Pastoral Care Policy
At
Bushmills Primary School we have a responsibility for the care, welfare, safety
and therefore the learning environment of all our pupils. The school’s ethos provides the basis for
this policy. The promotion of our
agreed values and beliefs means a pupil centred approach.
Definition
Teachers,
non-teaching staff, welfare-staff and other adults all are part of a team. This team wants to ensure pupils are happy
and secure in whatever activity they are taking part in, whether social,
spiritual, mental, emotional or physical.
We have a caring commitment to guide and advise our pupils, equipping
them with the skills needed to face the outside world. Teachers and non-teaching staff are
encouraged to approach the care of our children in a positive way.
Aims
Through
our pastoral care policy we aim
1.
To create and maintain an atmosphere where pupils feel they are well
known, safe, valued, respected and happy
2.
To promote the aims of our school
3.
To implement our code and practice for behaviour which considers the
views of all staff
4.
To maintain the highest standards of teaching and learning
5.
To respond in a sympathetic way to the concerns, fears and worries of
our pupils
6.
To build an atmosphere of trust
7.
To make children aware of potential dangers through the teaching of
Health Education and other subjects
e.g. road and water safety -
care in the sun
Specific Issues
1.
Ethos
The
ethos of the school will be reflected in the moral, intellectual, personal and
social development of our pupils. It
does not come about by chance. It is
achieved by the principal, senior management team and staff promoting and
facilitating an atmosphere of care and respect within the formal and informal
life of the school community.
2. Relationships
A
good relationship between pupils and staff is paramount to generating a
positive climate within the school community where every individual feels
valued and cared for at all times. Good
relationships will be nurtured between:
·
Staff
and pupils
·
Pupils
and their peers
·
Members
of staff
·
School
and surrounding community
Children
will also be encouraged to develop and value a respect for themselves.
3.
Values
The
teacher should share his/her values and beliefs with the children and not only
his/her knowledge. Life skills are
central to the ethos of the school.
4. Self Esteem
We
believe that self-esteem and respect are central to the development of the
whole child and promotes learning.
5.
Personal Safety
We
will encourage children to be responsible for their own personal safety and
help them to acquire skills to be able to do this so that they will be able to
make the correct decisions and know where to get help if or when they are
confronted with danger. The whole
school community will be aware of the designated teacher who will be
responsible for dealing with cases of child protection issues which come to
light. In our school it has been
decided that the Principal should act as designated teacher. The vice principal is the deputy-designated
teacher. They will also be aware of the
teacher responsible for first aid and what the procedures are for dealing with
children who need first aid. Children
will be able to speak to their class teacher if they need help or are
concerned. As most of our P.1 children
will have been to the Nursery School connected to our school they will stay
until 1.50 from the beginning of term.
At the end of June they will have spent a short time in the P.1 room and
with the P.1 teacher.
Implementation
1. Roles and
Responsibilities
Our
Board of Governors will have overall responsibility for the implementation of
the curriculum including monitoring the safety of each child in the
school. The senior management team will
ensure that pastoral care is given a high profile in the school development
plan. The co-ordinator will monitor and
evaluate the implementation of the pastoral care policy. He/she will work with all staff and ensure
teaching resources are kept up to date and that staff are properly
trained. He/she will make sure that the
non teaching staff are familiar with the pastoral care policy and give help
when needed. Each member of staff will
work to build up pupils self esteem and encourage them to be assertive and to
resist negative peer pressure. They
will help them to celebrate success and develop the ability to make moral decisions
and to know the difference between right and wrong.
2. Monitoring and Evaluation
Parents
are always welcome and are encouraged to contact their child’s teacher or the
Principal if they have any concerns and worries. To do this they will have to use the appropriate interviews
procedure. Urgent concerns will be
given immediate attention. We will
encourage parents to share concerns about home circumstances or medical matters
which may affect their child’s work or behaviour in school. Any information disclosed will be treated as
confidential. Staff will meet regularly
to discuss and review the pastoral care policy. The opinions of parents and children will be valued and where
appropriate action will be taken.
3. Training
Training
of both teaching and non-teaching staff will be led by the co-ordinator.
4.
Resources
Resources
required to maintain and update the pastoral care policy will be updated as
necessary.
5.
Range of Pastoral Activities
Children
will be supervised from 8.55 a.m. Full
supervision also continues during all extra curricular activities such as: football, badminton, hockey, Scripture etc. No child may remain in the classrooms,
central resource areas, cloakroom/toilet areas or other areas of the building
during playtimes or lunch times without adult supervision. Children may not enter the building at break
times or lunch times without the permission of the teachers, supervisory
assistants or classroom assistants.
Conclusion
The
evaluation of the schools system of pastoral care is effective when the school
policy and planning for pastoral care are fully implemented and reflected in
the quality of provision within and beyond the classroom and the effectiveness
of the support arrangements for individual pupils.
At
all levels of the caring process all staff and pupils need to feel valued, safe
and secure.