Our Mission Statement makes our commitment to an inclusive and culturally rich community clear:

Our mission at The Archbishop Lanfranc Academy is to serve and empower our diverse community by providing an inclusive, safe and nurturing environment that values and celebrates cultural differences. We aim to promote academic achievement, teamwork, accountability, leadership and aspiration among all students and to enable them to achieve academically and socially in a rapidly changing world.

We are proud to be at the heart of such a diverse community, and this adds to making TALA a special place.

1. Principles

   Our academy is committed to equality. Therefore:

   • We do our best to ensure that everyone is treated fairly and with respect.
   • We make sure the academy is a safe, secure and stimulating place for everyone.
   • We recognise that people have different needs, and we understand that treating people equally does not always involve treating them all exactly the same.
   • We recognise that for some pupils extra support is needed to help them to achieve and be successful.
   • We do our best to make sure that people from different groups are consulted and involved in our decisions, for example through talking with pupils and parents and carers, and through our Academy Council.

2. Legislation

   We welcome our duty:

   • Under the Education and Inspections Act 2006 to promote community cohesion.
   • Under the Equality Act 2010 we welcome our general duty to eliminate discrimination, to advance equality of opportunity and to foster good relations; and our specific duties to publish information every year about our academy population; to explain how we have due regard for equality; and to publish equality objectives which show how we plan to tackle particular inequalities, and reduce or remove them.
   • Similarly in accordance with the Equality Act 2010 we aim to make sure that no-one experiences less favourable treatment or discrimination because of their age; any disability they may have; their ethnicity, colour or national origin; their gender; their gender identity or reassignment; their marital or civil partnership status; being pregnant or having recently had a baby; their religion or beliefs; their sexual identity and orientation.
   • We welcome the general principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and accordingly have regard in particular for the needs of children and young people who are disadvantaged and vulnerable, and their parents and carers.
   • We welcome the emphasis in the Ofsted framework on the importance of narrowing gaps in achievement which affect, amongst others:
   1. pupils from certain cultural and ethnic backgrounds
   2. pupils who belong to lower-income households
   3. pupils who are disabled
   4. pupils who have special educational needs
   5. boys in certain subjects, and girls in certain other subjects

3. Practices

   Our recruitment procedures ensure that every staff appointment is filled according to the merits of the candidate rather than any inalienable characteristic

   Our curriculum is regularly reviewed in order to ensure it reflects the needs of the whole school community, and is successful in actively countering prejudice and discrimination

   Our behaviour policy is applied consistently and proportionately to all pupils. Checks are put in place to ensure any subconscious bias is eliminated from the system.

The Archbishop Lanfranc Academy recognises the following as protected characteristics:

• age
• gender reassignment
• being married or in a civil partnership
• being pregnant or on maternity leave
• disability
• race including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation

The effective date of this policy is 1st September 2020

This policy was reviewed, and updated September 2026.