1. The full version of this policy here.
2. The text only version of this policy can be found below -
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Behaviour Policy |
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Version |
1.7 |
Review Date |
08.12.22 |
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Review Cycle |
Annually |
Review Due |
07.12.23 |
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Author / Owner |
Adam Bradford Head of Safeguarding & Vulnerable Learners – Hereafter referred to as the DSL |
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Introduction
In the community of Winchelsea everyone is important. Winchelsea is a place where everyone feels welcome, has a voice, is safe, able to achieve and have fun.
Winchelsea promotes a framework that uses a variety of approaches to address challenging behaviour. This framework emphasises the importance of adults having the skills and confidence to maintain control of any situation through calm, positive actions, communication at all times and offering clear options.
At Winchelsea we promote the use of positive and effective intervention strategies with children.
It is important to ensure that all adults working with children are clear about their role, in order that their own rights, and those of the children in their care are protected.
Winchelsea as an employer, acknowledges its responsibility for the health and safety of staff at work. Staff at all levels need to be confident in their ability to meet their responsibilities in managing challenging behaviour. They also need to be safe.
This policy is based on advice from the Department for Education (DfE) on:
It is also based on the special educational needs and disability (SEND) code of practice.
In addition, this policy is based on:
Maintained schools, pupil referral units and non-maintained special schools:
Section 175 of the Education Act 2002, which outlines a school’s duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of its pupils
Sections 88-94 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006, which require schools to regulate pupils’ behaviour and publish a behaviour policy and written statement of behaviour principles, and give schools the authority to confiscate pupils’ property
DfE guidance explaining that maintained schools must publish their behaviour policy online.
Behaviour Principles Written Statement
This section is not policy or practice, rather it is a statement to set out the broad principles and values with regard to behaviour that is both expected and promoted within the school.
Actual, practical applications of these principles are the responsibility of the Headteacher, who will view each case in light of these principles and any relevant policies. The Governing Body is aware and approves of this statement, believing it accurately reflects the school’s ethos and that effective learning and development relies on good standards of behaviour.
Principles
Policy Objectives
Definitions
Serious misbehaviour is defined as:
Any child that engages in serious misbehaviour is at risk of exclusion. Please refer to the Exclusion Policy for more information. Bullying
Bullying is defined as the repetitive, intentional harming of one person or group by another person or group, where the relationship involves an imbalance of power.
Bullying is, therefore:
Bullying can include:
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TYPE OF BULLYING |
DEFINITION |
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Emotional |
Being unfriendly, excluding, tormenting |
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Physical |
Hitting, kicking, pushing, taking another’s belongings, any use of violence |
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Prejudice-based and discriminatory, including: · Racial o Faith-based · Gendered (sexist) o Homophobic/biphobic · Transphobic o Disability-based |
Taunts, gestures, graffiti or physical abuse focused on a particular characteristic (e.g. gender, race, sexuality) |
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Sexual |
Explicit sexual remarks, display of sexual material, sexual gestures, unwanted physical attention, comments about sexual reputation or performance, or inappropriate touching |
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Direct or indirect verbal |
Name-calling, sarcasm, spreading rumours, teasing |
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Cyber-bullying |
Bullying that takes place online, such as through social networking sites, messaging apps or gaming sites |
Any incidents of bullying, discrimination, aggression, and derogatory language (including name calling) will be dealt with quickly and effectively.
Please refer to the Anti-Bullying Policy for more information.
Appropriate Behaviours
We believe that pupils want to behave well and are happy when their needs are understood and met. How pupils behave gives us important information about how they are feeling. Pupils at Winchelsea have a wide range of needs with a range of communication needs. Supporting pupils to effectively communicate is an important way to promote them to self-regulate and behave in an expected way.
Pupils can learn to improve their behaviour. Pupils at Winchelsea School find learning difficult and learning new behaviour is a task, just like learning to read or write.
Positivity
At Winchelsea we are committed to the positive prevention of challenging behaviour and we aim to work as a school wide team to support the child and their parents. We do this in several ways and within class there is a focus on positive praise and reward. All behaviour practise is positive with sanctions supplementing only where absolutely necessary. There is a consistent response to behaviour at Winchelsea and all staff have access to the same scripts, prompts and strategies for each child. We specifically praise Helpful Choices for Learning and positive behaviours as we see them throughout the day and we encourage every child to work towards positive goals. These may be specific to individual children and individual reward charts are used where children benefit from a more structured approach. Our school ethos is that children should see that appropriate behaviour gains more reward, attention and praise than inappropriate behaviour.
Active Support for Pupils in Self-Management Strategies
Winchelsea’s aim is to enable every child to manage their own behaviour and take a sense of achievement from this. This sense of achievement is fostered by the external validation of their behaviours by school staff, parents and carers. We are a flexible environment and encourage children to access a variety of sensory aids to assist in their access to learning.
We have introduced the ‘The Zones’ and ‘Toolkits’ that help children identify how they are feeling and then a range of strategies in their ‘Toolkit’ that help them feel calm, happy and ready to learn.
Behaviour as a Continuum of Communication
We recognise that behaviour is a communication but due to the complexity of the children at Winchelsea it may not always be clear why or what they are communicating. Behaviour is recorded using IRIS so that we can track and investigate patterns. It is felt that if we understand the behaviour we have a better chance of preventing it and teaching an appropriate strategy or alternative to child.
Helpful Choices for Learning
At Winchelsea we have identified 12 ‘Helpful Choices for Learning’ that can be used in the classroom and wider school community to develop positive social skills, self-regulation and support children to engage in learning opportunities. At Winchelsea we use the script of making Helping Choices for Learning so that the children begin to understand that actions / behaviours will help them and that these are what staff are looking to see.
Refer Appendix B for a copy of the Helpful Choices for Learning.
Winchelsea School Values
Our values encourage every child to be active members of the school and wider community. Our values promote fundamental British Values and the General Principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). This policy has been written with the principles of the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child in mind. Particular reference and consideration has been made to Articles 2, 3, 5, 13, 16, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37 and 42 throughout.
It is the responsibility of all children to try to make Helpful Choices for Learning. These choices include removing themselves from difficult situations, applying strategies to manage their behaviour by utilising the tools and equipment provided to self-manage. Children are expected to complete any tasks reasonably assigned to them in connection with their education.
Parents/Carers
The school works together with Parents/Carers so that children receive consistent messages about how to behave at home and school. We expect Parents/Carers to support their child’s learning, and to co-operate with the school to support the child to make Helpful Choices for Learning.
Contact with Parents/Carers is made in a number of ways: e-mails, phone, letters and face to face discussions. Parents/Carers may be involved in individual reward systems in school and are kept informed of their child’s achievements and successes. Staff and parents / carers work together to support each other and meet to discuss problems as they arise in an environment of openness and honesty. It is important to celebrate the positive as well as discussing matters of concern. We aim to end any meeting on a positive note by noting what we can do to move forward.
All staff
Staff have an important role in developing a calm and safe environment for children and establishing clear boundaries of acceptable behaviour. Staff should uphold the whole-school approach to behaviour by teaching and modelling expected behaviour and positive relationships.
Staff should also challenge pupils to meet the school expectations and maintain the boundaries of acceptable conduct.
All staff should communicate the school expectations, routines, values and standards both explicitly through teaching behaviour and in every interaction with pupils. Staff should consider the impact of their own behaviour on the school culture and how they can uphold the school expectations.
Teachers
The class teacher is responsible for the day to day behaviour management of pupils and ensuring that behaviour recording documentation is completed appropriately. They are responsible for implementing the Pupil Participation Plan (PPP) and co-coordinating reviews of that PPP. They are also responsible for supporting their team in managing behaviour, explaining PPPs to them, ensuring they keep accurate records of behaviour incidents and that the classroom environment remains safe. Teachers will link closely with the DSL (for guidance and support to ensure the recording and management of behaviour is done positively. Teachers are also the primary point of class liaison with Parents/Carers regarding behaviour management. Teachers are encouraged to use and be guided by the new Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Core Content Framework.
Initial teacher training (ITT): core content framework - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The Class Teaching Assistant Team / Mid Day Supervisory Assistants
The class team are responsible for making themselves aware of PPPs relating to the children they are working with and supporting children to manage their behaviour and intervening if behaviour is inappropriate. They are also responsible for the recording of behaviour as well as any other relevant documentation, and following through with restorative work.
Senior Leadership Team
It is the role of Senior Leaders to support class teachers and support staff if there is a serious incident. This may involve taking a class while the class teacher manages a situation, supporting directly with a child or providing support to allow staff reflection time after an incident.
Intervention and Therapy Team
This team are responsible for all specialist intervention throughout the school community, providing direct specialist intervention to children, implementing strategies, training staff and coordinating outside agency involvement, as well as providing an interface with families.
Head of Safeguarding & Vulnerable Learners (DSL)
The DSL is a full time member of staff responsible for the development and implementation of behaviour systems and strategies. They will support class teams, collaborating with them to develop person centered PPPs which provide clear guidance on the best working practice for the individual. The DSL and Pupil Participation Team will then monitor the impact of these plans by monitoring and processing incident reports to further develop working methods. The DSL is also an Advanced Team Teach Instructor and in this role provides formal Team Teach training.
Team Teach promotes and teaches de-escalation strategies and the reduction of risk and restraint, to support teaching, learning and caring, by increasing staff confidence and competence, in responding to behaviours that challenge, whilst promoting and protecting positive relationships.
For further information about Team Teach please speak to the DSL, alternatively go to www.teamteach.co.uk.
Headteacher
The Headteacher is responsible for reviewing this Behaviour Policy in conjunction with the Governing Body, giving due consideration to the school’s Statement of Behaviour Principles (Appendix A). The Headteacher will also review this policy.
The Headteacher also has the responsibility for giving fixed term or permanent exclusions to individual children if there is a serious incident and it is deemed the appropriate course of action.
The Headteacher will also ensure that the school environment encourages positive behaviour and that staff deal effectively with poor behaviour, and will monitor how staff implement this policy to ensure rewards and sanctions are applied consistently.
Governors
The Governing Body is responsible for reviewing and formally approving the written Statement of Behaviour Principles (Appendix A).
The Governing Body will also review this Behaviour Policy in conjunction with the Headteacher and monitor the policy’s effectiveness, holding the Headteacher to account for its implementation.
What is Challenging Behaviour?
Behaviour that challenges is a form of communication. It may be the only way in which the child can inform us that their needs are not being met. It is therefore important to view any change in the frequency, duration or intensity of challenges as an indication that something is wrong. For example a child who does not use speech to communicate may be indicating that they are in pain or that they are unhappy with the environment.
Challenging behaviour “Refers to behaviour of such an intensity, frequency or duration that the physical safety of the person or others is likely to be placed in serious jeopardy or behaviour which is likely to seriously limit or delay access to or use of ordinary community facilities”: Emerson, E (1995), cited in Emerson, E (2001, 2nd edition).
General Principles of Challenging Behaviour
Behaviour that challenges is functional, that is, it serves a purpose for the child.
The function may be one or more of the following:
When reviewing challenging behaviour staff will consider whether the behaviour causes concern that the child may be suffering in some way. If there is concern then staff will follow the Safeguarding Policy. There will also be consideration that the behaviour is signalling an unmet need. At this point it may be necessary to involve other agencies to support us in supporting the child.
Preventing Challenging Behaviour
Pupil Participation Plans (PPP) (Appendix C) will reflect the strengths and needs of the child. Information will be accurate and up to date. The PPP will provide strategies and guidance that enable staff to proactively support the child as well as a reactive measures should they challenge. The PPP will include details of the triggers that can cause challenging behaviour. This will enable staff to effectively manage situations that the child finds uncomfortable.
Primary Prevention
Action that should be taken to reduce the likelihood that challenging behaviour will occur.
Primary Prevention involves using our knowledge of the conditions that can give rise to challenges. If the conditions have been identified for a particular child, they can be manipulated to minimise the risk of challenges occurring. It is particularly important to avoid exposing a child to known triggers or conditions at times of increased stress. Where possible planned exposure of known triggers will be introduced to support the child to be as tolerant to these triggers as possible.
Secondary Prevention
Action that should be taken during the early stages of arousal, that is, at the first sign that something is going wrong.
It is important that staff are aware of the behaviour which may indicate that the person they are supporting is becoming agitated. Signs of agitation may include, for example, pacing, raised voice, change in facial expression or skin colour. However these signs are different for everyone and so it is vital that staff working with children know their individual signs.
Sensory Processing Needs
Sensory processing difficulties can impact on our pupil’s ability to self-regulate and manage their behaviour. Sensory processing is the ability to register, discrimate, adapt and respond appropriately, both physically and emotionally to sensory input from the environment. Class teams should ensure that they:
Understanding Self-Injurious Behaviour
Self-injurious behaviour is when a pupil harms themselves, it’s sometimes called self-harm. This might be head banging on floors, walls or other surfaces, hand or arm biting, hair pulling, face or head slapping, skin picking, scratching or pinching. The pupil may not have another way of telling adults their needs, wants or feelings. These behaviours may be a way of communicating frustration, getting an object or activity they want, managing anxiety, communicating discomfort or pain. When these behaviours are present the teacher will work with stakeholders to better understand these behaviours and find a way to prevent and replace these behaviours.
Adults supporting these behaviours will:
Descriptive Praise
When we tell people what exactly we like about what they are doing, we are reinforcing behaviours that we want to promote.
‘I like how you used your Toolkit to help you calm’ ‘I like that you asked for a break when you needed it’.
By giving positive feedback and personal recognition we raise self-esteem which can lead to positive behaviour for learning. All staff should be consistent and use clear language when acknowledging positive behaviour.
Responding to Challenging Behaviour
Winchelsea Rules for responding to Challenging Behaviour:
As a school community we prescribe to the Team Teach behaviour management approach and use a CALM approach:
Communicate, use visuals, minimal speech and keep voices low in tone and pace.
Assess, be aware of triggers, environmental hazards, life events, feelings and adjust expectations.
Listen to what the child is saying and not saying. Support them to make choices that help them.
Make it safe. Get support and change the face.
Covid-19
Where a child deliberately uses the possible infection of Covid-19 as a threat or actual event, for example deliberately coughing and/or spitting over someone, this will be treated as a serious breach of the Behaviour Policy. The school risk assessment and health and safety guidelines should be followed at all times. In addition to the triggering of instant hygiene and isolation procedures, full sanctions may apply, up to and including fixed term exclusion.
Where Parents/Carers or other responsible adults do not adhere to government guidance – particularly around social distancing and congregating on or near to Winchelsea the leadership team will communicate expectations using Schoolzine and the school website.
Repeated failure to adhere to the health and safety guidelines, specifically those around containing the virus may necessitate measures to remove (temporarily) or ban (permanently) individuals from the Winchelsea site. In these extreme cases the Headteacher will consult with the Local Authority to trigger the order.
Use of Time Out
Time-out lies within the continuum of interventions used to assist children to regulate and or control their behaviour. It is used as a proactive strategy to support self-calming and to provide an opportunity for children to reflect on their actions.
Time-out strategies are not to be used as punishment or as a means of removing children indefinitely from the classroom. Time-out may be teacher directed (imposed) or child selected (autonomous withdrawal), as a means of calming during a stressful situation within a safe and predictable environment.
Whilst in Time-out staff will always monitor children to ensure they are kept safe. Any use of imposed withdrawal will be reasonable and proportionate.
Delivery of Behaviour Management
As far as practically possible all staff coming into contact with children will be versed in the specific PPP. Clear plans that are communicated throughout the school community will ensure that all staff are aware of the most effective de-escalation techniques, along with the particular triggers that may provoke a reaction.
Any PPP involving physical restraint will be discussed with parents and carers before implementation, however the school is not required to seek parental consent to restrict a child. Time-out, along with physical intervention will never be used as a means of sanction or punishment.
Rewards and Sanctions
As a positive learning environment, our primary focus at Winchelsea is reward, and reinforcing Helpful Choices for Learning. As a school we aim to provide a consistently positive learning environment for all and do this by having whole school reward systems and being flexible to provide individual reward systems if needed.
Aims of Reward Systems
Whole School Rewards
At Winchelsea we recognise that children need consistency between one day and the next and that achievements need to be recognised beyond the classroom. We also aim to teach the value of working in a team and promote a feeling of unity and community amongst the children. The 12 Helpful Choices for Learning provide a framework of language that is used to support children to manage their feelings and be rewarded for their achievements. For this reason, we have the following whole school positive rewards:
Sanctions
Sanctions are sometimes necessary to help children understand that there is a consequence to their actions. Sanctions must be fair and support children to understand the consequences of their behaviour on others and also teach them a different way to manage the feelings when they have behaved inappropriately. We support the use of sanctions if they contribute to child’s social understanding, rather than being just a ‘punishment’.
It is for this reason that sanctions must be applied with fair warning, as close to the event as possible and with opportunity for success in the rest of the day. We also feel that once a sanction has been completed the discussion surrounding the behaviour is ‘finished’ and should not go home with the child unless otherwise agreed with the Parent/Carer or there has been a serious incident.
Sanctions will be most effective when:
Examples of possible sanctions are as follows (this list is neither hierarchical nor exclusive) however they are to be used as a last resort within a positive environment:
Rewards that have already been earned should not be removed or taken away as a sanction unless agreed in the PPP. Corporal punishment or the withdrawal of a child’s rights will never form part of a proactive / reactive strategy or sanction.
Exclusion
There is an expectation that all children will behave in a manner that does not jeopardise the safety and/or learning opportunities of others. If either are compromised it may be necessary to remove the child from the school community for a limited period of time. This is known as an exclusion. Exclusion, either fixed term or permanent is always used as a last resort. The decision to exclude remains the responsibility of the Headteacher. Winchelsea School works within the legal framework concerning exclusion as set out in the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. We will always aim to reintegrate a child back into the whole school community at the earliest opportunity. Please refer to the Exclusion Policy for more information.
Safety
Where circumstances arise that endanger the safety of a pupil or staff member, the school will act swiftly and decisively to remove the threat and reduce the likelihood of its reoccurrence.
Behaviour on School Trips
Prior to any trip taking place a full risk assessment is completed. The safety of children, staff and the public is of paramount importance. In some cases, the risk may be considered too high to allow the child to take part in the trip. If difficulties and challenging behaviour occur whilst on a school trip, then staff will employ all the training and expertise they have in order to resolve and calm the situation. Staff will also maintain regular contact with the school and Senior Leadership Team for guidance. It may be deemed necessary to return a child to the school vehicle until the trip is due to complete or return the child to school.
Zero-tolerance Approach to Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence
The school will ensure that all incidents of sexual harassment and/or violence are met with a suitable response, and never ignored.
Children are encouraged to report anything that makes them uncomfortable, no matter how ‘small’ they feel it might be.
The school’s response will be:
The school has procedures in place to respond to any allegations or concerns regarding a child’s safety or wellbeing. These include clear processes for:
Please refer to our Safeguarding Policy for more information.
Social Media
Children must not attempt to contact school staff via social media platforms. If a child attempts to make contact, then the child’s Parent/Carer will be contacted.
Malicious Allegations
Where a pupil makes an allegation against a member of staff and that allegation is shown to have been deliberately invented or malicious, the school will discipline the pupil in accordance with this policy.
Where a pupil makes an allegation of sexual violence or sexual harassment against another pupil and that allegation is shown to have been deliberately invented or malicious, the school will discipline the pupil in accordance with this policy.
In all cases where an allegation is determined to be unsubstantiated, unfounded, false or malicious, the school (in collaboration with the Local Authority Designated Officer, where relevant) will consider whether the pupil who made the allegation is in need of help, or the allegation may have been a cry for help. If so, a referral to children’s social care may be appropriate.
The school will also consider the pastoral needs of staff and pupils accused of misconduct.
Please refer to our Safeguarding Policy for more information on responding to allegations of abuse against staff or other pupils.
It may also be appropriate for the Police to be contacted and asked to consider whether any action might be appropriate against the person responsible. This is equally the case if a malicious allegation is received from a parent or carer.
Recording of Behaviour Management
Thorough recording of behaviours is the key to identify what the purpose of the behaviour is and thus giving validity to any Pupil Participation Plans adopted. Effective recording of behaviour also supports the following:
Reviewing Records
Review of the PPP and action taken as a matter of urgency in the following circumstances:
Risk Assessment
Effective risk assessment and risk management are important when supporting children who may challenge. The school community has a responsibility to maintain a safe working environment, protect children from harm and minimise risks. It is important to distinguish the assessment of and management of risk. Risk assessment involves identifying potentially hazardous behaviour, the possible consequences of that behaviour and the likelihood that the behaviour will occur. Risk management involves devising proactive and reactive strategies to minimise the possibility of the hazardous behaviour occurring. Good risk assessment and management is focused on maximising opportunities and will be detailed in the PPP.
Generic Risk Assessment
As part of the generic risk assessment and management process the school staff will:
Restorative Discussion
Following an incident, in particular one involving a physical intervention both staff and the child should be given opportunity to talk about what happened in a calm and supportive environment. Restorative discussions are designed to discover what happened and the effects on those around them. Restorative discussion should not be used to direct blame or punish but as opportunity to determine if there is reason to suspect injury or severe distress.
Restorative sessions need to be person centered around:
Restorative discussions are an attempt to recognise that a stressful incident has occurred and those involved need support to aid recovery. Below are our Winchelsea rules to restorative discussions:
Time
There can be no rule about choosing the right time. Positive listening and restorative discussion can only begin when the child is ready. It cannot be forced. Please ensure that there is sufficient time so that the process will not be rushed.
Environment
The choice of environment should be comfortable and a neutral area where people will not be disturbed. Remove barriers such as desks and ensure chairs are at the same height.
Listen
Part of being an active listener involves looking at body language and establishing a rapport – ‘Listen with your eyes’. Listening should be non-judgmental to obtain the fullest appreciation of the child’s account of what has happened. Understanding what the child’s perspective is the key to helping him/her learn from the incident.
Learn
Learning can take place without blame. After listening carefully staff can share other perspectives with a focus on how feelings drive behaviours in all of us. This stage should involve an exploration of how the child and staff can work together to reduce the chance of repetition.
Restorative discussions should always be pitched at the right level for the child. This could include use a variety of resources which support the child to understand what has happened. Staff should avoid using ‘why’ questions and use the school’s approach to colourful semantics to gain an understanding of who was there etc.
Any questions regarding any aspect of Behaviour Management including Physical Intervention should be directed to the Behaviour Lead who will liaise with other professionals as deemed necessary.
The school also has a separate Physical Intervention policy.
Feedback from the School Council
Members of the School Council have been consulted on this policy. Language from the policy was explained and modified where necessary to ensure understanding.
Main feedback points are detailed below:
Appendix A
Written Statement of Behaviour Principles
Every child has the right to feel safe, valued and respected, and learn free from the disruption of others.
All children, staff and visitors are free from any form of discrimination.
Staff and volunteers set an excellent example to pupils at all times.
Rewards, sanctions and reasonable force are used consistently by staff, in line with the Behaviour policy.
The Behaviour Policy is understood by pupils and staff.
The exclusions policy explains that exclusions will only be used as a last resort, and outlines the processes involved in permanent and fixed-term exclusions.
Pupils are helped to take responsibility for their actions.
Families are involved in behaviour incidents to foster good relationships between the school and pupils’ home life.
The Governing Body also emphasises that violence or threatening behaviour will not be tolerated in any circumstances.
This written statement of behaviour principles is reviewed and approved by the full Governing Body annually.