The Canterbury Centre
Pupil Behaviour and Expectations Policy
MISSION STATEMENT
To work with children and their families, schools and a range of professionals,
including medical staff, to support pupils to attend, achieve, engage with learning,
enjoy school and become confident and independent adults.
Statement of beliefs and values of the school
At The Canterbury Centre pupils are expected to be respectful of, and show
respect to, all members of the school and the wider community regardless of
race, creed, gender, sexuality, illness or disability. Pupils have the right to be
treated with an equal degree of respect.
The safety and well-being of all our community is the responsibility of every
member.
The following key values and rules are on display in each classroom:
AT THE CANTERBURY CENTRE EVERYONE HAS THE RIGHT TO LEARN
AND ENJOY SCHOOL.
You can make this a happy and safe place to learn by:
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Taking responsibility for your actions and allowing yourself and others to
learn.
Showing respect and kindness to all staff and pupils.
Having all books and equipment ready at the start of the lesson.
Asking for advice and support before you become too anxious or angry.
Adhering to school policy regarding mobile phones and other personal
electronic equipment such as iPods etc.
However this is a school for pupils whose physical health or mental health
prevents them attending mainstream school. Pupils undergoing therapy or those
with mental health needs or emotional difficulties can display behaviours that do
not always correspond to expectations in mainstream schools or the community
at large.
At The Canterbury Centre the physical and emotional health needs of individual
pupils must be taken into account when deciding what is and is not acceptable.
As a result appropriate expectations may vary from one individual to another and
will vary for any individual pupil according to their health at that moment.
Behaviour which threatens staff or pupil safety is always unacceptable and when
necessary pupils will be taught at home, directed towards appropriate medical
help, or excluded, until they are able to return to the school without being a
threat.
GENERAL GUIDELINES.
The behaviour of children in classrooms is initially the responsibility of the class
teacher. An LSA allocated to the class may assist them in this task.
All staff should regularly praise and encourage good behaviour, focusing on
positive aspects. Strategies should include –
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Verbal praise
Written comments in books
Praise postcards
Work displayed
Demonstrating and pointing out good examples of behaviour
Involvement of outside agencies to celebrate achievements with us
Earned privileges or rewards either individually or via the merit system.
Pupils who are having difficulty coping in the classroom or who have behavioural
problems should be dealt with appropriately as they arise using verbal
intervention and discussion with the pupil. This may include the use of a ‘timeout’, which gives pupils the opportunity to calm down before returning to the
classroom or ‘withdrawal’, which involves removing the pupil to complete their
work in an alternative location e.g. a quiet room/area or the head’s office. Pupils
in either of these situations remain the responsibility of the teacher, although this
may be delegated to another member of staff e.g. LSA or Head.
Staff should communicate calmly with the pupils when such incidents arise and
attempt to diffuse the likelihood of any conflict escalating. They should use nonthreatening verbal and body language to show that they are not acting out of
anger or frustration or a desire to punish. They may need to seek colleagues’
support (for example to manage bystanders or other pupils in a classroom) but
should not leave the pupil alone. They should also ensure that the pupil does not
feel trapped. Staff should always consider the appropriateness of being alone
with a pupil in these circumstances and adhere to the school safeguarding policy
at all times.
Significant conflicts with pupils should where possible be dealt with outside the
classroom, to remove the need for pupils to maintain their stance in front of their
peers.
If pupils choose to leave the classroom, support from LSA staff, the learning
mentor, HLTA or the Head should be sought.
CHAIN OF RESPONSIBILITY.
If the behaviour of an individual pupil passes the point the class teacher can
reasonably be expected to deal with, the following options are available. The
appropriate choice will vary from incident to incident.
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Discussion and target setting with class LSA staff.
Discussion and target setting with HLTA (possibly in conjunction with class
LSA)
Discussion and target setting with Learning mentor
Discussion with Form tutor or other member of teaching staff with whom
they have positive relationship.
Involvement of Head.
Actions with people and agencies outside school could include: Phone call to parents to discuss the situation and/or seeking advice.
 Request to parents to come into school and remove pupil.
 Request for parents to visit school for meeting.
 Contact with CAMHS, social services, school medical officer, medical
consultants or other relevant professionals.
In exceptional circumstances the Head may
 Issue a fixed term exclusion
 Consult medical or CAMHS staff to review the appropriateness of
school attendance given their current medical condition.
 Call a meeting with parents and other relevant professionals.
 Request the LA or Head of Service review the appropriateness of the
pupil’s attendance at the centre.
 Follow any other course of action that seems appropriate given the
nature of the pupil, their medical condition and the problem.
For pupils whose behaviour becomes a concern the following may be
appropriate.
 Staff recording of pupil behaviour from lesson to lesson.
 Use of a behaviour support card.
 Setting of targets for pupil to achieve in lessons.
 Use of rewards for achieving targets.
Under some circumstances it may be appropriate to apply sanctions as a result
of a pupil’s poor behaviour e.g. not being allowed to stay for extended school or
working away from the rest of the class in an isolated area or the head’s room.
Any such sanctions would be for a fixed length of time which would be shared
with the pupil and their parents before implementation.
An account of all significant incidents must be recorded on a coloured sheet
which is added to the pupil’s file in the school office. Information should be
shared with other staff on a need to know basis. All recorded and significant
incidents must be brought to the attention of the Head who may choose to
investigate the incident further.
Julie Owen
May 2015
Reviewed October 2015
For review May 2016.