#SRtRCSpotlight: South Team deliver ‘Fans of the Future’ with Wells Hall Primary School
On Wednesday, 4th December, Wells Hall Primary School hosted our Fans of the Future – Anti-Racism Programme for Primary Schools for all of their pupils based in Year 4 through to Year 6.
Wells Hall Primary is located in Great Cornard which is a large village and civil parish. It is part of the town of Sudbury, in the county of Suffolk, approximately a 2-hour drive away from the Centre of London.
The Fans of the Future programme introduces primary school students to the principles of anti-racism, helping them build the skills and understanding necessary to recognise and challenge discrimination. Through engaging activities, videos, and guided discussions, the programme fosters an early appreciation for diversity and respect, equipping students to be proactive allies in their schools and communities.
The workshop started with pupils discussing what racism is, defining racism before they explored how and why racism remains a problem in society. Next, they examined why people still demonstrate racist behaviours, where we learn these ideas with discussion on newspapers, social media, and how these influence us.
The classes then discussed the power of language, the historical context behind racialised language they may have heard in class, and why those words are inappropriate to use.
Paul Roberts, one of our on-site educators said,
“The pupils today took this opportunity to examine and understand what racism is by asking some brilliant questions. Their curiosity and enthusiasm to learn provided a great setting for a wonderfully engaging workshop.”
To close, facilitators gave pupils effective tools to demonstrate anti-racism across their school. They were shown how to safely challenge racism, while remaining polite and respectful. Helpful tools, such as ‘The 4 D’s’ were given to students so they are well versed in challenging racism in a variety of situations. This gave them the platform to challenge, report, support while also promoting anti-racism and allyship across the school’s culture.
Feedback from Wells Hall Primary School:
“Paul and Francis were absolutely fantastic, and the children had a great, insightful day. We were really pleased to be able to work with your team and will look forward to doing so again in the future. Hopefully together we can make a real positive difference within the Wells Hall Community!“
“Both Year 6 classes thoroughly enjoyed and engaged in their sessions with Paul and Francis. They were brilliant at bringing the issues to the children’s level and making comparisons to experiences they were likely to have had in order for them to understand the key messages. Each slide of the presentation generated lots of thinking and talk as well as several shocked responses at the mistreatment of others. Both the assembly and workshops were spot on. Huge thanks to Francis and Paul for their openness, honesty and wonderful rapport with the children.”
Mrs Anderson (Year 6 teacher)
“Francis was brilliant. He made the children feel safe to discuss the topic in a way that enabled them to explore what they knew and learn from it. He was fun and engaging; we had a brilliant afternoon.”
Miss Turner (Year 5 teacher)
Book a workshop with our Southern team today -> Click here to book or for more info on the Fans of the Future anti-racism programme, contact southernadmin@theredcard.org