online accreditation visits

Meetings with children during the visit

We will be guided by you on who we speak to during the visit. If we cannot meet, for example, your steering group pupils that is fine. We trust you to tell us about their work and its impact. Possible approaches to meetings might include:

• Bringing a range of children into one space with the laptop camera and microphone set up to show most of children and an image of the assessor(s) displayed on a screen.
• Meeting several groups of three or four children in different groups for shorter periods of discussion, perhaps 15 minutes per group. In their group, they could gather around a laptop or table if their voices can be picked up on the device used.
• Using Microsoft Teams with pupils at work stations around the school site but all joining the one meeting with the assessor(s). This may work particularly well for steering groups, especially in secondary settings.
• Parents and governors may be able to contribute to the visit through this method too.

Our top tip for a smooth running session is to build in quick breaks between each meeting so you can move around or gather new groups – you can leave the meeting and then return when you are ready.

In some special schools or occasionally in other settings, direct conversations with children and young people are not possible. If this is the case in your school, we encourage you to be creative in how you share their voice with us, get evidence of their awareness and why rights matter in their lives.

Your evidence pack

The purpose of the evidence pack is to give us a feel for your school and for you to share the best examples of your rights-related work against each of the Outcomes. Please prepare this whether your accreditation is virtual (all Silvers and some Golds) or in person (some Golds).

We have produced the guidance below and a template evidence pack to help you bring your evidence together.

Download the template evidence pack.

• Please be selective – you do not need to send us everything as most of the accreditation process and subsequent report is based on what you, your colleagues and your pupils tell us during the visit.
• Provide the evidence in a single PowerPoint deck (or similar presentation tool) with sections for Strand A, B, C.
• Have a contents page slide for each strand. In your PowerPoint deck (or similar presentation) please aim to include a maximum of 2 or 3 pieces of evidence for each outcome (there are 9 outcomes of the Award) with a maximum of 30 slides in total.
• Feel free to include hyperlinks to useful information on your website.
• The evidence should be linked to what you write in your evaluation form so we can cross reference.
• Please ensure we can see the detail on photographs of displays and ensure you are following your child protection policies when sharing photographs and videos.
• We need to receive the evidence at least two weeks before the accreditation visit and earlier if possible.
• Do involve the pupils in your steering group to help create the evidence presentation if you can.
• Quotes from parents are useful as we often don’t get a chance to speak to them at the visit.
• Short video clips or voice overs are welcome.
• Examples of children’s work on rights are useful and can be photographed and added to the evidence presentation.

We will delete all materials sent after the accreditation report is completed.

Having an accreditation visit on the horizon is a great way to focus your efforts on children’s rights. Once you book you will be assigned an assessor with whom you can discuss the details of the visit.

To book email us at [email protected]