St Joachim`s Primary School Handbook
Transcription
St Joachim`s Primary School Handbook
St Joachim’s Primary 2015/2016 1 2014-2015 Welcome Dear Parents and Carers, We are delighted to welcome you and your child to our school. We hope you will find St Joachim’s a warm and caring place where everyone can reach their full potential. As a Roman Catholic School, we place a high value on nurturing pupils’ spiritual and emotional development as well as aiming for high levels of academic achievement and attainment in all aspects of school life. The teaching and support staff in St Joachim’s work as a team to support you and your child. We do hope both you and your child will quickly settle into the school routine and assure you of our best efforts in the years ahead! Many activities are organised throughout the school year, giving parents the opportunity to meet and work with the staff in the school. We look forward to welcoming you as partners in your child’s education as we work towards a common goal. Please advise the school of any information we may need to support your child in their learning. I would encourage you to become actively involved in their learning through the various opportunities available for parents to participate in the life of the school. I look forward to working with you and your child in the future. Yours sincerely Nuala Holden Acting Head Teacher 2 Our Vision and Values It is our belief, that through our shared values of love, faith, hope, truth and justice, we strive to create and maintain an atmosphere where we can all learn and work together for the benefit of all learners in our school. As In “A Curriculum for Excellence”, we aim for our children to be: Confident Individuals • • • • To develop the Catholic faith of our children and help children see the relevance of this to our daily lives in school and society. To develop personalization and choice for every learner. To take account of the learning, personal and social development needs of every child. To have the confidence to take pride in successes and achievements and be able to celebrate these and share this joy with others. Successful Learners • • • • To provide support or challenge where appropriate. To encourage independence and an active approach to learning. To nurture and foster creativity amongst our learners. To focus on and develop literacy and mathematics skills and to help each pupil achieve and become successful learners. Responsible Citizens • • • To develop and maintain a real sense of justice and equality amongst our school community and discourage discrimination of any kind. To foster rights, responsibilities and knowledge leading to good citizenship amongst our learners in their school and local community. To develop an awareness of issues that they can affect and be affected by as global citizens. Effective Contributors • • • • To develop co-operative and collaborative skills necessary for life. To encourage use of these skills in the decision making process in the school. To encourage and promote healthy lifestyles in our school community. To promote a positive approach to behaviour management; encouraging learners to be active in maintaining and resolving issues. 3 Getting in Touch If you need to get in touch with the school there are several ways you can do this. Post: St Joachim’s Primary Montrose Avenue Carmyle G32 8BZ Telephone: 0141 641 6840 E-mail [email protected] School Hours Morning starting time: Interval: Lunch break: Afternoon Starting time Dismissal: 9.00am 10.30 to 10.45 12.15 to 1.00pm 1.00pm 3.00pm We have a breakfast club in our cafeteria which offers a healthy start to the day for all pupils between the times of 8.15am to 8.45am P1 children are dismissed at lunchtime until the first Monday in September after which they will remain in school until 15.00. School Holidays 2016-2017 Details of holiday dates are available on the Glasgow City Council website: https://www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=11881 4 All about St Joachim’s St Joachim’s Primary is a Roman Catholic school that caters for girls and boys. Current Classification Stage P1/2 P2/3 P3/4 P5/6 P7 23 20 23 19 16 Roll Parents and guardians should note that the working capacity of the school might vary dependent upon the number of pupils at each stage and in the way in which the classes are organised. We currently have 101 pupils. The school has a capacity for 230 pupils. The following guidelines set by Scottish Government apply. P1 maximum 25 P2&3 maximum 30 P4-7 maximum 33 Composite class maximum 25 Composite classes have pupils from more than one stage Education Inspection The school was last inspected in August 2011 with a very successful report being published in 2012 Full details of the inspection can be found at: http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/inspectionandreview/reports/ school/primsec/StJoachimsPrimarySchoolGlasgowCity.asp 5 Meet Our Staff Acting Head Teacher Mrs Nuala Holden Acting Principal Teacher Miss Stephanie Bulloch Staff Primary 1/2 Primary 2/3 Primary 3/4 Primary 5/6 Primary 7 Miss Stephanie Bulloch/ Mrs Alice Kheirabi Mrs Bridget McCann Miss Hayleigh Mulgrew Mrs Anne Gault Mrs Clare Lombardi/ Mrs Janette Croly Pupil Support Assistants Mrs Mary Brown Mrs Mary Murphy Mrs Caroline Dockrell Office Staff Janitor Catering Staff Mrs Margaret Cochrane Mr Hugh Glancy Mrs Elizabeth Christie Mrs Anne Rooney Miss Lynne Ward Mrs Anne Mc Ghee Cleaning Support Enrolment Registration of Infant Beginners Glasgow City Council Information is found on www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/residents/goingtoschool Information is issued in the news media in January. Generally children who reach the age of 4 years before the end of February will begin in August of that year. Parents/carers must register their child in their local school but have the choice to request their child be enrolled in another school out with their area. They will be given Placing Request forms at registration which they must send to the respective Education Authority. Parents/carers living outwith the St. Joachim’s catchment area and wishing to enrol their child here must register in a school in their own residential area and then apply for a placing request to this school. The 6 registering school will issue them with the appropriate application form. The Education Authority will notify parents/carers of the outcome of placing requests in due course once the registrations are complete. Parents/carers are welcome to visit the school prior to making a decision to enrol. This can be arranged through the school office. In our school, new entrant registration and enrolment is in January. We ask that Birth Certificate and 2 proofs of parent’s address i.e. a utility bill with your name and address on it. Other Enrolments:- Parents wishing to enrol their child/children in the school are advised to telephone the Head Teacher, either by calling personally at the school or by telephoning 0141 641 6841 to make suitable arrangements to discuss relevant details. Induction Programme for Infant Beginners It is important that our children feel happy and secure in our school. We want them to know their teachers and their new friends before starting Primary 1. We want to form a partnership with the parents from the time of enrolment. We will organise a series of half day visits for children and parents in May/June, before the children start Primary 1 in August. Fun activities are set for the children, usually led by the class teacher and other teachers in the school. All important information is transferred from Nursery/other establishments as part of out transition programme. Attendance at School If children are not at school – we cannot teach them! Duty of Parents Section 30 of the 1980 Education Act lays a duty on every parent of a “school age” child to ensure that their child attends school regularly. Parents are urged to send their children to school unless illness or another serious reason makes this impossible. Attendance must be recorded twice a day, morning and afternoon. Parents and carers should inform the school by letter or by telephone, if their child is likely to be absent for some time, and to give a note on his or her return to school, confirming the reason for absence. If a child is absent from school and we have not received a call to explain the absence, we will call the parent/carer to ensure your child is with you. 7 Early Absences/Late coming Intervention If there are concerns regarding attendance/late coming, a computer print out of the child’s record of attendance will be sent to the Parent with a covering letter. The school attendance officer investigates unexplained absence, and the authority has the power to write to, interview or prosecute parents, or to refer pupils to the reporter of the children’s hearing if necessary Taking your child out of school Parents/Carers do not have an automatic right to take their child out of school without permission during term-time. The Head of Establishment can only authorise time off during term-time in exceptional circumstances. Exceptional circumstances includes: • Short-term parental/carer placement abroad; • Family returning to its country of origin for family reasons; • The period immediately after an illness or accident; • A period of serious or critical illness of a close relative; • A domestic crisis which causes serious disruption to the family home, causing temporary relocation. Exceptional circumstances do not include: • Availability of cheap holidays or desired accommodation; • Holidays which overlap the beginning or end of term time; Clearly with no explanation from the parent or carer the absence is unauthorised. MEDICAL and Health Care Information regarding particular medical conditions or requirements must be given to school on enrolment on the forms provided by Community Child Health Services - Yorkhill N.H.S. Trust. The pupils receive regular talks on Dental Health Care from a member of the Dental Health Service. If there are any irregularities on these checks and pupils require dental treatment, the parents are informed of this and an appointment can be made with, the Community Dental Health Officer or by a private practitioner (your own dentist) the choice being left to the parents. There is no nurse in school however we do have a member of staff who is 8 on hand for minor ailments. In the event of a child becoming ill or being involved in an accident, the parent or emergency contact is informed immediately and a decision will be taken on the necessary course of action. It is very important, where possible, to let the school have the name, address and telephone number of an emergency contact for each child. Pupils with medical or dental appointments during the school day should inform the Class teacher of this and be collected by their parent's from school in order to attend. NO PUPIL IS ALLOWED TO LEAVE THE SCHOOL UNACCOMPANIED DURING THE SCHOOL DAY. We would hope that children enter school being fully toilet trained. However, on occasions children soil/wet themselves. In the event of soiling we will try to contact you at home so that you can come and look after your own child. If children wet themselves, we do have some underwear and other clothing in school so that children can get changed. We will send home the wet clothing to you and hope that the borrowed items will be washed and returned to school as soon as possible. If there is no telephone number for you to be contacted, your child will be brought to you, to be attended to at home. EMERGENCIES We make every effort to maintain a full educational service, but on some occasions circumstances arise which lead to disruption. Schools may be affected by, for example, severe weather, temporary interruption of transport, power failures or difficulties of fuel supply. In such cases we shall do all we can to let you know about the details of closure or reopening. We shall keep you informed by using letters, notices in local shops and community centres, announcements in local places of worship and announcements in the press and on local radio. 9 CLOTHING AND UNIFORM Given that there is substantial parental/carer and public approval of a dress code, schools in this authority are encouraged to develop a school dress code. In encouraging a dress code policy account must be taken in any proposals to prevent any direct or indirect discrimination on the grounds of race or gender. Any proposals will be the subject of widespread consultation with parents/carers and children. Against this background it should be noted that it is the policy of the Education Children and Families Policy Development Committee to encourage schools to develop an appropriate dress code policy. There are forms of dress which are unacceptable in school, such as items of clothing which: • Could potentially, encourage faction (such as football colours); • could cause offence (such as anti-religious symbolism or political slogans); • Could cause health and safety difficulties, such as loose fitting clothing, dangling earrings; • Are made from flammable material for example shell suits in practical classes; • Could cause damage to flooring; • Carries advertising, particularly for alcohol or tobacco; and • Could be used to inflict damage on other children or be used by others to do so. Clothing and Uniform Grants Under no circumstances will children be deprived of any educational benefit as a result of not wearing clothing conforming to the school’s dress code policy. Parents/Carers receiving Income Support, Job Seekers Allowance (Income Based), Working Tax Credit (with a total annual income of less than £15,050*), Housing Benefit, or Council Tax Benefit will normally be entitled to monetary grants for footwear and clothing for their child. Approval of any requests for such grants made by parents/carers in different circumstances is at the discretion of the Executive Director of Education. Information and application forms may be obtained from schools and from Grants Section at Education Services headquarters or from www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=8629 Glasgow City Council is concerned at the level of claims being received 10 regarding the loss of children and young people’s clothing and/or personal belongings. Parents/Carers are asked to assist in this area by ensuring that valuable items and unnecessarily expensive items of clothing are not brought to school. Parents/Carers should note that the authority does not carry insurance to cover the loss of such items and any claims submitted are likely to be met only where the authority can be shown to have been negligent. Our Uniform White Shirt or green shirt with school tie Black/Grey Trousers or Black/grey/green pinafore or skirt School Sweatshirt or cardigan with school badge. P.E. uniform – Bottle green Shorts / Green Polo Shirt/Yellow T-shirt Optional Items Green Polo shirt with school badge for Summer months. Green check Summer Dress Outdoor Fleece Waterproof jacket. Please label all items of clothing as and all other school items such as lunch boxes and pencil cases. SCHOOL MEALS/FUEL ZONE In St Joachim’s Primary we operate a ‘fuel zone’. If your child requires a special diet, the school kitchen should be informed and arrangements can then be made to meet these dietary requirements. Children who bring packed lunches to school have this in the dining room with everyone else. There is excellent supervision in the dining room with the management team, teachers and support assistants in attendance. Lunch Fuel Zone focuses on serving healthy food in a bright and informal 11 environment where children can enjoy lunch. The menu in the Fuel Zone rotates on a fortnightly basis giving children more variety at lunchtime. Three meal choices are available daily: main meal, vegetarian or snack meal. Children can select from soup and bread, fruit and vegetables, yoghurt or jelly and milk to accompany their meal. A halal menu is also available if required please speak to the catering manager for further information. Lunch costs £1.70 Should your child forget their dinner money the Dining Staff will provide a meal and send a reminder note home. A SAMPLE MENU CONTAINS: Vegetable broth and bread Roast Beef/Yorkshire Pudding Baby Jacket Potatoes Baby Carrots Fruit Yoghurt A selection of fruit is always available. Children and young people of parents/carers receiving Income Support, income-based Job Seekers Allowance, Working Tax Credit (where income is less than £6,420), Child Tax Credit only (where income is less than £15,860*) and income-related Employment and Support Allowance are entitled to a free midday meal. Information and application forms for free school meals may be obtained from schools and from Grants Section at Education Services headquarters or from www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=8629 Breakfast Club A Breakfast Club operates from 8.00am until 8.45am every day. All children are entitled to free milk. Primary Fuel Zone All services available in the Fuel Zone are developed in line with The Schools (Health Promotion and Nutrition) (Scotland) Act 2007 which aims to help children eat healthily during the school day and beyond. Cordia supports Education Services to meet the requirements of the Act by providing healthy food and drink in schools to encourage Glasgow’s children to make the right choice in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle. 12 Play and Lunch Snax To support schools, parents and guardians in the promotion of healthy snacks Fuel Zone provides a limited range of healthier snack items which meet the nutritional requirements. Play and lunch snax are available after lunch. Lunch Snax product range includes: fruit juice, yoghurt, fruit frozen dessert, fresh fruit and home baking. Grab and Go Service Fuel Zone has introduced a new service called “Grab and Go” which has been developed in line with the nutritional guidelines. This service offers a value for money alternative for children who bring a packed lunch to school because they don’t like queuing or they prefer this type of lunch. The children can chose from a choice of sandwich, vegetables, fruit, yoghurt or jelly and milk for the same cost as a school meal. Special Diets If your child has a special medical diet requirement please seek a referral from your dietician. Please then contact your catering manager who will deal with your request. Refresh Lack of water can cause dehydration, better hydration means better performance in school and water is an excellent alternative to sugary drinks, which can cause tooth decay. The Refresh initiative allows access to fresh, chilled drinking water in schools to encourage children to drink more water. All Glasgow schools have been supplied with mains fed coolers that filter and chill the water ready for drinking. This allows access during the day to refill water bottles which can be taken into the classroom. The main aim of Refresh is to encourage children to drink water at home and school. For healthy eating tips recipes and the Fuel Zone menu www.coolfuelkids.co.uk If you require further information about the catering service please contact your catering manager : 13 TRANSPORT The Education Authority has a policy of providing free transport to all primary children who live more than 1.2 miles from their local school by the recognised shortest walking route. This policy is more generous than the law requires. This means that the provision of transport could be reviewed at any time. Parents/Carers who consider they are eligible should obtain an application form from the school or Education Services. These forms should be completed and returned before the end of February for those children beginning school in August to enable the appropriate arrangements to be made. Further information can be found at; www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=8629 Applications may be submitted at any time throughout the year but may be subject to delay whilst arrangements are made. The appropriate officer has discretion in special circumstances to grant permission for children to travel in transport provided by the authority, where spare places are available and no additional costs are incurred. The authority has an Exceptional Circumstances policy relating to e.g. homelessness, parental/carer disability, etc. Details are available from the school. There is also a procedure to request transport on medical grounds. The school can advise on procedures. PICK UP POINTS Where free transport is provided it may be necessary for children to walk a certain distance to the vehicle pick-up point. Walking distance in total including the distance from home to the pick-up point and from the drop-off point to the school in any one direction will not exceed the authority’s limits (see above paragraph). It is the parent’s/carer’s responsibility to ensure that their child arrives at the pick-up point in time. It is also the parent’s/carer’s responsibility to ensure the child behaves in a safe and acceptable manner while boarding, travelling in and alighting from the vehicle. Misbehaviour could result in your child losing the right to free transport. PLACING REQUESTS The education authority does not provide transport for those children in receipt of a placing request other than in individual exceptional circumstances and where appropriate legislation applies. 14 Secondary transfer to Trinity High Due to our unique geographical location, most pupils transfer to Trinity High School in Rutherglen. Transport provision is made available for pupils. We work closely with teachers and colleagues in the Trinity learning community to ensure a smooth transition process for our pupils. St Andrew’s Learning Community St Joachim’s Primary is part of the St Andrew’s Learning Community. Schools/establishments in the community work together to share their expertise to support families and children. The focus of our integrated approach is the child and his/her family, addressing barriers to learning and the needs of the child through an integrated provision of services. Communication with Parents At St Joachim’s Primary we use a variety of ways to keep in touch. Open Door Policy – the senior leadership team are available for all parents and carers at any time providing they are not teaching or in another meeting. Please either pop in to the school office or phone for an appointment. Class Diaries – will let parents know what homework has been set and is also used to communicate between the class teacher and parents. Newsletters – will be sent out on a regular basis to keep parents informed about the work of the school. Letters – further information which requires a response may be sent out in letter form. School website/Twitter – will contain a great deal of information about the school. It is a good idea to check this regularly. Text messaging – You may also receive text reminders about events/school closures etc. Twitter – You can follow us on @StJoachims1 Meetings - Parents and carers are welcome in the school to discuss any aspect of their child’s development and progress. To avoid disappointment, it is advisable to make an appointment. There are various 15 opportunities throughout the year when parents can discuss their child’s progress with the class teacher and view the child’s work. Parents and carers are welcome at other events throughout the school year e.g. workshops, information evenings, class performances, religious and other assemblies. The school newsletter and website will keep you informed. Emergency Contact Information At the start of each school session, parents will be issued with the annual data check form. Please ensure that this is completed and returned to the school. It is also important that you let us know if there are changes to your telephone number(s) or to those of your emergency contacts throughout the year. Privacy Statement and Data Protection – Use of Information about Children and Parents/Carers As a local authority our schools and early years establishments process information about children and young people in order to provide education and care. In doing so we must comply with the Data Protection Act (1998). This means, amongst other things, that the data held about children and young people must only be used for specific purposes. However, you should be aware that we may use this information for other legitimate purposes and may share this information where necessary with other bodies responsible for administering services to children and young people, or where otherwise required by law. We may also use any information for research purposes. However, all personal data is treated as confidential and used only in accordance with the Data Protection Act and the Information Use and Privacy Policy approved by the City Council. For further information please see our full privacy statement at http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=2908. THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION(SCOTLAND) ACT 2002 The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 enables any person to obtain information from Scottish public authorities. The Act applies to all Scottish public authorities including: the Scottish Government and its agencies; Scottish Parliament; local authorities; NHS Scotland; universities and further education colleges; and the police. 16 Public authorities have to allow access to the following information: • The provision, cost and standard of its service; • Factual information or decision-making; • The reasons for decisions made by it. The legal right of access includes all types of “recorded” information of any data held by the Scottish public authorities. From 1st January 2005, any person who makes a request for information must be provided with it, subject to certain conditions. Further information is provided on the Glasgow city council web-site: www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/yourcouncil/freedomofinformation Internet facilities are provided at all Glasgow City council Public Libraries and Real Learning Centres. Dealing with Racial Harassment The Race Relation Act of 1976 makes it unlawful to discriminate against someone because of her/his colour, race, nationality, ethnic or national background. The Act makes it the duty of Glasgow City Council to eliminate unlawful racial discrimination. In 1999 the guidelines, “Dealing with Racial Harassment” were issued to assist all teaching staff in dealing with such incidents. The adoption of anti-racist approach should be seen as one part of the continuing attempt to improve the quality of education. Glasgow City Council recognises that support from the home is essential if these aims are to be achieved. Every child in Glasgow has the right to be happy and secure at school. COMMENTS, COMPLAINTS & CONCERNS If you have a comment, or complaint, please approach the Acting Head of Establishment ;Mrs N Holden, in the first instance. The school will look into your concerns, log details of any specific incident or incidents and report back to you regarding any action taken as a result of the concern. Pupils are encouraged to voice any concerns or anxieties they may have through Circle Time in the classroom. At all times pupil concerns will be dealt with sensitively whilst adhering to the regulations of the Child Protection Scotland Act. If the head of Establishment does not resolve the issue to your satisfaction, you should contact our Customer Liaison Unit who will: 17 • Take a totally neutral stance in fully investigating your complaint; • Acknowledge receipt of your complaint within five working days; • Give a full written response within a further 10 working days, unless another timescale has been agreed. The customer Liaison Unit can be contacted by phone or e-mail: Phone 0141 287 5384 E-mail [email protected] Customer Liaison Unit Education Services Glasgow City Council Wheatley House 25 Cochrane Street Merchant City GLASGOW G1 1HL Please note that in line with recommendations issued by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, all establishments, during the course of a complaints investigation, must: • Ensure that all statements made as part of the investigation are dated and include, wherever possible, dates of events recounted within the statements; • Ensure that written records which form part of the investigation are Kept for an appropriate period of time; and • Give consideration to the inclusion of this within the procedures outlined in the relevant section of the schools’ Pastoral Care Policy. Child Protection All adults employed in St Joachim’s Primary School will adhere to Glasgow City Council Education Services Policy as drawn up in Management Circular 57 : Management Appendix 3 CIRCULAR No 57 18 Glasgow City Council Education Services CHILD SAFETY CHILD PROTECTION POLICY All educational establishments and services must take positive steps to help children protect themselves by ensuring that programmes of health and personal safety are central to the curriculum and should have in place a curriculum that ensures that children have a clear understanding of the difference between appropriate and inappropriate behaviour on the part of another person, no matter who. As with other areas of the curriculum, you will be kept informed of the health and personal safety programme for your child’s establishment. Schools, establishments and services must create and maintain a positive ethos and climate which actively promotes child welfare and a safe environment by: • ensuring that children are respected and listened to • ensuring that programmes of health and personal safety are central to the curriculum • ensuring that staff are aware of child protection issues and procedures •establishing and maintaining close working relationships and arrangements with all other agencies to make sure that professionals collaborate effectively in protecting children Should you have concerns regarding the welfare or safety of any child, report these concerns to the head of establishment The head, or the person deputising for the head, after judging that there may be grounds for concern regarding the welfare or safety of any pupil must then immediately advise the duty senior social worker at the local social work services area office of the circumstances. 19 Our Curriculum A Curriculum for Excellence Curriculum for Excellence is across Scotland for all 3-18 year olds wherever they learn. It aims to raise standards, prepare our children for a future they do not yet know and equip them for jobs of tomorrow in a fast changing world. Curriculum for Excellence enables professionals to teach subjects creatively, to work together across the school and with other schools, to share practice and explore learning together. Glow, Scotland’s unique, world-leading, online network supports learners and teachers in this and plans are already in place for parents/carers across the country to have access to Glow. Teachers and practitioners will share information to plan a child’s “learning journey” from 3-18, helping their progress from nursery to primary, primary to secondary and beyond, ensuring the change is smooth. They’ll ensure children continue to work at a pace they can cope with and with challenge they can thrive on. Curriculum for Excellence balances the importance of knowledge and skills. Every child is entitled to a broad and deep general education, whatever their level and ability. It develops skills for learning; life and work to help young people go on to further study, secure work and navigate life. It brings real life into the classroom, making learning relevant and helps young people apply lessons to their life beyond the classroom. It links knowledge in one subject area to another helping children understand the world and make connections. It develops skills so that children can think for themselves, make sound judgements, challenge, and enquire and find solutions. There’s personal support to help young people fulfil their potential and make the most of their opportunities with additional support wherever that’s needed. There will be an emphasis by all staff on looking after our children’s health and wellbeing – to ensure that the school is a place where children feel safe and secure. Ultimately, Curriculum for Excellence aims to improve our children’s life chances, to nurture successful learners, confident individuals, effective contributors and responsible citizens, building on Scotland’s reputation for a great education. 20 Information about what your child is learning will be provided throughout the year. For further information about Curriculum for Excellence go to: www.curriculumforexcellence.gov.uk or [email protected] Principles of Curriculum Design In St Joachim’s, the following principles underpin all our actions both at an organisational level and in any setting where children are learning. • Challenge and Enjoyment- We aim to provide our pupils with • Breadth • Depth • Personalisation and Choice – Pupils are consulted on learning • Coherence – By helping our pupils to make links across the • Relevance learning activities that are active and engaging. – In St. Joachim’s we aim to provide our children with a broad range of activities and learning experiences to ensure coverage of the curriculum. – Our pupils are given the opportunity to learn in depth gain a deeper understanding of learning skills and outcomes by applying knowledge and skills across different contexts. activities by taking account of their prior learning experiences and activities. curriculum and through inter-disciplinary learning we promote coherence across curricular areas. -The experiences and outcomes of A Curriculum for Excellence are the key tool for curriculum planners in designing learning activities. The experiences and outcomes also include aspects such as enterprise, sustainability and creativity. Approaches to Learning & Teaching In St. Joachim’s we use engaging, enterprising and active learning approaches to in a variety of contexts to promote effective learning for our children. All teaching staff see Active Learning as an appropriate way for children to develop vital skills and knowledge and a positive attitude to learning. The organisation within an Active Learning class will encourage and develop a child’s skills, interests and independence. Resources are used in an imaginative and interesting way to stimulate curiosity, challenge, investigation, creativity and independence. 21 In the early years, teachers take full advantage of the opportunities for learning presented by: • Spontaneous Play • Planned, purposeful play • Investigating and Exploring • Events and real life experiences • Collaborative learning • Focused learning and teaching From Primary 4-‐7, teachers have successfully built on this approach and use a variety of methods to ensure that the children continue to be engaged in their learning. These include: • • • • • • • Interdisciplinary learning Challenging learning opportunities that include problem solving, games and the use of ICT. Learning arising from real life contexts Collaborative learning, where children are explicitly taught and practise collaborative learning strategies Talking and listening activities which encourage ‘active thinking’ and develop the children’s questioning skills Self and peer evaluation and assessment of work. Bloom’s Taxonomy of Higher Order thinking skills Curriculum Areas Literacy Through participative, active classes pupils develop the knowledge, understanding skills and attitudes they need to learn about the world around them. The development of literacy skills plays an important role in all learning. The pupils are encouraged to develop and extend literacy skills. In St Joachim’s Primary we give our pupils varied opportunities to: *Communicate, collaborate and build relationships. *Reflect on and explain literacy and thinking skills, using feedback to help improve and sensitively provide useful feedback for others. *Engage with and create a wide range of texts in different media, taking advantage of the opportunities offered by ICT. *Develop an understanding of what is special, vibrant and valuable about own and other cultures and their languages. Explore the 22 richness and diversity of language, how it can affect the pupil and the wide range of ways in which they can be creative. *Extend and enrich my vocabulary through listening, talking, watching and reading. Reading Reading is a critical tool for lifelong learning and our aims are to encourage and teach our children to read fluently with expression and understanding and to foster in them a love for books. We use Storyworld and Literacy World throughout the school as our core reading resource. However, the children will have the experience of reading a wide variety of texts to ensure a breadth of experience. We also have an extensive library where pupils can borrow books to take home. Phonics/Spelling The early stages of reading focus on learning letter sounds and names. We have adopted the Synthetic’ approach to teaching phonics and use Jolly Phonics to support pupils. Your child will begin by learning to spell common words which are used frequently in their writing and subsequently focus on spelling rules. From P3 the children also use the ‘Nelson spelling’ scheme to ensure a consistent approach and the structured progression of skills in this area. The same method of spelling is therefore taught throughout the school i.e. Say and spell the word and cover the word, Write the word, and check the word. At all stages, staff work with pupils to ensure that they can use their knowledge of spelling in their written work. Writing The formal skills of writing, i.e. grammar, punctuation, spelling etc. are taught within the context of ongoing studies/topics and the children’s on reading and writing. We use a wide range of resources to help teach specific points. Through our early literacy programme and use of the ‘Big writing’ approach we ensure the structured development of writing skills from P1-P7. Children are given the opportunity to write in many genres. A variety of resources are used to support writing and ensure progress throughout 23 the school. In addition many opportunities for writing present themselves in other areas of the curriculum such as Religious Education, Social Studies, Science and topic work. Our star writers are celebrated both in school and at home. Talking & Listening We are keen that our children express themselves confidently and to this end we provide many opportunities during Drama, discussions, storytelling speech making and presentations. Your child will have many opportunities to demonstrate these skills through taking part in class assemblies, school shows and parish events to which you are most welcome to attend. Numeracy Children come to Primary 1 with some informal experience of “mathematics” and their knowledge can range from knowing simple terms like big and small, to being able to identify shapes or do simple counting. Throughout school, the teacher sets out to give children the skills they will need to solve problems as well as those concepts, facts and techniques they will require to use in mathematical enquiries. Our programme of study allows for a broad, well-balanced maths programme which gives children the opportunity to work with aspects of: • • Number, money and measurement e.g. Addition, subtraction, length, weight, shape, position and movement e.g. Angles, coordinates. Information handling e.g. Tally marks, graphs, tables and charts Problem solving in real life, everyday or in imagined contexts At present children throughout the whole school are participating in Interactive Maths while using the Heinemann and Teejay Maths schemes to enhance and support learning and teaching. Our infants take part in multisensory, interactive workshops where they practise their maths skills in exciting challenging contexts. Health and well-being Learning in health and wellbeing ensures that children and young people develop the knowledge and understanding, skills, capabilities and attributes which they need for mental, emotional, social and physical wellbeing now and in the future. Learning through health and wellbeing enables children and young people to: • make informed decisions in order to improve their mental, emotional, social and physical wellbeing 24 • • • • experience challenge and enjoyment experience positive aspects of healthy living and activity for themselves apply their mental, emotional, social and physical skills to pursue a healthy lifestyle make a successful move to the next stage of education or work establish a pattern of health and wellbeing which will be sustained into adult life, and which will help to promote the health and wellbeing of the next generation of Scottish children. Personal & Social Development We follow the Positive Futures Health and well-being programme as well as looking for opportunities to integrate aspects of health and well-being education into all other curricular areas. Physical Education Physical Education is a very important part of the children’s education and is made up of a variety of activities. These include gymnastics, rugby, basketball, athletics creative dance and developing fitness. For many of these activities we are lucky to have specialist coaches who attend the school to coach the children. Parents are informed as to the days when their children will be having P.E. so that they can ensure appropriate “P.E. Kit” is brought to school. For reasons of hygiene and safety, the following is advised ; T-shirt, Shorts, Soft shoes (without laces to avoid tripping up). In the interest of safety no jewellery should be worn in school, particularly on P.E. days. Primary 6 receive swimming lessons each year. The school also participates in Glasgow School’s Indoor and Outdoor Athletics Competitions as well as the Glasgow School’s Cross Country Championships. Science &Technology All children become familiar with computer skills in St Joachim’s. At the infant stages this involves using simple programmes to give the children experience with the keyboard. As the children progress through the school they will be introduced to word processing and computer work will be integrated into all aspects of the curriculum. The school has an excellent selection of software covering all aspects of the curriculum. We have 2 desktops in each classroom and 13 laptops which can be used wirelessly throughout the school. We also have 4 interactive SMART boards throughout the school which enhance the learning experiences of our pupils. 25 In 2013 the school had six short-listed pupils in the STEM Engineers Inventors. Social Subjects - People in the past, people in place and people in society. These elements are taught where possible through a cross curricular approach. Within this approach the pupils are encouraged to investigate, discover and understand their local environment, their country and the world in which they live. Emphasis is also placed on developing in them good social and healthy living habits. A sustainable approach to the environment is a part of our school approach as an ECO school. Help and cooperation is also sought from the community services e.g. police, fire brigade, health visitor, and dental health officer to enhance particular study of certain topics. Individuals or groups of children carry out independent or teacher-assisted research as part of their environmental studies topic work. They investigate and document their work and the result of their findings is then communicated orally, in writing or in form of displays. At various times your child will be seeking information and support from you for their projects. We may also ask for parents to share their expertise in their various fields with the children. Your co-operation is invaluable. Expressive Arts All pupils are encouraged to express their individual talents and skills. For this purpose, we use the media of: Art/Craft, Music and Drama. Art Art is taught as a programme of skills and techniques particularly in display work connected with Topics. It involves drawing, painting, design and study of the work of well- known artists. Music The children follow various music programmes with strong emphasis on the enjoyment of singing practised in the classroom and at assemblies. In our early stages music and singing forms a very important part of the Curriculum through Nursery Rhymes, Action Songs and Number Songs etc. Children are encouraged at all levels in music skills as a way to quickly develop language skills. We also receive support from the Youth Mass 26 Initiative, which supplies a teacher to work on various elements of rhythm etc.with some classes every week. Drama Drama creates stimulating and exciting activities in which the children can develop their imaginations and expression. This is carried out through role-play, mime and investigation. We take advantage of local Arts festivals and invite visiting artists/musicians into the school to work with the children. We also run an annual Burn’s competition, which encourages children to learn the verse of Robert Burns and perform this for their peers. They are also encouraged to become involved in the annual Christmas production. Theatre groups also visit the school annually. Spanish In accordance with the Scottish Education Department’s intention to introduce the teaching of a foreign language to all stages at all Scottish Primary schools, Spanish is taught in all classes. Three teachers have been trained in the teaching of Modern Languages. This language was chosen taking into consideration the expertise and qualifications of current staff, the need to ensure continuity when the children progress to Trinity High School where they will continue to study Spanish, and the relevance of Spain in the modern world. Enterprise in Education As part of our determination to prepare our pupils for the World at Work in the future, pupils participate in enterprise activities in every stage of the school. We also participate in our Learning Community initiatives and there is an enterprise group who make items to sell at our Summer Fayre. Last year, the school was awarded a Diamond Award for Enterprise by Glasgow City Council. Outdoor Learning Learning in a variety of contexts. Outdoor learning offers many opportunities for our learners to deepen and contextualise their understanding of the curriculum and for linking curriculum areas in different contexts. At St. Joachim’s we use our extensive school grounds to provide our children with many rich outdoor learning experiences and the children have worked with the Conservation Volunteers to gain a rich Outdoor Learning experience. 27 Educational Topic Linked Visits Where possible we arrange for the children to visit places of interest where they have first- hand experience of some of the aspects of what they are studying. In 2014 pupils experienced a wide variety of trips in order to enhance the rich learning experience. Some of these places included, the Glasgow Science Centre, The Glasgow Art Galleries , Whitelees Wind Farm and The Royal Concert Halls. The Wider Curriculum As well as the formal curriculum we also encourage pupils to participate in a variety of clubs and initiatives to develop their social and leadership skills from an early age. Pupil Involvement/Pupil Council Our pupil council is very important to the life of the school. Children’s views are important and ideas are often informative and helpful. The Head teacher consults with the students about the quality of their learning experiences as well as the important decisions regarding change in the school. In addition the pupils are consulted during the monitoring and evaluating process to gather information which will help form our school improvement plan. The Librarians Our school librarians meet on a monthly basis and have responsibility for organising the reading library and recommending books through the monthly book club. Our librarians are also responsible for organising annual events such as World Book Day. Health Committee Our Health Committee work hard to encourage healthy eating in school and also organise activities outside at playtimes to encourage the children to keep active. Eco Schools Our Eco Schools Group has grown so successfully that the school has been awarded three Green Flags from Eco Schools Scotland. Pupils have ownership of this initiative and promote awareness of Global Sustainability of our planet by organising recycling activities. 28 After School Clubs Each school session, pupils have the opportunity to participate in after school activities such as basketball and dance classes. These are run in conjunction with our partners in Culture and Sport. Assessment & Reporting Assessment is a way of collecting information allowing teachers, pupils and parents to measure pupil progress and inform next steps for learning. Assessment is continuous throughout the session and is central to teacher’s planning; in summarising success and progress and in providing useful feedback. Assessment measures the success of learning, teaching and pupil achievement; it informs the next step in learning. We use assessment in many ways: • To recognise success and achievement • To support learning • To provide feedback to pupils and parents • To encourage high expectations of all pupils • To provide information to measure attainment throughout the school • To provide evidence to inform next steps in learning Parents have several opportunities to discuss their child’s development with staff. We have a ‘Meet the Teacher’ in September and Parents’ Nights November and April of each year. An interim report is sent out at Christmas and a final report is sent out in June. Confidentiality of reports and records is respected. Pupil Profiles Every child leaving primary school in Scotland has their key achievements in school, at home and in the community documented within a P7 profile. The content of the profile is decided by the young person. The profile is a positive record of their achievements and emphasis their strengths. The profile provides a valuable way for learners to share valuable information about their achievements with their parents and teachers in secondary school. 29 God’s Call Religious Education and Observance A CHARTER for CATHOLIC SCHOOLS in Scotland The mission of St Joachim’s is to develop as a community of faith and learning, providing the highest quality of education, and offering formation through the promotion of Gospel values, through celebration and worship, and through service to the common good. All Catholic schools in Scotland, in honouring Jesus Christ as the Way, the Truth and the Life, will feature the following characteristics: • A commitment to the integrated education and formation of the whole person, in close partnership with parents as the first educators of their children. • An inclusive ethos which aims to honour the life, dignity and voice of each person, made in the image of God; • A commitment to the search for wisdom in life and to the pursuit of excellence, through the development of each person’s unique God-given talents; • A commitment to the spiritual formation of the school community, through the shared experience of prayer and liturgy, and in partnership with local parishes; • The provision of religious education programmes which will enable young people to develop their understanding of Gospel values and of how to apply them to life; • A commitment to uphold the moral teaching, faith tradition and sacramental life of the Catholic Church; • A commitment to communicate Catholic social teaching and thereby to promote social justice and opportunity for all; • A commitment to ecumenical action and the unity of Christians; • The promotion of respect for different beliefs and cultures and for inter-faith dialogue; • A commitment to support the continuing professional and spiritual development of staff. All staff appointed to a Catholic School are expected to support and promote the aims, mission, values and ethos of the school, as illustrated in this Charter. Daily Religious Sessions The children participate in daily Religious Education observances e.g. prayers in the morning, lunchtime and the evening. 30 Weekly Assembly The children attend a weekly assembly where emphasis is placed on the Liturgical Calendar. Holidays of Obligation On Holidays of Obligation, when attendance at Mass is obligatory, and other important occasions, the pupils and staff attend Mass in St Joachim’s Parish Church. Preparation for Sacraments During the primary school years, the children are prepared for the Sacraments of Reconciliation (First Confession), Holy Communion and Confirmation. These are regarded as uniquely special occasions in the lives of the children. The local Parish Priest is an active member of our team and supports pupil, staff and parents in preparation and presentation of the child for the Sacraments. Requests for Religious Abstentions In accordance with Council policy, parents who wish to do so have the right to withdraw their child from class during Religious Education lessons. However parents of children who are not Catholic can be assured that Religious Education is approached sensitively and in a climate of great respect for those of other faiths. Parents exercising this right to withdraw their children must do so in the knowledge that it will not always be possible to provide direct teacher supervision at such times, as no additional teachers are provided for this purpose although children will be supervised. Religious Education is much more than a period in the day for our school, and we attempt to teach Christian Standards by example within the School. Parents may request that their children be permitted to be absent from school in order to celebrate recognised religious events. Only written requests detailing the personal arrangements will be considered. Appropriate requests will be granted on not more than three occasions in any one-school session and the pupil’s absence noted using REL code in the register. Fundraising During the seasons of Lent and Advent, pupils fundraise for SCIAF and a variety of other charities. Pupils also raise funds for a Christian Medical Mission in Ghana. 31 Our Parishes In St Joachim’s we are very close to the Parish of St Joachim where pupils can walk to throughout the year to participate in Masses and celebrations with the local community. Pupils are encouraged to participate fully in the mass by being readers, altar servers and taking up offerings during the Offertory. The Parish Priest in St Joachim’s is Father Francisco and we liaise closely with him to ensure the school has close links with the Parish. Pupils from St. Joachim’s are also members of St Paul’s Parish and St Joseph’s Parish and we have strong links with Father Campbell and Monsignor Woods at these parishes Should teachers have any concerns about a pupil’s behaviour or progress, the parents are normally contacted and an interview arranged in order to attempt to remedy the situation. 32 Getting it Right for Every Child (GIRFEC) The GIRFEC approach is about how staff in all children’s services meet their needs by working together where necessary to ensure that children reach their full potential. Further information can be found from www.scotland.gov.uk/gettingitright Additional Support Needs/ Accessibility Strategy The progress of the child is carefully monitored and recorded. If we feel a child has a particular difficulty we will use a wide variety of assessment evidence to help us plan a suitable programme of work. In some cases we refer a child to our Educational Psychologist, Sandra Gardner, or other outside agencies to support pupils and their families. Parents are always fully informed and consulted at all stages of referral. The school has a duty to ensure that all our children have equal access to the curriculum, supported as appropriate to their individual needs. This covers not only the content of lessons and teaching strategies but also minor adaptations to the physical environment of our buildings to address the needs of children with physical or sensory impairments, including the relocation of classes to the ground floor where feasible. We also need to ensure that parents and carers who have a disability have equal access to information about their child. This will involve, for example, relocating the venue for parents/carers meetings to facilitate physical access; provision of an interpreter for people who have a hearing impairment; agreeing a phone contact system to provide direct feedback to parents and carers. We follow Glasgow City Council’s policy for provision of additional support needs: GCC Policy – Glasgow City Council has a duty, as outlined in the Standards in Scotland’s Schools2000 Act, to ensure that your child achieves their potential. Glasgow’s Education Services is committed to the inclusion of all children and young people with additional support needs, where possible, within mainstream schools. This is in accordance with the statutory requirement in the 2000 Act. It is also part of Glasgow’s policy to maintain a range of special educational establishments. This recognises the key role to be played by specialist provisions in addressing severe low incidence disabilities. The authority recognises that there are a wide range of factors, which may act as a barrier to your child’s learning. We 33 are committed to working closely with parents and carers to ensure that you are fully involved in overcoming barriers to learning. Additional support needs may be linked to a learning difficulty or disability but could also apply to a child or young person suffering from bereavement who requires pastoral support, a more able child/young person or those with a particular talent, which needs to be fully developed. The policy requires all establishments to provide an environment where children and young people with additional support needs are actively encouraged to be effective learners and benefit form their school education. Any parent/carer seeking further advice regarding this policy should contact the head teacher in the first instance. If a parent is unhappy with the support their child is getting they must first discuss this with the school in order to seek a resolution at that very local level. Further information relating to additional support needs is available on the Glasgow City Council website – www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=8627 Information on the Glasgow City Councils’ Parental Involvement Strategy can also be found at www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=8642 Physical Access: St. Joachim’s is a single storey building with easy access to all parts of the school and complies with the approved Accessibility Strategy published in 2004. There are ramped entrances, wide door openings and no requirement for a lift. Ramps at several access points to the school have also been installed Personal Learning Planner Each child has a personal learning planner which they use to record their agreed targets in language, maths and personal and social development. These targets are agreed by the child, the teacher and the parent at the beginning of each term and reviewed at the end of the term and new targets set. This is an innovative approach and the personal learning planners contain information about the child’s achievements both inside and outside of school. School Improvement On an annual basis, you will receive a copy of our Standards and Quality report. Copies from previous years are available on the school website. The Standards and Quality report highlights progress in key curricular 34 areas such as literacy, numeracy and health & wellbeing. Our priorities for improvement are detailed in our School Improvement Plan which is discussed with our Parent Council. Any parent or carer seeking a copy of the plan can contact the school office or check out our website. SCHOOL Ethos and Code of Conduct Promoting Positive Discipline In St Joachim’s Primary we have high expectations of our pupils and we expect them to reflect our own values and beliefs through equality of opportunity and respect for all. Our Christian values which are promoted clearly through our curriculum and ethos, encourage and support our children as they learn social rules and behaviour which is imperative to the maintenance of a civil society which enjoys diversity whilst promoting its own rich Scottish culture. Our promoting positive behaviour policy is based on the idea that children should earn rewards i.e. happy faces for good behaviour. These are gathered and counted with the house with the largest total receiving 5 house points. These points accumulate throughout the year, with the winning house being awarded a prize in June. Pupils who from time to time do not obey the rules suffer the following sanctions: Playtime Detention Lunchtime Detention Completion of work at playtime, if not completed because of time wasting etc. Letters are issued to parents on this matter if this continues. In cases of continuing misbehaviour, the child will also be placed on a weekly or daily report, which will be sent home to the parents. Parents and children should note that children are under the jurisdiction of the school while travelling on buses provided by the Education Authority. The school therefore has the right and indeed duty, to take disciplinary action against children who misbehave on school buses, and if necessary to withdraw their bus pass. Faced with a pattern of repeated misconduct or with a single blatant and serious breach of discipline, the Head teacher is empowered, under certain conditions, to exclude a pupil from school. In such cases, which are likely to be rare, contact is made immediately with the pupil’s parents 35 so that the problem can be resolved and the pupil restored to school as soon as possible. Anti-Bullying Strategy The school takes very seriously the impact that “bullying” can have on a child. From day 1 in St Joachim’s the children are encouraged to stop bullying by employing self-assertive techniques and by “telling”. We try our best to make children feel comfortable with this, as bullying continues because a child is too frightened to tell. We also help children identify what is bullying behaviour and employ strategies to deal with this. We also have a group recruited from the children called the “Bully busters” who patrol the yard and then discuss with the H.T. what they saw and heard. This process helps children grow in their understanding of bullying behaviour as well as providing an ear for our Activ8ators The Sport Co-ordinator has also trained and recruited children from primary 6 to be “Activ8ators” these children have learned games suitable for younger children and on a rata basis organise games in the infant yard. Peer Mediators Our older children are trained as peer mediators to help sort out minor disputes in the playground. This encourages our pupils to learn to resolve situations independently and avoid escalation of a problem where it is not necessary. Supervision of Playgrounds An adult presence is provided in playgrounds at break times in terms of the Schools (Safety and supervision of Pupils, Scotland) Regulations 1990. During break times the yard is supervised by the janitor and pupil support assistants. Inclement Weather Supervision During a “wet play” when the weather is too poor for the children to go out to the yard they are supervised in the classroom by the support staff and some primary 7 pupils who are trusted monitors in the school. 36 HOME & SCHOOL LINKS Parent as Partners In St Joachim’s we encourage the active involvement of parents in the educational development of their children. We have an ‘open door’ policy and parents /guardians are always welcome to discuss any aspect of their child’s education. There are many ways this can be achieved: • Helping your child with their homework. • Attending Parent workshops on the Curriculum • Competing targets and reviewing learning logs in your child’s personal learning plan. • Asking them what they are learning at school. • Reading our newsletters and curriculum newsletters. • Accompanying us on trips. • Lending your expertise in curricular areas. • Supporting play activities. • Supporting the Parent Council. • Attending school events, sports days and plays. • Informing us of issues affecting your child’s education. • Attending Parents’ Evenings. • Completing feedback forms when they are issued. These help us to improve provision for your child. In addition to this we actively seek the views and opinions of our parents to inform our school improvement planning. The school improvement plan is displayed on the Parent Council Noticeboard and Parents are given regular updates on progress towards targets set through both Parent Council Meetings and through monthly newsletters. Parents are consulted through evaluations surveys on both the Curriculum and on the ethos and wider life of the school. These comments are collated and form the basis of action points on the School Improvement Plan. Homework As a school, we believe that homework plays an important of education. Homework should be relevant to class work and should reinforce learning. In P1 to P3 pupils are given homework diaries to maintain communication with home and school. Parents are asked to ensure this is completed to a satisfactory standard and sign the diary. 37 P4-7 have a school homework diary to encourage independent management of work and projects. Parents and children are also asked to sign a homework contract at the start of each session, this also contains an outline of the class homework routine. Homework should be: • • • • • • • Well explained and with a clear purpose. Well planned and monitored by the teacher. Manageable in the time given. Challenging but not too difficult. Likely to promote confidence through success. Recognised and rewarded. Supported by parents. Homework will usually be given on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Maximum time for homework: P1-3: 15-20 minutes per night. P4-5: 20-25 minutes per night. P6-7: 25-30 minutes per night. These are maximum times. Parents are asked to check and sign all homework tasks. The Parent Council The Parent Council is composed of parents and guardians, staff and coopted members with the Head of Establishment as professional adviser, having duties, rights and responsibilities in relation to the management of the school. These duties include: • • • • • Consulting with and reporting to parents on matters of interest. Encouraging the development of links between the school and parents. Taking part in recruitment of senior management. Discussing and approving plans head teacher’s plans for purchasing resources and materials. Receiving reports from the Head of Establishment and the Education Authority. 38 • Having power to raise funds and spending these for the benefit of the school in consultation with the Head of Establishment. St Joachim’s has a very successful Parent Council who are very supportive of the school. Through fundraising, they provide funds for parties and outing for children. Last year they provided funding for trips to the Safari Park and the Zoo as well as funding the P7 Leaver’s Party. Letters will issued giving the date and time of Parent Council Meetings. All parents are welcome. Please come along! Useful Contacts Chair of the Parent Council: Treasurer: Suzanne Fallon Sharon McDade Useful Websites www.parentzonescotland.gov.uk www.Itscotland.org.uk/crosscurricular Equal Opportunities and Social Inclusion The Head Teacher of the school is responsible for ensuring that all Council Employees are aware of and respect Glasgow City Council’s Policy of equal opportunities for all, irrespective of socio-economic circumstances, educational and physical abilities, sex, race or religion, to participate fully in all aspects of the school’s activities. Within our Personal & Social Development curriculum pupils are made aware of discrimination and its effects. Staff members encourage pupils to report any bullying or racist incidents to senior management. All staff is expected to deal with difficult situations positively and fairly with calmness and empathy for all involved. The Education Authority requires every school to produce its own Race Equality Policy to comply with the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. A copy of the policy is held in the school office. School Security In order to maintain the safety of all concerned, permission to enter the school building can only be accessed via the main entrance and by reporting to the school office. Cars in school grounds In the interest of safety, parents are asked not to bring cars into the school car park unless in exceptional circumstances. 39 ADDRESSES Executive Director of Education: Maureen Mc Kenna Wheatley House 25 Cochrane Street Glasgow G1 1HL Area Manager: Morag Gunnion Local Councillors: Anne Simpson Local MP Local MSP Margaret Curran John Osborne 40 41