Wellbeing & Inclusion News

Respectful Relationships Education at Footscray West Primary School

Respectful Relationships education is a core component of the Victorian Curriculum from foundation to year 12 and we have incorporated it into our learning here at Footscray West Primary School. It is all about embedding a culture of respect and equality across the entire school community. This approach leads to positive impacts on student’s academic outcomes, their mental health, classroom behaviour, and relationships between teachers and students. It is a primary prevention initiative to reduce family violence.

Schools like Footscray West Primary School, who are involved in the Respectful Relationships initiative, are building a culture of respect and gender equality and are  helping students learn how to build healthy relationships

Just like other major social and health issues such as smoking and road tolls, evidence shows that gender-based violence can be prevented by working with the whole population, and in this case, all schools, to address the attitudes, beliefs and knowledge that supports the prevention of violence.

The point of primary prevention is that it prevents problems before they emerge. Respectful Relationships as primary prevention seeks to ensure that children and young people are not forming the attitudes that evidence shows are the core drivers of family violence.

Everyone in our community deserves to be respected, valued and treated equally. We know that changes in attitudes and behaviours can be achieved when positive attitudes, behaviours and equality are embedded in our education settings.

Together, we can lead the way in saying yes to respect and equality, and creating genuine and lasting change so that every child has the opportunity to achieve their full potential. We continue to incorporate our school values of Respect, Responsibility, Resilience and Belonging as well as strategies from the Berry Street Education Model into our everyday learning here at Footscray West Primary School to help support our understanding of Respectful Relationships.