Inverness school receives rights respecting schools gold award

Lochardil Primary in Inverness is the latest Highland school to be awarded the Gold Rights Respecting Schools Award.  The school received their accreditation in May 2019 following a recognition visit by UNICEF.  Cradlehall Primary School, also in Inverness, was the first Highland school to be awarded Gold in May of last year.

Gold is the highest accolade given by Unicef UK and shows a deep and thorough commitment to children’s rights at all levels of school life. The award recognises achievement in putting the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child at the heart of a school’s planning, policies and practice.  A Rights Respecting School is a community where children’s rights are learned, taught, practised, respected, protected and promoted.

Jenny Price, Professional Adviser (Scotland: North), Rights Respecting Schools Award (RRSA), Unicef UK said following her visit to Lochardil Primary School:  “It was evident that children’s rights are embedded across the school and underpin every facet of school life.  Children unanimously agreed that they feel safe and protected in school and some acknowledged that knowing about their rights has helped them to feel safer.

Particular strengths of the school include:

• A committed strategic approach from all staff to embed a child rights-based approach.
• Children’s breadth and depth of knowledge and understanding about rights and the CRC.
• The school’s openness to facilitating a wide range of participation opportunities across the school.”

The Rights Respecting Schools Award helps children and adults to work together where duty bearers (adults) are responsible for creating the space and encouragement for meaningful participation and engagement for rights holders (pupils) to understand and claim their rights.

Lochardil pupils have engaged in a number of campaign activities to advocate for children’s rights locally and globally, such as: Send my Friend to School campaign which involved a ‘lobby’ visit by the children to Westminster with a signed declaration about safer schools around the world; JRSO’s speed limit campaign with their local MP; Eco team working alongside Highland Council Waste Aware regarding canteen waste, local litter picks, and a Fairtrade campaign with Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club resulting in them being the first Scottish women’s football team to use only Fairtrade footballs for training and to be used within their community teams. 

Craig Masterton, Head of Community at Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club noted that: “The children have taught the players about rights and global goals.” Rorie, P7 pupil explained: “By 2030 we need to make all the goals achievable, then everyone will have all of their rights.” Others from the UNIKids group added: “Quality education would mean that all rights to do with education would be met”; “Everyone would have houses”; “If all the Goals happen, everyone’s life will be the same quality around the world.” 

The school is looking forward to its planned celebration event in June when they will proudly unveil their UNICEF Rights Respecting Gold Award banner and celebrate this fantastic achievement with those that matter: pupils, staff, parents/ carers and the local community.

Councillor John Finlayson, Chair of Highland Council’s Care, Learning and Housing committee, said: “It is very pleasing to hear that Highland schools have achieved gold status as Rights Respecting Schools and that many others are on the journey to follow suit.  We have a responsibility to recognise, respect and promote children’s rights and when we empower children to know and exercise their rights we are enabling a culture of awareness, inclusion and acceptance and it is these values that underpin our Highland-wide ethos of mutual respect.”

Across Highland 27 primary schools and 3 secondary schools are registered to achieve Rights Respecting Schools status.  In addition to the 2 Gold award holders 11 primary and 3 secondary schools hold bronze awards and 6 primary schools hold silver awards.  These schools will all work towards achieving their gold status.