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equality scheme

Issue Date: March 2025

Reviewed by: Full Governing Board

Review Date: March 2028

Vision and Values

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Our equality vision and the values that underpin Federation life.

 

We maintain that all children regardless of race, sex, culture, class, religion, disability gender identity, or family structure, are valued equally. Each family and child’s unique experiences enrich our nursery environment. All staff are committed to identifying and positively meeting individual children's needs ensuring that all children have access to a broad and balanced curriculum and children are encouraged to respond positively to the unique needs of others. We strive to give all children the opportunity to experience a range of rich experiences and to follow their interests as they arise.

 

We are committed to creating an inclusive, diverse, and cohesive community where every child, parent, carer and staff member feels valued, respected, and empowered to participate fully in nursery life. We actively challenge discrimination, promote respect, and encourage an appreciation of diversity as a strength.

 

Core Principles:

In fulfilling our legal obligations we will be guided by nine core principles:

Principle 1: All learners are of equal value.

Principle 2: We welcome and respect diversity.

Principle 3: We foster positive attitudes and relationships, and a shared sense of cohesion and belonging.

Principle 4: We observe best equalities practice, including fair recruitment, retention and staff development.

Principle 5: We work proactively to eliminate barriers and inequalities.

Principle 6: We consult and involve diverse voices in decision making.

Principle 7: We strive to benefit society as a whole through our commitment to equality.

Principle 8: We will base our practices and policies on evidence based research.

Principle 9: We will establish clear, measurable equality objectives.

 

Legal Background

Our Federation is committed to meeting its public sector statutory duties as detailed below. We understand that the duties apply to service delivery and employment and staff management as well as policy development and implementation.

 

General Duty under the Equality Act 2010:

Our equality scheme complies with the equality act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) We are committed to:

  • eliminating discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct that is prohibited by or under this Act.

  • advancing equality of opportunity for all

  • fostering good relations between different groups.

 

The Specific Duties of the Act enable Federations to meet their obligations under the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED)

The specific duties require Federations to:

 

  • Publish annually information quantitative and qualitative, showing compliance with the public sector equality duty (PSED) set out in clause 149 of the Equality Act 2010.

  • To set every four years one or more specific measurable equality objectives that furthers the aims of the equality duty.

 

Protected Characteristics

The Equality At 2010 protects children from discrimination and harassment based on protected characteristics. The protected characteristics for Federation provisions are:

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  • age (for staff and adult users only)

  • disability

  • ethnicity and race

  • gender (sex)

  • gender identity and reassignment

  • pregnancy, maternity and breast feeding (for staff and adult users)

  • religion and belief

  • sexual orientation

 

Disability

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We implement an Accessibility Plan (see Appendix 1) aimed at:

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  • increasing the participation of disabled children in the curriculum;

  • improving the physical environment to enhance accessibility;

  • providing accessible information and alternative communication formats.

 

We also provide additional training to staff to ensure inclusive teaching practices that meet the needs of children with disabilities and special educational needs.

 

Community Cohesion

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To achieve a cohesive community, we:

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  • Promote understanding and engagement across diverse backgrounds

  • Actively involve all families in nursery life

  • Address discrimination through education and awareness initiatives

  • Offer opportunities for children to explore and celebrate different cultures

  • Carefully plan a curriculum that ensures all children feel ‘seen’

Roles and Responsibilities

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Chain of accountability

 

The Board of Governors, supported by the Headteachers and staff, is responsible for ensuring the implementation of this scheme.

 

Commitment to implementation

  • As Executive Headteachers Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell, retain overall responsibility for ensuring that the action plan is delivered effectively.

  • Every term, senior leaders and key staff will report to the Headteachers on actions and progress.

  • Every term there will be a report on equality and diversity to the Governor’s meeting.

  • All staff are responsible for upholding and modelling respectful and inclusive behaviours and delivering the scheme as it relates to their area of work.

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Single equality scheme                                                                       

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Disability equality (including bullying incidents)                       

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


SEN/LDD (including bullying incidents)                                         

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Accessibility                                                                                             

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Gender equality (including bullying incidents)                         

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Race equality (including racist incidents)                                   

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Equality and diversity in curriculum content                             

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Equality and diversity in pupil achievement                             

 Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Equality and diversity – behaviour and exclusions                 

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Participation in all aspects of Federation life                             

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Impact assessment                                                                             

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Stakeholder consultation                                                                 

Gemma Williamson and Hayley Yendell 


Policy review                                                                                         

++Chair of Governors


Communication and publishing                                                     

Administration Team

Roles and Responsibilities

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Governors Will:

  • Lead the development and review of equality policies.

  • Hold leadership accountable for implementation.

  • Promote best practices and address incidents of discrimination.

 

Headteachers and Senior Staff Will:

  • Ensure policies are effectively communicated and implemented.

  • Provide staff with training on diversity and inclusion.

  • Monitor and evaluate equality objectives.

 

All Staff Will:

  • Uphold and model respectful and inclusive behaviour.

  • Integrate inclusive teaching materials and strategies.

  • Address incidents of discrimination or bias immediately.

 

Parents/Carers Will:

  • Partner with the nursery to identify and address barriers.

  • Support and uphold the nursery’s equality commitments.

 

Children Will:

  • Learn in an environment that values respect and inclusivity.

  • Support one another in upholding fairness and kindness.

 

Teaching and Learning

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To support all children to fulfil their potential we will:-

  • Use contextual data to identify and support underrepresented groups and individuals.

  • Ensure equal access to learning opportunities.

  • Actively challenge stereotypes and bias through planned activities and through careful organisation of the physical environment.

  • Actively engage parents and carers in a range of ways that meet their needs.

 

Admissions and Exclusions

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Our admissions arrangements are fair and transparent and do not discriminate on race, gender, family circumstances, disability or socio-economic status.  Exclusions will always be based on the Behaviour Policy and we monitor data to prevent any potential bias in disciplinary action.

 

Equality and Staff

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We commit to:

  • Fair recruitment, promotion, and retention practices.

  • Providing reasonable adjustments for disabled staff.

  • Offering diversity and inclusion training.

  • Ensuring staff well-being, with mechanisms for reporting discrimination or workplace challenges.

 

Engagement & Participation

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Engagement – Participation and Involvement

We actively involve children, parents, carers, staff, and external partners in shaping our equality policies through:

  • Regular consultations and surveys.

  • Parent/Carer forums and community discussions.

  • Child-led initiatives promoting inclusivity.

  • Partnerships with equality-focused organisations

 

Using Information

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Evaluating the impact in terms of the outcomes.

Equality Impact Assessment (EQIAs)

To ensure fairness, we:

  • We make regular assessments of children’ learning, both formative and summative, and use this information to track children’ progress, as they move through the Federation. As part of this process, we regularly monitor the performance of identified vulnerable groups and use this information to adjust future teaching and learning plans, as necessary.

  • We collect information relating to incidents of harassment and bullying including those relating to racism, homophobia, disability and gender.

  • The Local Authority provides us with a range of services which support the equality agenda and helps us to identify our strengths and those areas requiring action

 

Stakeholder consultation

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  • Consult with parents / Carers from different groups across the schools and Federation

  • Consult with staff, governors with equality focus

  • Regularly ask children about their perceptions

 

Our Federation’s Equality Objectives

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Group A – Bringing equality procedures and practices into line with Equality Act.

Equality Objectives (Updated Every Four Years)

Group A – Aligning Practices with the Equality Act

  • Regularly review and update all policies to reflect equality requirements.

  • Improve data collection and analysis of diversity-related metrics.

  • Ensure all new policies are assessed for their equality impact.

  • Expand accessibility measures across all nursery services.

  • Provide annual diversity training for staff, governors, and parents.

 

Group B – Specific objectives to improve provision

  • Support younger children to ensure equitable early learning opportunities.

  • Enhance engagement with families from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

  • Increase awareness of unconscious bias and inclusive teaching among staff.

  • Strengthen community partnerships to promote diverse role models in education​

 

Commitment to review

The Federation equality scheme will be monitored within the Federation’s self-evaluation and other review processes as well as being updated at least annually. Following this regular impact assessment, the whole equality scheme will be reviewed at least every three years.

 

Commitment to publish

We are committed to sharing information about our equality scheme. To this end, we will publish information annually on the Federation and school websites. This information will include relevant policies and objectives set by the Federation and individual schools.

 

By embedding these commitments into our nursery’s daily practices, we ensure an environment where every child, family, and staff member thrives in an atmosphere of respect, inclusion, and opportunity.

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