Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

At Exeter School we recognise the importance of working with pupils in order to enact change that is meaningful and effective. Pupils are encouraged to make their voices heard in a number of ways and also have access to our ‘Whisper’ platform should they wish to raise an anonymous concern. Our pupils are enthusiastic and motivated in their promotion of equality and have attended EDI conferences as part of organised school trips, established their own clubs (including South and Southeast Asian society and the Soroptimist Society) and led assemblies for their peers on EDI issues.

Pupils are also invited to use our school council as a means by which to express both their own views and the views of their peers. The school council includes a range of pupils from every year group and house who put themselves forward for election at the beginning of the year. The council meets every half term and is attended by members of the senior leadership team who support and facilitate the discussion.

We recognise that parents also have valuable perspectives to offer on inclusion and diversity, and to this end we have established a parental forum specifically designed to discuss these issues in detail, both celebrating the successes of the school and identifying pathways to improvement.

As part of our commitment to character education at Exeter School, pupils in our senior school receive lessons on character and practical wisdom, through which they explore how to respond to current issues and how to navigate the challenges of life in an informed and responsible manner. Within these lessons we cover topics related to diversity and inclusion, providing pupils with time and space to debate these themes.

The East Asia society meets weekly throughout the year, is one of our best attended clubs, and is largely pupil-led. Pupils are welcome to attend regardless of their own culture and ethnicity, and the time is spent exploring east and southeast Asian culture, playing mahjong, eating food and learning more about what makes the countries in this part of the world unique. Pupils regularly deliver talks on specialist subjects to their peers and staff are also welcome to attend.

The Q&A society is open to all pupils with an interest in matters of gender and sexuality. The acronym refers to ‘Queer community and Allies’, and weekly meetings are attended by members of the LGBTQ+ community in school, those exploring their gender or sexuality, and by supporters of the queer community and those wishing to deepen their knowledge of LGBTQ+ issues. Each week the people visiting this safe space set the agenda for the session, and this ranges across celebration, concern and debate, often in quick succession: they explore queer representation in youth fiction and movie series, LGBTQ+ issues in the news locally and internationally, possible improvements in the school’s support of the queer community, and sometimes simply chat about life in general.

The library is a welcoming place for everyone and the collection it holds is built to represent the diversity of the whole school community and beyond. We believe that reading books with diverse characters by diverse authors helps us to see and understand ourselves and each other. Themed displays throughout the year highlight and promote these books, and the authors the library invites to inspire pupils to develop a love of reading also represent this diversity.