St Sampson's High School
The Convention
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is a document containing 54 articles that ALL children regardless of race, religion, gender or background have access to. At SSHS, our first priority is to uphold the convention at all times. From Article 3 that says ‘all adults must do what is best for a child’ to Article 31 that says ‘children should be protected from being unfairly punished or badly treated’, the UNCRC is built into the ethos of the school at every level.
With a ‘Tree of Rights’ featured in the reception area, anyone visiting our school can see straightaway how important the UNCRC is to our school, our students and our staff. The Student Council (2020-2021) had the vision for a tree with leaves that spread all around the school relating to different rights in specific locations. For example, outside the medical room you can find Article 24 – you have the right to the best health possible’.
As part of the convention, students are aware that they have the right to an opinion (article 12) and for that opinion to be listened to and taken seriously. Therefore, if you have something that you would like to share with an adult, or a concern about something that is bothering you, simply click this link and fill in the form. Remember, you can always talk to your form tutor or your Year Team Lead if you would prefer to speak to someone at school.
Similarly, we would like to hear from adults regarding your opinion of …….. school life? Please contact your child’s form tutor, Head of Year or fill in the form here and someone will get back to you. Please be aware that this service is checked on a monthly basis so for more urgent queries please contact the school office.
Student Council
Our Student Council is made up of students across all year groups. Our year 11 Head Students have campaigned and been voted for by peers and staff to head up the overall Student Leadership Team. Year group representatives from years 7-10 were chosen firstly by tutor groups and in a second round of voting by their year groups. All of these students are seen as a mouthpiece for the rest of the school community and are keen to collect opinions and bring about change in order to continue making St. Sampson’s High School a successful, supportive happy society.
RRSA
The Rights Respecting Schools Award is a prestigious award which recognises a school’s effort to be Rights Respecting. Currently, St. Sampson’s High School has achieved GOLD STATUS!
The assessor would like to thank the children, the Senior Leadership Team, and staff for their warm welcome to the school, for the opportunity to speak with adults and children during the assessment and for the detailed evidence provided to support the process. Prior to the accreditation visit, the school completed a comprehensive School Evaluation: Gold form and provided a good collection of digital evidence.
It was evident that children’s rights are embedded across the school and underpin every facet of
school life.
Strengths of the school include:
▪ Passionate and confident pupils who understand the importance of rights and are empowered to drive change within the school.
▪ The caring and nurturing ethos of the school, where the values of dignity and respect are lived and valued by the whole school community.
▪ A strong focus on the health and wellbeing of students within the context of rights so that young people feel supported and protected.
▪ Pupil voice that is valued highly with a range of pupil voice groups giving opportunities for all young people to put their suggestions forward and for these to be acted upon.
▪ A strong desire to develop pupils’ understanding of inequalities around the world and the actions they can take to address this.
▪ Pupils who are actively engaged in raising awareness of children’s rights in their community and supporting other children globally to access their rights.