Behaviour
Expectations of Behaviour at Wantage CE Primary School
These expectations go alongside the Vale Academy Trust Behaviour Policy, which can be accessed on the Policies section of this website.
Please also refer to our Behaviour Blueprint, which can be found at the bottom of this page.
Standards of Behaviour
The school has a central role in children’s social and moral development as well as their academic development. Therefore, we must work towards standards of behaviour based on our core values of love, respect, hope, forgiveness, courage and thankfulness. It follows that acceptable standards of behaviour are those which reflect these values.
Our Aims Relating to Behaviour
- To create an environment which encourages and reinforces good behaviour based on mutual respect across the school community
- To promote high self-esteem, self-discipline and positive relationships
- To define acceptable standards of behaviour
- To encourage consistency of response to both positive and negative behaviour.
- To lead, guide and direct our pupils to own and be responsible for their own behaviour in the context of respecting the rights of others
- To ensure that all children and adults feel safe
- To ensure that the school’s expectations and strategies are widely known and understood.
Whole School expectations
We have three simple expectations that all children need to follow, which are:
“Ready, Respectful and Safe”
Our emphasis is on the positive reinforcement of good behaviour. This is achieved through:
- Praise; informal and formal, public and private, to individuals and groups
- Class Dojos
- Learning Powers stickers
- House points
- Certificates
- Postcards home
- Phone calls home
- Headteacher Awards
- Hot chocolate with the headteacher.
Consequences
Although rewards are central to the encouragement of good behaviour, sometimes there is a need for consequences to register the acknowledgement of unacceptable behaviour and to protect the safety and stability of the school community.
The system we follow is as follows:
Reminder: A reminder about our 3 school expectations: ready, respectful, safe.
Caution: A clear verbal caution given privately. e.g. “ I notice you are still not following the 3 expectations. I need you to…"
Last chance: A final opportunity for the pupil to make the right choice about their behaviour. e.g. “I notice you are… I need you to make the positive choice to… Do you remember when…?
This is who I need to see today. Thank you for…"
Time away: A short time away (10—15 minutes) outside the classroom. This is a few minutes for the child to calm down, breathe and compose themselves)
Repair: This could be a quick chat at breaktime or lunchtime or a more formal restorative conversation.
For serious behaviour incidents, or for repeated incidents, we may use an internal suspension, which would involve time away from class for a morning or afternoon session.
We may also use a formal fixed term suspension from school, or permanent exclusion, as described in the VAT Suspensions and Exclusions Policy.