Equality and Diversity

Supporting equality and diversity

At The Oval School, we are committed to equality for our school community. This includes all our pupils, their parents, carers and staff.We will not discriminate against anyone on the grounds of their ability, racial or ethnic origin, gender, religious beliefs or disabilities.

We welcome our statutory duty, under the Public Sector Equality Duty, not to be discriminatory in our practices as the education, wellbeing and care of every child is central to our vision and values.

We believe that the curriculum is enhanced when pupils learn to understand and respect differences of gender, race, religion, age, ability, disability, social disadvantage, sexual orientation or any other personal characteristics. We do all we can to make sure that our policies and the decisions we make consider all people who are protected under the Equality Act

Public Sector Equality Duty

Every year we review how we comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty. This ensures we maintain a strong focus on meeting our responsibilities in ways that are respectful and make sense to our school community.

Our school’s equality objectives

Our School’s equality objectives are guided by the following nine principles:

  • We believe all learners are of equal value
  • We recognise and respect difference
  • We foster positive attitudes and relationships and a shared sense of cohesion and belonging
  • We observe good equalities practice in staff recruitment, retention and development
  • We aim to reduce and remove inequalities and barriers that already exist
  • We consult and involve widely
  • We believe society as a whole should benefit
  • We base our practices on sound evidence
  • We set and monitor measurable objectives

Our objectives

Our objectives are to:

  • Eliminate discrimination in line with our statutory responsibilities under the Equalities Act 2010
  • Improve equality of opportunity for people with Protected Characteristics
  • The following link will take you to the list of what comes under Protected Characteristics. The School works hard to ensure everyone has equal opportunity even if they have a Protected Characteristic.
  • Consult and involve those affected by inequality. We are committed to “Consulting and involving those affected by inequality in the decisions our school takes to promote equality and eliminate discrimination”.

This includes parents, pupils, staff and extends to members of the local community.

The gender pay gap

Under the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017 we are required to publish information about the Gender Pay Gap.

The following link will take you to our Trust’s Annual Gender Pay Gap Report

View our Equality & Diversity statement