At Forest Hill School we are committed to being an actively anti-racist community. Racism is an issue that cannot and must not be ignored, no matter where you are in the world.

At FHS we have been working tirelessly to ensure we continue to be actively anti-racist as a school. We are undertaking multiple actions to ensure we are effectively enacting continual change and improvement in our school. For example, we have set up a staff working group dedicated to tackling issues of racism and will be looking to collect student and parent voice on issues surrounding race. We are also working towards an accreditation called CRED through Leeds Beckett University.

Further to this, we think it is vital to constantly review our curriculum and this year we are reviewing our curriculum and working to decolonise it. As a school, we are assessing our curriculum and questioning whose viewpoint we are teaching it from and adapting where necessary to ensure a variety of perspectives are given equal weight.

To guide the work we are undertaking, we have three main aims:

1. Improving diversity and representation across the curriculum; asking ourselves whose stories we tell and who tells those stories. Making sure BAME pupils see themselves reflected in our curriculum all year round. For example by including black Tudors in history lessons or discussing the Arabic origins of algebra in maths.​ 
2. Re-examining how certain subjects are taught through a western or colonial lens & re-framing this; also known as “decolonising the curriculum”. This is not necessarily changing what we teach but how we teach it. For example teaching the British Empire as “invading and exploiting” as well as “exploring and settling”.​ 
3. Teaching explicitly about racism and anti-racism (past & present) within our curriculum; not only teaching this explicitly but teaching it within a British context and doing it all year round. For example, teaching about the Bristol Bus Boycotts, not just the Montgomery ones.​ 

If you would like further information on the integral work we are undertaking this year or have your own ideas/suggestions you would like share, please contact Ms Thomas at h.thomas@foresthillschool.co.uk 

We all have a part to play in fighting racism and striving for an equal society where people are not judged or persecuted for their skin colour. It can feel challenging to know what to do help enact change, so some ideas are included below.

You could… buy books and read them. Watch films and documentaries. Listen to podcasts. Donate money to causes that support equal rights. Volunteer. Offer help. Organise your friends to do something. Email your MP/Councillor. Research being anti-racist. Make sure you continue your conversations around racism when the current media storm dies down. Talk about how you feel with your friends. Block media outlets and accounts that use racist language and promote hate instead of justice. Remind your friends of all races and ethnicities that you are here for them and that you value them.

Remember that we are all stronger together. If you need help and support then please reach out for it. If you’re interested in finding out more or would like someone at school to talk to about these issues please contact h.thomas@foresthillschool.co.uk

Some ideas around books to read and things to watch can also be found below. If you have any further ideas with which to update these lists, please do pass them on so we can share our ongoing learning as a group.

Recommended books, articles, documentaries, films, petitions, organisations that you might want to read, watch, sign or follow.

(It is by no means an exhaustive list and there is a huge amount of information available.)

Books, guides, and articles to read

Natives by Akala  – Akala interviewed about Natives and related issues

The childcare platform, Yoopies, have written a Guide for Parents to Black Lives Matter. It is written with a British perspective, with contributions from both white and BAME writers.

Adult non-fiction:

• White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo (Journal Article)
• Lots more Whiteness resources and links (including TED talks etc)
• Roots of Racism
• Black, Listed by Jeffrey Boakye 
• Brit(ish) by Afua Hirsch
• The life and times of a very British Man by Kamal Ahmed
• How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
• Superior by Angela Saini
• Black skin, white masks by Franz Fanon
• Natives by Akala
• Me and white supremacy by Layla F Saad
• Freedom is a constant struggle by Angela Davis
• Between the world and me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
• Back to Black by Andrew Kehinde

Accessible non-fiction:

• Teen Vogue racism articles
• Black and British – a forgotten history by David Olusoga
• Natives by Akala
• The good immigrant: 21 writers explore what it means to be black, Asian and minority ethnic in Britain today edited by Nikesh Shukla
• What is Race? by Claire Heuchan and Nikesh Shukla
• Black History Matters by Robin Walker
• Unheard Voices edited by Malorie Blackman
• The interesting narrative of the life of Olaudah Equiano
• Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass  
• Born a crime by Trevor Noah
• Will Britain ever have a Black Prime Minister? David Harewood on iPlayer

Fiction which shines a light:

• Nought and Crosses series by Malorie Blackman, including Callum and Crossfire
• The Hate You Give and On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
• Dear Martin by Nic Stone
• The Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Reid
• The Boxer by Nikesh Shukla
• Beloved by Toni Morrison
• Clean Getaway by Nic Stone

Films / documentaries to watch

• INJUSTICE – Directed by Ken Faro and Tariq Mehmood (2002) 
• The autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (Youtube)
• Stephen Lawrence: The murder that changed a nation (BBC documentary)
• James Corden: It’s time for change in the US (Youtube) 
• Get Out (Film)
• 13^th (Netflix)
• The Two Killings of Sam Cooke (Netflix)
• When They See Us (Netflix)
• Flint Town (Netflix)
• Time: Khalif Browder story (Netflix)
• Hidden Figures (Film)
• Whose Streets? (Hulu)
• I Am Not Your Negro (Amazon Prime)
• The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross (Amazon Prime)
• LA 92 (Netflix)
• What Happened, Miss Simone? (Netflix)
• Strong Island (Netflix)
• The Loving Story (Tubi)
• Teach Us All (Netflix)
• The Hate U Give (Amazon Prime)
• Mudbound (Netflix)
• The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson (2017)
• If Beale Street Could Talk (Hulu)
• Becoming (Netflix)
• Homecoming (Netflix)
• Just Mercy (Amazon Prime)
• Moonlight (Netflix)
• Black America Since MLK: And Still I Rise (Amazon Prime)
• The Black Godfather (Netflix)
• Back in Time for Brixton (Two part summary of race relations in UK since WW2 on Facebook)
• Blue Eyes/Brown Eyes (Anti-racism Exercise on The Oprah Winfrey Show)

Organisations you could follow, volunteer for or donate to

The Black Curriculum – a social enterprise founded in 2019 to address the lack of black British history in the UK school curriculum

The 4Front Project – established in 2012 to provide a platform for young people who’ve been impacted by violence to create change.

Poetic Unity – a Brixton based charity whose vision is to give young people a voice and empower them to reach their highest potential by using poetry as a tool to support young people in creating positive change in their lives and society

Black Cultural Archives – the only national heritage centre dedicated to collecting, preserving and celebrating the histories of African and Caribbean people in Britain.

Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust – an organisation who work with young people from disadvantaged areas aged 13-30 to inspire and enable them to succeed in the career of their choice. They also influence others to create a fairer society in which everyone, regardless of their background, can flourish

The Goodwin Lawson Foundation – a registered charity commemorating the life of Godwin Lawson, set up to advance the education of young people so that they can develop their capabilities as members of a tolerant society

The Amos Bursary – a bursary that exists to ensure talented men of Afro-Caribbean descent have the opportunity to excel in education and beyond

56 Black Men – an organisation that aims to dramatically reduce the negative portrayal of black men throughout various forms of mainstream media. They look to challenge the lazy and dangerous stereotype of ‘the black man’ and the negative connotations and stigma attached to the cliché image of a black man wearing a hoodie.