Racism is alive and well in the West Country but sadly the creative curriculum in schools is not. Both issues concern Pete Stevenson who, as Pete the Poet, delivers creativity workshops in schools to celebrate the values of cultural diversity and race equality.

As a teacher and human rights campaigner, he finds that the vehicles of performance poetry, interactive story-telling, art and percussive music are powerful ways to challenge cultural stereotypes and learn about human rights. He works in about forty settings a year.

After ten years of working in schools and colleges Pete notes that the West Country is a mix of mono cultural villages where racism is likely to rear its ugly head because there are few examples of diversity to challenge xenophobic attitudes. He also works in growing multi-cultural towns where the indigenous white population resists the arrival of newcomers.

He organised several Black Lives Matter events in towns from Minehead to Shepton Mallet last year. In one case, the event’s Facebook page was duplicated by opponents with “cancelled” pasted over it, and a town councillor spoke openly of the dangers of supporting the anti-racist gatherings. Pete ensured the councillor was reprimanded by the council’s disciplinary committee under the 2010 Equalities Act.

As part of his endeavour to support pupils to understand and engage in ideas of racial equality Pete ensures sure that poetry written by local primary school pupils features at public events along with interactive stories from around the world for younger children and their parents.

“At one event”, Pete recalls, “members of the local British Legion stood in a circle around their war memorial to protect it. I stepped in and linked arms with them in my Black Lives Matter T shirt in memory of my dad who fought fascism at Normandy in 1944. The British Legion members were concerned that we would bring violence to the town and were surprised by the peaceful family atmosphere.”

Pete gets excellent feedback from teachers and pupils, but he expresses concern that schools could do more to challenge racist attitudes.

“It should start in infant classes where there is so much potential to celebrate the values of equality and diversity. It’s a missed opportunity”.

Pete believes that after thirty years of Ofsted inspections, schools are no more effective in teaching pupils to be articulate, numerate and literate because of underfunding and excessive demands for teachers to produce unnecessary data. Children are then led into a narrow world of unengaging curricula, with teachers forced to focus on SATs league tables.

When pupils are able to explore their imaginations and learn about their world through drama and stories they are stimulated to find out more and be better equipped to interpret the world around them. Sadly, the creative curriculum is a minor part of primary schools and often underfunded in secondary schools.
A strong feature of Pete’s workshops is to learn about civil rights and anti-slavery campaigners. In one school he re-created the “I had a dream” speech by Martin Luther King and the racist bus seat incident featuring Rosa Parks. He is also an artist who recently produced a moving mural on the theme of refugees, working with 8 and 9 year olds in The Mendips.

Pete taught in a school last summer when three black players missed penalties in an important football match. He was proud to stand alongside the head and pupils to say how impressed they all were with the achievements of the players. The school, in Chard Somerset, is described by Pete as a beacon of excellence. Unafraid of Ofsted, the headteacher bravely reduces teacher workloads, resists becoming data focussed and shows a determination to give their pupils enriching, memorable experiences.

“Such schools must be held up as fine examples of both creativity and equality – leaders for others to follow.” Pete says with enthusiasm.
Throughout his career, former headteacher Pete has campaigned for a better world and has recently been appointed as an equalities consultant supporting adults with additional needs.

Pete Stevenson can be contacted via www.petethepoetcreativity.co.uk and has been nominated by his branch of the National Education Union for the Blair Peach Award. He lives and campaigns in Exeter.