ST WILLIBRORD'S RC PRIMARY SCHOOL
Annual Public Sector Equality Duty
Compliance Statement 2025-26
Equality objectives: September 2026 to August 2030
Status: Draft for Full Governing Body approval - September 2026
School: St Willibrord's RC Primary School, Vale Street, Clayton, Manchester, M11 4WR
Operational lead: Carl McIver, Headteacher
Monitoring body: Full Governing Body
Publication cycle: Annual
Next annual update: September 2027
"Grow in God"
1. Purpose of this statement
This statement explains how St Willibrord's RC Primary School has had due regard to the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) during the 2025-26 academic year. It also publishes the school's proposed equality objectives for 2026-30. It should be read with the school's Equality Policy and Accessibility Plan, SEND Information Report, Behaviour Policy, Attendance Policy, Pupil Premium Strategy and School Improvement Plan.
The statement is evidence-led. Where the school's current information does not support a reliable conclusion, this is stated openly and an improvement action is identified. Small cohorts are interpreted cautiously and no pupil-level information is published.
2. Our legal duty
Under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, the school must have due regard to the need to:
eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment, victimisation and other conduct prohibited by the Act;
advance equality of opportunity between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not; and
foster good relations between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not.
The school considers equality before and during significant decisions. The level of analysis and recording is proportionate to the likely effect of the decision. The protected characteristics are age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation, although their application differs between the pupil, employment and wider-service provisions of the Act.
SEND, EHCP status, English as an additional language and economic disadvantage are not protected characteristics in themselves. Disability and SEND are not identical. The school uses these contextual groups carefully where they help identify possible barriers, but does not present them as direct substitutes for protected-characteristic data.
3. School context and equality approach
St Willibrord's is a Catholic primary school serving a diverse community and includes nursery provision and The Ark resource provision. Equality is rooted in the Catholic belief that every person is created in the image and likeness of God and has inherent dignity and worth. The school's religious character informs its mission, Religious Education and prayer and liturgy; it does not reduce its duties under equality law.
During 2025-26, leaders strengthened the use of attendance, behaviour, assessment, SEND, safeguarding and participation evidence. The school's self-evaluation is candid: inclusive intent, identification and individual support are generally stronger than systematic whole-school evidence showing the impact of provision for protected groups. Addressing that gap is built into the objectives below and aligns with the 2026-27 School Improvement Plan.
4. Annual evidence of compliance: 2025-26
|
PSED limb |
Evidence from 2025-26 |
Further action required |
|---|---|---|
|
Eliminate unlawful discrimination and prohibited conduct |
Equality is linked to safeguarding, behaviour, attendance, SEND, curriculum access and employment practice. Individual reasonable adjustments and professional advice are used. Staff record and respond to bullying, discriminatory language and prejudice-related concerns. Behaviour review recognises that regulation, communication and unmet need may affect incidents and sanctions. |
Record prejudice-related incidents distinctly and complete an annual anonymised analysis. Strengthen records showing that disability, reasonable adjustments and SEND were considered before sanctions or significant decisions. |
|
Advance equality of opportunity |
The single-storey site has wheelchair access, an accessible toilet and disabled parking. Individual evacuation arrangements are used where required. Specialist visual-access technology, adaptive teaching and alternative methods of participation support curriculum access. Activities including sport are adapted where needed. Dimmable LED lighting and hall ventilation improvements support visual, sensory and health needs. |
Evaluate adjustments by their effect on participation, progress and independence. Improve whole-school tracking of access to trips, clubs, sport, performances, pupil leadership and wider enrichment. |
|
Foster good relations |
Catholic life, Religious Education, PSHE/RHE, prayer and liturgy, safeguarding and the wider curriculum promote dignity, respect, belonging and understanding of difference. The school responds to prejudice and bullying and provides opportunities for pupils to serve others and contribute to school and community life. |
Undertake structured equality and accessibility consultation with disabled pupils and pupils with SEND, parents and carers, staff and governors; publish the resulting actions and follow-up. |
5. What the evidence shows
Final 2025-26 analysis identified the clearest potential disability-related disparity. Pupils with EHCPs attended at approximately 88.5%, compared with approximately 94.8% for pupils without EHCPs. The EHCP cohort is small and includes significant medical need, so this difference cannot be interpreted safely without individual context. Male attendance was approximately one percentage point below female attendance. EAL attendance was not identified as an adverse pattern.
The school's response is support-led rather than punitive: individual circumstances, medically unavoidable absence, reasonable adjustments, continuity of education and family support are considered. The school will use individual baselines as well as aggregate figures.
Pupil progress and transition evidence across Reception and Years 1 to 5 records extensive adaptation, intervention and external-professional involvement. The recurring weakness is that records do not always demonstrate whether support transfers into improved independent classroom performance. Available Year 6 information did not contain sufficiently reliable pupil-group indicators to support conclusions about attainment differences by protected characteristic. The school will not infer a disparity from incomplete data.
Behaviour incidents were concentrated among a relatively small number of pupils. School evidence frequently links incidents with regulation, communication, SEND and curriculum-access needs. However, the existing recording system does not by itself establish whether pupils sharing a protected characteristic received disproportionate consequences. The 2026-27 analysis will match anonymised behaviour and suspension information to relevant characteristics where numbers permit and will review the effectiveness of reasonable adjustments.
Evidence is strongest at individual level, including adaptations for curriculum and sport. The Pupil Premium Strategy commits the school to removing barriers to Catholic life, trips, clubs, music, sport, enrichment and pupil leadership. Whole-school participation tracking by disability and other relevant characteristics is not yet sufficiently systematic and will be developed.
Current strengths include a single-storey accessible site, accessible toilet, disabled parking, individual emergency arrangements and specialist technology. Known barriers include the single-height reception desk, manual doors and the need for a systematic signage audit. The Accessibility Plan sets proportionate actions and timescales, rather than implying that all physical improvements can be completed immediately.
6. Equality objectives: 2026-30
These objectives arise from the 2025-26 evidence baseline and are proposed for Full Governing Body approval. They will be reviewed annually and replaced or formally renewed no later than September 2030. If new evidence identifies a more urgent protected-characteristic disparity, any change will be approved and published.
|
Element |
Detail |
|---|---|
|
Baseline |
EHCP attendance approximately 88.5%, compared with 94.8% for pupils without EHCPs; small cohort with significant medical need. |
|
Action |
By October 2026, each EHCP pupil below 90% has an individual support-led attendance plan. Review at least half-termly, covering reasonable adjustments, medical evidence, continuity of education and family support. |
|
Success measures |
Most pupils improve from their individual baseline unless absence is medically unavoidable; the aggregate gap narrows over time; no pupil is disadvantaged by inflexible attendance processes. |
|
Leadership and review |
Headteacher, SENDCo and attendance lead; termly governor report. |
|
Element |
Detail |
|---|---|
|
Baseline |
Adjustments, specialist technology and professional input are evident, but impact on independent classroom performance is not recorded consistently. |
|
Action |
Maintain a concise record of adjustments for each identified disabled pupil. Give each intervention a baseline, intended outcome and review point. Evaluate transfer to class, independence and full-curriculum participation. |
|
Success measures |
Adjustments are implemented consistently; review evidence shows improved access or independence; disabled pupils participate in trips, sport, clubs and enrichment wherever reasonably possible. |
|
Leadership and review |
Headteacher, SENDCo and class teachers; pupil progress and SEND review cycles. |
|
Element |
Detail |
|---|---|
|
Baseline |
Accessible single-storey site, toilet and parking. Known development areas include reception-desk access, manual doors, signage and accessible-information procedures. |
|
Action |
Complete signage audit by December 2026 and priority changes by April 2027. Cost an accessible reception-desk section by March 2027. Review powered priority doors by July 2028. Check website and alternative-format arrangements annually. |
|
Success measures |
Clearer navigation; dignified reception support; documented capital decisions; accessible formats supplied within reasonable timescales; lighting and hall conditions more adjustable. |
|
Leadership and review |
Headteacher and premises/office leads; termly monitoring and annual FGB review. |
|
Element |
Detail |
|---|---|
|
Baseline |
No structured whole-school equality/accessibility consultation; behaviour and participation information is not routinely matched to protected-characteristic data. |
|
Action |
Consult disabled pupils and pupils with SEND, parents/carers, staff and governors by December 2026 using accessible methods. Publish an action summary by February 2027. Complete annual anonymised analysis of attendance, behaviour, suspensions, participation and attainment where reliable. |
|
Success measures |
Consultation leads to recorded actions and follow-up; governors receive reliable annual information; disparities are identified and addressed rather than assumed; feedback indicates improved access and belonging. |
|
Leadership and review |
Headteacher, SENDCo and FGB; annual analysis and consultation follow-up. |
7. Governance, monitoring and publication
The Headteacher will coordinate implementation and the annual published update.
The SENDCo will coordinate pupil-level reasonable adjustments, specialist advice, SEND review and consultation with disabled pupils and families.
Senior and subject leaders will consider equality in curriculum, assessment, behaviour, attendance, safeguarding, enrichment and quality assurance.
The Full Governing Body will approve the policy, objectives and Accessibility Plan; scrutinise annual PSED evidence; consider resources; and challenge unexplained disparities.
Data will be aggregated, anonymised and suppressed where publication could identify an individual.
A paper copy will be provided free of charge on request and alternative formats will be provided where reasonably required.
8. Evidence limitations and next steps
This statement does not claim that the school has complete protected-characteristic data across every outcome. Current limitations include small cohorts, incomplete matching of statutory outcomes to pupil-group information, no single whole-school participation dataset, inconsistent identification of prejudice-related incidents within behaviour records and limited structured equality consultation. These are compliance and assurance gaps, not evidence that discrimination has occurred. The school will address them proportionately through Objective 4 and existing SIP monitoring.
9. Approval and review record
|
Record |
Detail |
|---|---|
|
Prepared |
September 2026, using evidence available for the 2025-26 academic year |
|
Governor approval |
For completion following Full Governing Body approval |
|
Published |
For completion |
|
Next annual update |
September 2027 |
|
Equality-objective renewal |
No later than September 2030 |
|
Related accessibility-plan period |
September 2026 to August 2029 |
10. Evidence sources used
Equality Policy and Accessibility Plan (draft for September 2026 approval)
School Self-Evaluation Form 2025-26 and School Improvement Plan 2026-27
Attendance analyses and pupil-group summaries for 2025-26
Behaviour records, weekly analyses and strategic evaluation material
SEND and inclusion review, SEND Policy and pupil progress/transition evidence
Pupil Premium Annual Impact Report 2025-26 and Strategy 2025-28 (2026-27 update)
Catholic life, Religious Education, PSHE/RHE and personal-development evidence
School website, including SEND and accessibility information
DfE guidance: What maintained schools must or should publish online
Equality Act 2010 and Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties and Public Authorities) Regulations 2017
Note: This statement reports the evidence available at the point of preparation. It must be updated annually; the four-year objective cycle does not replace the annual publication duty.