Pupil life

Safeguarding and pastoral care

 
       Bleuenn Morvan 

Our Values or “Learning Super Powers”

At Ecole Jacques Prévert, we know that if children are not happy, they cannot learn.  Pastoral care is central to our school.  Our highly-bilingual family atmosphere and Learning Superpower framework are unique and something of which we are very proud.  It is this, combined with our strong pedagogical approach, which infuses Jacques Prévert with a very special feel.
 
Our pupils have their very own Learning Light SABRE:

These values were agreed by all staff and pupils, who agree that it is by harnessing these powers that Ecole Jacques Prévert is the special place pupils, parents and colleagues know and love.  Pupils even helped to design the superheroes, which embody these qualities.

Strong academic achievement does not crowd out moral development for pupils in an education where we encourage a love of learning that goes beyond what is taught.  We believe that children learn best when they feel confident and supported, liked and respected as individuals and when their areas of talent and challenge are recognised and supported by the adults around them.  We believe that hard work can make a difference to what you can achieve.  At Ecole Jacques Prévert, we focus on a growth mindset, developing habits of learning that encourage pupils to become engaged learners with characteristics that support them when they face challenges. 

Through this positive approach to learning and behaviour management, we imbue children with a sense of self-worth and responsibility. Our Learning Superpower SABRE, which underpins all teaching and learning, ensures that:

• Pupils are ready to learn
• Pupils feel safe and know they have someone to talk to when they are worried
• Pupils find peaceful ways to resolve issues and use positive language when they talk to each other 
• Pupils share their ideas freely and are motivated to try their best to be the very best versions of themselves
• Pupils take responsibility for their actions to enable the best learning for everyone

• Clear, consistent expectations                  
• Modelling expected values to pupils and between staff
• Praising and rewarding good choices
• Celebrating achievements

• Star of the Week award
• Our prominent WOW WALL which celebrates experiential learning enrichment at Ecole Jacques Prévert
• Entry into Ecole Jacques Prévert’s Gold Book with subsequent communication to parents and appearance on the website news site
• SABRE awards  

We hope our Learning Super Powers will equip pupils with character traits that will enable them to be successful learners and prepare them for a politically, economically and environmentally evolving future. 

 
This is the mindset that we want to foster at Jacques Prévert. For things that pupils find difficult, we encourage them to say, “I just can’t do it… yet!”  

Discipline at Ecole Jacques Prévert

We are proud to say that pupils at Jacques Prévert behave very well. Our most recent 2022 Ofsted report graded behaviour as outstanding. 

Staff, parents and pupils are united in a desire for optimal learning.  In the event of a breach of our school values, prompt, proportionate action is taken.  The process for this is outlined in our Behaviour Policy.  Pupils are at the heart of staff behaviour.  Staff are just as responsible for modelling the Learning Super Powers as pupils.  The staff are well-supported in pastoral matters by the Head and Deputy Head with responsibility for safeguarding and pastoral care.

We are an inclusive family-feel school where everyone is valued for what they bring to Jacques Prévert.  We celebrate differences, aiming to provide the perfect balance of support and stretch.

Pastoral Care in Practice

Form Teachers, subject specialists, support staff and Senior Leaders take their responsibility of getting to know the pupils individually and as a group seriously.  They notice and deal with any individual or group worries or issues that may arise.

Being a small family-feel school means pupils are known well by all members of staff.  We provide an environment where pupils are taught to be “Safe and Sound”: where they know to whom they can turn should they need to do so.

Our commitment to pastoral care is as valued as their academic progress. We have a Pastoral Deputy Head, as well as a nurturing hands-on Head.  The Pastoral Deputy Head and Designated Safeguarding Lead is Mrs Claire Weber. She, along with the Head, ensures that the policies and procedures for Pastoral Care and Safeguarding are in place and the Senior Leadership Team is always available should parents or pupils wish to see them.  

The pastoral care of pupils is of paramount importance and all staff are committed to ensuring that every pupil is well cared for and that any concerns they may have are addressed.  We keep an internal record of concerns and operate an open-door policy for parents and children.

What is the end result?

The most important thing, we believe, is that the pupils who leave Jacques Prévert are confident, creative, tenacious, willing to express themselves, autonomous, benevolent, respectful and have a growth mindset.  They achieve success, no matter what their starting point.

The secondary schools lucky enough to acquire a Prévert pupil after CM2 often remark upon their benevolence, respectfulness, autonomy and unwavering efforts. 

Pupils at Jacques Prévert are very kind to each other. There are occasional quarrels but our values and ethos enable pupils to genuinely value, like and respect each other.  They make for a tangibly happy family atmosphere which we all value so much.