At St Joseph's, we are a Rights Respecting School

The Rights Respecting Schools Award puts children’s rights at the heart of schools in the UK. Unicef works with these schools to create safe and inspiring places to learn, where children are respected and encouraged to be responsible, active citizens.

St Joseph’s has been working towards this award since 2017, as it fits beautifully with our school motto, ‘The Way, The Truth, The Life’.

We achieved the Bronze Award in January 2018 and are currently in receipt of the Silver Award, which we were accredited in 2019. 

We are now moving forward to obtain our Gold Award and ensuring that children’s rights are at the forefront of everything we do. 

Find out more on the Unicef website here. Or you may enjoy singing along to our Rights Song.

What do we have coming up?

Each month we have a ‘Right of the Month’ which focuses on an article from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Please keep an eye on your child’s Google Classroom and the Headteacher’s Blog to find out more. You may like to participate in the monthly challenges alongside this. 

June's ‘Right of the Month’  and ‘Wellness Warrior Challenge’ is: 

Article 22: You have the right to special protection and help if you are a refugee. A refugee is someone who has had to leave their country because it is not safe for them to live there.

During this month, we celebrate World Refugee Week from the 14th-20th June. 

This week honours the courage, strength and determination of women, men and children who are forced to flee their homeland under the threat of persecution, conflict and violence.

Did you know the following people were refugees: 

Freddie Mercury – Lead singer of the band Queen, fled to England from Zanzibar in 1964.
Rita Ora – Singer, came to the UK as a refugee from Kosovo as a baby.

Judith Kerr – Children’s writer, “The Tiger who Came to Tea”, “When Hitler stole Pink Rabbit” was a German-Jewish refugee.

Albert Einstein – One of the world’s most famous scientists and was a German-Jewish refugee.

You may like to think about any refugees you know, or how you can support the current refugee crisis.

Lots of refugees are separated from their family and friends. Why not take some time to catch up with a friend or family member you do not see as often? You could go out for a walk or catch up over hot chocolate - talking is great for your mental health! 

If you have any questions regarding the award, please contact our RRS Lead- Miss Rycroft on srycroft@stjosephsguildford.com