At St Vincent’s we believe that positive relationships are at the heart of a healthy, happy and effective learning environment.

High levels of school attendance are also significant to raising standards in education and ensuring all pupils can fulfil their potential.

Behaviour

Everyone in the school has rights and responsibilities. To help protect our rights and to encourage responsibility, we have basic rules for our school. The School Rules form the basis of whole school and classroom rules and are a vital part of setting clear expectations throughout the school. It is important that these rules are discussed and referred to as part of behaviour management strategies.

The ‘St Vincent’s Way’ demonstrates our high expectations, the way we ‘do’ things around here. We model the behaviour we want to see.

As a restorative school positive strategies are used, whenever possible, to promote good behaviour. This enables pupils to construct good learning habits and helps develop a harmonious environment in which learning can thrive. We endeavour to put repairing the harm done over and above the need to assign blame or distribute punishments. This approach encourages those involved to identify ways in which they can repair a relationship and move forward. We hold ‘circles’ to resolve problems, children hold each other to account. By giving pupils these responsibilities, we are assisting them in creating their own strategies for avoiding and resolving conflict. It is also our strong belief that when a pupil makes their own recommendations, they are more likely to follow them rather than if an adult suggests or imposes them.

Children at St Vincent's have a right to:

• Be Safe - feel safe, cared for and supported

• Be Respected - be treated with respect and receive fair and consistent treatment from all adults and children in an environment that is free from prejudice

• Be Ready - have school environment that is pleasant, clean and engaging, have role models that are prepared and ready to be there when needed,

• Learn – have opportunities for learning that meet their individual learning needs and allow them to make progress

Our pupils have responsibilities:

- Towards others
- Towards their work
- Towards the school environment

Consequences

When using consequences staff ensure that they are constructive and allow the child to learn from what has happened. Sanctions can be given by the class teacher or the member of staff dealing with the incident. All staff follow a set procedure and use ‘the script’. A record of what has happened & how it was dealt with is kept. Some pupils may need ‘time out’ in a safe place to calm down and ready themselves to talk about what has happened. This will be followed by a restorative circle if appropriate.