PHILOSOPHY
Netherwood School is committed to providing a full and efficient educational experience for all pupils. We believe that if pupils are to benefit from education, good attendance is crucial. As a school we do all that we can to ensure maximum attendance for all pupils. Any problems that prevent full attendance will be identified and addressed as speedily as possible.

It is the policy of our school to celebrate achievement. Attendance is a crucial factor to a productive and successful school career. Our school will actively promote and encourage 100% attendance for all our pupils.

Our school will give a high priority to conveying to parents and pupils the importance of regular and punctual attendance. We recognise that parents have a vital role to play and that there is a need to establish strong home-school links and communication systems that can be utilised whenever there is concern about attendance.

If there are problems which affect a pupil’s attendance we will investigate, identify and strive in partnership with parents and pupils to resolve those problems as quickly and efficiently as possible. We will adopt a clearly focussed approach aimed at returning the pupil to full attendance at all times.

OBJECTIVES
• To encourage full attendance and punctuality
• To record and monitor attendance and absenteeism and apply appropriate strategies to minimise its occurrence
• To acknowledge and reward a successful record of attendance
• To ensure a consistent approach throughout the school

STATUTORY DUTY OF SCHOOLS
The Education Act 1996 requires parents or guardians to ensure their children receive efficient, full-time education, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise. Schools are responsible for recording pupil attendance twice a day; once at the start of the morning session and once during the afternoon session. An entry must be made in the attendance register for all pupils of compulsory school age who are on the school’s admission roll.

PRINCIPLES
Parents are legally responsible for ensuring that a child of compulsory school age attends school regularly.
We will work towards ensuring that all pupils feel supported and valued. We will send a clear message that if a pupil is absent, she/he will be missed. We will consult with all members of the school community and the Education Welfare Service in developing and maintaining the whole school attendance policy.
We will encourage parents to be actively involved in promoting their child’s attendance. We will ensure that all staff are aware of the requirements of the registration process and that they receive training on Registration Regulations and the Law relating to attendance.
Regular information will be sent to parents and pupils informing them of attendance rates and related issues. Promote positive staff attitudes to pupils returning after absence will ensure regular evaluation of attendance policy and procedures by Senior Managers.

SCHOOL AIMS
 Support for Pupils – To ensure a broad and balanced curriculum that provides children with the best possible learning opportunities and experiences.
 Ethos – To provide a welcoming, safe and caring environment in which each pupil is valued and supported.
 Partnership – To build and maintain effective partnerships between the school and its parental body, external support agencies and the wider community.

THE SCHOOLS EXPECTATIONS
From pupils:
• they will attend school regularly
• they will arrive on time, appropriately dressed and prepared for the day.

From parents:
• they encourage their children to attend school
• they contact the School Office between 8.45 & 9.30 a.m. whenever their child is unable to attend and send a note to the school on return
• they ensure their child is appropriately dressed, taking account of the school dress code
• they ensure their child arrives in school well prepared for the school day with homework/prep completed.

Pupils and parents can expect the following from the school:
• regular, efficient and accurate recording of attendance and time keeping
• contact from the school when a pupil fails to attend and no contact is made within 3 days
• early contact with parents when a pupil fails to attend without good reason and there is a pattern of absences or an excessive number of absences or lateness
• immediate action on any problem notified to us, in confidence if necessary
• positive measures to encourage good attendance
• a high quality education.

POSITIVE MEASURES TO ENCOURAGE GOOD ATTENDANCE
• registers will be completed accurately at the start of both the morning and afternoon sessions
• daily monitoring by class teachers – concerns to be reported to the Office where appropriate
• regular monitoring by Principal on attendance and punctuality
• certificates to pupils with 100% attendance
• discussion with Principal and Education Welfare Officer where attendance falls below 80%. Regular reviews and meetings with parents.

PUNCTUALITY/LATENESS
We lay a great deal of importance on the need to be punctual and to arrive in school on time. Not only does it make for a good start to the day, but also it shows consideration for every one else in the class and avoids repetition of instructions and teaching. All children who arrive in school after 9.00 a.m. are to be marked late. However, a different code will now be used in registers to differentiate between those who arrive during registration and those who arrive after 9.20 a.m.. Any child who arrives after the midway point of the morning or afternoon opening (after10.45 a.m. or 2.35 p.m.) will be marked absent for that opening. Procedures to be followed in the case of persistent lateness may involve the Education Welfare Officer.

MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS
Where a child misses more than half the morning or afternoon because of medical appointments this will be recorded as “authorised absence” in the register.

RESPONDING TO NON-ATTENDANCE AND THE PROCEDURE FOR LATENESS
1. If no note or telephone call is received from parents, the school will try to contact the parent by telephone, or a letter will be sent from the Office.
2. In continued non-attendance or lateness, the Principal will alert the Education Welfare Officer and home visits will be carried out.

PARENTAL REQUESTS FOR HOLIDAYS DURING TERM-TIME
Permission for family holidays in term-time can only be granted in exceptional circumstances where:
 the holiday is important for the well-being and cohesion of the family following serious or terminal illness, bereavement or other traumatic events
 an employer provides evidence that leave cannot be accommodated during school holidays without significant consequence.

Where holidays are taken which do not fall into the “exceptional circumstances” category, these will be recorded on a child’s attendance record as “unauthorised absence”.

When a pupil is withdrawn during term-time there is disruption to the learning process that can result in the pupil falling behind his/her group. There is a belief, amongst some parents, that this time can be made up by the school providing ‘work’ for the pupil to complete during the holiday period. However this does not have the desired effect since the pupil has missed out on quality teaching time. In general terms it is our policy that it is not possible to provide your child with the work which is planned for his/her group during this period of absence. The teacher will. If possible, try to make up the work that has been missed on your child’s return to school. If you wish your child to continue with some school type activity while on holiday may we suggest that he/she keeps a personal diary or record of the holiday? On return to school the pupil will be encouraged to work hard to compensate for the gap in their education. This may require the completion of additional work following teaching input.

RESPONSIBILITY
In order for this policy to be successful every member of the school community must make attendance a high priority. We must share our enthusiasm for education and communicate its importance to pupils and all members of the school community.

Child Protection Reporting Chart

At Netherwood School, you should expect to be treated properly. If you feel that, as parent or pupil, there is a problem of any description, the following course of action should be followed:

Students
Do not be afraid to complain. You have the right to be heard when you wish to make a valid point. Your School & Boarding House run on an ‘open door’ policy when it comes to communication. Firstly, talk to a member of staff whom you feel you can trust – Form Tutor, Housemistress/master, Matron, Senior Mistress, Principal. If you are unable to reach the Principal around the School, then go into the Office and ask for an appointment. It will probably be possible to see him the same day, or on his return to School, if he is on business. Secondly, if you wish to speak to someone else then consider Canon Michael Butler, whose telephone number is 01834 812375.

Take a friend with you, if you wish, another pupil, or even a member of staff. Your complaint will be followed up and appropriate action will be taken. If you are too shy/nervous to arrange such a meeting, then write a short letter to the Principal and leave it in the Office. Boarders can use the ‘Matters of Concern’ box, which is kept in the back kitchen of the Boarding House, and is checked regularly. Again, the expected response time will be one-or-two days.

Parents
At any time you must feel free to contact the School or Boarding Staff (whichever is appropriate). If you are confident that they can deal with the issue in mind and, if necessary, refer to the Principal. You can do this in several ways. Many parents use the convenience of calling into the School Office when dropping off or picking up the children at School. In this case, the response will be immediate. If you feel that any matter warrants the thorough consideration of the Principal, then please contact his Secretary in writing or by telephone (01834 811057). He will then liaise, as is necessary, with the appropriate other individuals involved. A personal response will be instigated immediately. If the matter involves dealing with other staff, or pupils, who cannot be seen straight away, a response may take three or four days and will be provided as soon as it becomes possible, certainly within one week.

In the case of a more serious matter, it is essential that you contact the Principal in writing, so that he has sufficient evidence with which to proceed into an in-depth investigation. You can also contact the School in writing, if you are unhappy with the response to an earlier informal approach. It must be noted that, in the case of a serious complaint being raised about a member of staff, a further delay will be caused due to the Principal having to work through the guidance given by Citation plc, which is the official body that advises the School on Employment and Health & Safety. The delay should take no longer than a day.

If you, as a parent, are not totally satisfied with the outcome of such a procedure and express this opinion to the School within one week, you have the right to meet with an independent panel, appointed by the proprietor, of three people, who have not been directly involved in the matters detailed in the complaint, in order to discuss the matter further. At least one member of this panel will be independent of the running and management of the School. You have the right to bring a friend or relative to such a hearing, if you so wish. The second hearing will be arranged within a week of the School being notified by you.

The above panel are able to make findings and recommendations. A ‘hard copy’ of these findings and recommendations will be provided and given to the complainant, proprietors, headmaster and the person complained about within a week of the second hearing.

All complaints will be logged immediately. This will include
• Name of complainant;
• Brief area of complaint;
• The time and date received;
• The name and year group of the person the complaint relates to.

The findings recorded within three days of the end of the procedure of the last hearing.

All correspondence, statements and records of complaints will be treated in a confidential manner.

Procedure for Parents
All members of staff at Netherwood School strive to develop the inherent potential of each individual pupil in a well-ordered and disciplined community. It is not anticipated that there will be cause for complaint about the provision made for any student’s education in the School.

If, however, the parents of a student at Netherwood School feel that they have course to complain about any provision made by the School for their child’s education (including matters relating to Child Protection) they should follow the guidelines below :

1. The first person to be contacted should be the student’s Housemistress/master or Year Tutor.
2. If this does not meet with what the parents consider to be a satisfactory response (or if the complaint is in relation to the Housemistress/master) the Principal should be contacted.
3. If the complaint is relating to Child Protection, the Designated Teacher for Welfare (Mrs Phillips) should be contacted.
4. If the complaint is about the Designated Teacher for Welfare, the Principal should be contacted.
5. If the complaint is about the Principal, then Canon Michael Butler should be contacted.

AN ATTEMPT WILL BE MADE TO ACKNOWLEDGE EACH COMPLAINT WITH 2 DAYS AND DEAL WITH IT CONCLUSIVELY WITHIN 28 DAYS.

Netherwood School is committed to the implementation of a policy to achieve equality of opportunity for staff, students and visitors, and to meeting the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.The School will treat all people with disabilities, with dignity and respect and will provide an environment, free from discrimination, victimisation or harassment, and accessible to all.
Disabled students will have the same right of access and opportunity to the curriculum as that enjoyed by their fellow students.

The Aims of this policy are to
• Support the ethos of the School as a community which respects the rights of disabled students to have equal access to the curriculum, extra-curricular and other activities
• Value and encourage all children equally
• Foster positive attitudes towards disability within our community
• Enrich the lives of all our students by pursuing an inclusive policy towards all students which reflects the diversity of the outside world

Admission to the School
1. The prospective student must meet the School’s entry criteria.
2. The School must feel reasonably sure that it will be able to educate and develop the prospective student to the best of his/her potential and in line with the general standards achieved by the student’s peers.
3. The School policy is to apply these criteria to all students and potential students, regardless of any disability of which it is made aware by parents. The school has a legal obligation to make reasonable adjustments not to put any disabled student or potential student at a substantial disadvantage compared with other students who are not disadvantaged because of disability.
4. Parents are required to inform the School in respect of the disability of a prospective student.
5. In assessing any student or prospective student, the School may take such advice and require such assessments eg. Educational Psychologist’s reports and recommendations as it regards as appropriate.

Physical Access
Parents should be aware that the School is housed in buildings spread over a wide area of terrain that is not flat. The School’s policy of having designated subject rooms requires students to move around the site.
Ramps have been and are being provided to give access to students with impaired mobility and no stairs have to be climbed as all classrooms are at ground level.
Toileting facilities on site for daytime use are not suitable for wheelchair access.
Students with impaired mobility can access the ground floor toilets in the Boarding House.
The Boarding facility is housed in a two-storey building and there is no lift accessing the second floor

Education
• The School Principal and/or Heads of Key Stages will make staff aware of any students with Disability or Special Educational Needs.
• Staff will continue to be made aware of strategies to make “reasonable adjustments” within the classroom so as not to place disabled students at a substantial disadvantage in accessing the curriculum.
• Staff will need to adapt their teaching to the learning patterns of all the students according to their abilities and needs. Such differentiation should be reflected in Subject Schemes of Work.
• The implementation of reasonable adjustments to classroom management, teaching and expectations, should not prejudice the progress of other students, nor their Health and Safety (eg. Labs, sports equipment).
• The School, as an independent school, is not required to provide auxiliary support such as a classroom assistant, or auxiliary aids eg. Laptops or hearing loops.

Sporting and Recreational Activities
• The School will continue to provide equal access to all school activities for disabled students, within the constraints of the physical nature of the site, the budgetary costs, the Health and Safety implications and difficulties of supervision.
• Individual Risk Assessment and management strategies will be provided for disabled students engaged in school trips or visits.

Welfare Awareness
• Staff and students are to be made aware of disability and understand its effects and accept and support disabled students as part of School life (eg. PHSE, Assembly)
• Appropriate Staff Inset will be provided to enhance understanding of disability, the need for making reasonable adjustments in compliance with our legal duties and to improve our educational provision.
• The School will agree with parents appropriate regular means of communication with regard to the student’s progress, any behavioural issues and the effects of any medication.

At Netherwood School, we believe that equal opportunity is a fundamental part of education. We believe that society is strengthened and enriched by different backgrounds, cultures, religions and perspectives. We believe that successful learning requires self respect, respect for others and a supportive environment and so are committed to challenge all forms of bias and discrimination.

Aims
Our School aims to be an inclusive school, where equality of opportunity is a reality for all our students and our staff.

At Netherwood we provide equality of opportunity to all groups:
• Male and Female
• Minority ethnic and faith groups
• Students whose first language is not English
• Students with special educational needs
• Students with disabilities
• Gifted and talented students

Staff
• We promote fairness and justice for all
• We ensure that all students are treated with respect
• We do not discriminate against any student
• We ensure that all students have equal access to the full range of educational opportunities provided by the school
• We strive to remove any forms of discrimination, either direct or indirect, that may form barriers to learning or to the development of any student or group of students. Special provision eg. Extra English language teaching will be provided for those who need it.
• We challenge stereotyping and prejudice
• We celebrate the cultural diversity of our school community and invite all to contribute to the spiritual life of the school

Teachers ensure that students
• Feel secure and know that they are valued
• Appreciate and value the differences in others
• Are encouraged to participate in all aspects of school life

The Principal’s role
• Is to implement the school’s equal opportunities policy, monitor its effectiveness and amend when required
• Is to ensure that all staff are aware of the policy and apply it fairly in all situations
• Is to ensure that the principles of equal opportunity are promoted within the curriculum.
• Is to treat all incidents and complaints that contravene this policy with due seriousness. Complaints should be made through the school’s formal complaints procedure

Health & Safety Job Sheet

This policy is intended to ensure consistency across the school in terms of marking practice and related advice given on target setting. Marking should enhance learning through :
• Drawing children’s attention to what they need to do to improve.
• Providing feedback on what they have done so far.

Agreed Procedure
• Learning objectives and success criteria are shared with the children and are central to the marking and target setting processes including drawing attention to examples of success.
• A variety of approaches are taken to marking work including children marking one another’s (when appropriate), self-assessment, and positive one-to-one marking during discussion with the teacher, which can be indicated by the ‘D’. (See also the Science Department policy on marking).
• Time is given for children to read comments and make a response including corrections.
• Comments should focus upon key issues linked to lesson objectives and targets.
• Teachers should try to include formative comments that inform children’s learning eg. directing children to the next stage in their learning.
• Written comments should associate directly with the advice given in target setting.
• Marking criteria should be shared with children and a checklist of items used to look for when marking their own or other’s work.
• Next steps should include questions, reminders, scaffold (an example of what they need to do) example (exact sentences, words or processes to copy).

Frequency & Nature
• Clearly this will vary with age, subject and nature of work.
• Junior school children should have their work marked on a weekly basis.
• At no time in the Secondary area should a month elapse without work being marked.
• Material such as classwork, homework, projects and notes should all be marked.
• Everyone is a teacher of English.

Marking Scheme
PARAGRAPH //
INCORRECT SPELLING Underline sp. Child should then write the word out
Correctly near to where the error was made.
OMITTED WORD(S) ^
BADLY FORMED LETTER *
ERROR IN NUMBERS (MATHS) O
WORD NOT REQUIRED /
MISTAKE IN WORK One line through mistake ----------------
DISCUSSED D1____________________D2
WITH SUPPORT WS
DOES NOT MAKE SENSE ?
REPEATED MISTAKE !--------------!

This marking scheme should be given to children either by having a copy each and/or displaying in the classroom.

Is this working?
• Do work trawls suggest that teachers are applying the marking policy and marking scheme?
• How clear are children about the symbols used and their purposes?
• Have children taken on board corrections and attempted to rectify their mistakes?
• Have the comments made led to evident progress in children’s work?
• Are parents commenting positively or negatively about the scheme?
• Do parents help to reinforce the target setting?

1. The Staff member initially informed should quickly attempt to establish authenticity through leave absence sheets, questioning of students and search of the premises.

2. Should this not establish the whereabouts of the student, the Staff member should inform the Head of Boarding or the Assistant Head of Boarding.

3. The Head of Boarding or Assistant Head of Boarding should confirm that the steps in no. 1 have been taken and then contact the parents, inform them of the situation and suggest that police will then be contacted. It is important to establish with the parents when this contact will take place.

4. The Head of Boarding or the Assistant Head of Boarding rings police and reports the student missing.

5. Constant communication with the parents must be maintained.

6. The Head of Boarding or the Assistant Head of Boarding should then inform the Principal of the situation.

This policy has been drawn together to explain how a hearing committee will deal with matters such as bullying, sexual assault, drugs, smoking, continued disrespect for teachers, wilfully and continually disrupting the learning process.

 The Headmaster/Principal will first make a brief assessment of the gravity of the assault(s), incident(s), or series of events. If he deems that the matter(s) is serious enough to bring about a punishment that might result in expulsion or suspension, then a thorough investigation will take place.

 Full attention will be paid to any report made, in the form of a complaint, from a pupil, parent or teacher, or combination of such people.

 Witnesses will be drawn from all such people who are deemed as being in close enough proximity to each incident, to be able to give accurate, first hand information. Each witness will be asked to write down, clearly, all that they actually saw and heard themselves. They will sign this statement and hand it in to the Principal’s office. They may also be asked to give verbal evidence at the hearing, and they may be asked, where appropriate, to give a demonstration of what they genuinely saw.

 Depending upon the gravity of the situation and whether teachers were present at any incident, a panel of three to five teachers will assess the evidence, using the written statements, verbal deliveries and any appropriate demonstration. Every teacher present will have the right to ask any additional questions they see fit of the witness present. A neutral person, probably Canon Michael Butler, will be invited to sit on the panel, and will have an active role to play, which will include the right to vote.

 The accuracy of each point of evidence will firstly be assessed and the linkage between similar pieces of evidence will be followed. Any conflicting evidence will be noted and, hopefully, explained.

 When all the evidence has been gathered and assessed in the above manner each teacher present will have the right to give a summary of the overall issues, as they see them, to the rest of the panel.

 When everyone on the panel is happy that every matter needing discussion has been fairly aired to and by the panel, a judgement will be made.

 Each member of the panel will have been issued with a pencil and strip of paper bearing the words “Expulsion”, “Suspension” and “Reprimand”. Each panel member will be invited to go into a part of the room where they can freely and secretively circle the punishment they recommend, without being seen by any other members of the panel. The slips will be folded twice and placed into a box. When the box is full the slips will be tipped out onto the table by the Chairperson of the panel (who will probably be the School Principal). Should the Principal be involved in delivering evidence, then Canon Michael Butler will become the Chairperson of the panel.

It is expected that if all pertinent matters have been openly and freely discussed, and all panel members reminded of the punishment usually given by the School for such transgressions, most panel members will come to a similar conclusion. Should there be too much variation in the judgement made some of the key matters may be re-discussed and assessed and a new set of slips will then be issued for re-judgement purposes. This will continue until an overall judgement is achieved, which indicates the consensus of opinion of the whole panel.

 The transgressor will then be brought back before the panel and the judgement of that panel will be issued to him or her in a verbal manner. A much larger written report will be sent to the parents of both the transgressor and any pupil(s) who has been harmed by extreme behaviour.

 In extreme cases and where possible, the panel may see fit to invite into the school parents of either or both the transgressor and/or harmed party. In such cases, although parents will obviously receive information first hand at school, a written report will still be sent to the parents concerned.

 A reprimand might include “gating”, in the cases of boarders, and certainly loss of privileges plus additional schoolwork in all cases.

A suspension will take into account any school holidays that fall into the time zone of the enforcement period e.g. if a half term week falls in the middle of a two week suspension, a total of three weeks will be spent at the home (i.e. home country) of the guilty party. In cases that are not very severe a one-week suspension might be awarded; in more severe cases a two-week suspension will be the result. Should any pupil have accumulated a total of two weeks suspension from school then, at the next serious incident (deemed “serious” by the hearing panel) that pupil will be expelled.

Where this is thought to be the likely outcome, the parent will have the opportunity to come in and listen to the hearing.

Expulsion will be the outcome when a student has been caught up in a series

of extreme events for which a total of two weeks suspension has already been
issued. It will also be the outcome in the most extreme cases; that is proved,

continuous bullying, drugs, sexual assault, severe demonstration publicly of
disregard for the School’s rules and its staff. It is important to note here that
this includes a pupil swearing audibly at a teacher.

In the case of smoking, if this has been proved to have occurred on more then one occasion, and punishment has been issued already (probably suspension) then expulsion will be the expected outcome of this situation.

 Efforts will be made to ensure that expelled students take all their belongings with them when leaving the school. In the cases of international students efforts will be made to ensure that all belongings are taken, an alternative flight will be booked for them via the airline company and a taxi will be booked to take them from the school to the airport, with the driver taking them to the check-in desk. If an international student is suspended then the cost of the return taxi fare and new airline ticket will be borne by the parent.

This policy indicates the breadth of disciplinary response available to staff and suggests the sensitivity needed in the application of the possible sanctions.

Where a positive approach to discipline is in place and a spirit of co-operation exists then the need for sanctions is reduced. However, the school acknowledges that there are times when pupils misbehave or make misjudgements or persistently fail to achieve standards expected and sanctions aimed at reinforcing the unacceptability of such behaviours will be necessary at these times.

Rather than being purely punitive, such sanctions should be designed to achieve a modification in the pupil’s future behaviour. It is the responsibility of staff, exercising their professional judgement, to decide upon the most appropriate form of sanction within the context of this policy, along with the Complaints Policy and the Bullying Policy.

“Pupils should learn from experience and expect fair and consistently applied
punishments for bad behaviour which make the distinction between serious and
minor offences apparent”
“Teachers should ensure that rules are applied consistently by all members of
staff, but there should be flexibility in the use of punishments to take account of
individual circumstances”

The Elton Report (1989) Discipline in Schools

Staff should be aware of the following list and remember that such a list is necessary in order that an appropriate response can be made. It is important that relatively mild sanctions are not bypassed as this leaves the school with limited flexibility in more extreme situations. Threats that leave little room for manoeuvre are best avoided and likewise it is better to identify individuals than to deal out generalised group punishments which can lead to a sense of injustice.

Disciplinary problems are best dealt with at an early stage with the immediate checking of unacceptable behaviour. Should further sanctions be necessary then the following are available to all members of the teaching staff:

Academic
Verbal/non-verbal indications of disapproval
Repetition of unsatisfactory work
Extra work
Personal detention
Reference to appropriate colleagues (Form Tutor, Head of Key Stage, Senior Mistress, Principal)

Pastoral/Behaviour
Verbal indication of disapproval
Personal detention
Reference to appropriate colleagues (Senior Mistress, Principal)

Sanctions available to Boarding Staff and the Principal:

Withdrawal of privileges
Gating
Contact with Parents
House duties
Reference to Principal

Sanctions available to Senior Mistress:

School duties
Report
Temporary exclusion (by agreement with the Principal)

Sanctions available to the Principal:

Temporary exclusion (suspension)
Permanent exclusion (expulsion)

While it is not possible to publish an all-encompassing set of tariffs for misbehaviours, clearly there is a scale of offences and the involvement of the Senior Mistress and the Principal, as well as contact with parents are considered at the serious end of the disciplinary spectrum.

It is accepted that offences regarding smoking, drinking, or drug taking constitute major misbehaviours and the school’s response is correspondingly severe.

Should a pupil test positive for drugs then a period of exclusion will follow; a return to school will involve an agreement to be tested randomly at parents’ expense – further offences will mean expulsion. Supplying any drug will be viewed harshly – expulsion is the most likely outcome.
Most offences involving alcohol, particularly underage drinking, will incur a period of exclusion. The period of exclusion will reflect the seriousness of the misdemeanour.
The school views smoking inside school buildings as particularly reprehensible. A first smoking offence will be punished by exclusion. Further offences will result in expulsion.

SCHOOL SANCTIONS

The following list has been drawn up to give pupils, parents and staff a clearer understanding of the types pf sanctions and the sorts of offences that result in sanctions.

If a pupil commits an offence in school this list is used as a guide to decide on the most appropriate level of sanction. By standardising the sanctions in this way pupils can appreciate that they are being treated fairly. Staff have clear guidelines to work from.

Level of Reason for sanction Name of sanction
Sanction

1 Minor offences concerning such matters as uniform Verbal indication of
or boisterous behaviour disapproval

2 Antisocial behaviour, minor vandalism, noise and
nuisance, minor breaches of rules and punctuality

3 Repeated Level 1 and Level 2 offences Letter home

4 Repeated inappropriate behaviour with fellow
pupils or staff, breaches of rules

5 Major breaches of rules, bullying or repetition of
Level 4 offences

6 Very serious breaches of school rules, This may Suspension by
include offences involving alcohol, drugs, criminal Principal
acts, bringing the school into disrepute, disregard for
school rules, physical assault or inappropriate sexual
behaviour

7 More serious or repeated instances of Level 6 offences Expulsion by
Principal

The Homework Diary is seen as a means of communication between the School and the Home. To be effective, all parties, ie. students, parents and teachers, must know how the system works.

Student
• The Homework Diary must be taken to all lessons.
• The Homework Timetable on the back cover should be filled in.
• When a subject teacher sets homework it must be written into the diary in sufficient detail before you leave that lesson.
• Homework should be completed on the night set and handed in the next day, however if you have been given longer to do it, then write in the day/date it will be handed in.
• If you are supposed to be set homework for a subject that night and the teacher has not set any, please write the subject and ‘none set’ in your homework diary.
• Once your homework is complete, show your work to your parents, so that they can sign your diary for that day.

Parents
• Every night you should ask to see your son or daughter’s Homework Diary to see what homework they have been set for that night.
• When they have completed their homework you should ask to see the work and then sign the Homework Diary to show that you have done so.
• If there are any comments you want to make eg. if your child found a particular homework difficult, or it took them a long time to complete etc., then please write these in the Homework Diary for the teachers to see.

Subject Teachers
• Homework should be set regularly according to the Homework Timetable. Homework set should be appropriate to the lesson taught and should be varied if at all possible ie. written, reading, research, learning etc.
• Ensure that all students have their Homework Diaries in your lesson at the start of the relevant period and check that they write the homework in their diaries before they leave your lesson.

Form Teachers
• At least once a week in the Senior School and daily in the Junior School, you must collect in all Homework Diaries and check that they are being used correctly and signed.
• If there are any comments from parents, these need to be passed on to subject teachers.
• If you are satisfied that the Homework Diary is being used correctly, then please sign and hand back to the student.
• If you have a problem with a Homework Diary, the matter must be dealt with immediately and if needed a letter sent home.