Lochgelly High School – Community Engagement
I am currently working on a number of strategies to improve the extent to which the school is engaged with its communities – as well as improve the effectiveness of what we currently do. In essence, I would like the school to reach out to its communities much more – in order to make sure that the school is a much greater part of the communities that it serves.
This is important in the period ahead, when we will have to work much smarter with much less in the way of resources. It is also important since it is in everyone’s interest to have our young people develop as responsible citizens, and to do this we need to work together.
One way in which we are moving forward is to work towards becoming a Rights Respecting School. This is an award from UNICEF for schools that embed the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into their work. It is not simply a charter for young people to demand their rights. It is a mechanism through which young people and the adults around them understand the rights to which they are entitled – and the need for them to act in a way that respects the rights of others.
More info can be found at: http://www.unicef.org.uk/rrsa
I welcome suggestions from users of this site/forum on ways in which our school can work better with its communities, through this site as well as directly to me at the school: robert.macmillan@fife.gov.uk
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Thank you for posting the article. Having a look at the UNICEF site, it seems like a worthwhile strategy to be involved in, as well as a long term commitment.
I hope the school is successful in achieving the award, and members of the local community who use this site will take the opportunity to provide some suggestions and ideas.
I don’t know if this would be possible or supported by Fife Council but I’ve always wondered if it would be possible (and recognised) to set-up a Youth Community Council.
The YCC would run as a normal community council, apart from that they would focus solely on Youth issues in the local area, and try to secure funding for youth activities/services which are much lacking in the local area.
Other duties would probably be attending the Main Community Council to represent the views of Youths at that meeting and also take back anything of importance back to the YCC.
Thanks Daryl, at the moment there are a number of local youth groups in the area and they do try to coordinate what they do. (eg Mooth o the youth). These groups have many of the functions that you describe a YCC having.
The role that I’d like the school to play is in part, helping the youth workers to support such groups in each area.
Regardless of the structure such things take, ensuring that local organisations find out and take account of what young people think is a key part of the UN Convention mentioned above.