King's School

Introduction

King’s School seeks to foster a warm, welcoming, and respectful culture, based on our Christian Gospel values, which allows us all to question and challenge discrimination and inequality, resolve conflicts peacefully, promote equality, and work and learn in a safe environment. This page gives information on some of our key contextual factors, and objectives.

To find out more about our school approach to equality please read our Equal Opportunities Policy. To read about equalities and inclusion for staff, please scroll to the bottom of this page.

Equality Information and objectives

1. Contextual information

King’s School opened in September 2013. We currently have around 180 students in Year 7 (split into six tutor groups), 177 students in Year 8, 174 students in Year 9, 178 students in Year 10 and 160 students in Year 11.

Intake	Total Number	Boys	BME	EAL	FSM	PPG	SEN	EHCP	PD
2021	178	83	40	20	29	36	29	10	3
2022	178	90	39	22	37	38	19	7	1
2023	181	77	43	28	33	38	42	9	0
2024	180	104	42	48	34	35	46	6	3

2. Fostering good relations information

It is important that our school is an inclusive environment, and that all students feel safe and supported here. We take part in the bi-annual Brighton and Hove Safe and Well at School surveys, which include questions on how safe students feel at school and how well they relate to others.

We take pride in the range of work we do to foster good relations and the fact that 89% of our KS3 students feel safe in school (85% of KS4 students); when asked whether the school helps them to get on with others including people from different religious and cultural backgrounds, 92% of KS3 students agreed and 87% of KS4 students agreed (Safe and Well School Survey 2023).

You can read more about our approach to fostering good relations in the following policies; Attendance; Behaviour; Anti-Bullying; Curriculum; Extra-Curricular; Special Educational Needs; Sex and Relationships Education; Safeguarding.

We aim to foster good relations by:

Providing annual all staff training on at least one aspect of equality and diversity. Additional regular training is provided for key inclusion staff.
Ensuring the whole school environment and curriculum reflects the diverse community within which we live. We aim for all students in our school to see themselves reflected in the stories we read, the assemblies we hold, and in our displays and curriculum.
Giving clear messages about expectations as part of school values; this includes regular assemblies, e.g. on the use of homophobic, racist and sexist language; the Holocaust; Brexit and immigration; gender equality; sexual harassment and objectification.
Constantly reviewing and developing the PSHE and RSE curriculum so that it provides opportunities to explore values and attitudes, understand similarities and differences, and builds understanding of different groups and our own identities.
Taking and using pupil, parent and staff feedback on all areas of inclusion and equalities, including in the curriculum and extra-curricular life of the school.
Working with Community and Voluntary Sector visitors to enrich the curriculum; these include the Young Carers’ Project, the Open Minds' Project, and Off the Fence. Please see our PSHE curriculum map which shows the learning by year group.
Charity work is routinely led by students and also helps to foster good relations with our wider community.
For students who struggle to understand the importance of respect for others we have a range of interventions including small groups work, pastoral mentoring and discussions with the Police Neighbourhood Schools Officer.

Fostering good relations objective(s)

As the school continues to grow we will continue to review the PSHE and wider curriculum to ensure it meets the needs of students. In particular, we want to focus on education on race issues and will be working with staff, students and our wider community to review and develop our approach.

3.Eliminating discrimination information

We work in partnership with parents and carers, students and the whole school community to prevent all forms of bullying and prejudiced based behaviour and you can read more about our approach to bullying and eliminating discrimination in our Anti-Bullying Policy, Equality Policy and Sex and Relationship Education Policy.

All bullying and prejudiced based incidents are recorded. These records are used to inform the assembly programme and the PSHE education curriculum and to support and track individual students. Incidents are discussed during pastoral meetings and reported termly to governors meetings. The school also participates in the local authority Safe and Well School Survey and conducts its own student focus groups and surveys and regular Parental Voice Surveys. This data is also analysed and used to measure impact and inform next steps. This data is reported back to the whole school community on an annual basis.

We actively encourage students, parents and carers to report any bullying and prejudiced based incidents to us. 85% of KS3 students (and 75% of KS4 students) reported that they believe the school is good at dealing with incidents of bullying, compared with 50% on average across Brighton and Hove in KS3 and 40% in KS4 (Safe and Well at School Survey 2023). Parents and carers have made clear to us that they are very happy that the school deals with any such incidents efficiently and appropriately.

My school is good at dealing with bullying
All secondaries Brighton and Hove KS3	All secondaries Brighton and Hove KS4	King's KS3 Students	King's KS4 Students
50%	40%	85%	75%

Eliminating discrimination objective(s)

To decrease (and eradicate) use of language which may be deemed to be sexist or misogynistic.

4. Advance equality of opportunity information

King’s School is completely committed to ensuring that all students make excellent academic progress. We review the progress of all students continually and collect formal progress data twice a year. This data is routinely analysed to ensure that all groups of students are performing equally well across the curriculum.

Advance equality of opportunity objective(s)

To ensure that student progress remains consistently excellent across all groups as the school expands.
To ensure that students understand equality of opportunity and protected characteristics, and their importance in British Values and daily life.

5. Accessibility Plan

The school is fully accessible to all students, including wheelchair users. There is a lift from the ground floor to the second floor, and a platform lift from the dining hall to the ground floor.

The school has a medical, SEND, and disabilities register for all year groups.

Accessibility plan objectives

Increasing the extent to which disabled pupils can participate in the school's curriculum:

2024-25

Students with significant health needs have Healthcare Plans, drawn up by the school in conjunction with parents/carers and associated medical professionals.
The school makes appropriate provision and trains staff as required to accommodate students with particular needs (e.g. training on severe allergies and epipen use annually since 2015).
We currently have students on roll with severe hearing impairments which require each teacher to use a radio device whilst teaching. Seating plans ensure that, where appropriate, these students are always sat nearest the teacher in the classroom.
All students will access the curriculum and setting in core subjects will allow students to make rapid and sustained progress regardless of their starting point.
Class sizes will remain reasonable (typically below 30) and additional interventions and support for numeracy and literacy will support students to access the curriculum.
The school is inclusive in line with its philosophy and legal requirements and there are no known barriers to any child accessing classrooms, activities or any part of the curriculum.
The school will review at least annually the disability profile of the cohort and adjust provision and plans as required. In addition to this annual review the school will assess the needs of any new or prospective in-year transfer.

Increasing the choices available to diasbled pupils in relation to extra curricular activities and social time:

The SEND department support disabled pupils to take part in off site trips and activities
The school offers alternative social time spaces and dining areas for students with SEND

Improving the physical environment of the school for the purpose of increasing the extent to which disabled pupils are able to take advantage of education and benefits, facilities or services provided or offered by the school:

Our new permanent site was designed carefully to ensure full access for all.
The needs of future cohorts and any staff appointed with disabilities will be assessed and provision made as they arise.
Annual reviews of physical accessibility will be undertaken.
There is plentiful disabled toilet provision and a hygiene room. We installed a closomat toilet to improve hygiene provision for specific students with additional needs.
The mini-buses (used for extra-curricular activities) include disabled access and seating.

Improving the delivery to disabled pupils of information which is readily accessible to pupils who are not disabled:

The website contains most of the information available to parents and students that is required. The school also uses an online learning platform to set homework - My Child at School (BromCom).
School signage will be large enough (large font) and at a height which can be read easily by any student including those in wheelchairs.
School signs will make clear where access points and exits points are including disabled signs and disabled toilets.
IWB technology will enable all students to access information readily regardless of their disability and will be adjusted, where appropriate for students, known to the school already, who suffer hearing loss.
Where appropriate, disabled students will be equipped with laptop, IPad, reading pen or other new technologies to assist them in accessing information and learning including practical subjects such as technology and PE.
Where appropriate and if required, specialist ergonomic furniture will be purchased to enable those with a disability to learn.

6. Wider equalities work

We are committed to ensuring equality of opportunity and inclusion for staff and visitors, in line with our ethos and work to support our students. We demonstrate this commitment through our general equal opportunities policy, and in addition:

We have a named equalities lead, Katherine Vincent (Senior Assistant Headteacher), who oversees equalities and inclusion projects across the school;
We regularly monitor our recruitment processes and data, continually striving to have a fair and inclusive process;
We publicise accessibility information for visitors and job applicants in advance;
We gather and act on staff feedback relating to inclusion and equalities.

Equality Information and Objectives