Renfrewshire Educational Psychology Service is committed to anti-racist action. As a team we have been working on this as part of our Service Improvement Plan since 2023, through self-reflection, staff development and active involvement in national anti-racist work within the profession.
As a service we condemn the recent race riots in the UK and we recognise the significant negative impact that these events will have on people of colour. We would like to emphasise that education staff should take time to reflect on their own bias and challenge their own thinking in addition to considering how to take action to support their establishment community. We would encourage educators to consider enrolling in Education Scotland’s Building Racial Literacy programme
We have compiled some helpful resources from the Anna Freud Foundation which our nurseries and schools can use to plan how to support people of colour within their communities, including children and young people, parents and carers and staff members:
- Anti-Racism and mental health in schools homepage
- Improving school staff knowledge and confidence
- Supporting students who have experienced racism
- Supporting staff from racially minoritised groups
- Reviewing school policies
- ‘Racism and mental health in schools’ Podcast
You can find an introduction to racial trauma here: addressing_race_and_trauma_in_the_classroom_educators.pdf (nctsn.org)
You can find details of a range of National support services here: Support and resources following the far-right riots – Race Equality Foundation