Sixteen years ago the Government was trying to close down controversial Summerhill School – today it has been invited into the halls of the establishment.
Dubbed Britain’s most famous progressive school, the boarding school found itself locked in a battle with then education secretary David Blunkett over its freedom for students to make choices about their education, freedoms and daily routines, including whether to attend lessons.
During a lengthy tribunal it was revealed that Summerhill was on a secret TBW (To Be Watched) list, which was why the school was inspected so often.
The Government eventually withdrew its complaints after pupils voted to accept a deal in which the school agreed to encourage them to attend lessons and improve its teaching and assessment procedures.
That was back in 2000. Today – almost 16 years to the day since that dispute was resolved – Summerhill at Leiston has won a Discovering Democracy Award, organised by the British Youth Council (BYC) and funded by the Cabinet Office.
Representatives were invited last night to the Houses of Parliament for a reception attended by the Minister for Constitutional Reform, John Penrose MP, to mark the honour.
The BYC said the award was in recognition of a commitment to a democracy curriculum and for raising awareness of democracy.
In every sense, it is a fitting award for Summerhill, which was established as a “democratic community” in 1921 by Scottish educator and author Alexander Sutherland Neill.
Since then, it has been recognised by the United Nations, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, and in numerous reports on the importance of children’s voice and rights in schools.
Assistant principal Henry Readhead, son of principal Zoe Readhead and grandson of AS Neill, said: “Summerhill is the oldest school in the world based on children’s rights, democracy and active citizenship.
“The children and staff solve problems together and make its rules at their twice weekly democratic meetings. These are chaired by an elected child, with adults and children as equals.”
Extending its democratic work, Summerhill – whose former students include actress Rebecca De Mornay, children’s author John Burningham, and record producer Gus Dudgeon – has worked with state school Aldeburgh Primary, running a workshop on democratic meetings, during which children from Aldeburgh decided they wanted to run their own school meetings.
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