·         exclusion from school; ·         by subjecting a pupil to any other detriment.