It's time to take a look at your School Website Ethos and Values. The DfE simply state "Your website should include a statement of your school’s ethos and values." So although on the surface this seems like a small school website requirements, there is much to consider when publishing your ethos and values. Let's take a look...
School Website Ethos and values that meet requirements
First of all let's think about the types of people who will be viewing your School Website Ethos and Values.
- Prospective parents
- Parents
- Teachers
- Inspectors
Next, think about whether or not the information is easy to find? So we advise our schools to stick with the terminology used by the DfE. As a result, this will ensure people and most importantly inspectors are looking for the right information.
Now we can think about where to publish this information? Most schools have a specific page titled Ethos and Values whilst others add this to their Welcome page or About Us page. However, depending on how you present this may mean there is no reference in any of your menus. Resulting in people not being able to find your Ethos and Values. So we strongly advise you to give this some thought. We cannot emphasise enough about making information easy to find. Take a look at our Menus, pages and documents blog.
Additionally, you can also take a look at our OFSTED Pupil Premium School Website Requirements guide to make sure you are meeting the statutory requirements.
School Website Ethos and values that reflect the school TODAY
We now need to give some thought to the content of this topic. Again, thinking about who will read this information; consider if the information will attract new parents and teachers to your school. This is where most will come to look before considering joining you.
We also want you to think about your school's core beliefs and values. What is the best way to articulate these in your Ethos and Values statement. Is this your overarching goal that everything else in your school feeds into?
School Websites Ethos and values in ACTION
Your Ethos and Values can of course, also be used throughout your school on letterheads, logos and wall plaques. They can also form part of your behaviour expectations. Many primary schools have a 'star of the week' to reward a student who demonstrates the school values well.
There are some really great ways to celebrate and highlight the role your values play at school have a look below:
- Perhaps you have had a graphic created as a visual representation of your school values. Why not upload that to your school website ethos and values page?
- Tag related content such as news articles and blogs that celebrate occasions where your ethos and values have been evident in school
- Create a video where your children explain your school values and what that means to them
- Bring your ethos and values right up to date by adding a news story to your page explaining how as a school you stayed true to your values
Here are two examples of schools who we think have great Ethos and Values pages:
We also have our School Website Manager Membership. Specifically for training, resources and support for school website managers looking for best practice information, market-leading compliance support and a supportive, engaging community of peers. We regularly add new courses and there is already a large bank of high-quality resources to support you. For more information click on the image below.
Why not enrol on our new School Website Manager Workshop for more information click here.
If you have any questions regarding your school website ethos and values, then just drop us a message and we would love to help.
