Brentwood Diocesan Education Service Statement of Commitment: Racism in Catholic Schools

There is no place for racism in our Church and education community. The Diocese of Brentwood is actively working with pupils, teachers, parents, governors and service providers, through the Brentwood Diocesan Education Service, to promote inclusion and a culture of respect. We believe that every person is created in the image and likeness of God and we uphold fairness and justice for all people.

The Diocese of Brentwood is committed to:

• ensuring that no pupil leaves any of our schools without knowing and understanding that all human life is sacred and that, racism can never be justified in any circumstances

• ensuring that our schools celebrate the richness of racial diversity in our day to day lives and throughout the world

• providing regular opportunities for pupils, teachers and others to share their stories and be heard

• ensuring that no pupil in our schools is subject to prejudice or discrimination or experiences bias based on their social, cultural or ethnic heritage

• regularly reviewing and developing the curriculum in our schools so that it presents and explores society, culture, literature and history accurately and fairly

• actively encouraging the creation of diverse staff and governance teams that reflect our school communities and ensures that black, Asian and minority ethnic team members have equal opportunities to all posts/roles

• collating, reviewing, monitoring and evaluating school-level data in a way that enables us to address any concerns relating to discrimination and to identify exemplary practice, reporting these annually to the Diocesan Board of Education (DBE)

• setting up of a working group to help us find the best ways to deliver on these commitments.