‘The pastoral care, support and guidance provided for the pupils are of high quality (I.S.I. 2005)’
We encourage all pupils to show care and respect for others, both in School and the community beyond.
That way, they will grow not only to embrace the joy of learning, but also to gain a broader understanding of different cultures and values. We look forward to welcoming your child to our special way of life.
The Structure of Pastoral Care
The Form Tutor
The Form Tutor is the central figure in a pupil’s life. He/she will see the pupils at least twice a day, at registration in the morning and in the afternoon, and there are, on average three form periods during the week. The Form Tutor’s overall responsibility is to oversee the pupil’s academic progress and personal welfare. One small part of that will be checking the pupil’s planner to ensure that prep is being done, but a Form Tutor will also know his/her pupil in many different ways. He/she will be the clearing house for information from subject teachers, including Merits, Demerits and Commendations and he/she will contact parents, if there are matters which need raising. It is important that parents should feel that the Form Tutor is the first person to contact, and parents should not be shy about doing so. In different sections of the School, Form Tutors will have different responsibilities. For example, a Fourth Form Tutor will guide a pupil in options choices, an Upper Fifth Form Tutor will guide a pupil in A Level subject choices, and Upper Sixth Tutor will guide a pupil in university choices, in the writing of his/her personal statement and write a pupil’s UCAS reference. In each case the Form Tutor will operate with the support of other specialists. If the Form Tutor has concerns about a pupil, he/she will raise these with the Year Head or the Head of Section.
The Head of Year and Head of Section
There is a Year Head attached to each year. It is the Year Head’s responsibility to oversee the progress of the whole year and support and guide Form Tutors with individual pupils and issues. They are: Mr Gareth Ginns (Third Forms), Mr Anthony Carter (Shell Forms), Mr Phil Holt (Fourth Forms), Mr David Reardon (Lower Fifth Forms) and Mr Martyn Garner (Upper Fifth Forms), Mr Martin Covill (Lower Sixth Forms) and Mrs Ruth Lancaster (Upper Sixth Forms). The Heads of Section have overall responsibility for every aspect of the life of their sections, in academic, pastoral and organisational terms. They are involved in the more serious issues of discipline. They are Mr Richard Willshire, Head of the Lower School, Mr Mark Goatham, Head of the Middle School, and Mrs Lisa Fair, Head of the Sixth Form. They, with the Year Heads, meet the Headmaster to talk about pupils and issues. There are also Deputy Heads of Section, (Middle School) Mr Martyn Garner and (Lower School) Mr Phil Holt.
Other Means of Care and Support
This machinery is only part of the care and support that the School is providing. In addition, there are other members of staff, pupils and systems who are here as part of the support system. The School Matron (Mrs Beth Haynes) and Assistant Matron (Mrs Mary Thorne) are responsible for the health of the pupils, but they also have a pastoral role and liaise closely with others in the pastoral care structure. Matron is on duty from 08.30 am until 4.30 pm each school day. Anyone who is unwell is sent/taken to see her in the Surgery. She maintains records of treatment and notifies form teachers when necessary. Only Matron can send a pupil home for medical reasons and when a pupil is to be taken home, Matron will contact the parents. In the event of a pupil going to hospital, Matron, or a member of staff, will accompany the pupil and remain there until parents arrive. The Surgery is on the ground floor of School House and remains open throughout the school day.
The School Counsellor, Mrs Mary Thorne, is available for counselling and consultation at certain times during the week. Pupils may choose to talk to the School Counsellor, or a member of staff may encourage them to do so. Pupils are able to talk to the School Counsellor for weekly confidential sessions but confidentiality is not absolute in certain situations.
The Chaplain, Father Andrew Hutchinson, is always willing to see pupils of whatever religious persuasion to offer advice and guidance.
The School Bench, the Middle School Bench and the Lower School Bench are pupils in each section who are given responsibility to assist with the running of the school. They are often the first to be aware of the difficulties of individual pupils and they may be able to help, or to bring such situations to the attention of staff. There are regular, separate meetings of members of each group with the Headmaster and the Head of the relevant section to discuss issues relating to each section of the school.
The Lower School, Middle School and Sixth Form Councils are bodies which involve a representative from each form. The meetings are organised and chaired by the elected Chairmen of each section and the agenda is based upon the concerns of the pupils. The Headmaster and the Head of the relevant sections attend these meetings.
Form Benchers Sixth Form pupils, who are not necessarily Benchers, are assigned to each form in the Lower and Middle School. The purpose is that they should be able to assist the Form Tutor with the running of the form, and develop close links with the pupils in the form. In this way they may be able to help with issues that a pupil may want to discuss, but not with a member of staff.
Sixth Form assistance with the Junior School and Lower School Games and other activities Sixth Form pupils assist with Lower School and Junior School games on Friday afternoons and are increasingly involved in assemblies and musical events in the Junior School. All of this activity creates a greater sense of community within the school.