HARROW Way Year 11 students demonstrated their Rights Respecting school credentials to 40 secondary and primary school headteachers, senior leaders and governors from Bournemouth and Poole.

The 10 Unicef Peer Educators attended the Values for All conference in Bournemouth giving a presentation on how the rightsrespecting approach at Harrow Way has contributed to improved relationships, wellbeing and educational outcomes.

As one of the first secondary schools in the UK to achieve the Level 2 Unicef Rights Respecting School Award, Harrow Way were able to demonstrate how the school has developed and embedded the Rights of the Child in the whole school ethos.

Their 50-minute workshop showed the impact this has had on promoting positive relationships and empowering young people using the school’s prefect system, student assemblies, peer educating, Holocaust visitors, entire school days dedicated around the rights of the child and classroom charters.

Hilary Delaney, head of RE and citizenship, said: “Being invited to present at this conference, to an audience of such seniority, shows how highly this country’s Rights Respecting experts consider Harrow Way.

“Our students were outstanding ambassadors for the school, leaving a huge impression on all present.”

The conference was organised and run by RealisingRights which was founded in 2012 by human rights educators, several of whom previously worked for UNICEF UK devising and implementing the Rights Respecting School Award.

The main themes explored during the day were: pupil ‘behaviour’ and ‘wellbeing’ and how these impact on each other as well as pupils’ educational outcomes; how rightsrespecting approaches contribute to improved relationships, wellbeing and educational outcomes as well as the promotion of equality and diversity; and the importance of building school collaborations on shared values and principles.

RealisingRights mission is to promote and support the embedding of human rightsbased approaches in neighbourhoods, local authorities, professional organisations and commercial bodies as well as in schools.