Inclusive education
The Mayor believes that schools must be fully inclusive of all students. This means challenging stereotypes and reflecting the diverse identities, histories and cultures of all young people so that each has an equal sense of belonging in the classroom.
Find out below how the Mayor and others are championing inclusive education in London.
RSA and GLA work on reducing school exclusions
Over the last 11 months, the Mayor has been working with the RSA (the Royal Society of Arts, manufactures and commerce) to investigate how London schools, multi-academy trusts and local authorities can engage in early intervention work to become more inclusive and nurturing, and reduce the number of formal and informal exclusions.
This research has resulted in the production of the Inclusive and Nurturing Schools toolkit. Eight case studies of promising inclusive and nurturing practice by schools, trusts, and local authorities are presented in the toolkit. The case studies share their individual journeys of inclusion and include challenges that leaders have overcome to sustain inclusive and nurturing practice within their settings.
It also presents a process for embedding the learning from these approaches into a school's individual context, from identifying opportunities to developing a theory of change that includes the active ingredients needed for success.
There are many examples of excellent collaboration, strategies and interventions being led by different London boroughs, schools, Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs), Pupil Referral Units (PRUs) and Alternative Providers (AP), both in London and across the UK. However, there have been limited opportunities for schools, boroughs and partner agencies to discuss and share what is working. The toolkit was created to give them a useful tool for implementing inclusive and nurturing practice in their environments.
Teaching Black History
At the start of Black History Month 2020, the Mayor announced a partnership with The Black Curriculum to lead an expert review of all three of the London Curriculum's KS3 history units: 'World City', 'Social Reform in Victorian London' and 'London at War'. This aimed to provide teachers with more knowledge, tools and confidence to teach Black history throughout the entire academic year - not just during Black History Month.
The Black Curriculum held focus groups with young Londoners from the Mayor's Lynk Up Crew and Peer Outreach Workers to understand their school experiences and seek their ideas for improvements. These informed over 70 recommendations made by The Black Curriculum. All have now been implemented in our refreshed history resources, with new content to help embed more Black History into the curriculum and strengthen racial literacy. These can be downloaded for free below:
You can watch our latest webinar on developing a racially literate mindset, hosted by Ben Mearhart from The Black Curriculum and with a welcome from Joanne McCartney AM, Deputy Mayor for Education and Childcare.
You can also watch our CPD webinar, hosted by The Black Curriculum, which explains the changes made and provides top tips for an inclusive curriculum:
This builds on our work to ensure London's diversity is celebrated in other London Curriculum resources, such as our London History Day Guide, Family Explorer Trails and World of Work Trails. Please ensure you follow the latest COVID-19 guidance.
A New Direction's Teaching for Creativity
A New Direction’s work aims to enhance the capacity and agency of children and young people in London to own their creativity, shape culture, and achieve their creative potential. Of equal priority is helping to broaden and diversify the curriculum in response to the combined crises facing young people, including the climate crisis, the call for a more equitable society – prompted most recently by the Black Lives Matter movement – the COVID-19 pandemic, and its associated impact on the economy and wellbeing. Teaching for Creativity draws on the expertise of London’s cultural sector to provide rich learning materials that help develop young people’s creativity and their ability to navigate these times
Hackney's Diverse Curriculum
Hackney Council has worked with teachers across the borough to develop Hackney's Diverse Curriculum - the Black Contribution. As well as providing balance to how British history is taught in schools, they hope it will inspire a more tolerant and inclusive-minded community. There are 9 free teaching packs and other boroughs are welcome and encouraged to adapt and use them within their own teaching.
Gender equality
To mark the centenary of some women winning the right to vote in 2018, the Mayor launched a year-long campaign called #BehindEveryGreatCity. This included an Equal Play conference at City Hall where key sectors were united to tackle the gender stereotypes young people face. Legacies of this include:
Gender Action, which brings together a range of free teacher resources to help embed a whole-school approach to gender equality.
Teachers and families can also address gender stereotypes through our Women of Courage and Equal Play Family Explorer Trails.
Please ensure you follow the latest COVID-19 guidance.
LGBTQ+ inclusive education
The Mayor believes schools must be places where all children feel safe and included, regardless of their gender identity and sexual orientation, or that of their families.
The Mayor wrote to all London headteachers at the beginning of the 2019/20 academic year to express his total and full support for schools as they equip students to make safe and informed decisions, show that LGBTQ+ relationships are part of everyday life, and ensure that all young Londoners can feel proud of who they are. He also wrote to the Secretary of State for Education in support of statutory LGBTQ+-inclusive relationships education in both primary and secondary schools.
Access free resources for teaching Personal Social Health and Economic Education (PSHEE) and RSE (Relationship and Sex Education) at your school.
Read more about how the Mayor is supporting LGBTQ+ Londoners.
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