Black Lives Matter Statement

As Principal of Leeds Sixth Form College, it is my duty to ensure that staff and students feel that they are part of a community that embraces, recognises, respects and raises awareness of important issues that need tackling (such as racism, injustice and inequality).

Leeds Sixth Form College stands in solidarity with our Black students, staff and communities, and with the #BlackLivesMatter movement in the fight against racism. Racism and intolerance, in any form, have no place at our schools and colleges. We are proud to have a diverse community of staff and students and strive to place equality at the heart of everything we do.

We recognise structural racism and understand that it is present in our communities. As educators, employers and students, we have a duty to act and an important part to play in actively confronting racism to achieve systemic change for our students and staff. We are committed to contributing to a movement that has a lasting impact on our community and beyond.

We will:

1. Review our Equality Objectives and build anti-racist actions explicitly into the framework; we will develop and publish a five year plan for this work, led by staff identifying as  Black, Asian or from minority ethnic groups and supported by staff forums, student leaders and allies.
2. Provide training and development opportunities; deliver anti-racism and unconscious bias training, building confidence and capacity in our networks of Equality Champions and staff forums and embed support for students or staff dealing with the effects of racism.
3. Develop and deliver an anti-racist, inclusive curriculum; decolonise our curriculum, reviewing content and providing resources to support teachers to respectfully deliver anti-racism topics and ensure our curriculum embraces Black and Asian culture and history.

There is still lots to learn, and at times we may not get this right, but the students, staff and wider communities of Leeds Sixth Form College and all other members of the Luminate Education Group are committed to being a part of the change.