Sanctions

This is the unfortunate bit! The children are generally very well behaved indeed—but sometimes they do need a little reminder about their behaviour. It very seldom goes beyond a little reminder, we are pleased to say!

Classroom Code

Every class starts the year by discussing, and then putting into a classroom code, or golden rules board, the behaviour that is expected of the class. So, all the children have taken part in this, and they all know what the expectations are— no excuses!

Oops Board

Every class has one of these. A teacher will always give a warning for instance, if the class are meant to be working quietly on individual work and a child is talking, the teacher will tell them to be quiet and get on. If the child persists, then the name will go on the oops board. This is usually all that is needed—the child will behave, get on with their work, and the name will come off the board at the end of the session.

However, if the child continues to break the rule, or, if they come to the next lesson and start to misbehave again, the name will remain on the board, or go back on. If the name remains for 3 sessions, or goes on 3 times, then the child may well lose a playtime.

If during the week, a name has been persistently on the board, and the child has lost more than one playtime, they may also have to miss part or all of their golden time for that week.

Persistent Poor Behaviour

A child who continues to disrupt a lesson, or a series of lessons may well be sent to the Phase leader in charge of the year group. The phase leader will usually impose a sanction, which may include losing play time during the lunch session as well as break time. Sometimes, the child will have to join the phase leader's class for the rest of the lesson. Poor behaviour at this level is formally recorded. The phase leader may ask a parent to come into school to talk about the behaviour that is causing concern.

If behaviour is really becoming a problem, the details may be passed to the Deputy Head, who will take further appropriate action, including contacting parents for a formal meeting. If this is necessary, the Head will also be involved.

Occasionally an incident happens in school that is the result of very silly behaviour, but not part of a pattern—this will be dealt with very firmly, and parents may well be advised that it has happened, but no further action is needed—we find at these times that the child involved is more than aware how silly their behaviour was, and that they are actually quite ashamed of themselves. This is enough.

Exclusion is always the last sanction to be imposed and is very serious. We would much rather children were in school, learning, and taking full responsibility for their actions; however, some behaviour cannot be tolerated at all, and may result in a fixed term or even permanent exclusion:

• Violent behaviour towards ANY member of the school community
• Foul language towards any member of the school community
• Persistent bullying
• Severe and deliberate damage to school property, or that belonging to a member of the school community

The headteacher will always be fully involved in serious behaviour incidents, as will the parents / carers.