Behaviour
At Bewick Bridge we aim:
to promote pro-social behaviour that cultivates and supports a positive learning culture in which children can succeed and excel
● to promote the personal, social, moral and emotional development of each child
Expectations
● all children will behave well, in a way that supports their own learning and others
● children will be aware of what is expected of them
● challenges will be dealt with consistently and needs will be supported empathically
● all staff will be good role models and will encourage responsible behaviour from all children at all times
● strategies for promoting pro-social behaviour and for dealing with anti-social behaviour will be consistent throughout the school
Our Agreed Approach
● the school has two clear rules (Be Safe and Be Respectful)
● to support children in meeting these expectations, we will teach and explain what behaviour that facilitates learning looks like at Bewick Bridge through positive
classroom management and communication
● the strategies to promote pro-social and anti-social behaviour will be clearly explained and consistently implemented
● pro-social behaviour will be recognised and celebrated
● appropriate strategies will be put in place to support the transition of anti-social behaviour to pro-social behaviour
School Rules
Be safe
Be respectful
In addition to these rules, we support pupils’ behaviour for learning through promotion of our Bewick Bridge values.
Celebrating Pro-social Behaviour
We believe making good choices brings its own rewards and encourage children to foster this attitude. Adults in the school will notice and praise pro-social behaviour everywhere in the school and children are encouraged to do the same. In addition to smiles and verbal praise, children may also receive house points, star of the week, in recognition of particularly or consistently high standards of behaviour
Dealing with Anti-social Behaviour
If someone is choosing not to follow the school rules at any point during a lesson or around the school, staff follow a clear procedure, based on providing choices and
reminders while supporting the rest of the class’ learning:
1. Universal support:
Ignore ‘low level’ anti-social behaviour while providing verbal prompts of the behaviour that is expected at this moment, praising examples of pro-social behaviour nearby, or follow strategies set out in a pupil’s individual behaviour plan. It is important to consider the needs of each individual pupil when deciding appropriate strategies. This may include Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Social Emotional Mental Health needs (SEMH).
2. Reminders:
a. If the pupil continues to display anti-social behaviour, they should be given a reminder to follow the school rules and an explanation why this is expected of them (for example, remember to... so that you are safe/being respectful).
b. At this point, it may be suitable to try alternative strategies which were not used during step 1. If the pupil continues to find it difficult to make good choices, after alternative strategies have been applied, the child will be reminded for a second time.
3. Talk for Change
a. After the pupil has been reminded twice (see steps 1 and 2), they will Talk for Change with their class teacher. This is a period of 10 minutes. Parents/carers will be notified. This supportive strategy can be at break or lunchtime as appropriate. During Talk for Change, we will follow a therapeutic approach to encourage discussion about the challenge and support the pupil needs. Pupils will select an activity to complete from the therapeutic toolkit e.g. mindful colouring, puzzles, games etc. while engaging in a restorative dialogue. Talk for Change will be recorded on the behaviour Log and on My Concern so behaviour challenges can be analysed.
b. The second Talk for Change will be with the Nurture Lead following the same therapeutic approach and parents/ carers will be notified.
c. The third Talk for Change will be with the Headteacher as step 2b. Parents/carers will be notified as per previous steps. In the event of a continuation of the same anti-social behaviour after the Talk for Change has been reached, a member of the Leadership Team (LT) could be sent for.
Talk For Change discussions are logged on My Concern and the behaviour log, Senior leaders will analyse my concern and the house points awarded for trends and patterns regularly. The Behaviour Log and records are reset half-termly so that pupils have a fresh start each half-term with opportunities to develop and display pro-social behaviour. If a pupil receives three Talk for Changes in a half term, the senior leadership team will discuss if it is appropriate for the pupil to have an individual behaviour plan for a set period of time.
In the case of serious challenges, pupils will Talk for Change immediately.
Serious incidents include:
● theft
● wilful damage to property
● verbally or physically threatening behaviour, including swearing directed
towards an adult or another pupil - in these circumstances, the following procedure should be followed:
○ safe - make sure pupils are safe from harm from selves or others.
○ calm - provide time and space for pupils to become calm before investigating further
○ investigate - take an account from all pupils involved (using the questioning technique what happened; what happened next; what happened after that? etc and repeating accounts back )
○ decide - accounts presented to LT for decision.
For those children who are demonstrating persistently challenging behaviour that is negatively impacting their own or other’s learning a behaviour improvement plan will be developed.
For pupils with specifically identified needs, the teacher should follow the identified approaches suitable for that child as identified in their risk reduction plans or personal support plans, alongside or in place of the approach outlined above. These approaches should be known to any staff working with that child.
In rare cases, it may be necessary for teachers to to use reasonable force to prevent pupils committing an offence, injuring themselves or others, or damaging property, and to maintain good order and discipline in the classroom. This will be recorded and parents will be informed if reasonable force is used.
In the incidence of pupils’ leaving the school premises without permission, staff will follow them at a distance and parents will be called immediately.
Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions
Suspending a child is always the last resort and will be avoided where at all possible. Only the Headteacher (or the acting Headteacher) has the power to suspend a child from school. The Suspension and Permanent Exclusion policy sets out a transparent procedure that school will follow to manage suspensions and permanent exclusions.