Penwortham school one of first to achieve equality award

Manny (left) and Ayush reading in the forest school at Howick Church of England Primary School.

A school in Penwortham is one of the first to achieve the Lancashire Equality and Inclusion Mark.

Children at Howick Church of England Primary School have been working towards the scheme which aims to make a difference in school communities.

They are one of two Lancashire schools who have received the award since its relaunch.

Pupils and staff have been focusing on categories over the last three years, including race equality, sex equality, disability equality, holistic diversity, sexual orientation equality and religion and belief.

Highlights included visiting speakers like Nelson Mandela’s former bodyguard Chris Lubbe, visits to local charity Galloways Sight Loss Charity, and fundraising for The Foxton Centre.

Year 6 pupils (left-right) Manny, Ayush, Abbie and Kaiyan.

Manny, a year six pupil said: “We visited the Foxton Centre, and a visitor came from there to visit a class, and we also raised some money by selling toast on Fridays and made 15 shoeboxes of toiletries to donate. We really enjoyed looking around and seeing everything that they are doing there.”

Kaiyan, also in year six added: “We heard about the past, when girls were not treated the same as boys, and we saw that nowadays, anyone can aspire to anything.”

Year 6 pupils (left-right) Manny, Abbie, Ayush and Kaiyan outside Howick Church of England Primary School

Meanwhile, a SEND audit was also carried out by the school and Years 5 and 6 pupils learned about hidden disabilities, autism and ADHD.

Pam Maloney, the headteacher said: “It’s been a life changing achievement for us because it’s something that has helped us to reflect on our practice, review our curriculum and to provide lots and lots of different activities and opportunities that are ongoing. We are really proud of the children, and of the fact that they feel that they’re ready to go out into the wider world.

“It’s important to highlight that the learning from this is ongoing. It’s continuous, and ongoing, and we are embedding these values in our learning journey so that they will grow and flourish in our school for years to come.”

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