Behaviour / Exclusion Policies

Positive Discipline for Learning is a system that focuses on rewarding good work and behaviour whilst having a strict and consistent approach to discipline.

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Behaviour Policy General Principles

Governors and staff are committed to providing a learning environment which empowers students to have the following values to be:

  • responsible
  • resilient
  • respectful
  • aspirational
  • independent 

Standards of behaviour in the Academy are governed by our collective actions; we depend upon each other. All staff have a professional responsibility to follow the guidelines set out in this policy. This document sets out the framework of the Academy’s approach to encouraging good behaviour known as ‘Positive Discipline for Learning’.  It is expected that agreed alterations and modifications will be made by the PDFL committee.  At all times staff will be made fully aware of such changes.

Promoting Positive Relationships and Good Behaviour

We aim to promote a happy, positive atmosphere where learners benefit from positive relationships with other students and staff.  Students respond more positively and are easier to teach and manage when teachers actively foster positive relationships based on trust and mutual respect.  We do not want the Academy to have a repressive ethos as we know this can damage mutual respect. It is the responsibility of all staff, not just teaching staff, to promote good behaviour.  Staff are role models in this process and we demonstrate the behaviour we expect from students by the way we behave towards both them and our colleagues.  High expectations must be at the heart of everything we do. We influence the actions of students by both our direct communication with them and through our observed actions, i.e. the pride we show in our dress, the way we move around the Academy and our positive verbal and body language (including our facial expressions) are all crucial in fostering the desired responses from students. In order to promote good behaviour we aim to develop the following expectations in our student so that they can:

  • be positive
  • be polite
  • be prepared
  • be punctual
  • have pride

It is the responsibility of the staff to:

  • develop an achievement culture through regular praise/rewards
  • be prepared to listen to students
  • behave in a calm, dignified yet assertive manner
  • focus on the behaviour not the person
  • rehearse strategies for dealing with low level disruption so that we

become skilled in de-escalating conflict

  • constantly analyse and develop our own skills and attitudes when interacting with young people, observing and sharing good practice
  • avoid stereotyped or pre-conceived judgements about students who celebrate cultural diversity within our community.

Positive Learning Experience

Teacher Behaviour – planning and being prepared

It is important to plan our response to poor or unwanted behaviour.  Teachers plan lessons in great detail.  However, staff should also plan and rehearse strategies for dealing with unwanted behaviour.  This is important because our successes in promoting co-operation and in de-escalating conflict have a huge impact upon the amount and the quality of learning taking place in our classroom.

Rewards

Celebrate and reward achievement at all levels

 We all respond positively to praise but it is most effective when it is:

  • spontaneous and credible
  • clearly linked to achievement or accomplishments
  • personalised to the individual and what they might have difficulty with.

It is often easy to criticise students but, in many situations, we can acquire better responses by catching them when they are good and encouraging them with positive language and praise.

We consistently reward those students who follow PDFL and are positive members of the Academy community. (See Appendix B1- Rewards Structure).

By achieving a specified amount of points, all students who conform to Academy rules and meet the values and expectations of the Academy will be rewarded.  Details of the rewards on offer can be found via FROG on www.pupilrewardpoints.co.uk

Sanctions

We must not be surprised when problems occur.  We are working with adolescents who are learning and testing the boundaries of acceptable behaviour.  In dealing with undesirable behaviour we need to promote good behaviour.  This means developing skills and strategies that do not merely rely on sanctions.  Sanctions do not, in themselves, change behaviour but simply apply the limits to behaviour that enable us to reward and reinforce.

Do all you can to:

  • reprimand privately – it encourages co-operation
  • keep calm – it shows high status, reduces tension and models desired behaviour
  • listen – it earns respect
  • use first names
  • focus on positive aspects of students’ work and behaviour
  • praise remorse when students take responsibility for poor behaviour
  • be fair and consistent
  • use the minimum sanction necessary to achieve your desired outcome
  • keep sanctions appropriate
  • use humour – it builds bridges
  • re-integrate the student into the class
  • seek closure after the sanction – it is important to start again and demonstrate a willingness to re-build relationships.

Do all you can to avoid:

  • humiliation
  • public confrontations – they promote retaliation through peer pressure
  • sarcasm
  • shouting often – it weakens your status
  • over-punishing – it reduces options later
  • blanket punishments – the innocent don’t deserve you jumping to conclusions
  • jumping to conclusions – avoid punishing what you can’t prove
  • over-reacting – the problems will grow.

Avoid constantly punishing students as sanctions quickly lose their effectiveness if frequently used.  Only the student can change their behaviour. If you have repeated concerns you may need to enlist support from others who might help you to influence the student,

e.g. Parents/Carers, Assistant Headteacher CSG, Subject Leaders, Form Tutors, Heads of Year, Senior Leadership Team etc.

It is crucial to remain calm, assertive and in control.  Raising your voice may be necessary but never lose control and never scream and shout; we do not want students to model this behaviour.

CLASSROOM Code of Conduct

These should be displayed on the walls of all classrooms and referred to constantly:

  • arrive on time, enter the room quietly, go to your assigned seat
  • take out your planner and equipment for the lesson
  • follow instructions from staff, first time, every time
  • always hand over your planner when asked by a member of staff
  • complete work to the best of your ability
  • respect others, yourself and equipment
  • do not swear or shout at each other
  • no eating, chewing or drinking in class (except water)
  • pack away quietly when asked and wait for permission to leave
  • mobile phones are not to be seen in class or around Academy
  • do not verbally abuse staff
  • racial abuse / homophobic abuse will not be tolerated
  • follow the Academy’s Values & Expectations.

AROUND ACADEMY Code of Conduct

  • follow instructions from staff, first time, every time (See Appendix B6 – First Time, Every Time)
  • hand over your planner when asked by any member of staff
  • wear the correct Academy clothing (all outdoor clothing must be removed when entering the building), this includes coming to and from Academy
  • move around safely, do not run
  • treat others with respect
  • do not swear or shout around Academy
  • only eat in designated food areas at the correct time and place litter in the bin
  • always have your planner with you when out of class during lesson time
  • do not use your mobile phone at any time (it will be confiscated)
  • no illegal substances to be brought onto the Academy site (including cigarettes)
  • respect the surrounding community before and after Academy
  • follow the Academy’s Values & Expectations.

If the Academy rules are broken, this will be recorded in the student planner and on the SIMS behaviour module

Individual Behaviour Plan (IBP/Report)

  • IBPs are triggered by the number of comments in the student planner, (more than 10 per fortnight)
  • it is the Form Tutor’s responsibility to monitor negative comments; before considering an IBP, it must be discussed with the Head of Year and student and a meeting must take place between  the Form Tutor and home before the IBP can begin; on occasions, when a meeting is not possible, it is important that a phone call is made to inform home and recorded on SIMS
  • an Inclusion will be completed by the student to begin an IBP (only the first time this happens in an academic year, units 1-4)
  • each time the IBP is broken the student will serve a 4:30pm detention.

A break of IBP is distinguished by:

  • the student receiving more than 10 comments
  • the student misbehaving and being put in the Inclusion Room (this will normally be triggered from an on call).

Students remain on IBP for a period of 2 weeks with intense intervention from their key worker.

To succeed, the student needs to complete a 2 week period with less than 10 comments.  Students who fail their IBP on 5 occasions and break their Home/Academy Agreement will be placed in the Seclusion Room for a fixed period and will progress to Black Report.

PDFL Reports (Black, Blue & Red)

Heads of Year will ensure report targets are logged in the SIMS system so all staff are aware of the students on report.  It is the student’s responsibility to visit the key worker before 8:25am to receive their report.

The Assistant Headteacher will oversee the Report System. Students will be required to have their report sticker checked every morning in the Inclusion Room. They will fail a report if they have a total of more than 10 points and will serve time in the Inclusion Room (units 1-4). Students who complete ten consecutive days with successful reports will be taken off report.

Detentions

Detentions will be issued by staff and must be recorded and logged on SIMS. The CSG team will ensure all students set a detention carry out the sanction.

10 MINUTE DETENTION- Issued by subject teachers for relevant misdemeanours, to be carried on that day where possible. Failure to attend the 10 minute detention will automatically lead to a 1 hour Academy detention.

THE USE AND MONITORING OF THE STUDENT PLANNER FOR LEARNING:

Parental Monitoring: Parents/Carers have a key role in monitoring their child’s planner. Parents/Carers will:

* encourage their child to keep the planner clean and up to date

* support the completion of homework in an organised and efficient manner

* use the appropriate Parent/Carer section to communicate with us as a Academy.

Form Tutor Monitoring: Student planners will be monitored daily by the Form Tutor/Mentor. When monitoring Student planners, Form Tutors are looking to identify or confirm the following points:

  • that the planner is free from graffiti and is being kept in a tidy manner
  • that homework details are being recorded sufficiently
  • that comments made in the planner by members of staff are responded to in an appropriate way
  • that comments made in the planner by parents are responded to appropriately

Each Form Tutor will check the points achieved by their form group on www.pupilrewardpoints.co.uk

Lost student planners will need to be immediately replaced at a cost of £5.00 or purchased using stamps at the Reward Shop.