Pastoral Care
Parents want to know that when they say goodbye to their children in the playground in the morning, they will have a happy, safe day full of learning, friends and fun. At Lingfield, we believe pastoral care is as important as academic achievement and every child's welfare is important to us. We consider each pupil to be unique, and we work hard to guide them to achieve their greatest potential in a safe, secure and happy environment.
Pupils are shown the value of good manners, compassion, humility and mutual respect from the moment they arrive. We see visible demonstrations of how kind and supportive they are of each other daily. They are mindful of the opportunities afforded to them, with our beautiful grounds and spacious, bright facilities within which they are privileged to receive their education.
Throughout the school, pupils develop into well-rounded, charming and confident young people who show a caring attitude for others and promote a friendly and welcoming school community.
We are a happy school. This is joyfully apparent in the interactions you see between all members of our community. Teachers have primary responsibility for the children in their class, understanding them as individuals as well as knowing their friendship groups and their families. They watch and cheerlead with pride as their pupils move through Prep to Senior School. The children are also interacting with many other adults as they go about their School Day. They talk excitedly to teaching assistants, support staff, volunteers and the catering team, who all know the children by name and show an interest in their news. These closely formed relationships and our warm and supportive environment allow children to feel safe enough to share any concerns they might have, along with their celebrations and successes.
Here are some of the ways we work hard to keep your child happy and safe with us.
Small Classes
We have small classes of no more than 24 children with a class teacher and teaching assistant in every room, ensuring each pupil receives the individual care they deserve and is given the time and support to reach their true potential.
Partnerships with Parents
- Parent Focus Groups: A selection of parents from each class are invited to meet with the Headmaster and Head of Prep each year to discuss concerns, share ideas and give feedback
- Parent Reps: Each class has a parent rep who meets with the Key Stage Leaders every term to exchange ideas and feedback; reps typically coordinate social events and communication between the class
- Volunteering Opportunities: We always welcome the help of parents to support various events and activities at the School, including sporting fixtures, clubs, talks and educational visits
- Weekly email news bulletin sent to all parents
- Regular surveys to gauge feedback on new initiatives or proposed changes
- Frequent communication about health, illness and accidents
- An invitation to join our thriving Lingfield Parents’ Association
School Houses
We have a thriving House system at Prep. The system helps children to experience a sense of belonging, healthy competition and teamwork. It encourages pupils to embrace challenges in all aspects of school life. We run House events each term such as talent shows, quizzes and sports days. Within the House system achievement is recognised by awarding stars.
The Houses are named in honour of the saints George, David, Andrew and Patrick. The children all try their hardest in House activities and are motivated to do well for themselves and each other. The year culminates in a prize-giving ceremony.
Listening to and Respecting our Pupils
We believe every child’s voice should be heard both by their peers and by the adults in the School community. We offer several formal opportunities to ensure this happens throughout the school year.
- Class roles and responsibilities
- Year 6 leadership roles and Head Team
- Year 6 Captains for Drama, Sports, Music and Art who work closely with our specialist teaching staff
- Pupil focus groups to discuss ideas and school matters with Mrs Shackel
- Eco-Council
- Marketing ambassadors
- Year 6 Digital Leaders
Rosco - Wellbeing Dog
Rosco is a 6-year-old Pomeranian who has been trained through the Dog Mentor Programme. Rosco is based with Mrs Hubbard, but goes out and about the Prep school at break and lunch times. Rosco has a programme of activities, such as lunchtime dog walks, ‘Reading with Rosco’ for anxious or struggling readers, and various wellness activities with children.
The Dog Mentor Programme builds on the benefits of the human-animal bond by offering young people positive experiences with dogs that can help them educationally, developmentally, emotionally and socially.
The social therapy dogs (also) play a role in supporting pupil wellbeing.
ISI 2024
PSHECE
We recognise that pupils' moral, social and cultural development plays a significant role in their ability to learn and achieve. As part of a whole-school approach, we focus on the qualities and attributes children need to thrive as individuals, family members and global citizens. We provide children with ongoing opportunities to explore and develop their values and beliefs and to maintain their high standards of personal behaviour. We place great emphasis on cultivating positive and caring attitudes towards other people and the importance of understanding and accepting social and cultural traditions that are different to their own.
Anti-bullying Measures & E-Safety
The School has a robust anti-bullying policy. Pupils are regularly reminded of its importance in assemblies, talks in class and displays in and around the School.
E-Safety plays a fundamental role in our safeguarding and child protection measures. We recognise that we must ensure our processes and systems keep children safe, while also teaching pupils about online safety. We discuss e-safety at the beginning of each academic year with both children and parents, and it is reinforced explicitly in Computing lessons and assemblies.
Please see our full Safeguarding Policy on our Policies Page.
Buddy Classes
Each class is paired with another in a different year group. Every term they have playtime together as well as working collaboratively on an activity, such as reading or making Mother’s Day cards. This builds strong, supportive and nurturing relationships between pupils of different ages and backgrounds.
Star of the Week Awards
In weekly assemblies held by the Head of Prep, we celebrate success and achievement by awarding a Star of the Week certificate to an exemplary pupil. We find this is integral to developing positive behaviours and to teaching children to be proud of themselves and each other.
Learning Support
Learning Support helps our pupils to maximise their potential and to achieve their learning goals. The ethos of the School promotes individualised approaches to learning and positive emotional wellbeing. We recognise that children learn at different rates and have individual needs and learning preferences. Our aim is to empower all pupils to fulfil their personal, academic and creative goals.
At Prep School we offer the following programme of support:
- English and Maths 'Mastery' groups for Years 1 to 6
- The services of a Special Educational Needs Coordinator