Tackling Racism

Posted: 6th July 2020

The Black Lives Matter campaign has given us all much to think about, both on a personal level and an educational level. It has made us question if we are doing everything we can to tackle racism within our community, not just in terms of day to day life but also in our educational programmes which have a vital role in shaping the views of our pupils, whilst they are at the school but also in their future lives as they take their place in society.

We are very grateful to a number of Bold Girls who have been in touch to share their experiences as pupils at Burgess Hill Girls as well as suggest how the school can tackle racism and promote equality. We would like to specifically reference a letter received from a number of Bold Girls on 22^nd June. The letter encourages us to consider how we can help decolonise the curriculum and makes specific recommendations for how we can change the teaching of History, English Literature, Economics, Geography and Life Lessons. It also suggests we consider how we can increase the number of BAME staff at Burgess Hill Girls.

Over the next few months we will fully consider this feedback and wider issues outlined in the media and by various independent school associations (see end of this article for links). To achieve this we will set up a new equality working group. We are looking for all aspects of our community to be represented by this working group so please contact us if you would like to be involved.

Liz Laybourn

Head Burgess Hill Girls