Universal Values is a resource for those working with young people from Early Years through to Key Stage 5, supporting them to meet the requirement to promote Fundamental British Values in an inclusive and holistic way.
The resource provides advice and techniques for educators, as well as practical lesson plans and activities.
On this page you will find details of the resource chapters and also the individual chapter downloads, useful if you choose to manage progression in smaller stages, along with their supporting resource files.
Creating Critical Thinkers
In order for young people to be able to effectively interrogate ideas, it is vital that they are equipped with skills to question the information that they receive and to recognise stereotypes, bias and persuasion techniques.
The activities and approaches in this chapter will lay the foundations to allow pupils to effectively engage with values education.
Democracy
The aims of the activities and lesson plans in this section are to:
- Provide young people with an understanding of what democracy is and how young people can become involved with decision-making processes and campaigning positively for change
- Equip young people with an understanding of some of the different forms of government and how these are enacted in some countries in the world
- Provide young people with an opportunity to become involved with democratic processes within the school
- Provide young people with the opportunity to interrogate the advantages and disadvantages of the UK’s voting system and skills and knowledge to argue and defend points of view
Rule of Law
The aims of the activities and lesson plans in this section are to:
- Equip young people with an understanding of the rule of law and the reasons why laws are needed
- Provide young people with an understanding of the difference between laws and rules and why rules are in place in school
- Enable young people to consider how living under the rule of law can protect individuals and enhance their wellbeing and safety
- Enable young people to explore the different ways in which rights have been fought for and how laws have been changed in the past
Individual Liberty
The aims of the activities and lesson plans in this section are to:
- Provide young people with an understanding of what individual liberty is and how the liberties many people enjoy today have been fought for in the past
- Provide young people with the opportunity to explore different understandings of individual liberty
- Enable young people to explore what is meant by freedom of expression
- Enable young people to explore when individual liberty should be exercised and how rights need to be balanced with responsibilities
- Equip young people with the skills and knowledge to participate in open and respectful dialogue and debate
Mutual Respect and Tolerance of those with Different Faiths and Beliefs
The aims of the activities and lesson plans in this section are to:
- Enable young people to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own culture and the cultures of other people
- Enable young people to explore their own identity and how this fits into the school and wider community
- Equip young people with an understanding of the similarities and differences between some of the largest religions in the world, and how values are often shared between different religions
- Provide young people with an understanding of some of the history of immigration to the UK and the diversity that has existed within the UK for many years
- Provide young people with an understanding of the importance of identifying and combatting discrimination