Courageous Advocacy Ethos Group

What is Courageous Advocacy?

The bible says:

“Speak up for people who cannot speak for themselves. Protect the rights of all who are helpless” 

Proverbs 31:8

So when we use the term ‘courageous advocacy’ we are referring to the act of speaking out against an issue of injustice, often on behalf of those whose voice is not heard. Speaking out, at whatever level this takes place, requires an element (and sometimes a great deal) of courage! Becoming a courageous advocate for change must involve learning about about an issue but it must move beyond simply knowing, to saying and doing. Educating for courageous advocacy must embody an ethos of action-taking, challenging injustice and becoming agents of change in the transformation of ourselves, our relationships and our communities from the local level to the global.

Our members were voted by their peers based on the following criteria:

- They are happy to speak out in public to a range of audiences

- They are fair and listen to the views of all

- They are willing to stand up for those who may not have a voice

- They feel strongly that their actions can lead to significant changes

- The are motivated to change aspects of our community, country and the world for the better

We are a team of 15, including a representative from each class in years 2-6.

A significant part of our group is allowing the children to identify issues that they would like to address, without following a school agenda. From initial discussions this year, it is clear that climate change is a very prevalent concern for our group so we will be focussing on this by:

- renewing our Eco Schools status via new assessment procedures

- applying for schools vs climate change and taking part in their tournament

- researching the possibility of taking part in the Queen's Green Canopy - plan a tree for the jubilee

We have suggestion boxes in each classroom, we have our own Google Classroom for sharing ideas and discussing issues, and we meet formally at least twice a half term.