The Northumberland Church of England Academy
Primary Culture and Behaviour for Learning Procedure
Document Control
Version / Date reviewed / Approved by / Amendments / Next review1.0 / January 2010 / Primary Team / January 2011
1.1 / March 2011 / Primary Team / Amended to include lunchtimes / March 2013
1.2 / March 2013 / Primary Team / Use of detentions added / March 2015
1.3 / January 2015 / Primary Team / Changes to include use of google docs to monitor plans / January 2017
1.4 / January 2017 / PDP/ED / Some changes to wording around the coloured plans / January 2018
1.5 / January 2018 / PDP/ED / DPPD removed as contact when on Red plan / January 2019
In all behaviour management, consistency is key. All staff are responsible to adhere to professional standards and should promote positive relationships within their area and or class. Behaviour management within a lesson is the responsibility of the teacher in charge. Sanctions are only effective if used consistently. Confrontation is not an effective way to solve a problem.
We use a range of strategies to support our pupils, these can be altered to suit the needs of individual children and in discussion with wider Academy staff.
These include;
Good to be Green
This strategy is based on the 4Rs – RIGHTS, RULES, ROUTINES & RESPONSIBILITY
Rights
√ RIGHT to be safe (both physically and emotionally)
√ RIGHT to learn
√ RIGHT to have yourself and your property treated with respect
Generic rules
1. Do be polite, kind and helpful
2. Do move safely around the Academy
3. Do listen carefully and follow instruction
4. Do your best in all things
5. Do be honest
These rules MUST be applied consistently throughout the Academy and enforced by every member of staff, including supply, and support staff.
The rules also apply to before and after school clubs, multi-purpose spaces e.g. the main hall, library and outdoor spaces. Adults supervising these areas should be vigilant and report poor behaviour while managing the situation.
Rules will be shared regularly with pupils and highlighted in assemblies.
Children will be reminded of the support systems in place to ensure they feel happy and comfortable within the campus this includes use of the Worry wall.
Routines & rewards (behaviour)
Reward systems are bespoke to individual campuses and are based on the strategies which work well with their pupils.
Routines & rewards (work and effort)
All children and staff to be placed into four ‘houses’. Children receive house points for outstanding work. House points are to be placed in the correct house collection bag/box for counting. Every week the House Points will be counted with the winning house having its colours tied to a trophy (or a rosette stuck to the house board, move along the house board etc).
Team meetings of houses, including staff to take place during one assembly on a monthly basis. They can discuss how to increase their effort and improve their work and how working together will help their team do better.
Responsibility
Individual pupils are responsible for their own behaviour. Peer mentors drawn from Year 5 & Year 6 pupils will be selected as good role models to encourage good behaviour in the playgrounds during break-times. The Head of Campus will be responsible for sharing this strategy with all campus staff and parents and maintaining the rules, rewards and consequences of their campus.
Consequences
This strategy relies on the Good to be Green displays with individual pupil cards being in every classroom. For every session, every child must begin on a green card.
●If a child fails to keep the rules then they are given a verbal warning.
●If the poor behaviour continues then the child is asked to change their card to amber and think about how they are behaving and consider what they need to do to improve.
●If their behaviour improves then they are allowed to move their card back to green, reinforcing the message that they control their own behaviour.
●If the poor behaviour instead persists, then the child will be asked to change their card to red. Their name will be entered on the weekly behaviour monitoring sheet in the appropriate session square
●If they continue to behave inappropriately in the session and fail to modify their behaviour then a cross is added to their name and the pupil is sent to an isolated area of the class for a minimum 3 minute time out. A second cross will invoke a minimum five minute playtime/lunchtime detention (whichever is the closest in time).
●Three crosses by their name in a single session will invoke a trip to the Head of Campus for a minimum five minute time out. Key Stage 2 children will have longer as appropriate
●Extreme, violent or aggressive behaviour will evoke an instant red card and may bypass this procedure.
●Three red cards in a week will result in a discussion with the child’s parent at home-time or a phone call home from the class teacher. ( On some campuses three red cards recorded in a week result in a 30 minute after school detention with a member of the Campus Leadership Team (CLT) and followed up with a conversation between class teacher and the CLT who led the detention) This will be recorded on the weekly behaviour monitoring sheet. If this re-occurs in a two week period, the Head of Campus will write to the pupils’ parents inviting them into campus to discuss the difficulties being experienced. However, parents can be contacted at any time should a Head of Campus have a serious cause for concern. This will be added to the class behaviour monitoring sheet.
●In discussion with the parents the pupil will be placed on a white behaviour plan and other avenues are explored. The behaviour plan will be monitored via Google docs by the Deputy HOC. The information will be shared with key Academy staff to ensure appropriate monitoring and support is in place.
- The plan will ideally only run for a fortnight with parents involved daily. There will be a formal review of progress towards behaviour targets with parents on the last day of the fortnight when a decision regarding the next step will be made. This may include referral to outside agencies and if this is the case the pupil will have their SEN status changed to K. The decision may involve moving onto an amber plan
- If an amber plan is invoked the procedure will be the same as for the white but the HOC will be included in the Google doc monitoring. If at the meeting with parents it is decided that behaviour is not improving significantly then the child will move onto a red plan
- If a red plan is invoked the Google doc monitoring will include the Principal Director (PD) The PD will attend the HOC meeting with parents to underline the seriousness of the situation explaining that if the red plan does not work then they may consider the option of a move to another campus.
- If the move to another campus fails to improve the child’s behaviour then a discussion around fixed-term exclusion will be sought
- In the event of a child’s behaviour becoming a danger to other pupils and staff and a fixed-term exclusion is felt to be the next step then this must be dealt with through a referral to the Principal Director Primary who will seek the approval of the Executive Director.
Heads of Campus are not authorised to exclude pupils.
Depending upon individual circumstances violent behaviour may be dealt with initially through internal exclusions supervised by the Head of Campus alternatively a period of fixed term exclusion can be sought through the Principal Director.
The weekly behaviour monitoring sheet will be collected by the Deputy Head of Campus every Friday afternoon at 1pm.
The Deputy Head of Campus will check that poor behaviour has been followed up with parents according to the correct procedure.
Good behaviour must be maintained in other multi-use areas such as ICT suite, main hall or dining hall. Each campus will need to discuss their approach to this.
A summary report of the campus behaviour monitoring sheets will be included in the weekly campus report by the Head of Campus.
Remember that in every new session each child must begin on a green card.
Lunchtime consequences
Lunchtime supervisors will use the ‘Top Table’ as the reward for good behaviour. Lunchtime supervisors will decide on a manageable number of pupils to be chosen for the Top Table on a half termly basis (as a minimum). If pupils choose to misbehave then the lunchtime supervisors will calmly and quietly evoke the following sanctions:
●Pupil’s first misdemeanour - a three minute ‘time out’ in a designated area. The pupil must be talked to quietly and firmly about what they need to do to improve their behaviour.
●Pupil’s second misdemeanour - a five minute ‘time out’ in the designated area. The pupil receives further support to change their behaviour.
●Pupil’s third misdemeanour – stay with the lunchtime supervisor for five minutes. It is explained to the pupil that they are choosing to behave poorly and can change it at any time. Their names are recorded on a post-it note or red card pad
If none of the above has the desired effect or if the pupil exhibits extremely violent or aggressive behaviour, the Head of Campus must be informed. Any serious behaviour concern will be logged and discussed so appropriate referrals, risk assessments or plans can be put in place.
Lunchtime supervisors will inform the class teacher or Head of Hampus of any poor behaviour before they leave the campus at the end of their shift. This will be logged on the weekly behaviour monitoring sheet and a decision made as to if the incident needs any further action.
Procedures and Protocols pertaining to Fixed-term and Permanent Exclusions
Exclusion is an extreme sanction and is only administered by the Executive Director or in his absence the Principal Director for the relevant phase.
Exclusion, whether fixed term or permanent may be used for any of the following, all of which constitute examples of unacceptable conduct and constitute a serious breach in the Academy Culture and Behaviour for Learning Policy;
●Actual or physical violence by a pupil towards another pupil, a member of staff or other adults within the Academy community
●Seriously disruptive behaviour that prevents the proper delivery of learning in class or prevents the effective learning of others
●Any action that would endanger self or others
●Illegal activities on the Academy site or whilst on any activity arranged by the Academy (e.g. theft, vandalism, possession, use of supply of drugs)
●Racial, gender, sexual orientation of any other form of abuse or harassment by whatever means, including cyber and social media.
●Harassment, intimidation or abuse of any member of the academy community.
●Failure to respond appropriately to the Academy’s range of sanctions and interventions.
The above may result in fixed term exclusions or in a serious breach of the Academy’s code of conduct in a permanent exclusion.
This is not an exhaustive list and there may be other situations where the Headteacher makes the judgment that exclusion is an appropriate sanction.
Exclusion procedure:
Most exclusions are of a fixed term nature and are of short duration. The DfE regulations allow the Headteacher or equivalent to exclude a pupil for one or more fixed periods not exceeding 45 school days in any one school year.
A fixed term exclusion does not have to be for a continuous period. In exceptional cases, usually where further evidence has come to light, a fixed period exclusion may be extended or converted to a permanent exclusion.
Pupils whose behaviour at lunchtime is disruptive may be excluded from the Academy premises for the duration of the lunchtime period. In such cases the legal requirements in relation to exclusion, such as the head teacher’s duty to notify parents, still apply.
The Governing Body has arrangements in place to review promptly all permanent exclusions from the Academy and all fixed term exclusions that would lead to a pupil being excluded for over 15 days in a school term or missing a public examination.
The Governing Body has established arrangements to review fixed term exclusions which would lead to a pupil being excluded for over five days but not over 15 days in a school term where a parent has expressed a wish to make representations.
Following exclusion parents are contacted immediately where possible. A letter will be sent home (on the same day if possible) giving details of the exclusion and the date the exclusion ends. Parents have a right to make representations to the Governing Body as directed in the letter.
A reintegration meeting will be held following the expiry of the fixed term exclusion and this will involve the Executive Director and or the Principal Director Primary and other staff where appropriate.
During the course of a fixed term exclusion where the pupil is to be at home, parents are advised that the pupil is not allowed on any of the Academy premises, and that daytime supervision is their responsibility, as parents/guardians. Parents will also be informed of the risk of prosecution if their child is found in public place during the school day.
Work will be provided by the class teacher for the first 5 days, and from alternative provision from day 6.
Permanent Exclusion:
A permanently exclusion is the ultimate sanction and a decision which is not taken lightly.
It will be taken in the following circumstances and in accordance with the 2006 Act and Dfe 2017 statutory guidance ‘Exclusion from maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units’;
- In response to a serious breach of the Academy's Behaviour Policy. This will be the result of either a very serious single incident or a number of incidents of unacceptable behaviour.
- If allowing the pupil to remain in the Academy would seriously harm the education or welfare of the pupil, member of staff or other adult in the Academy community.
As with fixed term exclusions, parents will be informed in writing of the decision to exclude and their right of representation and appeal at a disciplinary committee meeting, to be arranged within 15 school days.
Work will be sent home and marked when returned for the first 5 days.
From day 6 the local authority are responsible for providing full time alternative educational provision
Where parents dispute the decision of the Governors not to reinstate a permanently excluded pupil, they can ask for this decision to be reviewed by an independent review panel. An independent review panel does not have the power to direct the Governors to reinstate an excluded pupil.
General factors the Academy considers before making a decision to exclude:
Before deciding whether to exclude a pupil either permanently or for a fixed period the
Executive Director will;
- Ensure appropriate investigations have been carried out,
- Consider all the evidence available to support the allegations taking into account the school policies,
- When possible allow the pupil to give her/his version of events,
- Check whether the incident may have been provoked.
- Check that all available support has been provided through Early Help Assessment or External Hub Referral
If the Executive Director is satisfied that on the balance of probabilities the pupil did what he or she is alleged to have done, exclusion will be the outcome. Having made the decision and notified the parents the Executive Director will then inform the Chair of Governors and the Local Authority Exclusions Officer by submitting the appropriate form to
The principal legislation to which this policy relates is:
• The Education Act 2002, as amended by the Education Act 2011;
• The School Discipline (Pupil Exclusions and Reviews) (England) Regulations 2012;
• The Education and Inspections Act 2006; and
• The Education (Provision of Full-Time Education for Excluded Pupils) (England) Regulations 2007.
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