Alexander Bloom and St Georges-in-the-East; a state democratic school

New School Project

School project started at George Green’s School, Tower Hamlets training children about rights and participation using a framework of New Ideals in Education history and case studies. The team of school councillors met with Prof Michael Fielding and the Mayor of Tower Hamlets, John Biggs, to learn about local democracy, and the most democratic state school in England. St George’s in the East was a democratic and co-operative school run by Alexander Bloom. It was A.S.Neill’s favourite state school, he thought they took it as far as it could go in the state sector.

The children did a co-operative learning exercise looking at the methods Bloom used to make a school with some 300 children let each child have a voice and a democratic say. They discussed how these ways might be relevant to their school.

The Mayor handed every child a children’s rights handbook published by Children’s Rights Alliance for England, and part funded by the A.S.Neil Summerhill Trust.

These downloadable materials are here for you to use to repeat the training day or adapt them to your own children and events.

Programme for the Training Day at Tower Hamlets Town Hall.

Class activities to discuss democratic structures.

Powerpoint used by Prof Michael Fielding for introduction

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