British Values & our value for the month

To further support our School Values and our promotion of 'British Values', we think about and celebrate one of our 22 values each month, often linking them with different events and festivals, both locally and around the world.

We look at the value in assembly and in class and we aim to ‘live’ that value in the way we work with others in school.

In September 2025 our value is... Democracy

At school, we explain to the children that democracy is about having rights and responsibilities. We think about how Democracy functions in the UK and how elections work. At the Firs, children experience democracy through their involvement in the School Council, firstly during the election and then by making decisions that benefit their own, and the wider community. They may also volunteer to carry out jobs for the benefit of the school community – for example, being a Firs’ Friend in Y4, a buddy to look after someone new, doing litter picking, tidying the classroom etc.

We ask parents/carers at home to send in a note if they think their child has demonstrated democracy, describing how they showed this value. We will celebrate some of their achievements in assembly (if they are happy with this). Examples of engaging with democracy, might be:

Taking an interest in news events.
Expressing their opinions on topics but listening to and respecting the views of others too.
Regularly watching and taking an interest in CBBC news.
Improving their public speaking skills, perhaps by joining a theatre group.
Joining a group that involves itself in the local community, e.g. Brownies or Cubs.
Treating their friends and family fairly and equally, e.g. making sure everyone gets an equal share of their attention, rather than focussing on a ‘best friend’, and giving everyone an equal amount of time at a favourite game or activity.

What people have said about Democracy…

We always hear about the rights of democracy, but the major responsibility of it is participation Wynton Marsalis
Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education Franklin D. Roosevelt
Freedom and democracy are dreams you never give up Aung San Suu Kyi
A full and fair discussion is essential to democracy George Soros
It is the duty of government to make it difficult for people to do wrong, easy to do right William Gladstone
Government of the people, by the people, for the people. Abraham Lincoln (quoting John Wycliffe)