British Journal of Educational Studies

Vol. 67, No. 4, December 2019, pp. 423–438

BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL

BRITISH VALUES
by M ARY H EALY, School of Education, University of Roehampton

ABSTRACT: Many of the often complex debates central to the topics of

belonging and social cohesion have their origins in contrasting interpreta-
tions of the ideal relationship between citizens. Governments across much of
the western world continue to struggle to reconceptualise what it is to
‘belong together’ at a time of growing diversity and migration.
This article considers three conceptual difficulties involved in the directive
for schools to actively promote Fundamental British Values to address this
issue. First, the directive fails to refer to any relevant theories around the
concept of belonging, one of the major strands of research in social cohe-
sion. The concept of ‘perceived belonging’ is thus introduced to further
explore what the bond between citizens ‘looks like’. Secondly, the lack of
theory leads to a restriction of the values needed to support the bond.
Thirdly, there is then a lack of sufficient clarity of action for how this
might be translated into school practice. Finally, I suggest that the directive
needs further theoretical engagement to be successful.
Keywords: Fundamental British Values, social cohesion, belonging together,
perceived belonging, promotion policies

1. I NTRODUCTION
Much discussion in political and social philosophy over the past two decades has
centred on the widespread beliefs that modern, diverse societies are currently
failing to engender sufficient cohesion (both community and societal) to counter
the connected problems of social disorder, alienation, terrorism and fragmenta-
tion of belonging. These difficulties have their roots in many common political
issues across much of the western world: multiculturalism and integration of
minorities; the balance between the rights of individuals and communities;
worries about radicalisation or terrorism; the growth of independence movements
and the re-emergence of far-right political parties across the world.1 Faced by
such predicaments, governmental policy agendas struggle to reconceptualise
national identity, in the sense of what it is to ‘belong together’ at a time of
growing diversity and migration.
These problems have come to influence policy making across Europe, as well
as in the UK, where successive governments have attempted to promote cohesion
and integration (for example Bachtler and Mendez, 2016; Buonfino and
Thomson, 2007; Cantle, 2001; DCSF, 2007; Hooghe, 1996). In response to
terrorism and radicalisation anxieties within the UK (including concerns
ISSN 0007-1005 (print)/ISSN 1467-8527 (online)
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424 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES
emanating from the ‘Trojan horse’ schools in Birmingham), the former UK
Prime Minister, David Cameron, announced a new policy of the active promo-
tion of ‘fundamental British values’ (FBV) in schools.2 This came to be defined
as ‘the fundamental British values of democracy, the rule of law, individual
liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs’
(DfE Nov 2014: 5). He justified the creation of this policy by claiming that some
form of value consensus was needed to unite us and build a ‘common home’.3 If
these values prove to be able to do this, they could potentially play a crucial role
in achieving important forms of social cohesion.
Whilst this paper focuses on a policy in the context of English liberal democ-
racy (education being one of the areas devolved to the regional parliaments), it has
a wider application by addressing issues relevant to the state education of citizens
elsewhere. Many of the debates emanating from this policy can be linked to
ongoing discussions in philosophical thinking: loyalty and loyalties; solidarity
and belonging; the structure and content of human values; the role of schools in
creating citizens. Nevertheless, the inherent theoretical problems arising from this
directive call into question the possibility of it achieving its stated goals, demon-
strating an urgent need for further significant philosophical work.
Starting from an outline of the policy in question and the need for social
cohesion, I then move into the main claims to be addressed in this paper: that there
are no good reasons to believe that this directive can create a deep sense of social
cohesion for three reasons. I then consider the first of these: that the directive has
an inadequate concept of belonging, a focus of one the major strands of research in
social cohesion. I suggest the addition of ‘perceived belonging’ needed for an
adequate understanding of social cohesion. After this, I turn to the second of the
three reasons: that the current lack of attention to the concept being used then leads
to a misunderstanding of the precise content (the values) needed to support social
cohesion. Next, I address the third reason: that the method of enactment (actively
promoting) lacks sufficient clarity about action with a corresponding ambiguity as
to how this might be translated into school practice. Finally, I argue that to reach
the desired end-goal of social cohesion requires more philosophical attention to be
paid to the way in which citizens might belong together.

2. C REATING C ITIZENRY: T HE D IRECTIVE

Many of the often complex debates central to the topic of social cohesion have
their origins in contrasting interpretations of the fundamental commitments and
traditions to be found in conceptualisations of the ideal relationship between
citizens (Honohan, 2008; Leydet, 2006; Mokrosinska, 2012). Whilst not all
debates, admittedly, are purely philosophical, the modelling of the relationship
between citizens and the state and how this may be sustained through the
generations has a long history in philosophical writing around what holds society
together, what provides unity and how diverse persons can live together. The
precise value of social cohesion, when positioned as a goal for education, is then
 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES 425

based on the need to build a nation in which all groups are both included and to
which they feel attached, enabling them to act as one and/or to create a common
future together (Healy 2013). In other words, social cohesion creates a model for
how to think about belonging at a macro level (Dobbernack, 2010).
The need to belong is thought to have an evolutionary basis: when some are
in groups, it makes sense for survival purposes to belong to a group oneself –
particularly one comprising of familiar, cooperative people. An unspoken ‘inter-
nal mechanism’ orientates a sense of belonging and marks the commitment to
support those ‘like us’ in significant ways (Baumeister and Leary, 1995). Some
theorists attest that this can be achieved via some form of shared national
identity. In many such arguments, this is needed as a prerequisite to create the
background for stability, support for toleration or a shared sense of ‘the common
good’ needed to shape the social world (for example Barry, 1983; Miller, 1998).
Discourses in favour of ‘British Values’ could then be understood as a form of
political ‘rallying cry’: that those who share the same values will be loyal to the
source of these values and refrain from extremism, violence and disloyalty.
Needless to say, others claim that a purely civic identity, based on the relationship
between diverse citizens is more appropriate. Theorists in this camp worry that
deliberately fostering political loyalty (as in patriotism) may act to stifle judge-
ment over the worth of the loyalty-object (in this case, the patria), thus becoming
‘uncritical attachments’ (Hand, 2011; Keller, 2015; Nussbaum, 1996; Osler,
2009). Philosophers such as Michael Merry try to find a half-way point between
the two stances, indicating that one of the key responsibilities of citizens in a
democracy is that they should be able to hold their governments to account –
ruling out completely ‘uncritical attachments’, but accepting a legitimate form of
patriotic education: ‘critical patriotism’ (Merry, 2009).
Traditionally, state-provided schools have played a major role in creating
citizens in western societies, not least by transmitting basic norms through the
generations. This has historically been the case whether or not a society aligns
itself with some form of democracy. For the purposes of this paper, it may then
be initially tempting to interpret the policy in question, Fundamental British
Values (FBV), as just another articulation of such forms of citizenship education,
yet there are distinct differences.
The phrase itself, ‘Fundamental British Values’ (FBV), achieved public
prominence in a security approach from 2011, commonly known as the
Prevent strategy, aimed at prevention of extremism and radicalisation before
entering educational discourses (DfE 2014a; DfE, 2014b; DfE 2015b).4 In this
domain, radicalisation is usually understood as a process by which an individual
(or a group) adopts extreme stances that may entail rejecting the status quo,
whether it be political, religious or social (Wilner and Dubouloz, 2010).
Extremism pushes this further still, depicting stances far outside of majority
thinking that may prevent compromise or exclude other perspectives (Arthur,
2015; Kundnani 2012b). It is rarely a self-chosen label and often used in
reference to those who advocate some form of violence.
426 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES
Nevertheless, it cannot automatically be assumed that adopting a radical
stance to currently accepted ideas is ‘dangerous’: many may adopt such a stance
without going on to engage in any form of terrorist activity at all (Sieckelinck
et al., 2015). Indeed, opposition to, or dissent from, any part of the Fundamental
British Values is now considered the very definition of extremism: ‘“Extremism”
is defined in the 2011 Prevent strategy as vocal or active opposition to funda-
mental British values…’ (HM Government, 2015: 20). But classifying some act
or thought as ‘extremist’ in these terms may be seen by some as suppressing
legitimate critique or as justifying arguments that the aim of the policy is indeed
to create the ‘uncritical attachments’ often associated with patriotic education.
This becomes particularly complex for educators required to patrol such issues in
that, as Sieckelinck et al., (2015) points out, the role of teachers is to educate
their students and not to see them as automatically suspect, dangerous or targets
for surveillance as might security forces.
The justification for this change in educational policy (from previous dis-
courses of ‘shared’ or ‘common values’ in citizenship education) was given as
being necessary to prepare pupils for life in modern Britain. The values in
question (originally named in the Prevent strategy) were formally listed in
educational documents as: ‘democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and
mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs and for
those without faith’ (Ofsted, 2015: 38). Besides the removal of the phrase ‘and
for those without faith’ in subsequent documents, there has been no further
official clarification, save recent reported comments from Ofsted that schools
should do more to prevent terrorism by ‘properly promoting British values’.5
Unlike many other ‘promoting’ policies, FBV was designed to be deeply
embedded into other educational policies and more general school policies. In
other words, it is not a ‘stand alone’ educational policy, but a reinforcement of
existing requirements found in other legislation. Schools were advised that this
new duty came with the expectation that FBV would permeate the ethos,
relationships and relevant activities beyond the classroom, as well as having a
place in the curriculum. Further directives were released on how this might be
done through social, moral, spiritual and cultural (SMSC) curricula (DfE, 2014a,
2015a) or linked to the prevent strategy (DfE, 2015b).
To date, much of the critique of this directive has focussed on the concept of
‘Britishness’, the securitisation for the state or exploring teachers’ practices (for
example Arthur, 2015; Lander, 2016; Panjwani, 2016; Richardson, 2015; Smith,
2016). Four areas attract attention in this expanding literature. First, teachers’
individual responsibility: the requirement is now that all teachers should ‘not
undermine’ fundamental British values (DfE, 2012) – but it is not spelled out
what exactly counts as undermining (Lander, 2016). As this is a requirement for
all teachers, and not just subject specialists in citizenship, PSHE, history, RE etc,
teachers need to know more fully what it is they are required to do in the
classroom – but equally what they should not be doing. Secondly, the content
(including the learning activities, particularly through SMSC (Spiritual Moral
 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES 427

Social and Cultural development.): there has been little to no reference made to
citizenship education as a distinct subject, which had previously covered many of
the activities cited as contributing to FBV: how democracy and the law works
etc. Thirdly, new legal responsibilities: making school leaders (head teachers and
governors) responsible for ensuring the school as a whole upholds FBV. They are
now required, as part of their professional duty, to actively promote fundamental
British values, to protect and safeguard children from radicalisation and extre-
mism, and the success of this will be reported on through Ofsted inspections
(Ofsted, 2015), yet with little clarity as to the precise boundaries of these terms.
Fourthly, through oversight arrangements (inspection frameworks overseen by
Ofsted): schools can now be given a fail grade for failure to promote funda-
mental British values (Ofsted, 2015). This would then give grounds for govern-
mental intervention on the grounds of ‘safe-guarding children’ and indeed
several schools have been failed in such a way.6
Much of the deliberation in policy comes from attempts to determine what
should be done and whether these principles provide a feasible standard for
practice. Admittedly, ideal models are not always easily articulated and realized
at the level of policy and pedagogy – but theory plays a crucial role by helping to
delineate those policies that accord with existing values, and to exclude those
contrary to them. Given the critical importance of this directive for practice,
further analysis of theory relevant to this area is urgently needed to make sense
of this directive, starting with what the bond between citizens ‘looks like’.

3. F RAMING T HE D ISCUSSION : B ELONGING T OGETHER

Whilst the nation-state (based on a 19th Century construction of a single nation/
culture) has been credited with providing the sense of national-identity required
to engender a sense of belonging to the body politic, this view has long been
under attack from competing perspectives. Social and political geographers have
repeatedly pointed out that being a member of the state no longer implies being a
member of the nation (for example Antonsich, 2009), hence previously held
national, ethnic or cultural definitions that might have been called on in times
past to achieve this task then become subject to revision. In other words, ‘the
normal transmission of national identity from generation to generation has been
thrown into crisis’ (Kundnani 2012a: 163).
A more nuanced understanding of political belonging has emerged in recent
decades, often crossing disciplines, whereby the concept embraces a much wider
understanding of the possibility of multiple belongings (Antonsich 2010;
Christiansen and Hedetoft, 2004; Clark, 2009; Vasta, 2013). Within the vast
literature, two particular strands are commonly identified: belonging can be
understood as ‘membership belonging’ (articulated through the language of
rights and responsibilities) and ‘a sense of belonging’ (Antonsich 2010;
Guibernau, 2013; Yuval-Davis, 2006). In this commonly made distinction, the
former is used to refer to the more official public structures often associated with
428 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES
membership, citizenship or formal belonging: rights of entry/abode; passports/
identity cards; access to welfare rights or state services. The latter then refers to
more personal attachments to place, communities or practices often associated
with emotional connections found in personal everyday activities: for example a
feeling of being ‘at home’; the emotional dimension of status; a sense of
rootedness. But this articulation of belonging is not without its problems: it is
possible to have legal or formal belonging and yet to lack a feeling of belonging
to that community (the problem of marginalised communities). Similarly, one
can feel a sense of belonging to a place or community and yet lack membership
rights to be there (the problem of the undocumented).
There is, however, a more fundamental problem: whilst belonging is com-
monly used as a verb, it also functions in terms of an ascribed status. This
suggests a third possible component of belonging: ‘perceived belonging’. A
person may have full membership belonging and have a highly developed
sense of belonging to a community and yet the established community may
not accept them as belonging there. Hence, someone could acquire full member-
ship legal rights and feel a deep sense of belonging (whether to a place or to a
community) and yet be rejected by others in the wider established group as not
having a ‘moral’ right to the shared goods of the community.7
This notion of perceived belonging can be developed by thinking further
about how people belong: belonging-to something is very different from
belonging-with something and this difference plays a not inconsiderable part
when starting to conceptualise forms of social cohesion. Whilst both belongings
hold identity-forming expectations, belonging-to emphasises membership (e.g. I
belong to the reading group); belonging-with, on the other hand, emphasises
commitment. This more horizontal bond commits oneself to stand alongside of
particular others, joined in some form of shared destiny. It is the belonging-with
that leads to forms of social cohesion. This discourse is often referenced as
belonging together. This sense of belonging together, forming a citizenry, needs
to draw on an emotional attachment deep and strong enough to uphold some
form of a shared identity, loyalty and solidarity that is capable of motivating
collective mobilisation when needed (sometimes referred to as fraternity) (Healy,
2013). Belonging in groups requires both membership and a sense of belonging,
but to achieve cohesion, also requires perceived belonging: all parties (the state,
the individual and the collective citizenry) need to see each other as legitimately
belonging together. What counts as ‘legitimate’ is a complex question that is
inherently context sensitive, and this can only be determined by rules known,
understood and acceptable to all involved.

Perceived Belonging
This concept of ‘perceived belonging’ attempts to draw into the discourses of
belonging the voices beyond those provided by membership (in this case granted
by the state) or a sense of belonging (felt by individuals), emphasising that belonging
 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES 429

is at heart relational: it is about the self with others. As with many new concepts, it
draws on other similar concepts as interlocking systems of concepts that form a
framework for reasoning about shared commitments; in this case, it draws on
familiar concepts such as recognition and solidarity. In what follows, I highlight
the layers of relevant relational issues associated with this view of personhood.
In one form or another, recognition has emerged as a key concept in recent
decades, not only in philosophy but also in social theory, ‘identity politics’ and
the ‘politics of difference’ (Antonsich 2010; Jayaweera and Choudhary, 2008;
Probyn, 1996; Yuval-Davis et al., 2005). A number of social movements call for
a greater emphasis and acknowledgement of different ‘voices’ in discourses of
inclusion and exclusion including the willingness to grant social recognition.
Social recognition grants group members a status of holding and exercising
entitlements granted by the group, thus anchoring them in their self-identity.
In much of the existing literature on recognition, the focus is on the way in which
the self becomes recognised: those who are recognised as belonging, are then
accredited a social identity. The self, in this argument, is striving to become an ‘I’
or subject against a background from which her personhood arose, to evaluate and
seek esteem as an individual. Here the self attempts to delineate that which is ‘I’ from
others (they/them). This then suggests that when a person ‘asks’ for recognition, part
of what is being asked for is confirmation of what she believes herself to be.
Whilst I might come up with an account of who I believe myself to be, I also
need an account that describes how I might be seen (or perceived) by others.
Others may see me in very different ways: they may have a very different
opinion of me as a social being (which could add to the self-knowledge I may
already have about myself). I not only need to see myself, but I also need to be
seen by others, as a full member of the group, holding and exercising entitle-
ments granted by the group to its members. This gives perceived belonging a
dialogic role: I partially become conscious of who I am through the images
others have of me and that I have of them.
As Charles Taylor suggests, our core identity is not determined alone but in
company and in activity with others (Taylor, 1989). The concept of perceived
belonging serves to remind us that who I am is at least partly social, and as such,
is formed by how ‘I’ am defined by those around me. But it goes beyond this to
position membership in a group to be, at least in part, a matter of mutual
recognition: as something that is done with others. All parties bring together
their individual understandings and experiences, interacting and influencing each
other, constantly changing and adapting in response to the image significant
others may have. Such mutual recognition only works by seeing and treating
others as ‘one of us’: going from recogniser to recognised – ‘I recognise you’
and ‘you recognise me’ and it is only when this mutual recognition is achieved,
that discussion of the ‘we’ needed for cohesion becomes possible. This mutuality
evolves over time between members of the group as acknowledged and under-
stood parties, who may then be taken into account in policy formation or
revision.8 It is important to note that to achieve the ‘We-ness’ of cohesion does
430 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES
not require adopting a deep shared identity: only that each party must willingly
accept the other as a fellow citizen concerned with the pursuit of at least some
common ends achieved through living together. Moving from the first person
singular (I) to a position of first person plural (we) places the self with others.
The individual then becomes a member of a group that can act as one – not by
the individual losing their own identity, nor subsuming it within that of another –
but by committing to treat others as belonging with us for particular purposes.
Looking at this problem from a different angle: without a commitment to
treat another as belonging with us, recognition becomes positioned purely as
something that is given to us, suggesting that individuals are mere spectators in
their own lives, as opposed to agents-who-can-act. In such circumstances,
individuals have not been included in the reflective appraisal involved but
have been presented with an account as defined by others which may, or may
not be accurate. Instead of being the active creator of a social identity, individuals
then become the passive receiver of another’s vision.
Similarly, when recognition is given, the range of available options for who-
I-might-be can result in some identities becoming contested or a source of conflict.
Take, for example, the wearing of overt religious symbols in France, which have
been banned in schools, universities or government buildings. Gereluk argues that
some forms of clothing are more than just an expression of one’s individuality and
can be a constitutive part of one’s identity (Gereluk, 2008). Refusing children the
right to wear particular clothing that is an outward sign of their faith commitments,
arguably compromises their identity; to be accepted, or to remain in school, then
requires them to fragment their identity in some way. In extreme circumstances,
such an imbalance between the ‘permitted’ given options and the self-chosen
identity might even demand one moves to the other’s position in public out of
fear, or even to resituate one’s own existing ontological landscape, to prevent
existing ‘recognition’ from being withdrawn.
Just as problematic as recognition being given is to have it withheld or
denied. To be denied recognition as a legitimate party can injure our pride, our
status and deny us a social identity; we can be humiliated, injured and disen-
franchised by being publicly positioned as ‘outsiders’. In such circumstances, the
‘we’ that is constructed reminds us from the start that we are perceived as neither
‘welcome’ nor ‘at home’.
Whilst the ideal is to be accepted and taken into account in our efforts to become
an active creator of our social identity, the reality is that power or control of the
discourses by particular players (usually the state or fellow citizens) inevitably
influences these metaphoric ‘conversations’. Because any discourse over shared
values and understandings of who ‘we’ are is often the result of struggles over
membership to begin with, debates can reflect or reinforce power structures in a
society and thus serve the interests of those who hold most power (Honneth and
Margalit, 2001; May, 2011). This means that not all may be ‘equal speakers’ in this
venture right from the start; some may be seen as outside of the community, ‘not one
of us’ and thus in need of ‘special attention’: some voices may be limited, or
 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES 431

distorted in practice; some are kept silent or ignored – thus the ability to negotiate or
‘become’ a speaker and to be heard and accepted may itself be restricted.
This affects some more that others and marginalised groups in particular
often lack power to negotiate on equal terms or lack adequate access to the
communal conditions affecting the capacity to exercise such agency. In such
situations, seeing one’s public persona to be found wanting (or to be trans-
formed) without being part of the process can be both upsetting and alienating.
In the context of this policy directive (FBV), this has left some to feel that the
default position indeed questions their status, belonging and loyalty (perceives
them as ‘other’ or ‘outsiders’), thus misrecognising them (Richardson, 2015).
This is particularly problematic in the context of schools, increasing the possi-
bility that conversations or discussions could be ‘shut down’ or avoided by
pupils for fear of being misunderstood or reported to authorities; staff themselves
might become reluctant to engage with controversial topics – and early reports
seem to suggest that this is precisely what has happened in some schools (Busher
et al., 2017; Press Association, 2015). If social cohesion is indeed an aim of this
policy, then is it appropriate that educational establishments should intimate that
some groups of pupils do not quite belong or are ‘suspect’ in some way?
But why does it matter how the bond between citizens is theorised? Is it just a
matter of semantics, or is there more at stake? I want to suggest two reasons
which I will address in the remainder of the paper. First, theory helps us to
identify the coherence of values between the desired goal and wider value
structures in society, making application more likely to be successful.
Secondly, having a clear view of the bond being aimed at is more likely to be
translated into successful school practice.

4. T HE C ONTENT: F UNDAMENTAL B RITISH VALUES

At the heart of this, is a familiar philosophical problem: how is an account of
public values created that is ‘thick’ enough to sustain the communal demands of
citizenship yet ‘thin’ enough to satisfy liberal demands that individuals should be
free to choose their own conceptions of the good midst legitimate diversity.
Given this familiar background, many states have attempted to redefine values,
taking greater account of national context and particularity in a move away from
previous universalist value frameworks (Lentin, 2014). These national values,
clearly understood and broadly shared by all, are then offered as the desired
binding thread between the citizens.
Nevertheless, previous attempts to align values with a particular state tend to
run into similar difficulties: first, national values systems inevitably end up
privileging the value systems of a particular nation or geographical/cultural
body thus the values of the dominant group will inevitably take precedence.
The diversity and ethno-cultural plurality found in most western liberal democ-
racies can then unintentionally lead to some groups being subject to ‘the problem
of persistent minorities’ or to be marginalised. Secondly, national values can
432 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES
politicise the values: the state is then made the ultimate source of these values
and has control over the content and interpretation, having the effect of making
the values the servant of the state. This can result in a truncated account of the
value itself, making it inconsistent with more global interpretations thus restrict-
ing its broad reach within a population. Thirdly, national values frameworks can
become highly controversial when seen against particular historical backgrounds
(for example, in Northern Ireland or Catalonia, where identity divisions are
complicated, divided and complex): in short – national values in such cases
can often divide rather than unite.
So how might this directive be understood against these common pitfalls?
Given that the values in question in the FBV directive have been labelled as
specifically fundamental, this makes a good place to start. First, by calling these
values ‘fundamental’, the implication is that they are basic to something, fulfil a
particular role in collective lives and, in this case, provide the basic principles
dictating what is considered acceptable conduct for all members of the group.
They might be held to be core and essential to the belief system embraced or
deemed the most important part on which other parts depend or can be built.
Secondly, the values in question are labelled as British values, and it is this
element that has attracted most public attention, with many decrying the ‘annexa-
tion’ of the values for seemingly political purposes. Others have objected to the
implications that some faith communities were portrayed as being opposed to
British values, leading to images of the secular West juxtaposed against the
religious East (as argued by Arthur, 2015: 322). So already, the directive
seems to be running into familiar difficulties in aligning values with the state.
However, a more sympathetic reading might claim that in labelling the values as
‘British’, reference is not being made to their origins, discourses of inclusion/
exclusion, nor to their availability in a society, but to an aspiration by a particular
community to hold fast to these particular values in an attempt to help citizens
negotiate their relationships with one another amidst growing diversity in a
security-challenged political landscape.
At least part of the problem here is that the proposed list of FBV derives in
the main from a security policy (HM Government, 2015),9 tasked with prevent-
ing terrorism. This then gives little coherence to the appropriateness of the
content for its other aim, that of supporting social cohesion, which may require
a very different set of values. The concept of social cohesion is regarded, even by
researchers in this area, as being highly contested and multi-dimensional in usage
(see for example Green et al., 2011; Jenson, 2010). In other words, there is no
consensus among theorists as to what kind of communities are most conducive to
social cohesion, nor as to which values need to be shared to support this. But this
should not lead one to suppose that philosophers and empirical researchers have
completely neglected this area: a rapidly growing literature consistently identifies
particular elements as playing key roles: tolerance, respect for others, trust (both
interpersonal and institutional), solidarity, loyalty, dignity, fairness, fair equality
of opportunity etc (Green et al., 2006; Osler, 2011; Starkey, 2015; Stevens,
 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES 433

2001). Whilst there is obviously some overlap between both sets of values, it
does raise serious misgivings as to how the FBV could possibly support social
cohesion using the present restricted set of values.

5. A CTIVELY P ROMOTING F UNDAMENTAL B RITISH VALUES

When the need for theory is abandoned, clarity can be lost over ultimate aims;
this in turn may lead to misidentifying the values needed for the venture. To
address this, the role of promoting policy needs first to be considered.
Promotions are everywhere every day: the leaflets in the doctor’s surgery
promoting health policies; the billboards promoting new products available to
buy; the television/me10dia adverts; the offers in supermarkets etc. Promoting
policies in such terms not only emphasise the availability of the object but leave
it open for individuals to choose to engage if they wish – but there is no
obligation for them to do so.
When it comes to enacting promoting policies in schools, this can be placed
on a values continuum in three ways: a minimal, a mid-way point and a maximal.
First, promotions can simply drawing attention to the values. This seems a
relatively non-controversial practice for schools, who are long accustomed to
raising awareness of issues subject to governmental initiatives: posters on healthy
eating; classroom book displays on particular topics; the stories read. It could be
achieved by having materials available that children could choose to look at or be
influenced by (activities of a minimal level of engagement might be wall posters,
relevant toys or books or even a series of lessons considering a variety of
possible viewpoints) – but the key point is that the school remains neutral
between the options. This seems to encourage a knowledge or awareness of
the values without overly insisting on their adoption or interpretation (a minimal
promotion).
Secondly, promotions can support or encourage a particular choice (a mid-way
point). The emphasis here would be on encouraging a form of respect for the
values: acceptance of their legitimate existence but hoping that they will be
adopted; this might still allow space for a limited dissent or disagreement over
interpretation. All forms of values education entail the hope that some may choose
to adopt such values, while acknowledging that some may choose not to do so.
But this goes beyond stating values and leaving it up to individuals as to whether
or not to accept these, and has implications for the formation of future citizens of a
particular kind: helping children to negotiate the complexities of modern life,
which may entail exploration, discussion and critique. This approach is likely to
be accompanied by a national citizenship programme of study, possibly including
a locally agreed syllabus (as is frequently the case with RE).
Thirdly, promotions can raise something to a higher position than other
possible values: ‘these values are better than those’ (a maximal promotion).
This goes beyond just creating ‘awareness’ (minimal level) or encouraging
‘respect’ (mid-point) to imply a deliberate attempt to change behaviours/views.
434 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES
It is this possible interpretation that seems to have attracted the most public ire –
some communities view the policy as misrecognising them, perceiving by default
that some are resistant to ‘Britishness’ or British Values, or that the values they
hold are somehow inferior or inadequate to ‘belong’ here.
These arguments over the level of promotion might seem at first to be
relatively trivial, but they are crucial for understanding the changes in citizenship
education in England over the past few decades as evidenced by the shifting
language in policy-making itself. The impetus has changed from awareness of
common values, to respecting differences and values, to insisting that citizens
self-identify and commit to the group values – as shown in the advice to schools
on the need to ‘challenge opinions or behaviours in school that are contrary to
fundamental British values’ (DfE, 2014b: 5). So the problem would seem to be
that a minimalist (or thin) interpretations of public values runs the risk of not
sufficiently nurturing the affiliative attachments and commitments outside of
small groups (including the norms of trust) needed for cohesion; conversely, a
maximalist (or thick) interpretations runs the risk of failing to respect the
autonomy of individual choosers and of being hostile to legitimate diversity.
The concern then is that ‘policy-creep’ has moved the thinking from a ‘thin’
interpretation of public values to a ‘thick’ interpretation, without the necessary
public debate. Finding a solution acceptable to all, avoiding unconsciously
promoting either a minimalist or maximalist policy, requires a far greater
clarity over the aims and goals right from the start.

6. CONCLUSION
Given that the self-declared end-goal of the FBV directive is to engender social
cohesion (and thus prevent terrorism), the claims that this is a possibility have to
be taken seriously. First, how the relationship needed for cohesion comes to be
understood is crucial, and it is here that the concept of ‘perceived belonging’
reminds us that who-I-am needs to be (at least) partially constructed with others.
A useful metaphor here is that of story-telling: we are all ‘story-tellers’. But self-
narratives are never purely singular: and the focal point of the most important
stories in a society tends to be relationship-based: our self with others. Each story
connects with the other, enabling development of shared stories. To place this
briefly in the language of relationships: the stories we tell ourselves about who
we are, are important in how we understand our connectivity; so too are the
stories that others tell about us. Without a clear picture of how we should ‘belong
together’, the values and dispositions needed to support this bond cannot be fully
identified, running the risk of seemingly random choices.
Secondly, citizens in a socially cohesive society need to have concern for the
public way of relating to each other and this in turn requires particular models of
civic relationships. Schools play a significant role in this by enabling wider
social interactions encouraging the reduction of the distance between citizens and
enabling an image of such lives as somehow ‘lived together’ to emerge.
 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES 435

Nevertheless, these models are seldom completely neutral in their commitments

and need to cohere in some way with the underpinning values of the society as a
whole. The danger is, however, that to accomplish this, some ways of thinking
encourage the adoption of overly simplistic models for complex aspects of life –
and this is the overriding problem with this directive. Without appropriate
theoretical involvement, it is left untethered to wider schema.
Finally, it is important to note that none of this is an argument against public
values or the need to address extremism/terrorism: the problem lies in how
appropriate policy to address such issues is formulated. ‘Actively promoting
British values’ may make a popular political sound-bite, but it clearly needs
more theoretical engagement to adequately bear the weight of expectations.
Fostering a wide-spread sense of belonging to the polity and a sense of solidarity
with fellow citizens is both complex and complicated. This suggests that the
formulation of an implementable policy to address issues of social cohesion in
the UK may still be somewhat of a chimera.

7. D ISCLOSURE S TATEMENT
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

8. N OTES
1
The threatened break-up of the UK union by the nationalist parties in Scotland and
Wales; the calls for independence in parts of Spain and in the Veneto region in Italy
etc.
2
Ofsted inspectors were called in to inspect a number of schools in Birmingham in
2014 after concerns were raised that some governors were having inappropriate
influence over the ethos and curriculum of their schools, leaving children ‘at risk’
of extremism.
3
See http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2658171/DAVID-CAMERON-British-
values-arent-optional-theyre-vital-Thats-I-promote-EVERY-school-As-row-rages-
Trojan-Horse-takeover-classrooms-Prime-Minister-delivers-uncompromising-pledge.
html (last accessed 15.01.2018).
4
The origins of the policy itself can be traced further back to the increased securitisation
concerns of the state post ‘Cold War’ as well as more familiar responses to the Oldham
riots of 2001, terrorist attacks in London in 2005 and the so-called ‘Trojan horse affair’
of 2013–2014.
5
See The Daily Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2017/06/23/ofsted-
will-crackdown-extremism-promote-british-values-amanda/ 23.6.2017 reported by
Harry Yorke. The talk in question listed a number of other areas that could contribute:
SMSC; ‘a sense of patriotism’; a ‘real civic education’.
6
In late November 2014, it was reported that there had been 35 ‘no notice’ inspections
by Ofsted under the new rules, including 11 that were deemed to be not ‘preparing
pupils for life in modern Britain’: see http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/education
news/11253436/Ofsted-rural-schools-failing-to-promote-British-values.html for details
(25th November: journalists – Graeme Paton and Melanie Hall). Also see: https://
www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/415115/
Advice_note_on_academies_and_maintained_schools_Birmingham_toSoS_
Education.pdf (accessed 10.11.2017).
436 BELONGING, SOCIAL COHESION AND FUNDAMENTAL BRITISH VALUES
7
This is particularly the case in some elements of the right wing press in the UK that
emphasise ‘desert’ rather than ‘need’ in relationship to the support given to migrants
and/or refugees, arguing that the former should not have access to welfare support
from the state for a period of time to re-establish the link between contributions and
shared welfare goods.
8
For example, the requirement to wear a helmet on a motorbike in the UK, which was
adapted to take account of the religious requirement for Sikhs to wear a turban.
9
There have been a multitude of previous attempts by politicians to identify or critique
what Britishness means and the subsequent deliberation of what the values binding us
together might be: John Major (1993), Tony Blair (2002), Gordon Brown (2004) to
name but a few.

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Correspondence
Mary Healy
Froebel College
University of Roehampton
London SW15 5PJ
Email: [email protected]