Involving the community
This section of the unit explores approaches to involving the wider school community, including local groups and services, businesses and the local authority. The benefits of involving the wider school community include the following.
- Helping schools raise pupils' motivation, expectations and achievement - support from parents and local community organisations may be an important factor in improving pupils' attainment and combating social exclusion.
- Providing the local community with sports and meeting facilities - in many locations, the school is the main, or even only, place that can be used for such activities. Using the local school as a centre for adult learning, childcare facilities and for meetings can help regenerate and strengthen communities.
- Increasing the use of school premises, leading to improved security for the school site and reductions in vandalism and graffiti in the surrounding area.
- Reinforcing the fact that all education relates to the wider community and lifelong learning.
Now complete the activity on the right.
Activity Resources:
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Activity
Part 1: Tower Hamlets initiatives
The initiatives in this activity demonstrate clearly how school involvement with the wider community can help deliver active citizenship.
Go to the Citizenship Pieces website. Citizenship Pieces
Click on 'Initiatives' and then click on the following projects (click on 'details' to see more about each one):
- Schools Youth Forum - Citizenship Through Drama;
- Project Charlie;
- United Nations Working Group.
For each initiative identify the organisations, partnerships or individuals responsible for delivering the initiative and consider how the example relates to your own school. Examine particularly the links with other schools, community groups and organisations - local, national and global.
- Would any of the initiatives be possible or desirable in your own school context? Why/why not?
- Who could take such an initiative forward in your school?
- Which partnerships, organisations or individuals would be involved?
Part 2: your community
Having examined these initiatives and considered what links and partnerships are feasible within your own school context, list the ideas and opportunities there are for:
- your school to offer community facilities or activities for the wider school community;
- your pupils to become involved in active citizenship through working with the wider school community.
Present these ideas to colleagues and consider which of them could be developed and how.
- Who will need to be involved in planning and delivering these ideas?
- What partnerships will need to be established with the wider school community?
