'Independent schools treat belonging as a core feature of school life'

The recent white paper, Every Child Achieving and Thriving, sets out a clear expectation that belonging should sit alongside attainment as a core measure of school effectiveness. While much of the attention in the paper has focused on SEND reform, the paper also talks about a wider challenge for all students of belonging. England currently ranks poorly compared with other countries in Europe for pupil wellbeing, the proportion of pupils who report that they like school “a lot” has halved over the past decade, and there has been a marked decline in pupils’ sense of belonging, particularly at the transition into secondary school. The data is more concerning still for pupils with SEND and those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The response set out in the white paper is designed explicitly to improve pupils’ sense of belonging in school, not simply to measure it. By 2029, every school is expected to monitor pupil engagement and belonging as a routine part of its improvement work, building on the fact that only around 60% of schools currently do so. To support this, the government will introduce a national Pupil Engagement Framework, providing a standard set of evidence-based questions that capture how pupils actually experience school, including whether they feel safe, included, supported by teachers and connected to their peers. This will be reinforced by an annual national dataset on pupil experience, enabling schools to benchmark themselves and identify where belonging is weaker for particular groups, especially those with SEND or from disadvantaged backgrounds. The intention is clear. By making belonging visible through consistent measurement and comparison, schools will be expected to take deliberate action to strengthen it. In this model, belonging is treated as a condition that can be improved through informed intervention, with the expectation that stronger belonging will lead directly to better attendance, engagement and attainment.

Independent schools have an important role to play in this area because many have long treated belonging as a defining feature of their ethos rather than an additional priority. The language of community, of being known, of shared identity and responsibility, is often embedded in how these schools describe themselves. The task now is to show how that ethos translates into structures and daily practice that can be observed, sustained and, increasingly, measured.

At my own school St Benedict’s, for example, our Benedictine community is at the centre of everything that we do. It shapes expectations of how individuals are treated and how the community functions. Core principles of stability, hospitality and respect for the individual are reflected in how pupils are welcomed into the school, how relationships are sustained and how differences are accommodated within a shared identity.

That commitment to stability is most clearly seen in the tutor system. Tutors work closely alongside their tutees, meeting them three times a day and meeting them individually every term so that they build a consistent pastoral relationship. Most importantly, it gives pupils the confidence that there is at least one adult who understands them well. Hospitality is expressed through the way older pupils are expected to take responsibility for those who are newer to the school. Peer mentoring is structured and intentional. Older pupils are trained for this role and younger pupils therefore encounter a school community that is actively looking to support them. At the same time, older pupils grow into their role within the community by supporting others so that the sense of belonging is reinforced in both directions.

Independent schools are well placed to respond to the challenge set out in Every Child Achieving and Thriving because they already treat belonging as a core feature of school life. Their emphasis on community, continuity of relationships and shared identity provides a framework within which pupils are known and supported over time. Independent schools can, then, act as practical examples of how the white paper’s ambition can be realised, showing that a strong sense of belonging can sit alongside high expectations and strong academic outcomes, rather than being in tension with them.