Pastoral Plan 2020/2021

1.Introduction:

• Pastoral care at Victoria English School underpins every aspect of school life. As a community we understand that pastoral wellbeing is the most important aspect of a child’s development and we recognise that for our students to thrive they need to feel safe, fulfilled and above all happy. Our exceptional standard of pastoral care ensures that each student, at each stage of school life, has the confidence to contribute and succeed.
• The welfare and happiness of every student is central to our school. Successful learning is about each and every student engaging with that process, free from personal worry and in a safe and secure environment.
• All staff at Victoria English School understand the importance of actively supporting every student’s academic, pastoral, social and healthy well-being.

2.Aims:

Our happy and supportive environment enriches the learning process and provides the students with a well-rounded education that builds confidence and self-discipline. Working together is of the utmost importance.

• To develop and sustain a caring and happy learning environment which promotes respect and co-operation within the school community and where children are socially at ease and educationally thriving.
• To make all staff aware of children’s needs; to notice unhappy, preoccupied, irritable, depressed children and to investigate unobtrusively.
• To foster relationships between school and parents..
• To develop our pupils’ “life skills” – critical thinking, decision making, effective communication, learning from mistakes, which are so necessary for their health and safety in today’s society.
• To provide a caring commitment to guide and advise our pupils on both personal and educational matters and we seek to build up a community of children who care about each other and show respect for themselves and others.

3.Rationale:

• Children learn best when their school environment is safe, inclusive and welcoming.
• At VES, we have an outstanding culture of mutual respect between students, staff and parents. Modeling positive behaviour, setting and expecting exceptionally high
  standards, and celebrating equality and diversity are at the core of Victoria English School.
• It also includes the provision of an environment where the children feel safe, secure and valued and where their concerns are listened to and acted upon when necessary. The Pastoral Care Policy at Victoria English School should ensure that children reach their full potential in every area of life.

4.Tutor Groups / Year groups/ Houses

• All students at VES will have a class teacher or a form tutor. They are the first port of call for students and parents in terms of communication, support and care. The tutor will be part of a Year group and will meet regularly to discuss progress, behaviour and attitude as well as being the vital link to parents. Each Year has a Year leader in Primary and in Secondary the Year Leader can be in charge of more than one year:

Year Group	Year Leader
FS1 / 2	Michelle Laurier
G1	Marilize Scheepers
G2	Rachel Heffernan
G3	Janica Geldenhuys
G4	Luzaan Wepener
G5	Sunett Voigt
G6	Annaline Boshoff
G7/8	Melinda Bandy
G9	Sonja Mollentze
G10/11	Luke Cullen
G12/13	Tanya Grunder

5.Assemblies / Head of Year / Assemblies

• We are very proud about the fact we have assemblies at VES and they play a significant role in us being a community and sharing important messages and events. The morning assembly included the national anthem and any important messages for that day. It also plays a vital role in our attendance procedures and making sure students are present and ready for the day ahead.
• We also have Year group assemblies on a Tuesday and Thursday in which certain Year groups from across the school get together to share information and praise. These assemblies are essential to target the correct information and messages to the right Year groups as well as giving us a sense of purpose and belonging. We regularly invite key note speakers and charities to our assemblies as well.

6.Tutor time program and character building:

• All students at VES will have a class or form tutor and they will have specific ‘tutor’ lessons once a week. This is an essential time in which to get to know each other and specifically the tutor to build a rapport with the group.
• Where possible the tutor will also teach the class so that they have a connection academically with them as well. This is especially important at secondary level as the form teacher may only see the students for the registration.

7.Safeguarding Policy

• Victoria English School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. All pupils have the right to be protected from all types of harm and abuse. This Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy forms a fundamental part of our approach to providing excellent pastoral care to all pupils.
• VES also added in the policy the Federal Wadeema’s Law concerning child rights that all children must be provided with appropriate living standards, access to health services, education, equal opportunities in essential services and facilities without any kind of discrimination. The law protects children against all forms of negligence, exploitation, physical and psychological abuses.

8.Counseling and support

Individual sessions are offered to students, staff and parents to explore any concerns to ensure a successful e-learning experience.

Support is provided in a diverse range of issues relating to mental health difficulties such as stress, anxiety and low mood.

The wellbeing session cover Regular workshops to train students and parents such as stress management and mindfulness.

9.Careers and Work Experience

We at VES know there is more to success than just academic achievement. Education is not just about passing exams; it’s about enabling students to learn the skills and qualities they need to be successful at school and beyond. We want every pupil to do well enough to go to university or pursue the career of their choice. To support this, we ensure that alongside setting high expectations for academic progress, we also focus on building the habits and skills most desired by employers and universities, guarantee access and exposure to the experiences that will help them to shape a vision for their own future and guide their decisions about their university or career pathway after school.

At VES our mission is to:

• Create a common approach to ensuring all students have access to Careers information and have regular guest speakers from different sectors
• Have a clear transition pathway for key year groups (such as G6-7, G9-10 and G11-12)
• Supporting effective planning, delivery of career education and ensure every opportunity is used in subject lessons to refer to work related learning
• Explore sector best practice, and develop creative and collaborative solutions between schools and Universities in the area as well as industry
• Developing online content and resources to share national and international opportunities and best practice as well as sign posting students to career networks and events
• Building our alumni community to support school programmes, and to help us measure the impact of our approach to pathways and enrichment as well as inviting old students back to discuss their experiences after VES

10.Student Council

Students and pupils are central to all that VES does and we want to develop and structure a range of Leadership and Development opportunities for them both in school and for their life outside of school. It is critical to develop a range of personal attributes and strategies to make our student more resilient and focused in a rapidly changing world.

Our understanding of student and pupil leadership and voice is essential to ensuring the Pastoral heart of the school is working effectively.

We know that, when given the opportunity, young people can have a profound impact on their schools. Involvement in leadership and voice activities can improve students’ and pupils’ learning as well as helping them to develop the skills and traits needed for success outside of the classroom such as cooperation, communication, creativity, strategic thinking, team work, resilience and learning from mistakes.

11.Parent Engagement:

• Parent Interviews are held in October and February each year and a written report is sent home in July. Parents or teachers may initiate a meeting at any time to discuss their child’s progress or well-being. An appointment to talk to a child’s teacher or the Principal may be made by contacting the school.

• Victoria English School actively promotes strong links with parents to ensure that at all times people are kept fully informed of any concerns the school or parents may have.

• We have the Victoria Parents Association that supports our community of Parents as well as keeps informed with the School and events happening. You are more than welcome to take an active part as a parent in the VPA.

Positive Behaviour System

The VES Behaviour and Reward Policy aims to:

1. Build positive behaviour in school among students and staff
2. Enhance and develop positive behaviour by role modeling, applying good techniques, encouraging and promoting
3. Ensure students are fully aware of the school’s high expectations
4. Ensure the application of the positive behaviour policy is fair and consistent throughout the school
5. Create a learning environment that is harmonious and has the students wellbeing at the centre of all we do
6. Ensure parents and guardians are kept informed of behaviour incidents and issues as they arise as well as rewards and praise
7. Have a clear system that all students, staff and parents can understand and that is consistently applied by every staff member
8. Have a Pastoral Panel to ensure all behaviour incidents are discussed and the correct rehabilitation and repair / restore work is put into place and reviewed regularly to ensure positive progress

House Point System (Positive Behaviour system)

• At the beginning of each term all students will be given 8 housepoints for positive behaviour
• Students can achieve more housepoints throughout the term from teachers as a reward
• Students can lose housepoints as a consequence for poor behaviour from teachers
• Students can be awarded a further 2 housepoints for exemplary behaviour during the term from tutors, Year Leaders or Senior Staff
• The minimum housepoint ‘balance’ is 6 and at this point a positive behaviour intervention will be triggered and reviewed by the Pastoral Panel
• There is no maximum ‘balance’ and students can achieve as many housepoints as they can
• All housepoints will be added up towards the ‘House Cup’ which will be awarded at the end of the year (update will be given at the end of each term) with other events contributing as well such as sports day and inter form competitions

First Incident Verbal Warning Example incidents would be: Punctuality to school and to lessons Uniform issues and shoes Not completing homework or classwork to a suitable standard Second Incident Written warning and Success plan / behaviour contract More serious behaviour incident Interview with the student and parents Third incident Iscolation and meeting with the Head of Section / Headteacher

Positive Behaviour and Exemplary Behaviour Students will receive housepoints for consistent positive actions and behaviours Students will be rewarded regularly and the teacher will always explain why Staff will contact home or write a note in the planner for exceptional behaviour and focus Staff always narrate the positive and be explicit about what is positive behaviour Students will be able to achieve awards and certificates for their effort Students can be nominated for Star awards and have a meeting with the Head of School and Headteacher All housepoints will be added up and will go towards the school ‘House Cup’ competition Example positive actions  would include: Focused personal development and being a good student, friend, listener Following the school rules and making the correct choices every time Classwork and Homework completed with full effort and pride in their work Taking the initiative and wanting to take an active part in the school community Taking pride in their appearance and general attitude and commitment around school Being always on time for lessons, ready to learn and with the correct equipment Have excellent attendance to school and having respect for peers and all staff Participate in a range of activities, cultural events and promote the school Show clear social responsibility and leadership skills in and around school and want to promote and develop opportunities for all students in school Proposing creative solutions and ideas around school and showing initiative, resilience and independence as well as developing the school environment and systems Helping and support students and staff during the day Being polite and having good manners on all occasions

Attendance

• Very high expectations of student attendance at VES (both in the school campus and online)
• Parents are expected to notify the school the morning of any absence
• Form tutors will check attendance during the morning registration
• Any absences of 2 days or move will result in a phone call with the Year Leaders
• Students who regularly do not attend will be palces on Attendance monitoring by the Year leader
• Any student who misses more than 25 days of school each year will fail the year (this is a Ministry regulation)