Twinning
As part of the Action Plan on Tackling Sectarianism in Scotland, the (then) Scottish Executive promoted opportunities for twinning between denominational and non-denominational schools through working in partnership with local authorities, the Catholic Church and other relevant bodies. A very successful conference was held on 16 May 2006. The report of this conference ‘Building Friendships and Strengthening Communities: A Guide to Twining between Denominational and Non-denominational Schools’ provides examples of twinning initiatives between schools in Scotland and ideas for developing twinning activities.
The Cantle report
The concept and benefits of twinning are not new. Twinning has been used across the world to bring people, communities, projects, institutions and even countries together. In England, the concept of twinning has been used to help strengthen community cohesion. The Cantle Report on Community Cohesion (2001) following disturbances during the spring and early summer of 2001 in some cities in England between people of different cultural groups recommended that one of the ways to assist young people from different communities to become more receptive to difference was to shape their early views of each other. The Cantle report identified twinning of schools with predominantly different cultures as one way forward. The Department of Education and Science (DfES) has also recommended twinning be considered by education authorities as a positive idea for breaking down barriers.
Examples
Find out about some examples of twinning activities that have already been undertaken by schools and youth projects in Scotland.