Black Lives Matter
Black Lives Matter
At St Helen’s Catholic Primary School, the tragic death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter campaign reminds us all of the values of dignity and worth, and the value God puts on each person. Jesus, in his life, shows the love and compassion of God for each and every one of us and as Christians we are called to follow him in this. The worth of each person is shown in the Gospels through his teaching, healing, feeding, sharing hospitality, befriending, and forgiving. Ensuring our pupils are educated in an environment where all God’s children are valued is of the highest priority. We want to reassure all our families that we fully believe that all people deserve equal access to all human rights, services and fair treatment, but we recognise that there is a huge disparity in the way in which members of the Black community are treated in comparison to other social groups; in many different situations.
At St Helen’s, we will continue to strive to promote equality and celebrate diversity in all its forms. We will continue to work to ensure provision across the school is further developed to meet the needs and interests of our learners, their families and the community we serve by ensuring our curriculum fully reflects the rich multicultural diversity that makes our school special and unique. Likewise, we want our school to reflect the strong attainment and achievement we know the children are capable of as part of our moral duty to achieve social justice for our pupils. We believe our children have just as much talent and potential as other children. In spite of the multiple barriers, in and out of school some may face, particularly for those members of our BAME community, we believe our children and our families deserve our best efforts to make St Helen’s a school that really does makes a difference where everyone can belong, believe and achieve to their fullest potential.
Therefore, we are dedicated to inspiring and empowering the next generation of positive, inclusive, tolerant and active global Christian citizens and in order to support families in talking about how this relates to current world events, we have found some links to resources that might help support important discussions you may be having at home, particularly around the growing Black Lives Matter movement.
In addition to the range of support service contacts available for all our families on the school website, Black Minds Matter is also providing free therapy and support with professional BAME therapists. You can select a therapist from the website based on your needs, particularly during this difficult time. Please follow the link for more information: Black Minds Matter Counselling
Click on the link below to access support and resources:
Talking to Children About Racism (UNICEF Parenting)
Resources to Support Talking About Racism (Parentzone)
A Parent's Guide to Black Lives Matter
Diversity in Books
Books are a great way to promote diversity and discuss and reflect on important issues. The National Literacy Trust have developed a recommended list of BAME books to ensure that diversity is represented in all areas of life through books. Please click on the text covers to access some of the recommended texts below. Many are also available in our school in addition to many more titles celebrating diversity and multiculturalism.
Books for Infants Ages 0-5
Book for Infants Ages 5-7
Tata Storytime is a new online kids show where fantastic actors read beautiful picture books. With Authors from African, Caribbean & African American heritage these stories will engage all children. Aimed at infants to eight year olds, it's perfect for entertaining & educating children using a YouTube storytime library. Click on the picture link to access some amazing stories!
Books for Juniors Ages 7-11 (Author Summary)
