The Black Curriculum explains that this step is crucial to both improving "social cohesion between young people" and in making sure that every young person in the UK is provided with "a sense of belonging and identity" within the context of their national history. Lavinya Stennett, 23, is the CEO of The Black Curriculum, a social enterprise based in London which aims to get black British history taught in schools over the country and is supported by stars including JLS, Denise Lewis, Bonnie Wright and Gemma Cairney. Are you sure you want to mark this comment as inappropriate?

The Black Curriculum wants to embed black British history into the national curriculum by working to support teachers in schools. It shines a spotlight an issue which many people aren't aware of.
Black history can be taught as part of the history and English curriculum in secondary schools, but whether pupils get to study it depends on the modules chosen by schools. We don't disappear after that month, we are still here, making contributions to Britain. In Primary school and First Year of secondary education, we are tau The history behind the gesture, UK protests for Black Lives Matter: 2020 dates and how to get involved, calling for the correct teaching of British Imperialism, suggesting updates to the GCSE reading list, Show{{#moreThan3}} {{value_total}}{{/moreThan3}} comments, You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully, Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable, Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties, We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification. When young people are not taught their history within Britain, their sense of identity and belonging is negatively impacted and social relations, hindered. I started to get very involved in social activism at SOAS – I won social activist of the year in 2019 – and a lot of my work was around improving access for working class students. This petition is to call for British Black History to be made mandatory throughout schools in the UK. Many people today do not know that black communities have been in the UK from the beginning and as the growing population of people of colour and mixed children continues, it is a shock that it is not part of our education system. History, UK. Independent think tank Runnymede Trust has supported these calls, with senior policy office Kimberly McIntosh claiming that a better appreciation of Black British history has "never been more urgent." Our Migration Story, a website run by Claire Alexander, seeks to tell the stories of the migrants who have shaped British history. Growing up in South London, I definitely wish we had an organisation like The Black Curriculum then. Are you sure you want to submit this vote? We deliver workshops where we go in and work with teachers to deliver our message through a variety of subjects, including history and PHSE [Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education], or through the medium of poetry or drama. Are you sure you want to delete this comment? And I think without that awareness, our work wouldn't be at the level that it is today. Of her aims, Alexander said: “My concern is the need to mainstream this across the curriculum. Teachers feel their training is not sufficiently diverse. A lot of young people feel empowered that they are learning something new, some say they want to do it again or start something similar for themselves; one boy even started his own book club on black history. We have had so many schools we had contacted previously to say 'we need you now!' Learning about your own background helps to root you and knowledge gives you that sense of purpose in life. Historian David Olusoga tells CNN's Nina dos …

I would like to see us work more outside of London and accessing other cities to make sure that everyone feels part of this knowledge. We think about experiences that are historical that can be fitted into different subjects.

Black history was taught as part of Black History Month, but this was mainly limited to the topics of slavery and the Civil Rights Movement in the US: “It really is just to do with slavery – which is an important part of history, we do need to learn about it. They are worried about saying the wrong thing. You can find our Community Guidelines in full I think the recent Black Lives Matter movement has helped us a lot. But I don’t think that’s enough for young people.". Both The Windrush Review and The Macpherson Report (produced in 1999 in the wake of the racially motivated murder of Stephen Lawrence) recommended that Black history should form a more integral role in school syllabuses. By registering to HELLO!

It is my passion so I had to do what I could whilst I could! We started off holding focus groups and organising research and development and when I graduated we went straight into schools. 's newsletter, you acknowledge that you have read and accepted hellomagazine.com's privacy policy, the cookies policy, and the website terms of use, and that you consent to hellomagazine.com using your data according to the established laws. Lavinya and the team helping her spread awareness of black history. Stennett developed her organisation after studying for a degree at SOAS University of London, and was driven in part by the glaring inadequacies in her own school education. But The Black Curriculum has argued that even twenty years later, "no significant advancements" have been made in this area.

I feel we have made a huge impact in the short time we have been running. Petitions for changes to the curriculum are also being shared widely online, including this one calling for the correct teaching of British Imperialism, and this one suggesting updates to the GCSE reading list. Activists want to make Black history compulsory in English schools, What could happen after EU launched legal action against UK, How the world reacted to Trump and Biden's debate, A look back at the reign of the Emir of Kuwait, Millions in China are traveling again. Activists are pushing for the Black community's history to become a compulsory part of England's national school curriculum. Lavinya Stennett on the need to have Black British History on the school curriculum, 17 best children's books to help teach kids about diversity, Black-owned fashion and beauty brands to support on Black Pound Day and everything you need to know, A post shared by Lavinya Stennett (@gottabelavin_ya). “There’s a real need for more centralised support in making sure people know this is a really important question for young people and in supporting teachers in their training to teach these histories in a sensible way.”. Here, we recognise that Black history is British history and therefore aim to reflect this in our work.”. Stennett wants a more consistent focus on Black British history in school curricula. Keep summer going with Molton Brown's fragrances and bath & body indulgences, Why Cornwall's CLC Trenython Manor is top of our UK staycation wishlist. With this in mind, initiatives focusing on school curricula are demanding that current gaps in the syllabus be addressed by including a more balanced account of Black British history. “Schools can utilise resources from a range of organisations and sources to support teaching Black history, including the Black Curriculum.” A proposed remedy suggested that the ‘government should ensure history lessons are relevant to all young people in Britain’.
Black History Month runs throughout October.