Choosing a school with different values

[aMintLion]

My DD currently has a reception place for September, at a great small rural school, class sizes are 20 (no not going to be closed due to class sizes) excellent ofsted rating.

The other school slightly larger rural school has space but a class size of 28. Ofsted rated good.

My problem with the small school is a school of sanctuary, which in principle, I don’t have a problem with if they are learning about different cultures, but here’s my problem, they do, bugger all other charity stuff for any other charity, it’s heavily influenced by a local refugee charity and it’s ALL YEAR! I highly suspect that one of the teachers volunteers for the charity as other schools of sanctuary in the area only do a week of refugee stuff. They even bring in every year a failed asylum seeker to the school to talk to the kids about how he came over on a boat. This to me a safeguarding issue as how is he dbs checked? As his first slide of his power point is how he changed his name. They don’t even do things like a macmillian coffee morning once in a while or even children in need! I should add there are no refugees in the school.

I went to a very large multicultural school of an age where every child just got on with it, and I have friends of many different races and religions, all of which say the same thing it’s now, ooh let’s point it out our differences and it’s far from inclusive.

The larger school does a different charity every month. The kids learn a bit about each charity at the start of the month then choose which one they want to do stuff for. One month they will do a medical charity, next a gender charity, then an animal charity etc. They actually they have refugees there and learn about their culture and do things for them like having world day so they all choose a country and research their country to do a talk.

would you choose the smaller school or the slightly larger school?

We have visited both and DD says she prefers the smaller school. I don’t feel I can speak to the headteacher there as I don’t want to be told I’m racist when I’m just a concerned parent who wants to their child to have a diverse education.

Visitors aren't DBS checked as they aren't left with the children alone.

I can't say the charity support of a school is what would make me pick one over the other. It's such a small part of school life and often children just enjoy wearing their own clothes for the day (or whatever) and don't seem to think that much about the actual charity. Generally curriculum lessons continue so the charity aspect is a tiny part of the day. If you like the school in other ways, you could suggest they support other charities?

I hadn’t heard of the programme before but, reading a bit online, I would agree with a lot of their values around kindness, inclusivity and creating a welcoming environment for all. I would hope that this resulted in good pastoral care (for all pupils) and a nurturing environment which is the most important thing I think.

A larger number of children means more opportunities for friends.

The sole focus on one charity sounds limiting

It wouldn't worry me that the school focused on one charity rather than a range of charities, so long as the charity-supporting aspect of the school day wasn't growing so much that it was impinging on time and attention for other things. (It would be improper for the school to develop an 'activist' culture where everything was seen through the lens of this issue.)

Do you have any knowledge of the duration of this charitable focus? Perhaps they cycle between charities on a longer timescale (a couple of years) , rather than , say, weekly.

The part of your post that grates is where you comment on the visit from an asylum seeker and worry whether he/she is DBS checked. It is illegal to make or apply for the relevant level of DBS check other than for a person who is in the kind of regular, unsupervised contact with children that would allow them to groom/abuse, so no casual visitor would have this kind of check made.

I mean it’s an odd reason alone to pull your child from a school they are settled in. You must just have very strong views about asylum seekers in general because you are free to do as much other charity work as you want with your child.

After less than a full year of reception do you really know the ins and outs of every year group of the school’s calendar anyway? It’s all odd.

I read it that the child hasn’t started yet. They have a place.

You’re right, I read it as she was in reception. Either way it’s a very narrow reason to now change schools. Still odd the OP knows so much about PowerPoints shown in the school that her child doesn’t even attend yet!

Schools of sanctuary have a real focus on shared humanity and promote an understanding of inclusion. They tend to be rather lovely. Generally when you think other people will find your words racist it is because they are.

You lost me with your complaint about the failed asylum seeker visiting. Why do you think that he in particular needs a DBS, when there'll be other visitors to the school (including parents) who do not have a DBS, all the time? You seem to subscribe to the 'all asylum seekers are criminals' trope

I'd find the charitable exclusivity a bit irritating, but I don't you'd be complaining about it on here if it was an animal/old people/medical charity.

Despite many years working in primary education I had never heard of "schools of sanctuary" and had to look it up.

It sounds great in theory, with lovely values, but I would be a bit concerned about the ease with which it could slip into the political realm. I wouldn’t dream of voting for Reform or - even worse - Restore, but I wouldn't want the young children of parents who would vote in that way to feel they don’t really belong in the school.

Personally I would prefer my children’s school to focus on the same or similar values but through a variety of causes or charities.

it doesn’t like you will be a good fit at this school. why choose a school that you can see you are not aligned with from the start.