SOCIAL, MORAL, SPIRITUAL & CULTURAL (SMSC)

At Bedford we have high expectations, which are set in a creative and caring context. We believe in a culture of achievement because we know that exam success is important to everyone. Equally important to us are the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of all our students. We deliver SMSC throughout the curriculum but also outside of the classroom.

We are an Artsmark Platinum School in recognition of the school’s commitment to, and excellence in, arts education. Artsmark is Arts Council England’s award recognising excellence in cultural education. We are in the 1% of schools in the country to hold this accreditation.

We are hoping to be an accredited SMSC Gold School in Spring 2023.

We are applying to be an Emotional Friendly School (EFS). Emotionally Friendly Settings is a flexible whole-setting approach to improving children and young people’s emotional health and wellbeing. An emotionally friendly setting is able to effectively identify and respond to a broad range of emotional needs of children and young people, raising their well-being to enable them to succeed and thrive.

Spiritual development – including how the school develops students’ ability to be reflective about their own beliefs, their knowledge of and respect for different beliefs and values, their sense of enjoyment and fascination in learning about themselves and others, their use of imagination and creativity, and their willingness to reflect on their experiences.

Moral development – including how the school develops students’ ability to recognise the difference between right and wrong, alongside legal boundaries, their understanding of the consequences of their behaviour, and their interest in investigating and offering views about moral and ethical issues.

Social development – including how the school develops students’ use of a range of social skills in different contexts, their willingness to participate in a variety of communities and social settings, and their acceptance of and engagement with the fundamental British values.

Cultural development – including how the school develops students’ understanding and appreciation of cultural influences, their ability to recognise and value the things we share in common across different communities, and their interest in exploring different faiths and cultural diversity.