The Rights Respecting School Award (RRSA) is an initiative run by UNICEF UK, which encourages schools to place the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) at the heart of its ethos and curriculum.
[2][3] Adults and young people have reported that the language of rights and responsibilities, based on the CRC, empowers them to relate to each other better and to engage in decision-making more collaboratively.
[2][3] The Award is open for all schools: nursery, primary, middle, secondary and special.
For a school to receive the RRS Award, they must show evidence that they have reached the required standard in the following four categories, all of which contain elements contributing to the development of an active global citizen: There are two levels to the Award.
Level 1 describes a school which has made good progress across four key aspects of school life: leadership and management; pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the CRC; classroom climate and culture; and pupils’ active participation in decision-making.